‘Ring a ring o Roses’
£2,200.00
Red Earth Designs’ exhibition piece is based on the old nursery rhyme Ring of Roses. It is a pathway linking the past and present by depicting our favourite nursery rhyme in a playful yet slightly dark way using doll heads cast from a tiny tears doll. She was the makers’ favourite doll to play with while they were growing up and is a very iconic doll of their era.
The circle/ring is a nod to the original meaning of the nursery rhyme depicting the black plaque, complete with the death mask and rat which points to death…the roses follow a circular path and close up as the circle goes round, the dolls eyes become closed as they fall backwards with each figure leaning more than the last until they fall down.
The circle is a pathway through life, like the saying goes, ‘you’ve come full circle’. With this in mind, Karen and Claire used an old whiskey barrel lid for the base. Interestingly this piece reflects pathways back to our past and again to the future, directly relating to the covid pandemic we have all just endured.
The makers chose this particular nursery rhyme because of the relevance to today’s situation and the fear that the next pandemic could be much worse. A pathway which will be revealed….
The heads are cast in porcelain and are seamlessly attached to a hand built base, which has hand stamped text filled with colour. Handmade and stoneware glazed porcelain flowers are attached to each doll. The dolls are available to purchase individually as well – please contact the gallery for more details.
