I finished carving my little lino yesterday evening, with a Mari Lwyd design from an original drawing en plein air. So today, off to Swansea Print Workshop to print it up. I used Caligo / Cranfield Safe Wash Relief ink with a Hosho Japanese paper and some recycled sari silk paper for the chine collé to add flashes of colour. Traditionally, the Mari is decorated with coloured ribbons to contrast with the white skull and shroud.
From left to right: Inking the block; applying the chine collé with Pritt stick glue; rubbing the back of the paper with a traditional Japanese baren.
And finally, a Massive of Mari’s. I don’t know if there’s an official collective noun, but I think Massive is cool.
If you want to read more about the ancient Welsh tradition of the Mari Lwyd, just click here .
And here.
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There’s a gathering of Mari Lwyds at Chepstow Wassail on January 19th – here’s a lovely short film about it … http://chepstowwassailmari.co.uk/
Well done Rosie! Happy holidays.
Nadolig Llawen – happy holidays to you too, Sharon x
I just wanted to wish a happy and a healthy Rosie…you and hubby take care we can only hope for a happy newer year
Thank you, Sheldon 🙂
I love them!!… are you supposed to love Mari Lwyd? She has such a jaunty, manic look!
I love her, she’s mischievous rather than evil. There’s a ‘gathering’ of Mari’s at Chepstow on January 19th so I’m going along to draw.
Oh what a shame it’s on that date! Chepstow’s only an hour away but we’re going to be at the other side of the country at a wedding! I’ll enjoy your drawings though!
What a pity. Never mind, they do it every year. I’m really looking forward to it. Apparently the Welsh Mari Lwyds and the English Morris Dancers meet halfway across the bridge over the Wye.
OH that would be fantastic to see! I have a friend who’s in the Morris, I wonder if he’s going? I must ask!
It will be my first visit. I only got interested in Morris recently