Primordial Fire

The meaning and association behind the use of the metal lead in Alchemy was particularly fascinating for me. Lead is representative of a base material, of matter in its most primeval state. The process of alchemy is centred on the transformation of lead, through stages of filtration and disstillation, until finally reaching gold. Lead is therefore representative of beginnings and undeveloped states of mind.

I use black and clear leaded glass to create this series, to capture this notion of a primordial mysterious material, that is essentially formless. Blackness, heaviness and density are features related to the physical properties and behaviours of lead, but can also be used to express the charactoristic of a leaden or 'Saturnine' personality.