Claire Brewster

I discovered Claire Brewster and her glorious birds, insects and flowers when I visited The First Cut exhibition at the Manchester Art Gallery. All work that was displayed was created out of paper from all walks of life. There were old junk food bags cut up, magazines and books all made into new sculptures and pieces of art. One of my favourite however, was Claire Brewster's birds that were flying across the walls. All the birds were cut out of old maps, which is what initially intrigued me, but the birds were displayed on pins which created a separate silhouette, it made them look as though they were alive.

Brewster is perfect for my project because looking at a map is subconsciously often the start of planning a journey. Birds are well known for travelling long distances and by separating them from the map, it looks as though they are flying over the towns and cities. By cutting the birds out and separating them from the terrain of the map, it has brought a new dimension to the piece. Brewster has inspired me to use maps in my own work, and I would like to explore using silhouettes by cutting into the map itself.