The cats meow
Cats almost seem otherworldly to me, hunting at night and always choosing their own direction. Yet, they are intertwined with humankind - an untamed piece of nature living among us, playing a part in our culture, beliefs and superstitions for thousands of years.
The convergence of nature and culture, unpredictability and control, has been my focus in choosing the pictures for this series. However, I willingly admit that part of my reasoning in working with and selecting these prints is more down-to-earth—I enjoy working with the soft lines of feline figures and the straight, hard lines that define the buildings.
I hope you'll enjoy!
Top of Mind
Working with AI can be unpredictable. Sometimes, a small mistake in the prompt will lead you in an unexpected direction. It happened here—but I fell in love with the idea of the connection between the person and the cat and used the result to create this work. I think we all know the someone so preoccupied with an animal, a subject, or a hobby that they almost become one.
The omen
There's something ominous about this picture. The orange light in the sky and in the windows, the almost mausoleum-like buildings in the background... or maybe it is just me seeing it as a Scandinavian. In our neck of the woods, a black cat traditionally means bad luck—but I know that they are an omen of good luck in other parts of Europe and the world. So feel free to read your own, more positive story in this picture!
Cat/woman
Just like some elderly couples, people and their pets sometimes grow to look more like each other. Here the features seem to have shifted: the woman is getting more catlike, while the cat is growing somewhat human. The light resembling flames and the crooked angles add to the mystery of it all.
The long way home
Buildings are some of my favourite elements to work with. They contain stories that are up to the viewer to decode. What waits at the end of the stairs?
Listen, the Stars Are Singing
Almost every night, my granddaughter is sung to sleep with the classic Danish lullaby 'Solen er så rød mor,' a quiet song told from the child's perspective, registering the sounds from outside, such as 'listen, mom, the little cat is meowing, it wants to be let in' before ending with the child falling asleep with the words 'Listen, the stars are singing, they are singing me to sleep.' I have tried to convey the safety of the house and the 'scary' and strange outdoors in this homage to the beautiful lullaby.
Urban Jungle
"Little cat, little cat, walking so alone; tell me whose cat are you – 'I'm damned well my own.'" The Danish poet Piet Hein wrote small poems called grooks, and this one is probably the most famous, at least in Denmark. The independent spirit and grace seem to be a big part of the attraction to cats. Here I have tried to capture both – while also telling the story of how these wild animals are also a part of our urban landscapes.