Naming My Show: Devon Light – A Search for Place
Mood: Hopeful | Post Type: Artist Reflections | Weeks Until Show: 55
It was one of those 3 o'clock in the morning ideas. My first ever pendant I sold was called Devon Light. I loved the name; however, it felt too generic. But what does Devon light really mean?
A Winding Journey to Devon
We moved to Devon in the summer of 2022 — not our original plan. For a decade before, we had spent nearly every holiday on the west coast of Scotland searching for a place to call home. We returned to some islands two or three times. In October 2021, we sold our house in Gloucestershire and moved in with my folks.
The idea of Scotland didn’t sit well with our families — the distance, the isolation, and the realisation that our parents were aging. When we mentioned Devon, there was a collective sense of relief.
We viewed a house on Dartmoor — a work in progress, but the surrounding landscape looked so much like the west coast of Scotland that it just felt right.
Scorhill Stone Circle on a quiet December hike — a moment of stillness and stone.
Rooted, Sort Of
Having grown up nomadically, I never truly felt I had roots — and not much changed into adulthood. But my grandmother was proudly Devonian, and I like my cream teas the same way (cream then jam), so perhaps that quarter-Devon blood runs deep.
I’ll never forget the builder who came to the house early on and called me a 'blow-in'. It wasn’t meant unkindly, and I took it with humour. When I proudly claimed I was a quarter Devonian, he replied: 'You’ll need two dead grandmothers in a local graveyard to count!'
Naming the Show
There’s something about this county. Every time my husband and I cross the border from Somerset into Devon on the M5, we actually whoop — full hand gestures and everything. I’m sure we alarm a few drivers.
So, what does all this have to do with my solo show? Quite a lot, really. Although I know maybe 0.1% of Devon, this exhibition is a starting point — a way to push that number higher through exploration and creation.
For now, my working title is: Devon Light – A Search for Place
It’s still taking shape — I’ll be sitting with it over the coming weeks to see if it continues to feel right. Like the work itself, the title is part of the process.
This show is more than a collection of work — it’s a way of exploring place, belonging, and identity. It’s about deepening my connection to the landscape and reflecting on what belonging means after a life of moving around. The process captures an ongoing journey — of discovering identity and allowing place to help shape it.