Never Twice

The artworks of Felicity Warbrick

Felicity Warbrick: Crown of Light

Felicity Warbrick's art represents nature and, in contrast, what it means to be human. She features found objects and photos, dwellings, and natural items like trees, twigs, and branches.

Her work and processes pay homage to the ancient Greek pre-Socratic philosopher Heraclitus ( c. 500 BC), who lived in Ephesus, part of the Persian Empire. Heraclitus is described as a flux theorist because he believed in materialism, the idea that matter always changes.

He said—

No wo/man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river, and s/he's not the same wo/man.

This quote reflects the impermanence and ever-changing nature of life. He understood that the world shifted constantly, and nothing stayed the same. Because of his despair at human nature and his propensity for melancholy, he is referred to as the "weeping philosopher."

Felicity Warbrick: Tint Island (detail)

Like Felicity, Heraclitus' work explores the unity of opposites. In her case, it is human versus nature rather than the battle to balance harmony and justice in strife. A constant challenge for humans is working with nature, not against it. To express these concepts, she employs original print techniques called Mono-Printing ('mono' meaning one). Once she has created her imagery, be it using woodcut, drypoint or soap methods, each imprint is unique due to the variation in the pressure of ink and the impermanence of the soap, which can produce no more than six images. There is repetition yet difference, further echoing Heraclitus.

She says–

The mono-print drawing process only picks up a limited detail, and the soap can only be carved to a certain thickness before it becomes too fragile to handle.

Fragility and vulnerability are themes that recur in her works, and both are reflected in the characteristics of human beings and nature. Architecture and history are significant to her as a creative resource. Inspiration also comes from found images captured while travelling through landscapes on train journeys, as well as her extensive collection of early souvenir travel books, discarded postcards and photograph albums. Her original prints portray a powerful cinematic quality due to composition, tonal palette and subject matter.

Felicity Warbrick: She-He