Anchoress

Single colour (black) linocut
Hand printed on 300gsm Somerset white paper with deckled edges.
Approx A3 size.

Limited Edition of 25.

The Anchoress depicted is Julian of Norwich, shown here to be writing down visions she experienced when seriously ill, now known as Revelations of Divine Love, which are the earliest surviving English language works known to be written by a woman, they are also the only surviving English language works by an anchoress.

In 1373, aged 30 and believing to be on her deathbed, Julian received a series of visions or 'shewings' of the Passion of Christ. Julian lived in permanent seclusion as an anchoress in her cell, which was attached to St Julian's Church, Norwich. The most well known message present within the texts is a reassurance from Jesus on the existence of sin win the world:

‘It was necessary that there should be sin; but all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.'

The overarching message is that with love, everything will turn out alright in the end - but the text also touches upon some unusual interpretations on the trinity and also a conclusion Julian later comes to is that God must be female to be able to fully understand suffering and sacrifice - a controversial standpoint now, let alone in 1300s.

In March 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the experiences of Julian and other anchorites were cited in advice for people around the world newly discovering self-isolation. Janina Ramirez was quoted by BBC News, saying that
"Julian was living in the wake of the Black Death, and around her repeated plagues were re-decimating an already depleted population. I think she was self-isolating. The other anchorites would have understood that by removing themselves from life this would not only give them a chance of preserving their own life but also of finding calm and quiet and focus in a chaotic world."