The Little Bird, Exploring Big Emotions Through A Little Bird

Voiceover

Presenter(s)

Meg Robinson

Abstract or Description

The Little Bird Mini Artist’s Book is an investigation of themes interpreted from the Annie Lennox song, Little Bird. The familiarity of the lyrics immediately struck me. We were exhausted. The world was and still is overheating, a global pandemic held us still, and it seemed as if the door to childhood had been slammed shut. Her lyrics described comparison, burdens, and resilience all at once. I was just as hopeless as the little bird in her song, but I still felt the gutteral call found in, “Mamma, we reap what we sow”. Thus the visual story of The Little Bird began. To unearth the hope that Lennox slyly convinces you is still there, I knew I needed to play. I needed to get wild, get sad, and release all of the past few years' experiences. Jumbled yet justified collage and interactive type work to visualize overlapping layers of sorrow and joy. This piece consists of magazine cutouts, scrap fabric, and to-do lists from my own weekly planners. These parts were compiled into physical page layouts that were then scanned and reprinted for digital and hard-back copies. While creating this piece the world changed, as it should. It will always change, burdens will come and burdens will go. Yet, through this Little Bird, I induced that our ability to play is what remains. We can confront complex emotions by playing. If you need to play to feel a little better go right ahead and just see what you might grow.