A fine anatomical agony: Mouth wide open portcullis-like Tongue, teeth, tonsils hang Eyes closed like smooth marble stones It’s all in the head. Shriek. Skelloch. Der Shrei der Natur. The Scream of Nature. Skrik. (‘Skrik’ is Norwegian for Shriek) © Loretta Mullholland From A Cabinet of Curiosities: Reimagining Rare Books. A disparate trove of pieces created by students Read More
Silence echoes through the village. Eyes look down as I pass, like cars dipping headlights. It is dark. I see Johanna, my friend. Fingers on my arm. Her touch warms me. She looks to my side as if half-expecting Maria to be there. We don’t speak. My eyes follow a bird, a robin I think, Read More
Dear Mrs Brooksbank, You would be pleased to know that Allan Ramsay’s reputation endures. His poetry is remembered on the wall of Greyfriars Kirk; his face gazes out fondly across Princes Street at pilgrims journeying through this city on their cultural quests. What was your connection to him? Were you, like him, a Stuart sympathiser. Read More
Because the world is so faithless, I go my way in mourning. (Pieter Bruegel) Paintings ask viewers to do many things, like how to see them in their time. No names help color Bruegel’s staring scene, make sense of bending people with blunt faces and harsh clothes. Bruegel’s Adoration does not adore the child Read More
The story so far… Spring 2014: Twenty-year-old Agnes Bee has received notification that her husband, Dougie, has started divorce proceedings. (They married because Agnes was pregnant, but the baby died late in the pregnancy.) Agnes is chronically depressed. She wants to change her life but doesn’t know where to begin. Her best friend, Kath suggests they Read More
Francis buzzes the front door. The two of you wait outside for a while. He buzzes again. You lift the shopping bag that dangles from your wrist and switch hands. Letting it hang against your thigh, you can feel the condensation from the cold beers inside it. You’re about to pull out your phone Read More
Ascension Legend has it that the success of Led Zepplin’s Stairway To Heaven was an accident. It proved the perfect length of time to enjoy a cigarette, and DJs apparently took full advantage; the song became part of late night sacraments. Twists of life are perpetual; spinning us like blindfolded ballerinas into the next Read More
Red! Why red? It reminds me of danger, stop signs and post boxes. My biggest problem with red may have been the fact I was the only one in the school not in red. I moved around counties, towns and schools so often I suppose it made sense to have one uniform that ‘sort Read More
You say you loved me long before the draw. Not that it matters, but I’m sure you did – You fed your pleas to Hydra’s lantern jaw, and softly cried beneath this sleepless lid. Meanwhile my own resistance left the stage. My genuflected smile declared our peace – A stone-cold fear lurked on Read More
“We can’t just leave you on your own Mrs Harris,” the middle-aged policewoman said, pulling what she probably thought was her most genuine looking empathetic face, maintaining eye contact and smiling constantly, but being careful to make sure her smile was not too happy. Paula hated her. “We have a duty of care, you Read More