When Blockforest, the artistic persona of printmaker Mike Black, was asked if his work Call of the Batsquatch could be used on the cover of mythologist and modern-day bard, Dr Martin Shaw’s upcoming book Smoke Hole, he was beyond thrilled. As an artist who draws great inspiration from myth, legend, and folklore, Mike felt his work was a natural fit to the themes being explored in Martin’s book.
Smoke Hole is a work of literary activism, where Martin shares three ancient stories that are metaphors for our world today; a world assailed by the seductive promises of social media and shadowed by a pandemic that has brought loneliness and isolation to an all-time high. Martin invites readers to use these stories to help find “a commons for the imagination”, a place to breathe deeper, feel steadier, and become acquainted with rapture. Smoke Hole is a passionate call to arms and an invitation to use “the old stories” to face the complexities of contemporary life.
Blockforest’s original linocut print was inspired by the American urban legend of the Batsquatch, a flying cryptid, resembling a primate or bat, derived from a portmanteau of the words ‘bat’ and ‘sasquatch’. It was said to have been sighted around the time of the Mount St Helens eruption in the 80s, with some saying the natural catastrophe even caused its appearance.
“I’m fascinated by ancient tales and modern myth, and the Batsquatch is just another in a great line of supernatural creatures, from Mothman to the Ahool of Java, that fuel the imagination and haunt your dreams. Part of the allure of these stories and creatures for me, is that there’s something primal and magical about them. They’re part of nature but also other, alien and unknowable, which makes them so radical when compared to today’s all too real and often banal human-dominated world.”
The books message of using myths and legends as guides to navigate contemporary life struck a chord with Mike, who hopes others will find it as inspiring as he does, wholeheartedly agreeing with Martin’s call to readers that they “use this book as a conduit to the truth found in wilderness and beauty” in a world weighed down by politics and the pandemic.
The cover for Smoke Hole was put together by award-winning designer Luke Bird, for Chelsea Green Publishing and will be published on 20th May 2021 internationally.
Prints of Blockforest’s original linocut piece is available here.
Pre-order Smoke Hole here.
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