Overview

Myths in Isolation is a gorgeous art book with new folk tales, myths and fantasy stories inspired by the artworks of Katherine Soutar. The book is a collective response to the 2020 pandemic. In a state of desperation, the artist began creating a painting each day of mythological creatures from A-Z. The images express the way the artist herself was feeling on the day that she created them. Sharing them on social media, excitement grew. A suggestion to make the stories into a book from Katherine's publisher-to-be, Tom Muir, sparked a flurry of stories from some talented authors. The original artwork blends beautifully with the stories written especially for them by sixteen different authors. One special chapter features the unicorn, the story of which is Katherine's own: a song written by her deceased husband, the great folk singer-songwriter and guitarist Bill Caddick - ""Unicorns"". The original folklore running through these tales and images shines like a bright thread connecting the old with the new, art with story and resonates with the universality of people everywhere. Although this book features 26 full-color illustrations, it is not a children's storybook but a collection of wildly creative ""myths"" for our day arising out of an unusual time and with much to say to us today. The original folklore themes running through the tales like a bright thread connect the old with the new, art with story. Myths in Isolation is a book for our time and a book for all times, as all the best folk tale books always are.

Full Product Details

9781915075239

Table of Contents

Reviews

'I've always loved Katherine Soutar's art, and this collection of stories inspired by her luminous work is utterly enchanting. Weaving word and image to bring folklore to life, Myths in Isolation touches the soul and creates true magic.' Terri Windling, author, artist, editor 'This is a really special collection of fascinating mythology, bound together by the wonderfully rich and bewitching illustrations of Katherine Soutar. Haunting, dream-like, half in shadow, yet beautifully lit, they somehow capture all the mystery and magic of these timeless tales.' James Mayhew, author & illustrator 'I've been a fan of Katherine Soutar Caddick for most of my life, so I knew this would be book a treasure and I wasn't disappointed. I love the premise of this book. We are used to an illustrator responding to written work - here the starting point is reversed. The creatures exquisitely rendered by Katherine are the inspiration for storytellers and authors. Katherine's creatures capture perfect moments, the authors let them move, stretch out, give them life and a story. The stories come from a wide variety of authors - from vibrant new voices to storytellers with decades of experience. The stories layer to create a diverse tapestry woven together by the continuous threads of Katherine's distinctive detailed style and an all-pervading sense of wonder. It is a book of mood pictures and moon dreams, moments of magic that have slipped through from the Otherworld. There are starlit sprinkled selkies dancing on pink sand; imps playing with pigeons while the Yeti looks out from the shadows between the fires. This book was born in isolation and uncertainty, in a time when the world stopped. It grew in a rare communal moment of quiet contemplation and re-evaluation. It encapsulates the feelings of that time - anxiety, appreciation of the world around us and the importance of community and human contact. The pages of this book are filled with mystical creatures, but it is quintessentially about what it is to be human. This is a book of wistful beauty, melancholy magic and yearning, bound together with golden threads of hope. And when they asked me why I wept Like one who for his dead love mourns The only answer I could give I dreamed that there were unicorns' Amy Douglas, traditional performance storyteller and author

Author Information

Katherine has been drawing ever since she could hold a pencil, filling the interiors of her father's books with fantastical animals until her exasperated parents managed to impress upon her that only 'blank' paper was for drawing on. She specialises in themes of folklore and storytelling; making these narratives visible is her passion. She works primarily in watercolour and inktense on paper, but also uses mixed media. She is a cover artist for the History Press 'Folk Tales' and 'Ghost Tales' series and also works with individual storytellers on their projects. When Katherine is not drawing, she shares her love of art and story with others by running workshops in the UK and in her other home in Morocco.

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