The garden ornaments show an in between state, they are physical things but they are there to represent the mental. Each animal can change the context of the photograph depending on a person's upbringing. To me the rabbit and the toad are linked to Alice in Wonderland, a story about a girl who goes to a magical land through a rabbit hole. The toad also reminds me of witches as in medieval times they were known as their familiars, and in modern times they are one of animals that witches and wizards could take to Hogwarts. Owls are connected to the Greek gods, specifically Athena as they are one of her symbols. The myths that these gods appear in talk of grand adventures and abilities far beyond our own. The dragon is the only animal in these photographs that is fictional, but even so they appear in some form or another in the majority of ancient myths, from China to Egypt to England. The one most well known to me is St George slaying the dragon to save the princess.
Wonderland and Tea Party got their names from Alice in Wonderland, Akhekh is a type of dragon from Egyptian myth that was meant to reside in the Nile valley and Glaukopis is part of the name for Athena when she is in her owl form.
As the fairies are both a fictional creation and are digitally placed within the photograph they represent the mental state. Mental strength is the less obvious kind strength, but it is often the strength that is needed to most, especially in a pandemic where many have been isolated from friends and family. As a way to show the year of the pandemic so far I decided to have a photograph for each month, and each photograph has been named for its respective month. The fairy in each one is also from that season, primrose for spring, scabious for summer, crab-apple for autumn and burdock for winter. Each fairy is small so that in print they are harder to see, linking to how you can't always see someone's mental strength.
