A NEW work by an international artist in residence on the Rame Peninsula will be on public view this weekend.

Maker Moons is the latest large scale piece by John K Lawson (aka JKL) and is currently installed at his studio at Maker Heights.

Students from the Plymouth College of Art and Design have collaborated on the artwork.

JKL spent much time living in New Orleans, and he is known, particularly in the states, for his use of discarded Mardi Gras beads and later, items reclaimed from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, in his art. After the floods destroyed his own home and studio, he salvaged 25 yearsÕ worth of sketches, photographs and personal documents, incorporating them into a series of artworks using a technique called encaustic.

Another recurring symbol in the artist’s work is that of the waxing and waning moon, and in this latest piece, he wanted to combine this with a celebration of the Rame Peninsula’s connection with the sea.

’Since returning to the Rame Peninsula in 2014 I have wanted to make a piece celebrating the maritime history of this area with her docks, boat yards, navy and ferries, fishermen and pleasure seekers - and at the same time somehow capture the millions of individual memories both past and present associated with living and working alongside water,’ said JKL.

’Thanks to the Maker Trust, Somerville Gallery and Stephen Felmingham at Plymouth School of Art and Design I was given the thumbs up,’ he continued.

’I asked the students to contribute personal memorabilia such as letters, old photographs, maps and family cards to be gathered and placed over the unpainted moon phases.

’We then drew iconic visual images associated with the area in the form of silhouettes, as if hovering like hand shadows over our memories. Pigments were then made from soil and clay found in the area and added to the wax before painting in my studio.’

During an event at Maker this week, the first viewing of Maker Moons was accompanied by a poetry reading by Plymouth poet Dave Wooley.

Today, (Friday, April 29) students from Plymouth will be visiting the studio, which will also be open to the public tomorrow and Sunday (May 1) from 2pm to 6pm.

JKL hopes that the artwork will then be placed publicly in Plymouth as part of the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower