Screenprint
2 layers
2020
55 × 35 cm
12
I was one of those people that adopted cats during lockdown just for the relief of new sounds in the house. We weren’t allowed to meet them in advance because of restrictions but we were told they were two friendly black stray kittens. When we went to pick them up they casually mentioned that they were ‘still adjusting’ and that they had been part of a litter of 5, born in Ilford in a back garden, raised on rice left in piles around them by a caring yet uninformed woman who lived there.
Following a fox attack their three siblings were killed and their mum darted, so they were left alone and scared. Adjusting turned out to be an understatement, they made us feel like intruders in our own home, hissing when we'd walk in a room, flaying little paws attacking our gentle pats, and shitting in places that had no business being shitted in.
I made this print as an imaginary future scenario where we would all be sitting and having fun together. As for a 2022 update, they are pretty cuddly now and we do have fun but sometimes I see Gryff’s eyes narrow as he looks out the window and watches the wind through the leaves and am sure he is remembering the rustle of an attack.