Celtic Moon Design are Sara & Andrew Mc Murray-Day.
We are two Welsh Artist/Designers currently living
and working in
the tranquil setting of the North Leitrim Glens
in Ireland.
The birth of Celtic Moon Design was a coming together
of ideas. Having always loved magical artwork, the sort you would find in
lavishly illustrated fairytale books as a child, I wanted to re-create the
magic in my own style. I had been an avid artist throughout my years at
school and had dreamed of becoming an illustrator like Hilda Boswell or
Arthur Rackham, but although I could portray characters well, I could never
find the idea's to elaborate their surroundings.
It was during a visit to the town of Glastonbury
in autumn 1994 when the trees were starting to shed their leaves and the
grounds of the Abbey were alive with the golden colours of the season, that
we were reading the inscription on the grave of King Arthur; A red squirrel
came out from a collection of leaves on the grave, picked up a small nut
and after a few minutes of chewing, scampered off towards the trees. Convinced
that this occurence had some sort of mystical explanation, we left the Abbey
with the confidence that something wonderful was about to happen.
In a narrow alleyway known as The Glastonbury Experience
is a shop called Pendragon. Inside we found a book by Welsh artist Courtney
Davis entitled 'Celtic Borders & Decoration.' It was this book that
was to change the course of my life. I had spent years looking for this
inspiration and suddenly, here it was; elaborate designwork mixed with colourful
characters of British and Irish legend.
With the help of my husband Andrew we created our
first set of designs entitled 'Images Of Albion,' three characters from
the Arthurian legends to celebrate those who were the inspiration through
which our dreams were realised. We had them printed as greeting cards and
were amazed at how well they were received. Since then we have spent every
spare moment thinking and working towards our goal. Our move in april 1996
from our birth place in Wales to the North West of Ireland at the time seemed
rather reckless, but it has turned out to be the greatest adventure imaginable.
Leaving a comfortable large home with central heating and double glazing
for a three roomed cottage with a smoky range and draughts you wouldn't
believe may not seem like a great idea, but now we would not swap for the
world. Since our arrival in Leitrim our work has taken on a more spiritual
nature, as you can see in 'The Celtic Year.' This is a chart based around
the seasons and natural cycles of the the year. It explores the way our
ancestors lived in conjunction with them and how they read the seasons and
prepared for them. The Chart has a key which explains everything, as to
look at it, although it is quite enchanting, it could prove confusing if
you are unfamiliar with some of the terms or features. This has proved our
most popular piece so far and has received some wonderful comments from
around the world.
On this site you will see many designs. Most are
for sale and all were designed by ourselves. At present we are working on
a set of Celtic rubber stamps for a Northern Irish company, when they are
complete we will post some of them on the site.
In April 1999 'New Visions In Celtic Art' will
be published by Cassell plc. It is an anthology of some of the best Celtic
Art around at the moment. A selection of our designs have been included
and we are anxiously awaiting it's release.
Please feel free to Email us with any comments
or thoughts.
