Alexandra de Steiguer
Looking Seaward
“The island I live on is small, fronting the seas with high ledge, stark expanses, and old buildings scattered about as if cast
by the winds. I feel small within this setting of endless water
and sky, where time stretches out in all directions from this
one tiny point. “
Since the 1600’s the Isles of Shoals have hosted a variety of communities; rugged fishing villages, grand nineteenth century hotels, marine research facilities, and the summer conferences of today. But in winter, the Shoals are deserted. That’s when Alexandra de Steiguer arrives. Alone, she keeps watch over the buildings and grounds and natural elements – the winter caretaker.
“Living for so long in this place of elemental beauty has made me deeply aware of the connections that exist everywhere, whether they are apparent, or only sensed. My work and my life are inspired by these connections - between sea and sky, grass and wind, past and present… In exploring this, I’ve come to realize a simple need – to feel connected.”
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>> Watch NH Chronicle: Star Island Through the Snow
"The sea sweeps around the islands along the tide’s dark edge, softening and blurring their contours. Though ancient, the rocks and high ledges carry lightly the weight of time, spreading it throughout centuries of incremental wear. The sky, too, sweeps over and past the islands, joining with the sea in a far-off horizon.
In winter the Isles of Shoals could exist within any time. Look east, and there the primal ocean rolls, to the west – modern civilization glints along the distant mainland, while all around the islands, old and empty buildings stand sparsely in the harsh wind, fronting the winters of still another century. Time seems both frozen and fluid here, immediate and endless. Standing on the high bluffs, gazing outward, I feel in the company of ages.
In living alone on an island through sixteen winters, I come face to face with immensity – sea and sky and solitude. This has deeply affected the way I approach the work, and so while these images may at first seem to express the beauty of connection and place, what I also strive to illustrate is an overpowering sense that's easy to feel here, but harder to pin down; the insignificance of self in relation to the whole – the sublime."
During her 17 winters living alone as the caretaker on Star Island, Alexandra de Steiguer has documented her experience in words and pictures and shares it all in her new book, Small Island, Big Picture – Winters of Solitude Teach an Artist to See. Alexandra has twice been named the Artist Fellow for the NH State Council for the Arts. In addition to exhibiting widely across New England, her work is in the permanent collection at the DeCordova Museum in Lincoln, MA.
>> Watch NH Chronicle: Star Island Through the Snow
"The sea sweeps around the islands along the tide’s dark edge, softening and blurring their contours. Though ancient, the rocks and high ledges carry lightly the weight of time, spreading it throughout centuries of incremental wear. The sky, too, sweeps over and past the islands, joining with the sea in a far-off horizon.
In winter the Isles of Shoals could exist within any time. Look east, and there the primal ocean rolls, to the west – modern civilization glints along the distant mainland, while all around the islands, old and empty buildings stand sparsely in the harsh wind, fronting the winters of still another century. Time seems both frozen and fluid here, immediate and endless. Standing on the high bluffs, gazing outward, I feel in the company of ages.
In living alone on an island through sixteen winters, I come face to face with immensity – sea and sky and solitude. This has deeply affected the way I approach the work, and so while these images may at first seem to express the beauty of connection and place, what I also strive to illustrate is an overpowering sense that's easy to feel here, but harder to pin down; the insignificance of self in relation to the whole – the sublime."
During her 17 winters living alone as the caretaker on Star Island, Alexandra de Steiguer has documented her experience in words and pictures and shares it all in her new book, Small Island, Big Picture – Winters of Solitude Teach an Artist to See. Alexandra has twice been named the Artist Fellow for the NH State Council for the Arts. In addition to exhibiting widely across New England, her work is in the permanent collection at the DeCordova Museum in Lincoln, MA.
