June 20th 2014

What a strange day, maybe its this midsummer madness fighting back. Innocently working away at the office my friend Sheena emailed me this serious article from the BBC. Why Icelanders are wary of elves living beneath the rocks http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-27907358

Not this is an important story, not least because I love the fact in this crowded world, brimming with science and endeavour to understand everything on Planet Earth, there are still people, like myself, who do really believe there is another way of living, another way of being, and above all other beings out there. Elves are part of this. We should not scoff at notions that there are faeries at the bottom of the garden, or woodland sprites who manage our forests. Who are we to say this is not fact. We can not say for definite they do not exist because we can not prove they don't exist. 

Up in the Simonside Hills in Northumberland there are the duergars, which according to legend;

"...are dangerous dark dwarves lurking in the shadows of the Simonside Hills, in Northumberland. They are said to mostly appear at night, when they prey on lost travellers by showing a light to draw the traveller nearer, and then tricking them into a bog or luring them over the edge of a precipice."

Around 10 years ago my friend Margaret was trying to think up a unique name for her new gallery in Rothbury. I was leafing through Tomlinson's Guide to Northumberland and came across the tale of these naughty sprites. Simultaneously and unbeknown to me Margaret had been reading about these duregars while on holiday. I text'd her "what about Duergar Red for your gallery name" and her reply "interesting I've just had the same thought". And so it was named and still is so.

I've never been up into the Simonside Hills at night but if I do I shall be wary of any bright lights guiding my way, there might just be something in this after all.