To interrogate darkness at this moment in history is not only timely, but vital and Bonnie Thurston does it with an honesty and precision that holds our attention. From the darkness of a melancholic disposition to darkness that shelters us safely, from sleepless nights and their moons to trusting in the return of the light on the darkest day and longest night, these pieces are poised, precise, full of sensory details, insightful and shot through with hope. There is fear and grief here, but it will not have the last word.
Like Henry Vaughan nearly four centuries ago, Bonnie Thurston interrogates and celebrates the gifts of night-time: the expansion of vision beyond tight borders, the animated silence of wood and landscape, the changing moon ('sliced', in one of her most vivid images, as if by a mother sharing a pie between two children). This is a deep and steady poetic voice, arising out of a deep and steady familiarity with darkness - both in loss and in discovery.
- Rowan Williams
