Beverly Ayling-Smith, Paradise Lost, 2019, Digital print and embroidery
Drawing on imagery from traditional Toile de Jouy prints of idyllic countryside, this triptych is over-layered with silk organza on which are printed excerpts from John Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost (1667). The work explores three moments from the story: the location of Eden; the moment of Adam and Eve’s temptation; the loss of Paradise in the revelation of nakedness and difference.