Edition of 7 Only

Dimensions: 365mm x 617mm, Vansons Rubber Ink on 270gsm Recycled Paper Stock

What better excuse to print a ‘swear word’? Turns out it was actually the normal Elizabethan name for a Kestrel. Fuck Meaning to Beat.

The Kestrel (Falco tunnunculus) is the most common of the 4 UK species of falcons and always a joy to see hunting over Wanstead Flats. On a recent bicycle ride, a kestrel flew towards me and landed on the ground only several metres away. Recounting the interaction earlier that day to a friend at the pub, I was told of Gerard Manley Hopkin’s poem ‘Wind Hover’ (1877) and how he was born just down the road in Stratford. I also learned the Elizabethan name for the bird is Windfucker, from a time when fuck meant to beat or strike. When was there more of a legitimate reason to print an apparent profanity?

Zinc Magnesium plate of Kestrel (from photograph), Victorian Woodtype over Bronze-gold ink background