Bealtaine

Bealtaine is a festival which occurs on May 1st and in the Irish language also refers to the month of May.

It signifies the start of the Celtic Summer and the return of the light after the long dark winter and because of this, fire plays an important role in celebrating this festival. Bealtaine is often represented by a spiral or the Triskele, which is the triple spiral so often seen in Celtic art. The symbol is thought to represent continuous movement or continuously moving forward. 

In this print, circles are used to convey the cycle of life from birth to death, the seasons, and a reminder that the earth is a living thing with its own rhythm and cyclical activity. The gold foil symbolises the fire element of this festival, a hint of the brighter days to come. Gold sits alongside layers of silvery blue both relief-printed and screen-printed. This delicate background more accurately represents the time of year which while officially summer, is often soft and rainy, with silver blue skies giving way to the odd bit of sun.