An original screen print by Ruth Blanke, hand printed in her studio in East London. Enlil’s Tide is a mythical landscape characterising the fragile connection between humans and their environment, charting our symbiotic, existentialist existence. Created during the pandemic, Enlil’s Tide is a desire for the intimacy that is so human but was so suddenly denied. 

          With a narrative inspire by  ancient Roman pottery, Ruth was interested in contrasting attitudes to gender and sexuality compared to modern European history.  Becoming increasing troubled by the normalisation of the male gaze in the art world, In this piece we celebrate the vulnerable side of the male and female and how we can challenge male and female stereotypes.

          Inspired by the aquariums at London zoo, water is central the the artworks theme. It represents the flow of eternal life, navigating and negotiating, limited only by the challenges we face. It both acts as a connecting element between bodies and to invoke a feeling of intimacy. The act of bathing and cleaning our bodies is deeply personal, especially to share with others. Water has long been associated with intimacy, life and death, subjects that have taken on a new relevance.