Tattooing the Tuba

Julieann Worrall Hood at Made in the Pewsey Vale, Wiltshire, May 2026

The exhibition installation was conceived as a three dimensional sketchbook and diary. Echoing the words of poet Emily Dickinson, “I am out with lanterns looking for myself,” it reflects an ongoing process of searching and self-discovery.

The experience unfolded like watching clouds as they evolve: at times fluid and gentle, at others vast, sculptural, and charged with emotion. Long fascinated by clouds, Julieann followed instinct, allowing each gesture to lead organically to the next; from drawing to sculpture, and into new modes of expression through poetry and music in collaboration with poet Nick Hood and composer Jess Faber.

Drawing outdoors in darkness, often by moonlight, has become both liberating and transformative for Julieann. She feels attuned to the pull of the lunar cycle, spending hours observing the moon: its shifting presence and the way its unfathomable light touches clouds, trees, plants, and familiar objects, reimagining them as if within newly formed, theatrical worlds.

Clouds and the moon, visible from anywhere on Earth, serve as quiet connectors, linking people and places across continents and lived experiences. They evoke a shared sky, bridging distances and time through the water they carry: ancient, continuously recycled, taking form as rain, oceans, and snow. This same water exists within the body, and falls in our tears, reinforcing a sense of deep interconnection. Inspired by Thich Nhat Hanh’s meditation on transformation, the work reflects on the idea that a cloud persists in all its forms: in the tea we drink, in the tears we shed, and in the cycles that sustain life.