‘The Flourish of Liberty’

‘The Flourish of Liberty’ was the title of an exhibition organised by Patrick Wildgust, the curator of Shandy Hall in Coxwold, North Yorkshire. Shandy Hall is the home of Laurence Sterne, famous as the author of The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy. This exhibition was the fourth in a series that explored responses by artists, writers and composers to certain pages of the novel.

‘The Flourish of Liberty’ refers to the image of a looping line made by the character Corporal Trim who flourished his stick to illustrate the notion of freedom.

102 exhibitors took part and each produced a page representing their idea of freedom on a blank page the same size of the original printed page in the book. The catalogue includes reproductions of all these images in postcard format nicely presented in a black box. Our contribution was ‘A Pigs Tale’ shown below. The tail copies Trims flourish.

Have a look at the website to find out more about Shandy Hall. Well worth a visit at any time. https://www.laurencesternetrut.org.uk