What's in a name?

break it down now y'all... 

Sinéad 

Rhymes with lemonade.

“Nothing Compares to you” by Irish rock legend Sinéad O’Connor was in it’s fourth week at Number One in the top single charts the day that I was born.*

*kudos to my mother for taking the aforementioned inspiration and naming me Sinéad. Potentially to assert one's Irishness on being born in Edinburgh, Scotland.

*and yes, you now have enough information to calculate my age. 

Plant               

plant¹. / (plɑːnt) / noun. any living organism that typically synthesizes its food from inorganic substances, possesses cellulose cell walls, responds slowly and often permanently to a stimulus, lacks specialized sense organs and nervous system, and has no powers of locomotion.

Me: As definition above, but with a preference for organic and, ironically, plant substances, a variable response time depending on interest in said stimuli, an overactive sensory and nervous system and, thankfully, moderate powers of locomotion.

Design             

Aged 7, I designed a shoe for a local newspaper's “Back to School” competition in Edinburgh. I won - my design was created and I wore those bad boys to school for two years in all their navy patent and velcro glory.

Growing up I enjoyed drawing, animals, creative projects, and 'publishing' tiny books. I studied Art for my Leaving Cert (a.k.a Irish Highers/A Levels) - with a preference for graphite pencil drawings.*

*However, I also really liked people. I still do. In what one could consider a design detour, I trained and worked as a doctor in hospitals in Ireland and the NHS. I completed a Masters in Global Health in Stockholm and another in Public Health in Edinburgh. During the pandemic I worked in clinical research trials for COVID-19 vaccines.

I loved my research & medical jobs and am beyond grateful for the amazing patients, colleagues and teams I had the pleasure to work alongside. However, after another bout of illness due to chronic migraine, I realised that this career path was no longer sustainable. After much consideration (and many tears), I decided to withdraw my licence to practice medicine. Wuh-oh spaghettio.

They say a blank canvas is required for creativity to activate, or, re-activate. So, in early 2023 and in search of new avenues, I attend a printmaking class.

This #sparksjoy.
Picks up a pencil again.
Upgrades to Apple Pencil™
While doodling, realises that the word 'design', with a bit of artistic licence, is an anagram of sinead.

Time to retourner au source?

Sinéad

A.K.A Pea