Hag is an ongoing performance experiment and research project that examines the hag archetype in British folklore with particular emphasis on contemporary ecological and feminist incarnations. 

The word “hag” is probably derived from “haga” from the Old English, meaning hedge. This is because a hag (witch) could “hedge-ride”, or cross the boundary of enclosed settlements into the wild forest and return safely (which probably just means they were old and canny enough to know their way around). However, the word Hag has many other derivations including the Old Norse word hogg meaning gap and this origin points toward the hag's ability to travel between worlds with her “wizened” and “witchy” ways. Today the Hag is most commonly known as a ugly, old witch often depicted as grotesque, malevolent, and solitary. 

Commissioned by The Pod Cafe 

Photographs by Felicity Barrow