Wednesday 30 June 2010

♒♒ river carry me

the tides breathing waves
take flotsam away
as seaweed fingers ride
under a fading kiss in the sky:

Wednesday 23 June 2010

☐ when they are young

last Saturday we went to the 10th annual
free range graduate photography show
at the Truman Brewery, London:
lots of emotion and angst bubbling 
away with many of the works:
real gut wrenching head nodding familiarity
and intrigue:
maybe it's a new breed of photographers:
or maybe it's a sign of the times:

things that caught our memory ....
Isabelle Brack ~ Untitled 2010:
things don't always have to be in focus to have impact:
Chris Mear ~ Grandma 2009:
love her suspicion + the lines and colour:
humour as we went in to the darkened room to see ....
the future of photography?
*taken through 3d glasses*
by Charlotte King:
Caroline Harbourne ~ Stolen Lives:
recreation of an image found on the internet:
we've all seen them on social networking sites:
she goes one step further ....
click this image to make it larger ☝
it makes you think:
Angelica Robinson ~ Perimeter:
love the format, images and narrative of this:
 an illustration of a journey around the London Olympic site:
looking for an understanding of the impact it has on the
area and people: compelling and poignant:
Libbie's pick: she loved the whiteness of the
sheep as they fade into the hazy horizon:
* apologies to the artist as we didn't make note of the name*

my top picks ....
Helena Tkalez ~ Displaced:
one of a series of timeless shots taken at her late 
Grandmothers house before it was sold:  
the heart aching narrative of a Ukrainian lady, 
a survivor of the Nazi labour camps:
who settled in the UK for 60 years:
objects, pictures and religious icons becoming 'displaced'
among family, friends and strangers:
beautiful:
Alma Haser ~ Paper:
apart from the folding of paper:
a passion of mine:
these gorgeously staged images tell a story:
if you want to believe them:

Tuesday 22 June 2010

ↂ silver dreams

the lust list:
just like aladdin:
a getaway for two:

if anyone has these going spare:
we'll take them off your hands:

Monday 21 June 2010

⚡⚡ fire me up

yesterday I wandered to the Old Town :
I lucked on a workshop organised by
Lola Swain and Kelly Foreman ~
raku japanese open firing:
no guns, just glaze:
pick a pot, already formed and fired:
a choice of glazes and tools to try:
Kelly tells me what each glaze will do
after firing:  
with her guidance she realises my idea:
possibility, shade, technique:
mine has turquoise:
kilns waiting to be filled:
happy shoppers all:
carefully placed inside by Kelly:
then fired up:
we wait:
we anticipate:
Madelaine glazes a bonsai pot
brought along by a lady who shows me 
photos of beautiful ferns and 
bonsai in bloom:
a cup of tea and a shared memory of being taught 
to tie her shoelaces by her father:

the pieces are taken from the kiln and
sunk into sawdust:
*I missed this exciting part as I had to meet Libbie at home:
you can see it here ☛ getfiredup
most of the pieces were hidden under the sawdust:
mine peeped through as I wanted the lower
part of my glaze to be different from the top:
like a lucky dip, Kelly pulled the pieces out:
Richard cleaned up the burrs:
may I present a beautiful cup:
crackled and blue and mine:
a pleasurable afternoon:

Friday 18 June 2010

⦾⦿ electric video & ears

this week of the art trail has been diverse:
wednesday evening saw us visiting our favourite
vegetarian restaurant and eaterie
for a platter of pleasure 
no food involved:
unStatic a new night of sound and performance:
we sampled the menu and saw ....
a video talkshow by 
Mettemorphosis sees Mette dressing the part 
and interviewing her alter egos:
it reminded me of the still film photographs
unnerving parody :
we liked her little song about snails:
'restless' by Ann Harvey:
her light shone through, the music crescendo'd
as she drew:
sounds created from objects in the environs by
Stuart Bowditch aka Hybernation :
echoes and bleeps over a deep soundtrack:
'all the sounds I used were recorded in MyKitchen the day before the gig'
projected visuals and wizardry by our
amazing local vj Mike Lowther:
oversized cutlery clanging on plates:
film 'middlemans dinner' by
the everyday object made awkward:
unstoppable stuffing:

finally an interesting pre-tape recorded piece by
Curtis & Kherbeck:
analogue language take over bid in a beat style:
Noam Chomsky & John Ashbery chewing the
stale crusts from the dining car:
strangers on a shadow train:
click whirr play stop:

time took us away:
the evening carried on without us:
original things like this don't come along often:
more please:

Wednesday 16 June 2010

ꇴ shine a little light

these ancient steps so steep:
make us lose our breath when climbed:
yesterday the artist clare lynn
transformed them:
with little red clips and leds:
as the dead looked on and twilight fell:
a trail of lights leading us down down to the river:
magic to our stumbling feet:
look here to see:
{that walking down and up a cobbled incline is not easy}
some light play of my own to match the OooO's
of the onlooking crowd:

Tuesday 15 June 2010

✉ ✔ monday moments

lunch on the jetty with my friend Simon:
bowls of my home made carrot & coriander soup:
with water lapping below our feet
and the occasional cockle boat chugging past:
a letter from Finland:
with green chequered tape:
a gorgeous postcard from Anna Emilia :
what a favourable start to the week:
how was your Monday?
{ click here to find out why I received this beautiful gift}

Monday 14 June 2010

☼ saturday saunter


the sun was out and we headed along the trail:
first to the student show at The Stables:
this colourful piece took our eye by 
Laura Whitchurch:
the blitz ~ after guernica 
by Bailey Wesborn aged 11:
gorgeous textured batik by 
William Home (9) and Mia Johnson (8):
^_^
wOoP my year 5 group were awarded a 
'leigh art trail runner up' rosette for their sea sculptures:



time for tea: 
Libbie + gerbera shadow = our own piece of art:
refreshed we stepped on ....
Lydia Hardwick's kooky ceramic birds:
I've met them before but under different auspices:
a flamingo is always a hit with me:
her playful installations are quite  difficult to view in an 
estate agents:
but knowing her humour, it's intentional:
possibly my pick of the day is Southend Pier by Alan Hockett:
he demonstrated his method my holding up an empty bean can:
using it as a pinhole camera, he captures the spirit of the subject:
his spectral images of local landmarks are hazy green:
a beautiful revival of old methods:
watercoloured pages by Bridget Davies:
this reminded me of the photographer Erwin Blumenfeld
and his iconic 1950's Vogue cover:
the first line of the page reads 'has my face a story in it?' she asked:
brave brushstrokes get my vote:
shops not on the trail get into the spirit:
dead flies on a plaster cake:
wish you were young:
sssSuperwiggle:
sit under a tree and see 'ghost' by naturespacecreative :
historical tales and an evolving ground sculpture:
the ancient cedar tree lives on:
more events to come ....