a comfy place on the sofa avails thought and contemplation to recount recent days and specifically to reflect upon aspects of my own practice.
last weekend i made my debut with the skin and bone trio in a local pub’s upstairs venue. after only a few meetings we’d come together to create, collaborate and entertain.
overcoming some technical problems i was ready and up for what was to follow. it took me until the last three compositions to relax, enjoy and find my playful self. working with the trio is creating a space for me to explore thoughts and themes not currently catered for anywhere else in my practice. the technical problems were solvable by going with the flow and letting go of an spired higher production value. i will get to work in that way sometime in the future. for me the night was an enjoyable way to spend a saturday night and the notes i have
give me ideas to explore when the time is right.
i’ve found a good rhythm with a project i’m helping to facilitate at derby museums. i spend some me time, eat and go to the museum for the session which starts at 5:30pm. in my me time this week i got out my sketchbook and re-aquiated myself with the joy of playing in time and space – letting these playings take my mind and thoughts into happy wanderings.
sketching, doodling, writing in my book has captured recent thoughts of returning to the snee snaw project for a third iteration – this time fore fingers. the timing for many reasons feels right. again i’ll ease away from those aspirations and go with the flow.
onto the highlight of my week … the orrey by torchlight.
the wednesday project is funded by the royal academy and is also utilising some leftover finding from the artists rooms young people pilot earlier this year.
the royal academy is funding a project for young people to re-interpret the joseph wright of derby gallery in the derby museum and art gallery. like the pilot we’re listening the young people through our facilitated sessions and using what we learn for activities and the re-interpretation.
this week we explored the gallery or wright’s paintings by torch light.
at a personel level this experience has left me with a whole new relationship with the painting.
i stood in front of it, chatting with lucy bamford – the curator for the joseph wright collection – while playing with the position geometry of the torch light.
never before had the orrey got the hairs on the back of my neck tingling so much. we both experienced the orrey potentially as it would have been viewed when only recently painted.
viewing the orrey painting in this way confirmed for me the notion that wright is a painter of light.
the full title of the painting completed in 1766 is A Philosopher giving a Lecture on the Orrery in which a lamp is put in place of the Sun
writing about the experience now is taking my feelings back to the time in the gallery on wednesday.
it reminds me of how important to me it is to have my own feelings about the things i do for myself – to follow my own ideas and thoughts. to let go of aspiration – to go with the flow – to enjoy. to feel happy.
