Artist’s notes

Comments now enabled! Thanks Franny.

Dog walked; emails checked and no ‘revenue-generating’ work in so studio day here we come.

Day off today – we took the dog to Botany Bay where he ran about on the sand and splashed about in the sea. Had to pop him on the lead when he got a bit too excited over another much smaller dog! Then played a new recall training game I’ve learnt which involves my partner holding the ball, me calling the dog away and then telling him to go and get the ball as his reward.

After that we went into Margate and sat outdoors for lunch and did some Christmas shopping. Amazing to be sitting outdoors at this time of year. Actually managed to sit outdoors eating fish & chips in Margate last night too, after going to see TO PAY RESPECT TO THE GENEROSITY OF THE THREE-MINUTE PUNK-ROCK SONG at Limbo and Crate, curated by Toby Huddlestone. It was fantastic to see so much work in one place. There were just over 40 pieces and apart from the idea of “cultural quickness”, what seemed to link at least some of the pieces was a quirky sense of humour.

I will soon be moving into a new studio. It is full of chairs on wheels and office paraphernalia at the moment and it looks like some of the maintenance lads in the building have been having fun with a nail gun or something. Until it is clear, I am still working in the big, now former, DAD studio making more scratchy drawings. I will be adding graphite next, to this one, and cutting it out. I love working with paper but still have not solved the issue of how best to present the drawings.

Lots of meetings last week, which will potentially result in new DAD projects, which means more bid writing. I am actually hoping to get one completed bid in the post today; fingers crossed that I will get all the info I need in on time.

Managed to get to the studio to work on a large drawing at the weekend. I am about to move studio, which is not a heartening prospect. The new studio will be fine, it’s just the actual process of moving that is the pain. Thankfully, it will be just along the corridor so not really a major move, although I will still need to organise help!

Apart from that all the usual – 2 medical checkups, dog walking and training and worrying about his foot, domestics …

Think it is time to go and see some work!

Thursday evening: managed to get to Sevenoaks for the private view of Beta, despite the pelting rain. I hate driving in heavy rain when its dark. The PV was well attended and I caught up with some of the other artists who I hadn’t seen for a while. Joanna, DAD codirector and friend, took me out for a lovely meal afterwards to celebrate my “first” show.

It was really exciting to step into the gallery and see the work outside the studio, properly lit, as a viewer: for that very brief moment, the work did not feel like mine – in the sense that it had its own existence, separate from mine.

Friday: All day in Dunkerque with other East Kent arts organisations attending a workshop and getting to know French counterparts. Dunkerque is going to be the Regional capital of culture in 2013 and they are getting ready now. There could be some really exciting possibilities for DAD.

Today I’ve been updating the DAD website. Also walked the dog and let him off his lead for the first time in 2 months after a rather nasty accident resulting in him cutting all the tendons in his foot.