Last week I cut all the 45 dandelion flower and seed heads that have grown on my doorstep dandelion in the last couple of weeks. I have pressed them in one of the wallpaper books which I was using on the allotment as a sort of experimental sketchbook.
I have selected 7 dandelion seed heads which appear to be completely intact so that I can mount & count the seeds. However, the "fairies" are almost impossible to see when mounted on paper, so I have been trying other ways of mounting them and discovered that it seems to work to mount them on glass. I have ordered some microscope slides.
Also been experimenting with drawing seeds & have gone back to our "School For Artists" starting point, using a technique which has been productive for Roz, but not for me – until now perhaps.
BIRD BOX AND A GRANT
Two presents this week:
the first was a bird box made by my daughter – a home for the stuffed thrush.
The second was the award of an Arts Council Grant for the Arts for Stage 2 of Breaking Ground – Hooray.
Now we have to get cracking with arranging the Project Room development work and Platform Evenings. How will we fit it all in – exciting.
DANDELION CLOCKS
You tell the time: puff as hard as you can to blow the seeds off – ONE O'CLOCK – blow again – TWO O'CLOCK – blow again – THREE O'CLOCK blow until all the fairies have blown away – ELEVEN O'CLOCK.
Catch a fairy and make a wish. Let it go again.
Dandelions – piss en lit – wet the bed – it is diuretic.
You can eat the leaves in a salad.
Coffee can be made from the roasted tap root.
COUNTING SEEDS
I think I might have developed a new obsession.
It started in a small way, counting the number of seed pods on an onion seed head & carefully mounting them in my workbook.
Then I started "deconstructing" an artichoke seed head, numbering & mounting every stamen & carefully putting away the seeds to follow suit with them when time allows.
Last week, I noticed the dandelion growing outside my front door & wondered how many seeds were on each "clock". And how many "clocks" might it produce over the summer?
I'm horrified to report that during my counting activities this week, I've discovered that it has already produced 45 "clocks" so far since it sprang up a week or two ago! Today, I'm going to start mounting and numbering the seeds. Maybe then I'll draw them.
Note to Roz: why are they called clocks? And did you used to call them fairies when you saw them blowing in the wind?
WE DID ANOTHER TALK TODAY
We did another talk (or two talks) today at the University of Brighton Printmaking Department. This was part of our Residency. In addition to using the screenprinting facilities we have given student tutorials and this presentation.
We focussed on How to create an Life in Art after University. Each of us showed slides and talked for half an hour about how we had made an art life – the different mix of activities from applying to funding, creating residencies, getting awards, further study, leading workshops, making work and working in other jobs for money.
There were lots of questions after and as always you learn so much from putting together a talk and presenting your experience to others. You find a path through the muddle which clears the way to go forward.
