Things are hotting up as the big date for the opening gets nearer. It’s been non-stop since I last found the time to write a blog post.
The main thing has been to get the catalogue to a stage for proofing. I can’t believe this has happened in a week!
Big things that have been achieved in the last 8 days:
I had a mentoring session with the curator Charlotte Dew, who came to The Ceramic House and gave me feedback on the curation of the show and to discuss the catalogue.
Lise Seisbøll, director of Grimmerhus Museum of Danish Ceramic Art, sent an essay about contemporary Danish ceramics for the catalogue.
The photos that Sylvain Deleu took of the Danish artists’ work arrived, and are fabulous.
I got my head down and wrote 3 pieces of “serious” text for the catalogue, which was really satisfying.
I found an emergency carpenter to cut, within a day, two huge boards and mounts for my installation and one of the Danish artists. Within an hour of picking the wood up, another carpenter came round and got them on the wall for me. This was nothing short of miraculous. Normally dealing with any kind of tradesman comes with a lot of frustration (I believe I have authority to expound upon this issue; I have had a lot of builders through The Ceramic House!)
Matthew Andrews photographed my new installation (the smaller soda-fired version made in Denmark). I thought I would get it on the wall in time for him, but we photographed it on the floor, which was possibly better, as we were able to move the pieces around. While he was in my employ, we went off on a photography tour and shot two private commissions I did in Brighton towards the end of last year – a kitchen and a piece for a conservatory, and have been waiting to get them photographed for the folio.
I have now managed to mount this piece, which took 1.5 days. I still have to do the bigger one for the Regency Town House!
Throughout the week I had volunteers beavering away in my studio press-moulding tiles for the Portuguese bathroom. Every day, I found time to spend with them, as well as all the thousand things I had to do.
A meeting with my graphic designer to get the catalogue in shape. Everything slotted into place like clockwork. Amazing.
Charlotte Dew edited the catalogue. She has been a saviour. One of the fantastic things I really appreciate is that everyone has been pulling their weight and making sure it all gets done. I know I work to an extremely fast pace; I am very industrious, and not everyone works that way. But everyone has done their bit and made this all happen, which is vital for success. I am pleased to say that I have a good team; everyone is reliable, professional and extremely competent! Yes!
A meeting at the Regency Town House with the curators of HOUSE Open, who are really excited about my piece – the larger of the two versions I made in Denmark. This is the first time they have had an artist make a piece especially for the exhibition, so I get the focal spot!
The PR machine has been whirring. Crafts magazine have confirmed that they are featuring Fantastic Tales, as is Ceramic Review. A long feature came out in arterritory.com and various local and national publications are doing features.
Nicki Lang, my filmmaker, is working on the promo. She is going to make two films, one to advertise The Ceramic House, showing off the best of past exhibitions, and in May she will film me discussing the evolution of The Ceramic House and document the Danish show.
So, now I am going to put my newsletter together, which has forcibly taken a back seat, but has to go out asap!
