My first full day at Gresham's. As a school for the seriously privileged, I had wondered how I would handle my ambivalence towards private education, but I soon settled and, if I'm honest, even revelled in the luxury of the first-rate facilities and impeccable behaviour of the students. And the teachers, Charley, Emma and Tara, were very friendly. And just don't get me started on the subject of the magnificence of the school dinners!
Having watched some groups of students doing monoprints and etchings, I realised that I just needed to jump in and have a go. Before my arrival, I had imagined mostly continuing with the work I'm already engaged in for the show – digital imaging, video and so on. But it's clear that I'm expected to participate in the messy, hands-on stuff that the department specialises in, and it seems a waste of an opportunity if I just do what I would have otherwise been doing at home.
Trouble is, there's still a lot left to do, and the residency finishes on the show's hanging day. So I'll have to work out some kind of a balance. Also, the resident artist usually shows work produced during the residency, and I really don't think I'd want to show my tentative experiments in printmaking and painting.
Meanwhile, Life Drawing this evening was fun, once I'd cast off my 'I'm useless at drawing' inhibitions.
