Keeping Time

I’m back at work on olololo.

Today I’m scoring the perforations of the first 25 books recut by Book Works, and I’m hoping to deliver them to Modern Art Oxford first thing tomorrow. Some display copies are already on show in the shop and I hear there have been some pre-orders, so as soon as I deliver these a batch of them will disappear by post to their various owners.

It’s nice signing and numbering each one as I finish and check it. I am actually, actually proud of them.

Here’s a finished olololo arranged in its perspex case with a handful of closed books stacked behind it. It all went on display at the Modern Art Oxford shop yesterday and I’m really happy with it. A lovely end to what turned into a seven-month engagement with MAO.

There were a hair-raising few days last week as we realized a problem with registration in the laser cutter meant the books had all come back very slightly off. The ones on display look right but don’t function like clockwork as they should: my beloved vectors had been slightly adjusted at the printer’s so the pages weren’t a aligned and the pencil tended to get caught against the turning pages. But Book Works have been excellent, re-cutting the whole run as I write.

In the next couple of days I’ll try and post a very short video I made of one book in action, and also a longer video of the talk I gave last night at the launch.

But for now I’m away on HOLIDAY. I’ve already gone. I’m writing this on a train with hills around.

This Thursday I’m giving a talk about my work at MAO for the launch of olololo. I gave another artist talk there back in February, so I want to avoid repeating too much of the same information this time round. It’s a good challenge because the olololo book and the Keeping Time exhibition I last spoke about are very closely connected.

I remember writing on this blog about the process of preparing the February talk. I think I described my practice as a kind of cloud of ideas and artworks, and wrote about my various attempts to find a clear thread or trajectory through the cloud that would be sufficiently interesting and self-contained to present through an hour-long artist talk. I remember noticing that each time I plan a presentation about my work I have to start from scratch because my perspective keeps shifting and different works and ideas from over the years move into view.

Watching the slideshow recording I made of my February talk, I think I want to do less talking this time and let the work speak more for itself. I had been toying with the idea of making the talk much more performative, not showing any slides or videos of work and instead using a pair of OHPs to project images and silhouettes of things I’m holding and drawing. I like the idea very much but I don’t think now’s the time: I’d rather plan and advertise it properly rather than sneak a performance into what’s billed as a straightforward artist talk. Plus I don’t have any OHPs and neither does MAO.

So: less talking and a new trajectory through the cloud. I’m sure the records I’ve collected on this blog will be useful – perhaps I’ll start by reading through it post by post.

After all the fuss I made designing the instruction page I thought I’d show you a picture of the finished thing, pale grey foil-blocked on dark grey card. The dark grey matches the coverslip, so the instructional diagrams and text don’t feel too involoved in the workings of the book itself.

I spent this afternoon at Modern Art Oxford arranging and rearranging the first batch of olololo books which arrived from Book Works this morning. They don’t need arranging, I just kept wanting to hold them. After a while I packed them back into their bubblewrap and came home.

Now I have to score and fold the pages of each one, then sign and number the backs. It took me a good couple of hours this afternoon to fold four and I have 150 to get through. The launch is next Thursday. Alarm.

If you’re nearby, the launch is at Modern Art Oxford on Thursday July 12, starting with an artist talk at 6:30pm. More about it here – do come and say hello if you can make it!