phew, i got somewhere today. i went on a small boat trip round the shipyard and did some filming to test the idea out. it was truley awesome going so close to the huge ships and oil rigs that are being worked on. i had a big grin on my face. the boat fella thinks he knows of a row boat that i can use so is gonna ask his friend, otherwise he has an inflateable boat that he is ok with me using. the only trouble is is that i am leaving it a bit late, installation is on the 31st. ive gotta make a ship to put on the boat, film it being towed around the shipyard island, edit the film and move the white cube. phew again.
the rekkie boat trip for today has been put back til friday as their boat is not ready yet. and i have no photos of boats i could use yet too. humph. i want to start making.
i was thinking of deassembling the white cube and reassembling inside our exhibition space but we cant get it apart so my plan C is to move it outside the double doors and project from inside onto the cube. gonna need lots of helping hands to roly-poly it tho.
missing home.
the white cube has been delivered, so very exciting. lots to sort out and do – my list is getting bigger & Bigger. time seems to be going quickly so far.
the boat tour people have their boat sailable this week and have promised to email me with picture of row bats & prices so that seems on track.
we went to museums night on saturday, most of the museums and galleries are open til 1am and the whole city was full of really long queues to get into the history museums. the art galleries were really quite busy too. a good thing.
this morning has been productive. i have moved lots of cardboard to the project space and now feel really dusty. also i took marta (our ‘person’ at wyspa) to see the white cube. we asked at various workshops if it was theirs and kept being sent to another building after lots of walking and polish conversations we ended up at a land owners office. the fella in charge said it was scrap and nobody wanted it any more and even said he would arrange for it to be moved to the project space. hoorah. it is free too. double hoorah.
we have a meeting today with artist Grzegorz Klaman and we are visiting another solidarity exhibition so busy busy busy.
yesterday me and matt met the other 2artists in residence- louis & jess and tried to relay as much info as poss, shared the bus ‘home’, as well as food & beer.
i feel like i am now familiar with the town layout and have managed to remember the word for thank you, which i am hoping will see me through.
we’ve been to the solidarity museum this morning which was really engaging, not dry at all. i found a 10ftx10ft cube of polystyrene in the ship yard that i want to borrow and use to project onto if we can find out whose it is. in the museum it told of how during the strike the workers used to use sheets of it as a mattress so i am even keener to have my film rest on this giant cube.
just thought i have not mentioned my proposal.
my idea is to make a boat/raft, research solidarity songs and play these from speakers whilst navigating around the shipyard island filming. so the finished piece will be a film (?).i want it to act as a tribute to the place and its people, in an artistic fashion.
i have spoken with a man who runs tourist boat trips around the shipyard and this lovely man is willing to tow me behind his boat and even jump in and rescue me! i am hoping to borrow a small row boat and make a cardboard skin, i want it to look like a proper big ship, i discarded the idea of raft after seeing the shipyard-rafts dont belong here, plus there is not so much lying around that looks like raft material. ive purchased a 3cd set of solidarity songs that i may get translated so i can sing, record and play on the ‘ship’.
we are being shown the wyspa archive so that may lead to other treasures.
gonna go stick a sign on the paper recyling bin so as to start a ship material pile.
