Contradictorily, being at the same time excellent and terrible at managing time and tasks – I have still not got any better at it. Widely too interested and distracted in far too many things all at once. It is something which is reflected in my practice – the issue of focus. This has come up before, but I haven’t addressed it for a number of reasons.
We are so flighty in today’s world – so many images, it can feel as if we are bombarded. It is no wonder we can suffer from a lack of ability for concentration or an overload. That being said, it is something you can train yourself in and get better at. Equally, in terms of focus regarding matters of practice, it is perhaps easier to not have focus – by this I mean a sitting on the fence, a safe position, an unwillingness to say exactly what the point or meaning is.
Going through the motions of writing and rewriting a statement to reflect on practice now, has been helpful in the clarification of what I am exploring. Having the opportunity to meet and discuss ones practice with a variety of people has also been of benefit – we are lucky to have a number of visiting artists and people working in the art world available for tutorials on a regular basis. However, all this talking is yet another distraction from making.
It is wanting to be involved and take advantage of all that is on offer in this course (getting value for money, of course) versus doing the necessary work – I mean production of work – to make it successful which I find difficult, achieving the right balance is problematic.
A short visit to Manchester, another distraction (but welcome) in which to consider another centre of art evolving and the parallels with places such as Glasgow. One image:
And finally a breakthrough with a repeat print – definitely something to go on:
