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“There are many ways that you can signify to yourself that you are doing your practice. For example, some people wear a white lab coat or a particular pair of glasses, or always work in a specific place – in doing these things, they are professionalising their art. The notion that I do my work here, now, like this, even when I do not feel like it, and especially when I do not feel like it, is very important. Lots and lots of people are creative when they feel like it but you are only going to become professional if you do it when you don’t feel like it. That emotional waiver is why this is your work and not your hobby.”
An email invite from Incertainplaces to become a “critical friend”.
Open – what does that mean? No selection, no editing, no curating…..
It’s a new year……a quote thats been swirling round the seas of my psyche….”If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.”
I am now an associate member of Castefield gallery.
There’s two interesting talks on the same night but already booked on one so stick with that committment.
Tips to self about public speaking; make eye contact, introduce yourself and a bit of back ground. (If possible, offer cups of tea).
Postcards from series Hunter/Gatherer will be exhibted as part of Grundys Collection show. Also, my Mums collection of single serve sugar sachets and my Grandads collection of Matches.
The stairs of The Harris have been painted white, at last.
Too much text, was my first thought; knee-jerk gut reaction. But I was only browsing, a quick look because an hour parking so on reflection I didn’t give enough time and if there’s one thing you should allow yourself when visiting a gallery, is time, so my mistake. The artist creates (and gives) so in return it’s only fair to take the appropriate amount of time to give back, meet half way. Which is when there’s too much text the temptation of my thoughts is to think book, then, at my leisure. So when the opportunity arose to look again, a second visit, I read more. My other first thoughts were still there, is this real (of course it is), what I mean to say is, factual. I don’t know, I’ve just got to trust. Or not care, give in, submit. It could be fiction, fantasy, a dream but that’s all part of it. Thinking about Freud and id, ego and superego makes me think of three layers of brain – the basic biology, the physical structure, the shared evolution.
At a lecture/talk by video artist George Barber he mentioned the trend of artists to pick a point in history and then extrapolate from that point and use it as a starting point to be creative. He seemed to be suggesting that this method of working meant it became difficult to be critical of the work because of it’s face value.
I will be exhibiting some of my postcards at an exhibition of collections at The Grundy (open submission).
A one thousand pound experiment to exhibit (not sell/sold nout) at Buy Art Fair in Manchester and critically engage.
You’re in the wrong place, should be over there but can only be over there if I have gallery representation which I haven’t therefore to ‘try’ something; invent, create a gallery – Duchamp I Yoko (DIY) in order to apply to BAF because the only route open.
Objectively, a failure because no sales (sorry, 1 cup of “not my”).
Subjectively, felt great, happy. Funny, life.
The Witch Test came to mind – if you don’t sell at the Buy Art Fair, it must be critically engaged art or…..
