It has been an extremely busy few weeks for me. I have been getting thoughts and reflections down on paper, but the words haven’t made it to the blog much.
Currently choosing work to take to Print Shed to fill my h.Art Print shed show tent/marquee. Also getting projector (kindly lent by artist friend) set up to show Teleprompter App video along with the sound of me hesitantly reading out the 257 words.
Just had thought about how important it is to stop thinking (usual for me to overthink) and get practical… ‘art needs to get out of your mind and into the world to grow’, bit late in the day for me to realise this. But something an artist friend said about trying things out at Back to nature exhibition she’s doing with Ash struck a cord. Can’t keep just thinking stuff, got to actually commit to it and make it as well. Obvious really.
rough practically working things out and thinking through, I have veered away from showing my Bathe dome at the Print Shed show. There are many problems with it to iron out, but mainly I need to do a lot mo practical work on it, and preferably, have saved up some money to fund it as I’d like it to be. On reflection now I just think it may work better another way and it needs to be developed more critically as well as practically. Perhaps I am spreading myself too thin with this, but also, because of the planning and practical aspects involved, I’ve ended up spending too long trying to figure things out when I should be making work. All the figuring out makes me feel physically sick, maybe missing the activity of painting. The time I spend figuring out things is my own time set aside for my practice and its turning out being wasted (I feel afterwards). + I can’t see a physical trail of work behind me.
This was part of the idea behind my Grid painting. By doing a square or two whenever I had available time meant I could see my progress.
Before the summer holidays I embarked on a series (only did 2 before ran out of painting time) which uses the 257 dictionary words I was unfamiliar with as a starting point. I’ve painted Lingonberry and Renounce so far and now cropped them to show at the Print Shed. (I had written/painted in the definitions into the work, which is entirely uneccessary!). I would like to continue this and have some sort of pact with myself for getting it done.
257 in 257 days is the only thing I’ve come up with so far! From today that is 17th May 2016, or if I start on 23 sept (after print shed show) then 4th June.
(above is a very standard deviation from what I should be doing!) – which is figuring out the Print Shed show. So many lists I’ve got lying around. Just now I’m cutting out black sheeting to put on the grass at The Print Shed tomorrow, I have already put a couple of sheets down. Also tested it (the grass picture with strong foliage shadows) but the yellowing effect isn’t very noticeable. I am cutting out positives of a selection of the 257 words now on my living room floor and making them much larger than before. I’d like them to be more defined.
I’m at that eek and gulp moment on return from a 2 week holiday when I see my artist in residence show is only 3 weeks away and I’m not sorted yet. I have work behind me for it, but, by my very nature I am uncertain about everything right to the last moment. I have had a great conversation with friend and fellow a-n blogger Kate Morgan-Clare which has helped clarify what I want to show, but now it’s sorting out the how plus all the details. But the major part of this show for me, the pivotal piece, is the Bathe in Ignorance dome and so for this week I am focussing on getting it to work with new materials which I hope will make it bigger than my original walk-in prototype Wigwam style thing. I’ll have to make one at home, and then build another one again (well, the blackout lining will have to be re-done) for the exhibition.
Currently using Alcothene (used by plumbers in under floor heating), as it bends into shape and is a material without memory i.e. it doesn’t spring back to its previous position.
I’ve been working early and late to get this done. It is finally put together with the help of many contributers for the textuals journal writing and photographs for the visuals. Textuals and visuals are two halves of a society split by the born right to read or not.
The grid comes into play in my work again. (Photos will be attached with my device allows me too!)
Yesterday spent making my shed completely dark for cyanotype processing and collected hardened glass from glazier. Plus found more scratch cards on evening walk.
Went on search for studio in centre of Abergavenny today and have found 3 possible places, so some follow up needed there.
Exposed the cyanotypes today. Did 3 time trials, 30, 45 & 60 minutes. Though the 30 minute one ended up as 50 minutes due to a conversation! Will see what they look like completely dry tomorrow.
Three more rejections for exhibitions/opportunities. I have been carefully selecting what I go for, but so far, no luck. I’ll be having a natural break from applying for things anyway now with the school holidays. A time to focus solely on my current commitments; my artist in residence show at The Print Shed focussing on Bathe in ignorance, getting my Magna Carta response finished for the end of month (this is what the cyanotypes are for) and Framework Herefordshire emerging artists group baseline activity. And, really important for my ongoing engagement is the formation of a 6 member crit group for regular sessions, most likely from September.
Getting the balance right between being realistic yet not limiting the ambitions I have for my work has been something I’ve been pushing against this year. Long term planning to ensure my more ambitious ideas have time to mature and develop, yet allowing room for the spontaneous idea generating that is so energising to my practice.
Have been reading today with interest and the linked ‘Why have there been no great women artists?’ http://www.artnews.com/2015/05/30/why-have-there-been-no-great-women-artists/
http://www.artnews.com/2007/11/01/top-ten-artnews-stories-exposing-the-hidden-he/ (a little belately maybe!)
