I had a day off yesterday and went to a seminar thing in Margate.
The Wild Flowers Project. covering the following issues!
. What we mean by cultural engagement
. The distinction between spectating and participating
. Overcoming the elitist v popular dilemma
. The notion of impact and how we measure it.
The organizers were looking to the delegates for answers to these questions just as much as the delegates wanted answers from the speakers. I guess that is why these things are classed as seminars and not lectures. eh.
All of these are so relevant to what I do for a living, and I had high hopes for cutting insight and analysis of these issues. Sadly it was all rather fluffy. I was not dissapointed though as it is difficult and I had a very enjoyable day and talked bolcloks to anyone who would listen.
The measurement of impact question, number counting, how many people filled in a questionaire or left a comment.
Rubbish, I read the blog Nightjack which was totally fab and never left a comment once but I was really impressed.
It is the passage of time and history that enables us to judge quality, relevance and impact. So if your making art then your in for the long haul.
A reflection after the whole D Day thing.
I am in my later 40's and had I lived in other periods of history I would have probably died by now fighting the Romans, the Vikings, the Normans, a crusade in the middle east, Napoleon, the Spanish Armada, our own civil war, or the Germans.
I have lived in relative peace time, as our wars have been in remote places, fought by professional soldiers. I have been unaffected. Now last night I saw a fantastic documentary starting with Dday and filming on untill the end of the 2nd world war, documented by an american camera crew who must have followed the troops a couple days behind the fighting.
What has been my contribution to society in peace time.
Have our scientists, architects artists and writers etc contributed to a golden era, or like our footballers, dubious politicians and greedy bankers focused on the individual?
I ask myself if, on my best days, have I stepped up and been as good as my heroes?
'Welcome my son, welcome to the machine.
Where have you been? its alright we know where youve been.
Youve been in the pipeline, filling in time, provided with toys and
scouting for boys.
You bought a guitar to punish your ma,
And you didnt like school, and you know youre nobodys fool,
So welcome to the machine.
Welcome my son, welcome to the machine.
What did you dream? its alright we told you what to dream.
You dreamed of a big star, he played a mean guitar,
He always ate in the steak bar. he loved to drive in his jaguar'.
So welcome to the machine. A symbol for realising revolutionary potential, the spirit of endevour and an irresistable epidemic of expansion and growth.
Not for Roger Walters of Pink Floyd, his lyrics (above) show a manipulating and cynical music industry. For others, alienation in a changing world.
Witney exported blankets woven on machines to North American Indians who wore them as capes, exported with the Hudson Bay Trading Co. I would have thought the indians would have woven their own blankets, but then there you go, its a funny old world.
For me the machine represents western capitalism and the Indian some kind of more attractive 'other'. I am looking forward to depicting him in this mosaic, but I have to focus on another project now and I will have to wait may be as long as a month before I can meet my friend the indian.
I was reading in someones blog that they wanted to record how the process of making the work affected their body. Their fingers were becoming sore from a repetetive task and that was included in the art works dialogue.
So after yesterdays Tour de France I thought that seemed a good theme to carry on with.
As it happens I have counted 9 calouses on my right hand aquired from this repetetive task. I thought they were just calouses, but after reading the knitting blog I see my own calouses in a new light. I have noticed you can still get blisters underneath the calouses. Sometimes the calous reaches an optimum thickness and it kind of starts to break up, bits drop off it and you have peel the whole thing off, it takes less than a week for a new one to form.
That is a piece of information I never thought I would ever share, but how relevant to art is it? Well I do get a sense of satisfaction at the end of a job, a feeling of achievement and that I have made something. There are alot physical and mental hurdles to clear on a job like this. The physical and mental investment make you feel it has definatley taken you the full 12 rounds.
The mosaic is moving on again. I am finding it harder to start work on it in the mornings though. Once I get going it is generally OK. Its longer than the Tour de France.
I often compare jobs with the tour de france and if I were to describe it now I would be in the pyraneese mountains and really feeling the steepness of the climbs. I am well ahead of the main peleton, suffering but hanging onto a small group of riders who are putting the hammer down, I am coping, but that is all. My mind is beginning to shut down and I am constantly asking myself to stop, let them go. From experience I now this is a mistake as when you let go you dont slow down you stop totally. I will have to stop anyway soon as I have to start another mosaic next week. That is a the real killer as I have yet to tackle the alps they are nearer the finish and I need to conserve my strength. So I guess the approaching mosaics for Newcastle are the real hard climbs including the 'Tormoulet' the race could be won or lost there.
I have to keep going as time is short. The more I can do before Newcastle starts the better. I need a time bonus….there may be one at the top for the first over the line?
Dig deeper, hang on whatever comes and focus.
