August…a holiday from making art – rest and recharge my batteries rather than schlep round exhibitions – work on the house to improve my environment – reflect not make – focus on the why of making with Nicola Saunderson – develop a strategy for the art year ahead – collaborate with Karen Crosby to deliver my very first public-facing workshops.
The next event I have is Making Art Work’s Art Market on Saturday 19th September. My goal is to test public reaction to a series of prints inspired by the song of the train and ideally sell some of them! There’s 8 film stills and 2 images constructed from dual shots taken closely together (shown here), supplied unframed, print size 20 x 30.5 cm. If you’re able, please come along to visit the stall I’ll be sharing with Karen Crosby and Alex Edwards.
Maidstone’s very first Art Market event is a one day not-to-be-missed opportunity to see the work of 80 artists as well as an eclectic programme of singers, poets, dancers and performers. There’s also the chance to nab a bargan in the charity art auction and to make your own printed art work.
More information
19th September, 9:00am to 4:00pm, Market Hall, Lockmeadow, Baker Road, Maidstone, ME16 8LW, free entry
Artist Nicola Saunderson and I have been chatting about our different approaches to surveying a site. Hers is organised and disciplined – pseudo scientific – whereas mine is instinctive and based around visual moments that intrigue me.
Inspired by her approach I surveyed a new trip last week, filming the entire thing and then taking still shots at set intervals, creating a very different experience for me. Once tactics are decided they simply need to be enacted, leaving me feeling somewhat detached from the experience and not connected as fully to the site surveyed. However, surveying this way feels like a valuable starting tactic, documenting what’s where and trapping stuff I might previously have missed – a baseline from which to repeat survey more closely.
The first cut of the Song of the Train is a good basis from which to move forward but probably not a finished product. Its tactics of stills sliding somewhat awkwardly into moving image is strong, although perhaps the stills should be apparent not actual.
Site has relevance, although this isn’t necessarily tied to where the train is travelling to and from. What IS key is the emotional impact the experience evokes. This means the titling of the work needs re-visiting.
Next: make a series of short films, each investigating something specific, such as:
Sunlight
Light / shadow
Dusk
Water
Rain
Reflection / layering
People waiting for a train
Meeting of architecture and nature
Shots that appear still but aren’t
Dislocating motion that feels somewhat wrong such as the curve round a bend
