walkingfilmswalkingfilmsandaparty

A weekend of films and walking. The area around the river and reed beds at the mouth of the river Alde is particularly empty and calming the experience marked with a shifting mirrored ever steady space of shimmer under huge skies. The films...... The One I Love http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2756032/?ref_=tt_rec_tt a film that doesn’t quite know what kind of film it is but maybe that’s okay and Trash http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1921149/ a very-its-quite-bad-but-in-the-end-it-will-all-be-okay kind of film. Looking forward to A View from the Bridge – a live premier from the Young Vick with Mark Strong on Thursday at Aldeburgh cinema. http://www.aldeburghcinema.co.uk/  The house rebuilding has a week to go with kitchen, bathroom and toilet still to be rebuilt but at least I’ve managed to repaint all the ceilings. Thinking of having a party!

youtoocanbecreative

A week of painting ceilings at the building site that is my house was underpinned with seminars and a lecture at NUA – in an attempt to connect what I do as a maker with what I do as an educator I gave a presentation about the recent robotics project using some of the teaching tools I use with the students. This attempt to match what we ask of the students with what I do hopefully explained why we advise them to undertake certain activities – education is good for you! If you turn up! See it on slideshare http://www.slideshare.net/l.bicknell/soft-robotics-with-kings-and-craft-council-45978442 although you will need a link to Aidans soundcloud and then play his tracks under the films within the PowerPoint – yes it was a little DIY messy. But then that was the point....you too can do this. https://soundcloud.com/aidan-johnson

journeytodeath

after finally purchasing a PS3 journey now arrives in the house  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journey_%282012_video_game%29 - the space your character moves through is quite magical with some great landscapes that seem in tune with the game play and when on-line occasionally other players arrive – unable to communicate through the textual  means that the encounter is flirty and all about interaction – I met somebody who had obviously played extensively as they were dressed in extravagant white glowing flowing robes as they guided me past and through the wondrous landscapes. the whole game is quite beautiful and about our journey to death......

talkingthinkingbeingaboutart

back to Paris – still thinking about the trip – we also managed to sneak in a visit to The Museum of Evolution – with its odd and spectacular display of dead things – worth a look. back to London I so love teaching at Camberwell. It’s been an excellent day talking about ART – a silent crit where the work is discussed without background knowledge or intention from the maker or any textual support verbal or written.........what is the work about? How do we feel about it? As makers what would we do with the idea? ...... I’ve chaired a wide ranging day taking in translation, material understanding, the role of the reader/viewer, trust in formats, the idea of fractured narrative and classification through collection ..........just excellent. Managed to pop into the curve gallery to see Roman Signer: slow movement - unsure about the slightness of the intervention/action, although the absurdity captured me and I did enjoy the videos – art as fun experiment !!!

Meanwhile back to film - I’ve caught up with Gone Girl – OMG – one minute you understand the world, disturbed by it but you do understand and then within the next your perspective changes from one place to another – a wonderful roller-coaster of a film. But then there is Pride - the miners’ strike and 80’s gay activism depicted though a chocolate box lens – it’s always difficult to watch one’s own history depicted and I struggled with the feel good nature of Pride – but it did have some great tunes so maybe its ok!

iloveparisinthespring

A weekend of stuff - forest fringe at the place - last seen at Spill in an all male production of Wuthering Heights from the perspective of the horses - death and hope, loss and joy explored by two naked guys fighting and playing in a sea of dust looking at the space between hope and fear - raw. Paris was sunny and full of opportunities. First up Trisha Donnelly http://www.airdeparis.com/artists/trisha-donnelly/trisha.htm - my new go-to sublime artist - truly beautiful videos of maybe landscape before it became - climate as disaster and change all oddly juxtaposed - reminiscent of the appearance of our daily screens. Daniel Buren at kamel mennour was magnificent all marble lines filling two rooms. Pliure. Prologue at the Gulbenkian http://www.gulbenkian-paris.org was a really beautiful essay on the book. Working with an eclectic collection of sources in featured a book text performed 'ninja like' by lighting flouresent text with a tourch in a blacked out room. Films referencing books, medieval statues, artists books all lit and displayed exquisitely. The Palais du Tokoyo  http://www.palaisdetokyo.com was a riot of activity and as always a place that delivers the opportunity to be surprised. The high light was a show titled Le Bord des Mondes - an exhibition that asked can one make work that isn't art? Setting out to challenge Duchamps premise in today's world.

It included some familiar faces from TED lectures, the science world and outsider art. everybody has to know about L.A S.A.P.E - an evangelists for good clothes Sapeurs - A Short Documentary by GUINNESS (2014) Charlie Le mindy's extraordinary hair styles http://charlielemindu.com the film of Pierre Gagnaire preparing food was mesmerising https://vimeo.com/user3338106/vod_pages and who knew about game of states? Anyway my favourite artist statement was from Tomas Saraceno who apparently 'lives in and beyond planet earth' I might use this in my next artist statement.