moreandmoreSZC

Another great sauna on the beach at Dunwich for a birthday with another in a couple of weeks. Work on the Sizewell residency continues – I’ve decided that a way to navigate the immense project that is SZC with all its huge independent but linked departments is to become several artists that have different interests and approaches to making art. It has delivered an immense freedom to be able to do anything. Two visits to the public facing version SZC. The Archaeology display was full of interesting objects with some insightful commentary An evening at a community film event was lovely with the children in the films delivering a clear steer on what was needed. The first session at Alde Valley Academy went okay – introduced them to an alternative way of thinking. The work itself keeps coming. Woke up at 5.00 today – by 5.30 I was working on the communication pieces, creating couples, the idea of duality seems important, sort of oppositional I have found myself making moulds and using all sorts of materials to cast the voids. Onto films – Nickel Boys – really powerful cinema, filmed in a way that you feel implicated, although it was a little like reading an essay with great footnotes. The Brutalist – challenging, in all sorts of ways. Flight Risk – I wonder what will happen. Kneecap – AWESOME. Lockerbie – it’s a tough but insightful watch, with superb effects of a plane falling out of the sky! Brian and Maggie, lived it but a great illustration of what happened. Gave up on Squid Games – there were no surprises left. 

diggingthepastnow

What a busy 2 weeks - both pretty full on - a meeting in Hull with Feral Art School about potential possibilities, an evening meeting about Sizewell C to listen to information about the Northern transport situation, 2 days of teaching and a day at Kings - a great synthetic anatomy session about genetics. The trial session around table displays was really successful. It's where we run a workshop in which the whole course is played out from initial ideas and research into iterative making, leading to final displays and along the way touching on group work and narrative story telling. Work for Sizewell C goes well - the future archaeology is working, and the 3D prints look good. This was informed by a superb day finally on site at SZC with the Cotswold archaeology team. They were so generous with their time and knowledge. I'm rethinking my approach to the work I was planning around archaeology - time space layers narrative - the way in which the process of archaeology is documented, and I got to touch very old stuff - most excellent. The week went from amazing to awesome - got invited to create work for the battery of ideas - I get to make a huge hanging thread work that will explore the relationship between my tattoos and images of nuclear atomic existence - really can't wait. This week’s session at kings was interrupted by a group of 10 year olds. Rather that asking what was happening and getting them to leave I got on the mic, stopped the session and organised that the table groups of students explained their projects. This was awesome as incredibly obscure and complex ideas were explained. They had to think about the language they were using for different audiences. There were some totally natural communicators in the room, such a wonderful experience, especially as the small children questioned the projects in ways the science students hadn't anticipated, in some cases a total rethink - beautiful. Went to CCA the show was of work from the 80s, it did feel a little like it, popped into the art station in Saxmudham - really interesting show of paintings, Scenes From A Place Called World, by Rebecca Riess.  

coldadventures

Another amazing day at Kings College working with the great team that is synthetic anatomy. The groups are beginning to gell, the session on team building connected to today's workshop, which included SWOT analysis on the senses combined with animals (what do we mean by useful?) and developing communication skills with 'bag anatomy'. A swift visit to the Science Gallery and off to Stansted to catch a plane to Tallinn. A glorious couple of days in Tallinn - so so cold but  public transport is so connected and easy, making  movement through the city a joy. From one eating spot to another with galleries and museums in-between. Add warehouses full of second hand stuff, areas viing for high rise dystopian post USSR award, walks along the Baltic, going to the top of the Tallinn TV tower and beating eachother with eucalyptus branches in a Russian sauna meant that it all felt easy, especially as the fare was cheap or free if you are a resident. We ate fabulous food, Especially loved the Georgian Food at The Kurz (chuttu and kartulige) the fusion food at SALT, pizza at the 50th top pizza restaurant in Europe, herring in blackcurrant for breakfast and the pastries are to die for almost everywhere, actually everywhere. Estonian Kringel is a must. In terms of galleries and museums The Kumu is a glorious modern space with a superb collection, it was interesting to think about how artists have been sharing information and talking with each other in an underground 'soft power' way for years, evidenced by the creation of similar work to European artists and movements. To not value this and in fact for Brexiteers and rightwing nationists around the world to remove the support and block creative discussions is just dumb but artists will find ways to collaborate, share and grow together, this is why creativity frightens the small, insular minded. Meanwhile - I don't know if it was translation but the texts in the shows were poetic in nature, especially the titles - Symptoms of change - They began to talk - The future is in one hour - Museum of Obsessions - When wicked resides without -Alarming are the bells that echo in the landscape - The forgotten tablecloth: the spell of crumpled materials -The dance of small steps - Object to be destroyed - Elementary forms and the Anatomy of Feelings. We will return.