naturaldrawings

I have finally started using the ‘inks’ made from materials that were on the site of where Sizewell C Power Station is being constructed. Its day one and I am slowly working out what the materials do. A truly magical evening at Snape last night – 2 concerts – the first a selection of ‘protest’ pieces, mainly bonkers and a little dated, a kind of period piece, but still interesting. After that the second concert by the Britten Sinfonia had a sublime first half, a highlight was a piece by Brett Dean, Carlo. There was also a splendid recorder piece played by Genevieve Lacey. After the interval it was difficult to take your eyes off the dynamic cello playing of Laura van der Heijden, truly awe inspiringly magnificent. But I think the real star was the exquisite conducting by Gemma New. She elegantly held both the orchestra and the audience. It was a live event.  Meanwhile onto screens – In the grey – yes out there is a parallel universe of highly organised illegal enforcers. Madeline – whimsical and a little sad.

calmingfrenchnessandsomemore

My paper/presentation at turn the page symposium  https://www.turnthepage.org.uk/  seemed to go well - it was a little rambling as I attempted to cram 27 years of thinking about book art and bookness into 40 minutes. It was great to be surrounded by like minded people and listen to inspiring presentations - Maria White speaking about the idea of collecting was absorbing and Kate Farley's thoughts about reading patterns has got me thinking!

I recently went to the extraordinary Chateau la Coste https://chateau-la-coste.com/en/walk/ a space of splendid calm where art wine and architecture are surrounded by ancient Provence landscape. The work of Tadao Ando is particularly special. After staying at imprints http://imprints-galerie.com/ in Crest  where the market is so wonderfully French - if you boiled down all of Frenchness you would get this place A quick trip to Marseilles is always a bonus and in the railway sidings I noticed this building.

It's that time of year when several festivals are in full swing - at Aldeburgh Festival I saw Bastard Assignments https://bastardassignments.com/  who make experimental sound performative work - Neo Hulcker's piece crackles was excellent. At Norfolk and Norwich Festival Shon Dale-Jones of http://www.hoipolloi.org.uk/  has been performing a trilogy which demonstrates his wondrous storytelling skills. I'm looking forward to Pulse at the Wolsey in a couple of weeks https://www.wolseytheatre.co.uk/pulse-festival/  Meanwhile it's also that time when assessments are about to kick in - so far a day of reading reflective thinking and professional practice thoughts has been informative.

somanynotes

so many notes 1!!! - a 10:00 evening slot at Aldeburgh Festival with Messiaen's Petites esquisses d'oiseaux and La Fauvette des jardins played by Lorenzo Soules - its abstraction was exhilarating - it was an extraordinarily powerful experience.

so many notes 2!!! - dropped into the British Museum - while it's still there and free I thought that I would drop in on the way to new designers. it's always best to see just one room as the space can be overwhelming - decided on money - it is truly a wonderful display of mans ability to suspend belief, create abstract realities and false Gods.

some films - whisky tango foxtrot - http://gb.imdb.com/title/tt3553442/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2  a devastating chaotic film that spins gloriously out of control in so many ways. is this what we do in other places? everyone wants some!! - http://gb.imdb.com/title/tt2937696/ unsure of the films tone - glorying in sexist 'frat boyness'! or irony light? - if just a 'joke' who is it on? - it often felt like the audience. But after the film within the credits is where the film starts to explore something of the issues at hand - each character raps with thoughtful lyrics over cleverly specific music that explores and deconstructs their character and ultimately what each charter stands for. The revised fundamentals of caregiving - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2452386/ a beautiful life affirming film - you will laugh you will cry.

a day at new designers - building the stand - it really is key that year 1 and 2 students on courses  attend - without the knowledge of seeing other students work they are at a disadvantage.

the build and hang for the MA Book Art Show at Camberwell is over - it really is a dynamic exhibition with many wonderful conversations between the works taking place - curating and hanging it is one of the highlights of my teaching year - lots of learning taking place within wonderful conversations with creative people - it will be a winner - all the Postgraduate courses are they - check it out - 14th - 20th July - http://events.arts.ac.uk/event/2016/7/14/Camberwell-College-of-Arts-Postgraduate-Summer-Show-2016/?_ga=1.166516542.1278468922.1440491599

joiningandmakingsense

decided to join instagram - https://www.instagram.com/les1bicknell/ it will be a documentation on my everyday activity that supports practice. my instagram profile image is me dealing with and being dealt by the wonderful Alfedo Jaar http://www.alfredojaar.net/main.html piece at MOMA - Lament of the images http://www.moma.org/collection/works/138623?locale=en I first saw it at The Tate in another iteration and then went to see it on my last two trips to New York making the pilgrimage to be altered. His work for the Chile Pavillion at the Venice Biennale was extraordinary you had to really be there to get the full experience, comming across it - but check out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFuAzBEOcMI

some films this week -  The 100 year old man who climbed out of the window and disappeared http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2113681/ a wonderful funny life affirming experience - in so many ways a better Forest Gump!  Parallels - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3479316/?ref_=nv_sr_1 nice idea but more of a tv series pilot as so many issues are either initiated in the last 5 minutes or left as cliff hangs  Dear white people - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2235108/?ref_=rvi_tt a quietly scathing look at racism and our role in it. the Aldeburgh festival threw up Tamsin Waley-Cohen on violin and James Baillieu on piano - a front row seat means that you really get the sense that playing an instrument is an endurance sport. the Debussy and Elgar were discordant and challenging - speaking of death, destruction and the context that they were created in - the new piece by Freya Waley-Cohen with its loops and forceful architecture was an interesting counter balance and gave space to consider our location. Looking forward to the pump house on Friday - The wild man of Orford a piece based on 'actual' legend http://myths.e2bn.org/mythsandlegends/origins63-the-wild-man-of-orford.html  and maybe stay to watch Dead Rat Orchestra playing salt, sawdust and 200 shards of micro-tuned steel. Turn the page book fair is this weekend in Norwich http://turnthepage.org.uk/ its great to see so many people who are connected to the MA Book Arts Course at Camberwell attending - we have a stand this year - and I see that Rosie Sherwood will launch her new poetry book and art installation 'The Ellentree' as well as Karen Apps having her own stand -  come along - it will be interesting as the selection panel - Sarah Bodman, Su Blackwell and Jules Allen bring a wealth of knowledge to their position as selectors.

leavingnotleavingworking

working on the latest gloriously mad Paul Cope art combined group thing  - after chair, drain, and shop box we have 100 sq feet - I've been given a 12cm spare panel of wood to work with for an exhibition in Halesworth Gallery - after much thought I chopped it up and played tangram https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tangram after a few hours I got to knife.... then....using that as a mask to make 101 individual prints.....to be swapped with 100 other artists and one to auction off. http://www.paulcope.com/100_Sq_Ft/index.html

first outing to this years festival at Aldeburgh was Birmingham contemporary music group playing Julian Anderson’s The Comedy of Change and Benedict Mason’s Nodding Trilliums and Curve-Lined Angles - WOW - controlled disorder ordered and a dose of big fun as they played prepared pianos, rubber balls brushes and at one point the building.  

meanwhile some challenging multi-authorship design on the A12

weekbyweekbyweek

A long week of helping hang work in various undergrad final year shows alongside a return to one of my spiritual homes graphic design - by helping students creating mock up design objects; LP cases, book covers and folded business cards!

Managed to see/listen to a body of work by Tristan Murali under the title Klangforum Wein 1 today at Aldeburgh Festival – my favourite piece was Desintegrations - It was a wonderful muscular sound – as if Richard Serra had made music! – As Murail himself put it, “I make music by working the sound matter like a sculptor, revealing the form that is hidden within the block of stone, rather than constructing it with bricks, as is the case in a traditional approach”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRuxHVWfQtA He was there and most excellent in correcting the interviewer about his music.

Looking forward to the week to come – hanging another exhibition – the Post grad Book Art show at Camberwell, re-hanging the textiles show at NUA in a morning as work returns from New Designers and attending the event at Kings as part of Parallel Practices. The Private View of Cley14 is on Wednesday and I’m on invigilator duty Friday and Saturday which should be fun.