:: book art inspiration ::

I've been feeling a little inspired lately...this is due to my obsession for craft - art blogs at the moment...I can't seem to get enough of them! Which, I realise in itself is not a bad thing I suppose but, it also means that I don't get a lot done myself....as I sit dreaming + drooling over the lovely images + thinking how wonderful + perfect they look but not really doing an ounce of work myself!

I think I work in batches...when one project is over it's like I need to refill my tank of creativity and motivation. It's not having the ideas that's the problem...more like getting around to making the idea. In a way I tend to put a lot of pressure on myself and my expectations of what I do are sometimes far too high, that it practically paralyzes me into doing anything at all. Anyone relate? In saying that I am full of ideas that I have begun to put into action, so all is not lost!

I'm lovin' Noriko Ambeg at the moment...check out her website here

+ Lisa Kokin here..need I say anymore!?

Book art is high on my 'lush list' at the moment...this is probably a reaction to my own attempt at creating books, which is still a work in progress and a theme that I hope to continue along. That is as long as my expectations are not beyond my reach and I don't put myself under too much pressure!

:: weekends ::

:: A few things that have inspired me over the weekend for one reason or another ::
::Sometimes it's just good to wander :: people watch :: eat :: drink + be merry ::

:: coffee :: work :: reading :: friends :: beer :: music :: art :: mojitos :: noodles :: sunshine :: croissants :: more coffee :: walking :: watering plants :: college :: tube :: red wine :: rain :: sleep :: emailing :: finding inspiration :: dreaming :: hoping :: g + t's :: walking :: smiles + smiles :: haircut :: buses :: rain :: family :: blogs :: thunder :: tour de france :: dancing :: sparkling water :: photos ::






:: there's more ::



:: + finally ::

The Red Lady

I didn't want to bombard you with too many pictures at once :: the excitement might just have thrown some of you into a frenzied state :: that frankly I did not want to be responsible for. So, in my aging wisdom I took the liberty of staggering the photos in few posts. I know this subject of the exhibition seems to be eternal but I'm milking it for all I can :: as it is probably the highlight of my year so far!

My work has been concentrating on memory + how that can shift + change. A person's experience of something can lead to a different memory of how another also experienced it. As I was working in that old dilapidated house I was struck by the memories that were embedded and seeped into the walls. And how I have now participated in adding to the memories of that house. I found an old piece of wallpaper at the house. I was taken by the delicateness of the image on it surrounded by the rubble in the house and it started to speak to me in a way. I painted the image of a lady on the wall, which I also did in the house + the memory of her changed again from that of her in the house in Kent. I became slightly obsessed with this lady on the wallpaper + was trying to capture a sense of the memory of this lady + who she was. Whilst I was painting her on the wall she started to change + transform into a different memory of who she was originally to me.

My work often focus on the little insignificant details that are often overlooked + taken for granted. I'm also fascinated by repetition + continuity, endeavoring to make something more important than it would normally appear. In one of the volumes I painted one lady in gold leaf + also framed a picture with one lady painted in gold leaf to try and preserve her sense of preciousness.

I choose to make small volumes [1-32] of the red lady :: like documenting a memoir of her :: whilst also suggesting the idea of a family album :: We keep photos to preserve memories of a specific time... place ... person...::

'Family portraits are part of the ritual of family life and contribute to a sense of continuity and personal identity. They are collected and preserved to revive warm memories about a past that is part reality, part fantasy. They are above all, desired pictures, which someone has chosen to make and reserve, and in which the subjects present themselves as they want to be seen' Patricia Holland.

Working with this old discarded wallpaper in essence I'm trying to capture the memories before they fade, crumble + disappear :: I'm ensuring they are remembered by a new audience + their memories are distilled ::

Once they were lost...but now they are found!

So..... here is the much anticipated and eagerly awaited [by myself at least, if not by anyone else] photos of my show! I hope they haven't been too hyped up due to the long absence of them + will not disappoint + it's not a case of 'booorrring'. My lovely man arrived back from Belfast and all credit is due to his amazing IT abilities as he retrieved all 307 of my lost photos...it's a miracle. I'm going to ask him about the possibility of turning our bog standard tap water into wine next!!

:: These images are from a video we showed at the gallery of us producing work in situ in the house :: we wanted the video to be the focal point of what we achieved ::

:: We decided that we would try and recreate work produced within the house + show this in the gallery along side the video :: So we would not only be borrowing the space of the house to create work but also borrowing the space of the gallery to produce work :: The following are images taken of pieces for the show ::

beginning to turn green...!

Oh my goodness I'm getting so fed up......grrrrr!! I've tried again + again to down load some photos of my recent work.....much to my dismay it keeps saying that 'an error occurred whilst trying to save your photos'. Normally I would say that I'm a patient person [others may disagree] but I like to think that in most cases I am. Without appearing too much like the Incredible Hulk...this is really beginning to make me mad! I'll have to get my very own IT expert to have a look at it. R's away DJing at SM2007 in Belfast at the moment. Hopefully in the meantime calamity won't occur + I loose the lot.

::on a different note::

Over the summer I'm hoping to get out + about a bit more + visit galleries galore....of which there are plenty in London. First off I went to view the new work of Anthony Gormley in the Hayward Gallery I haven't connect with his work in the past, but there was something about some of his new pieces that I was able to engage with [the allotment:: was strangely seductive and beautiful]


The Drawing Room is an interesting space that I had heard about, slightly hard to find, but was well worth the effort as I ended up having a really good conversation with one of the gallery owners, who was very helpful. This space is designated to the contemporary practice of drawing..::..as a drawing student this for me is an interesting space to see more up an coming artists.

:::stay tuned I'll get those photos up even if I do turn green in the process:::