There is a Distinct Possibility that We Were not All Going to Come Back – Lab 3, Belgium Bound Part 1: Ghent
Déjà vu – that is not quite the phrase I need but all through lab 3, I had the same kind of feeling. Maybe more like stepping into a mirror and looking back, or a shiver I couldn’t shake. Like the society you left behind (in this case, for 4 days) seemed to have everything backwards or upside down – we spend so much time working out which way is up, everything seems to continue to look down, (or more importantly) there is so little left to support the community who need it the most. ‘The grass is always greener’ effect was strong and I am totally aware of it, Belgium has significant social and political turmoil, but culture and community is robust and well invested in, the discord seems to bring individuals and community with it…
And Just Like That, We are Back
That was so joyful! We zoomed together, marking the first creative activity of Squeeze Box 23 and it was worth everything. The agonising character cutting, the squeezing Squeeze Box into ACE guidelines and sometime frustrating questions, the ‘thanks for a strong application but we are not able to fund your project at this time’ from Jerwood, the to-ing and fro-ing from partners and the general head scratching over budgets. Not like some of that wasn’t exciting, meaningful and engaging (and the process and feed-back from Jerwood was immensely useful from an eventual ACE yes!), it is just difficult to compare the application process with the nourishing and energy-boost of that one Zoom!
Nourishment for The Mind – Destination Cairo
If Lab 1 at Hawkwood was soul filling, this experience was more about fuelling energy for critical thinking and reflection! Very much a roller-coaster of emotion, but held and happy, sometimes feeling excited and energised and sometimes like a 10-year-old being presented with Disney Land tickets. There were some significant bumps and interesting moments along the way to do with accessibility and tiredness, but I did have the most epic time and massive thanks to my creative enabler team Jen and Dilys. Shout out needed to Dan and Nene for being the amazing organisers, the wider supporting network and my fellow fellowshipers.
A Farrell Arts Gallery Near You
We are in a state – to quote the commissioners of this extraordinary, amazing project and still can’t quite believe I’m on, our world ‘is in flux. The list seems endless: from the effects of climate change, to war, spiralling energy costs and inflation, seismic constitutional change – kings and queens and national identities – to debates around reproductive rights and gender politics’… and that is putting it mildly and defo not an exhaustive list! So we have a act of resistance from Artichoke – through an ambitious project working with a range of advertising firms in the public domain, eleven bold artwork are everywhere and anywhere, catching the corners of eyes….. unapologetic and compromising!
The Biggest Impact Blog
After an epic, amazing, very (Very) busy, deeply interesting, energised, creatively stimulating and poignant three or four weeks, two projects have come to their conclusion. There is always a sad, melancholy kind of feel at these times. The companionship with fellow artists mixed with a surge of energy and enthusiasm is a momentum building wave. It is stressful and worrying (probably needs rethinking with health and care point of view), but those emotions are swept along with pure excitement and aliveness. It is a spark, a shining in the eye, I get a strong image of my eyes twinkling like stars in my own imagination. There probably not, but that sense of falling over one’s thoughts because they are tumbling faster than language or imagery or computer processing power…..yeah people, I’m not on drugs, I was on two journey’s which felt so meaningful!
12 Last Songs
The work was 12 Last Songs. It started at 12 noon and it ended at 12 midnight. During that time, 600 questions were asked to 28 workers from the City of Manchester. Parallel to this, a performer was capturing, and reporting back happenings around the city, including weddings, community football matches, a group of foresters learning more about fungi, a highly anticipated boxing match … lots of other things happened …… and apart from food at 2pm and rationed as possible toilet breaks, Jen and I experienced every second.
What Does This Mean
Queen Elizabeth II passed away at the Royal retreat, Balmoral, Scotland on Thursday, 8th September 2022 surrounded by her family. The most thoughtful and loving personal messages are being sent from throughout the world from politicians, celebrities and everyday people – a poignant wave of grief from the heart of the Scottish highland. TV and radio coverage was paused to give the message … we were watching football at the time (of course) and the footage cut to a presenter in black … I remember my mum saying: ‘oh dear’, then a few moments after, I worked out what was happening. News in the day said the Queen was unwell but you don’t quite believe it due to her ever-presence. Now my heart, mind and hands are in a conscience crisis and I thought doing some writing would help conflicting feelings find meaning.