what I'm working on…...

These little drawings have been on my table for weeks; of horses swimming underwater that have been in need of doing something with, but what that something was eluded me. I was imagining what these creatures would be like if their bodies were supported by water, and they had total freedom to move in any way. On top of that I've been re-reading Alice in Wonderland. Today I worked them into an idea for a new book, Pool Of Tears, combining them with torn tissue, watercolour and stitches. I'm really excited as I will be opening my etsy shop over the next few weeks and I will have available a very limited edition of this book in there along with sculpture, photography, printmaking and other books.

So, if you want to get an early heads-up when the shop will open and with a special discount code too, be sure to sign up for my newsletter and you will be at the front of the queue as it's snakes through the interwebs. She says hopefully.
Can I just mention I was thrilled to be interviewed by lovely Anca over on her beautiful blog To Live Poetry, and my work has been featured on the excellent Street Anatomy site too. Both of these and a visit from my big sister were real mood lifters last week after the horrific events in Toulouse.

movin' on

If you come round here often, you may have noticed that lately I've not been sharing much of my photography. Actually, it's not lost on me either that many readers who enjoyed looking at my photos don't pop by anymore, since my blog evolved into a more diverse but still art-y one.
Sigh.
Allow me to explain.

Now, this photograph to date has had over 240 people fave it on flickr; 1,400+ have reblogged it on tumblr and I really have no idea how many other places it is now. And to be honest, I don't much care. **As a side note, I used to get in such a flap about being credited, but there are definitely more important things to worry about. Although the people who manipulate my photographs or add some crappy quote on top of them really annoy me. C'est la vie.**
So why has 'Grey's Anatomy' captured these imaginations? Much as I'd like to think otherwise, it's most likely because of the title. I had no idea when I named it that this was a popular US TV show. On the flipside, the vast majority of the people who have liked/re-blogged/pinned it have absolutely no idea of my 'meaning and intent'. {That's a phrase I have stolen from one of my former Breezies (thank you Graham) and it sums up perfectly what I am compelled for my photography to have. But I digress.}
So 'Grey's Anatomy' was one of a body of work I exhibited in 2010 and personal take on hands and feet; how they empower us, how incredibly complex they are and how we take them for granted. At no point did it have anything at all to do with a TV programme.
However, I am very proud of the photograph for several reasons: the context, the composition, the light and the soft blue/lilac tones. I am not proud of it because of it's popularity, that's neither here nor there. That makes me sound a little arrogant but I must remember not to get swept along by it and lose something important.
Authenticity.
I have taken some truly terrible photographs over the last three years. Pictures totally lacking in any sort of validity that I took purely because I knew they would be rewarded with that pink star on flickr over and over. As a result I have now pruned my flickr down severely, slinging out anything that lacks that authenticity. I have also made the decision that I will share on my blog film photography that I feel deserves to be shown. Equally, I have done much work I'm very proud of, that frequently goes under the radar and no-one really notices. But this type of work when it does get noticed by someone who really get's it, or is in someway moved or repulsed even by the image, that means so very, very much more to me.
I have been so focussed on that need to have meaning in my other forms of art, yet I sometimes allowed my photographs to be derivative and well, quite frankly meaningless. What a prat.

I love this photograph: it has a narrative, a quiet simplicity and is beautifully lit. But because it was untitled instead of being called 'House' or something, it never got noticed.
Daft innit? Or am I just taking myself too seriously? I do that.

Vanessa

I met Vanessa Skiles a few months ago out there ←↑→ in webworld. I adore her ceramics; she says she "creates bleak worlds inhabited by cute creatures." Me, I love the quiet beauty of them and I was thrilled when she sent me these 3 gorgeous pieces the other day. If you want to see and know more of this talented lady you can see her portfolio here, or follow her on twitter. She also curates Loaded Kiln.

expired

For the last three months Baby, my little Yashica ME, has been stuffed with a loaded roll of extremely expired, extremely cheap and nasty film in the bottom of my bag. You know, just for those emergencies when you see something cool but you didn't bring a decent camera. So this is a real méli-mélo of things I saw while outing and abouting during the winter.
From top: ducks on the River Aude; the lake at Montbel with the snowy Pyrenees in the distance; circus tents/circus pony spotting in Carcassonne (not because I approve of such things, I can assure you); the wind creating art herself; the Occitan flag in Limoux.

nettle pesto

No really, don't let it freak you out. Firstly, I bought some from a local market last spring and it was utterly delicious but horribly expensive, so I kind of worked out how to do it for myself. Secondly, if you are like me and desperately trying to get on top of the vicious stinging nettles rampaging over the garden at this time of year, this makes you feel pretty vengeful yet victorious. Not to mention it tastes veganly and heavenly scrumptious and is packed with nutritious goodies. ✓✓

To make a small jar's worth, snap on your rubber gloves and pick enough nettles to fill a colander. Go for the freshest, youngest and most vindictive nettles. It will taste better and make you feel like a champ. Back in the kitchen, you need to rinse them thoroughly, sling out the toughest stalk parts and then blanch them in boiling water for 2 minutes. I checked this out on the internet, it's true that it's the only way to deaden the toxic sting. Plunge them into cold water and ring out. I use my salad spinner, but I suppose you could just squeeze them in a teatowel if you haven't got one.

In my little blender, I chop them up with about 4 to 5 big glugs of olive oil and a garlic clove. Then add about 3 teaspoons of ground almonds and salt to taste. Voilà.

You can fiddle around with the olive oil to get a consistency you like, perhaps a little thinner for pasta, but I like it thick and slapped over some chunky, rustic bread.

le vertige

felt good

The other day I spent some time being taught feltmaking by my lovely friend Natalie Magnin. Do you remember her? I did a studio visit with her back in the summer...
She showed me both dry needle-felting and wet felting techniques and gave me lots of helpful information about dyeing with vegetable and plant dyes. I left her with a headful of inspiration for combining felt with my plaster forms. I do so love the contradiction of the hard and soft, the smooth and the textured and I have a good feeling about this. I also left with tons of eggs from her husband (not that he laid them personally, he just has very productive hens) and with my arms full of sheep's wool, some of which is beautifully soft merino, mordant, a needle and no excuses not to get on with it have a good old experiment.
By the way, I've decided Luna must have some collie blood in her; she went completely nuts when she smelt the bags of unwashed wool, I half expected her to start herding them up.

lost and found

I've lost my pinterest joy.
I am not going to say too much about the furore, there is so much floating around out there to read. But for me personally this was the final nail in the coffin of yet another social network that was keeping me from getting on with more important things.
I'm back to old school style; I've (re-)found my pen and paper next to my computer, my bookmarks and my trusty evernote. It makes me curate better anyway, and only hang on to what's really worth keeping.

***

I also lost myself to plaster, spending days and days with it under my nails, then burning my fingers with matches and skinning them with sandpaper. Soon I will be finding feltmaking with my friend Natalie.

I am still lost in ideas about my locality and geography. I am to make a series of work for the boutique B&B in my village (more about that soon!)
but I have not yet found the lightbulb moment.

pentax spotmatic/solaris 200

I have lost my old system, methods and sheep-like tendencies and my ubiquitous and symbolic moo cards, and have found a new way of thinking.
(Nowadays they call it unconventional, vagabonding or living freely. Well I'm old and in my day we called it punk)

Indeed. My stamp will go everywhere with me, so I can stamp with wanton abandon. And if you haven't got a scrap of paper, bus ticket or receipt on you, I'll stamp the back of your hand for you.

what I'm working on

these are 2 of the 'in progress' things I posted on my facebook page earlier this week. Both of these are sculptures I've never been happy with and keep returning to over and over, the one of the left has especially been driving me mad. This is how it was on Monday morning☝. I originally started it about 18 months ago but since then I've tried re-working it over and over. Now it looks like this:

The original ideas relating to birds eggs sort of got hijacked as it became more and more like a skull, and the text reminds me of the sutures on a cranium. I'm still not sure it will stay this way.

The other one hasn't really changed too much, and I'm happy with it….

and I also {finally} completed this too.

So free from the distractions of having a car, hot water and coffee (my water heater and coffee maker have both blown-up this week) I've been super productive. Fingers of fire, oh yeah!