RED SOCKS and RUBBER BANDS

for shelby

because being a little bit crazy and having fun is worth celebrating
(and so is passing your entrance exams - well done)

dead squirrel

dead squirrel

i photographed a dead squirrel.  it seemed important at the time, it was as much about my experience of being in a park as jumping dogs and happy children.  an act of recognition of a life lived perhaps, of the end of a life, to be forgotten. dismissed through an unseemely death in a car park.  no one to care. except me perhaps.

i wanted the image to be a part of my exhibition but somehow I couldn't bring myself to show the photograph in all its fine detail, too harsh a reality, undignified maybe.  in its reality (whatever that is) it couldn't convey what I felt about it and yet it was in that reality that I made a response to it, felt strongly enough to get up close and take the photograph.

so, i played with the image for a while, filtering out the detail, in an attempt to give a sense of calm, peace, respect.  to create a space that would allow for a refelction of time past, of what might have been. of an end and yet a holding still of time lived.

the work now exists as a lightbox piece, the image cut up into numerous coloured squares, as if a fading, broken down TV image or perhaps building blocks with a potential to recreate a full, remade living squirrel.  is it coming, is it going.

the work has yet to be shown in the exhibition.  the act of deciding to exhibit it and the responses from people so far have rasied many questions about what art is for.  why i want to show this piece, why people feel uncomfortable with it.  i don't have answers other than I feel something, that seems at odds with most peoples responses.  this piece is important to me in discovering what it is  that I feel about the world.

if you want to see the work for yourself then go to 'for the diary' for details of my PARKsTALK show.  once the show is over I will post an image of the work and further comments on how the work was received.

on being an artist and what is art for (or not)

i have spent the last two weekends working with some fellow artists from the Hounslow area (London) practising and exploring creative mentoring (look at the creative mentoring photo album for some of the work).  we all come from diverse backgrounds and all have our own unique ways of trying to make it in the world as an artist and financing our practise, sharing our passions and giving something back to those who may not have access to the arts. creating a dialogue amongst fellow artists and those interested or without access to the arts has become an important part of my practise and I want this space to be a place for anyone to contribute to this dialogue by asking questions, sharing issues and concerns, finding ways to share successes and exploring what it means to be an artist today.