IKEA

Doing my administration today. After a long time I could finally send off my winterschool application and Ikea letter to Debby.

I'm excited to hear from IKEA. There is something fascinating about these show areas which are so close to houses but are not populated. It is easy for the customer to imagine themselves completing household tasks, and yet most people content themselves with sitting in a chair or just touching the desk. As a child I was always playing ‘cooking’ in the B&Q kitchen showroom…now I have IKEA, I’m more refined and keen to get permission from the relevant people.

The gap between living and performing living. Consciousness and the everyday. Essentially this piece will be performed. Should I attempt to forget they are watching me...the duration may help but I'm guessing that I will be conscious and unconscious and self concious in waves of awareness.

Progress?

I was in the space for four hours this morning and I managed to keep myself busy and created some new material. So perhaps Nic was right about the need to be in the studio groaning.
In particular Roberts advice to begin with obvious things and then problematize them helps too. Had Lisa in to see some progress, she said that I was onto something. I think in future I will stop explaining what the piece is about before I show any material...Its a bit too confusing to explain something I haven't done (magazine characters) and then show abstracted extras.
I'm really thinking about tones and how to create multilayered material. I feel good as though I'm on track and will vow to try and make SOMEthing every weekday from now untill the Bardsley/Poppy winterschool.

Am in the new CCA artists resource centre, using the free internet and it's a good feeling to be existing out of the RSAMD building. This space will come in handy and should be explored further. Also recieved an email from Shoal of Mackrel publishing house for a call for submissions. Perhaps I will put a submission in, and worry about funding the book only if my proposal is considered. Must contact Helen Shaddock at the Art School.

I Made My Family Dissappear!

Came back to an empty house last night. I was by myself for about 5 hours and although at first I took joy in being able to stand on the furniture, sing at the top of my voice and watch music TV by 10pm I was restless and missed my parents to distraction. The house just doesn't feel right without them, a shell full of objects that I haven't looked at properly for years...or perhaps forever. I had forgotten the little wooden house box that sits in the sitting room cabinet...my birth tankard, the glass rabbit. I hate ornaments and yet I wouldn't be without my Buddha and my yin yang vases, ornaments remind me of my grandparents and their varying collection of memorabillia. What about Mary's stone eggs and a bowl of mint imperials. Will I ever stop being so personally sentimental?

Home is comfort, shelter from more than just the weather. A place to keep the things that you think are important, whether they have monetary value or not. So why not a car, a tent, a cardboard box? Too open, too impermanent? My (nomadic) existence is largely impermanent. I crave things, I want to keep anything that carries memories...what can you do when you have too many memories for your brain? You need somewhere to store them. I need an external hard drive.

A change is as good as a rest

I'm back. I'm back on Track. I'm back and the sun was splitting the trees (see photos from Pretwick to Central journey).
I'm glad to be back, I'm glad to come home, I'm glad that I can see a potential home somewhere else.
But, what I mean is I'm back physically, I'm back on track mentally. The art can start splitting the trees.

Nic gave me some really good advice today.
Sometimes you need to be in the studio groaning.
And sometimes you need to take time out.
Don't be precious about your ideas, just do them as the come to you otherwise you'll loose them or you'll work on them too late and they won't be ready (to standard) for the show. ACTION is the name of the game (my own advice to myself).
If your stuck 1) Ask someone to come in, that'll spur you on or 2) Ask for input, instructions or tasks
Don't label or judge what you you are doing. You are probably making, just not 'performance'. As long as you are doing something...and even if you aren't don't beat yourself up too much about it.

So, INTO aCtIoN!

Scheduling

Now is my time to get organised. Following good advice from Kate, I have spent today printing up timetabled schedules and I have booked more room time with scheduled time to plan areas of exploration and interest.
I have also decided to have questions attached to the weeks process. This was inspired by Chloe's learning questions that she tackled during her placement. Also similar to the learning questions that frame a workshop proccess, I think these can frame what I'm making and doing and allow me to see the big picture.
Kate seems excited by my area of research and is pleased with my blurb, I know now it's about actually committing to research, time in the space and pushing some of my original ideas. Action is the name of the game...in the previous solo process I felt like I spent a lot of time writing, sitting at a desk. I'm happy to embrace that side of my creativity. However, as Grace highlighted, i need to find ways of tricking myself into uncomfortable areas...thats where I can grow. SayJay used to create from Images. I might note some images down and try that. There are also objects, music, choreography and characters. How can I feel at home in the Academy and how can I feel alien?

Just deleted most of my weekend catch up/theory of Home as a series of bad habits/Moonlight Mile sentiment and details of what I did in rehearsal today.

I'm as fed up as I was when I didn't do my blog on the weekend!

Catch up tomorrow - I need to go home

Photo Derive

Had a great tutorial with Grace and Kate today. They seem pleased with my plan of action and fed in some interesting comments, area to explore etc.
One I'm quite excited about is territory and how territories are marked. I have a lot of work to do, and I need to get disciplined!

Going home for the weekend - base camp for major clear out, and some quality time updating my new work network and myspace pages.

**Idea for today. Go for a derive, a photo walk. Try and figure out what it is about Glasgow that makes me feel at home. End up up the Arches to pick up my bike then work on some texts, images etc in the room, 6 til 9pm