a little extra longing

I found someone else who has written about my work in the loft. This post probably offers a clearer picture of the experience of viewing the work than I have, see it here.

Thanks to Karen for the extra thoughts and words.

The Longing Series – in the loft

 

An afternoon spent sharing the work so far. In the last week I’d installed the prints and furniture blocks up in the loft space at Islington mill. I’d always had this space in mind for it’s intimate scale and timelessness, the sense of wonder that climbing the stairs induces, layers of marks, dust, glimpses of construction and former use. It allies well with the implicit life and memory of the furniture, the projected dreams, the ghostly apparitions of the prints onto fabric. In this I felt that the space was half the work and without the space, the work would be less. I’ve been assured otherwise. It was useful to see and hear how others responded to the work, the space, the work in the space.

A brief tour of the loft installation below. Photos of the individual pieces will go up on my website in a week or two.

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Some comments, all anonymous, left in exchange for an -in between- book (more of an exchange than a bribe):

tastes like burnt toast, bittersweet, peat, wood, sulphur, tea

smells like a story, a forest, linseed and memory, woodsmoke, water,

sounds like yesteryear, ambient, ‘whispers, laughing, eavesdropping, the stories you would tell the furniture’, the low drone of a road and moving air,  sanctuary from the world, normal life

feels like ‘somebody’s sadness, loneliness, just beyond the veils – but utterly peaceful’, haunting, damp wool, wondering and wandering, another world, mirrors

I would like to see it in a forest, more, in a national trust property, with spiders and butterflies, no one else,

 

I had a wonderful time cutting the wood, making the prints, sweeping the floor, rescuing butterflies, following the flow of the soundtracks coming from the floor below, installing myself and my work in the loft and sharing it with those who came to see. My thanks to Islington Mill  and all who helped, saw and shared.

I hope to move the work on to another space where it can grow and be shared some more.

 

 

The Longing Series at Islington Mill

I’ve been working in the 5th floor of Islington Mill, Salford for 6 weeks now.

Sharing the space with the wind, accumulated dusts and a growing population of butterflys.

I’ve been making print blocks from furniture, cutting images of places I’ve longed to be.

 

This last week I’ve printed them onto fabric, the images ghostly manifest.

 

I’m having an open studio to share the work in this wonderful space before I move on.

Thursday 15th May 2- 7pm, 5th Floor Islington Mill, no lift access.  I’ll share more here afterwards.

rainy days inside

What a lovely day.  We do like to complain about the rain in the UK, but it is nice sometimes, especially when sitting in a doorway looking out.  The print above and the book prints were made from the same etching plate. Letterpress by Red Plate Press.

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turn the page again

Not a book, but what a book it might make….found in Obuse, Japan.

Last week I spent another great weekend with plenty of lovely books and people in Norwich. Lots of good chat over 2 days sustained by coffee, lots of snacks and some essential facial stretching.

Met some excellent new people and some perfectly good old people, my closest wonderful neighbours were Cherry Styles, Old Highway Press, Gefn Press, Big Jump Press and The Old School Press.

Thanks to the turn the page team and anyone who found me and spent time with me and my work.