Thursday Thoughts...

"Artists recontextualize reality and offer visions that were previously invisible. Creativity engages the brain’s daydreaming mode directly and stimulates the free flow and association of ideas, forging links between concepts and neural modes that might not otherwise be made." 

Daniel Levitin

What a marvellous way to conceive of our artmaking - the making visible of the invisible.

I think creativity is such a good way to experience those free associations - one thing linking to that, leading to this.  Quite how the whole thing works is a mystery to me, but there is definitely something going on underground, under our consciousness. I like to think of small things/people/folk jumping from here to there saying yes this looks like this, or maybe try that or remember way back when this thing?

And somehow it all coalesces and connections are made, leaps taken and work produced.

I also enjoy folk who think about creativity in these ways, who try to understand how the magic happens, and in a way, give credence and credibility to the intuitive, the spontaneous and the creative. 

Stones of the Sky...

 Barry has already posted on the adventure this quest ended up being, but I thought I should fill in some of the detail around what inspired the trek across the North to find lettering carved in stones...

I saw a picture on a FB page where somebody said something like hooray, I finally found them!  I thought wow, what an epic story, we should try and see them too.

The little research I did before heading off, said there are these words, carved in stones, only found at low tide. The words are from the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda's "Stones of the Sky" or "Sky Stones". The words are from number 17 in a suite of 30 from this series. I think...

I fell in love with the words, and the idea that they only revealed themselves for an hour a day.

Some folk asked in the comments where exactly?, and the answer was half the fun is finding them for yourself. All we knew was Sannick beach, walk towards Groats. No particular detail.

I figured that would be enough to go on with - how hard could it be to find a lengthy slab of rock with carved words on it?

Answer dear reader - very hard.

Barry took some photos of me attempting to work out where on earth we should be looking. I had two iPhones with me - one with a Scottish Sim and my trusty one from Oz, and neither of them helped at all because no, or wavering only, signal.

Maybe over there???

Because the words are only exposed at low tide, everything we clambered over was very slippery, and didn't really encourage ongoing exploration. But, we had a purpose and we hoped to fulfil it. I felt bad taking B on what increasingly appeared to be a wild goose chase without much clear direction, just a lot of enthusiasm and hope.

On the way back after a fruitless, almost hour long search. I stopped and stared at slabs of rock, making my eyes go fuzzy to see if there were shapes revealing themselves anywhere. It was with disbelief that I actually spied the line of poetry. After all that time.

Some of B's photos and some of mine follow.

The carving is very fine, but nobody has ever owned up to doing it and their identity remains a mystery.

It emerges from the water...

and goes around curves and corners...

I love the way the seaweed is embedding itself in nooks and crannies.

And how barnacles are beginning to fill some of the letters

So beautifully carved...

Such lovely movement and character in the letters.

And some beautiful moody shots with the iPhone on portrait and stagelight mode.

The rock poem was first 'discovered' in 2013. In 2022 a fellow found some more lines, carved in different stones and in a different place on the beach (again, no details as to just where). Some reports indicate there may be 20 more lines of poetry - mostly short, many excerpts, to be found. So I imagine we will try to head back at low tide and take another wander.

In the interim I think about how hard it must have been to do the work. With the rocks only available for an hour or so at time, it must have taken weeks. Plus the Scottish weather. Plus the slippery surfaces.

I quite love the mystery too - the quiet achievement of wonder and beauty, not trumpeted, just gifted.

Here and here and here are some links to articles about the poem in the stone...

Calligraphy off the page

 Back here I was being ever so analogue as I tried to make some calligraphy turn into something else.

I managed to send my drawings to my talented niece, who could trace and vectorise them. Which was exciting because it meant I could send them off to our friendly metal cutting folk to try and cut them for me.

Geoff used the water jet cutter to cut these for me. They are pretty small (much smaller than he usually works with) and he was a wizard who managed to get them me the day before we flew out!

They still have their protective coating on the front. I was also testing out brushed steel versus polished steel.

So I have wandered a few beaches here looking for rocks and stones that might work with these words.

I am thinking this rock would look good if the words were cut in cortex steel that rusted...

These slim, flat stones might work for the shorter one.

This longer slightly wobblier stone might work for the longer words...

Maybe, just maybe.

And of course my mind then turned to timber and wondered what if??? Even tho timber is not a stone, perhaps I could add in some pebbles? Who knows.

So lots of good fun exploring, testing and trying things out.

And something to do with stones I am not sure I can use - and a piece of distinctive drift wood!

Thursday Thoughts...

"Reading is a form of prayer, a guided meditation that briefly makes us believe we’re someone else, disrupting the delusion that we’re permanent and at the center of the universe. Suddenly (we’re saved!) other people are real again, and we’re fond of them." 

George Saunders

I love the idea of reading as a guided meditation. Not always of course, but when you are finding succour and support from reading then definitely yes.  Perhaps when you are reading to learn, absorb and understand it too can become a form of meditation? If you find yourself in the zone, making connections, recognising patterns, receiving clarity and wisdom? 

Helping us believe we are someone else? I guess that too is reading when you get absorbed by the book and feel like a participant or an observer in a place where you physically are not. The delusion that we are permanent and the centre of the universe is always worth disrupting yes? 

I was a tad perplexed by the last part. Does the ah ha moment occur when we come up for air after reading and re-connect with the physical world and people around us and enjoy them more because we have been away enjoying ourselves? 

Perhaps, but irrespective, the value in reading as a comfort, and a quiet and rejuvenating time, can never be emphasised too much.

 

Hong Kong.

The Shape of Things 4

 The Shape of Things IV begins a new approach to the theme for me, with the shape/format of the book being determined by existing materials in the studio. I have been working on a commitment to use existing materials, rather than purchase new materials, for making and creating.

Book IV began with some Perspex pieces that had long ago been cut out as part of creating Perspex frames to house work. Having sat wrapped for over a decade, they demanded some creative attention. 

  

The shape of this book takes on the shape of these pieces which act as covers, whilst the pages take on the shape of soft Japanese papers that had been stacked in long lengths for several years.

 

The book contains 10 pages, folded along the foredge and bound with a single page Coptic binding. Working with papers supplied by Annwyn, a theme about Spring and new growth emerged.

 

Back in March and April I had begun thinking about this book, and how I could use up pieces in the studio AND some of Annwyn's papers.

Because I always make two books - siblings, not twins - I tried to find two lots of imagery within the prints that expressed the notions of new growth and emergence.

And then tested if the words I had drafted would fit on the pages - so much a traditional cut and past kind of gal.

And in a way it all came together. I managed to glue some very lightweight prints to the inside of the perspex covers which made me very happy.

The title page has a red paper fore edge and the now traditional Letraset title.

No imagery on page 1.

The Shape of Things IV is a new approach for me, whereby the shape of things, the book, is pre-determined, and the story it tells needs to be told within those boundaries. And with this book, the shape of Spring emerges...

The Shape of Things - Exchange no. 4

 One of the benefits of being in Scotland is that it allows Annwyn and I to post and exchange our books for less! Exchanging the books here also provides slightly less angst - the Royal Mail remains very reliable, whereas international postage still seems a tad unsettled.

And so during the week our books were popped into the post and we have each since received them. I don't bring my own version of my book with me so I can't show them alongside each other, but I can show you Annwyn's beautiful book and the two I made, one of which I posted. Annwyn has blogged about the books here.

Annwyn's book is called The Shape of Two Sides. It is a beautiful dos-a-dos type book, but with elegant stepped pages within, which flutter when you play with the book. Some of my papers adorn the covers.

Viewed from above, you get a hint of the stepped pages.

And when it stands to open, the sweep of the pages becomes apparent.

One side of the book open,

Followed by the other...

Detail of an opening. It's really hard to show how lovely and tactile the silver ink is on the prints, but it is delicious.

And in return, My Shape of Things IV. They come presented in a black paper pouch with red hand stitched sides.

The covers are Perspex, with some of Annwyn's lightweight prints pasted inside.

Inside, the books tell a story of Spring...

But the details of mine will wait for another day when I will go through the different stages and the final outcomes.

Suffice to say it is a true delight to receive Annwyn's books and it always feels extra special when we are here.

Thursday Thoughts...

"A victory doesn’t mean that everything is now going to be nice forever and we can therefore all go lounge around until the end of time." 

Rebecca Solnit

Oh my goodness, when I first read this phrase I had a large internal chortle! I love the idea that we could all just go lounge around until the end of time! 

But in all seriousness, I think Ms Solnit is being so practical and realistic. We so often hope that if this one thing happens - the problems we face will be resolved. If a certain person loses an election, the country will be saved. Kind of sort of, but not really. Problems and issues remain and we just have to keep right on fighting for justice, taking smalls steps towards peace, increasing our dose of kindness and care for others.

The multiplicity of things that surround us all need our ongoing care and attention, despite the lovely and desirable option of just lounging around until the end of time!

A little bit of this

 I am slowly overcoming jet lag and a fierce head cold - the combination of which was a tad unsettling for a while. As we are in Scotland this time around mainly for Barry's exhibition, we have spent a fair bit of time doing things like re-measuring walls and tables, finding timbers to cut, rocks to use as props and so on. We have had some lovely adventures as we head off trying to find things.

We also managed to fit in a session of Biblio! Not the same as when we are in Maleny and we go and have a leisurely breakfast and coffee; instead today we had morning tea and a piece of slice and it seemed to work pretty well. Fingers crossed we can maintain the habit!

This afternoon/evening we were lucky enough to do something different - and attended a wonderful two hour workshop with the folk from Gongcrafts, who live in a village nearby. It was all about naturally dying wool and we had a fabulous fun time.

Dying with reeds. Stunning results and oh so happy!! 

What fun it was to play and learn, discover and investigate, and take some beautiful yarn home. Thank you.