The Cally Festival Workshop Post 68*

After my relaxing Saturday eating and drinking and watching bands at Jamie Oliver's Big Feastival on Sunday I held a workshop at a great little event called The Cally Festival.

I met one of their Market managers at the Mayton Street Festival, so was offered a free table to hold collage wokshops all day! Heres some images from the day:

For the day I was based in one of the craft tents between Meet People. Make Stuff and one half of The London part of The Matey Institute.

I got talking to Becca who is part of The Matey Institute and their one hour play concept is something I would love to go and watch in action. See more here: www.theatrewhileyouwait.wordpress.com/the-mateys/

Jamie Olivers Big Feastival Signwriting Post 67*

For the last couple of weeks I have been working on the signage for the different tented areas throughout Jamie Oliver's Big Feastival.

I was commissioned by The Festival Designer Jodie Gardner to put together some hand painted signs to be attached to trellised pagodas at the tent entrances for The WI Tent, The Little Dudes Den and The Kitchen Garden.

I also went along to site for a day to help set up the pagoda's and plant the structures throughout the day. I am really satisfied with the result, and it was great to go along on Saturday to see the signs in use during the festival and to catch the Charlatans at the end of the night!

We Did This & Islington Exhibits Crowdfunding Post 66*

Tomorrow evening I am holding another Joe Orton inspired workshop for an event to kick off the crowdfunding bid for Rowan Arts through the group We Did This.

The workshop will be taking place at The Idea Generation Gallery from around 6 O'clock, and will feature me collaborating with visitors to the event. The night is all held to seek funding for the Rowan Arts and Islington Exhibits residency programme which I am currently undertaking (more details on the residency are available on previous posts)

From the night anyone can donate money to the project, and in return they will receive artist gifts and experiences.

If you donate £10.00 you can enjoy a drink with the Islington Exhibits artists group, for £30.00 you will receive a one off book collage by me, and for £100.00 you will receive a one off paper and fabric wall hanging also made by me!


http://wedidthis.org.uk/projects/fund-artist-residencies-islington-exhibits

Altered Record Sleeves Post 65*

After yesterdays talk of changing record sleeves, I have scoured through Google images to see what I can dig up on existing record sleeves. I remember seeing an article last year in The Wire showing the tip top of altered record sleeves, but I have compiled my own little catalogue.

I found the majority of these here http://www.defacevalue.com/ which features tons of found and intentionally altered bits of record sleeve art! This Tumblr powered site where users constantly update the site with new bits of record sleeve artwork.

I have also read about a book from 1996 called Discographisme Récréatif [Homemade Record Sleeves] which features unique record sleeves found in flea markets, some of the below images are cut from their site.

The Cally Festival Post 64*

So after holding a workshop table for the Mayton Street Festival with Rowan Arts and The Holloway Neighbourhood Group, I got talking to the market manager of The Cally Festival on the 3rd July.

Anya mentioned she was looking for some artists workshops and of course I said I would do it!

I am thinking of working on something similar to the workshops I produced for Mayton Street, but think those workshops should be kept for Holloway only, as the Joe Orton project doesn't make as much sense down Caledonian Road...

Instead I intend on making some one-off vinyl record sleeves, influenced by the collage aspects of my previous workshops. I was looking through my record collection and was struck by a record I bought ashamedly more for the sleeve (I do like Elvis Costello mind) than the record it contains, but this is surely part of the attraction of vinyl; the imagery seems to marry to the music so well...

 

Sleeve art of Elvis Costello & The Attractions, Armed Forces

I may even take along my record player and listen to the record while I alter its cover to get some ideas going.

I will also be making some unique sketchbook and writing book covers, building up images and making plain textbooks slightly more intriguing to look at.

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Both the record sleeves and textbooks will be on show during the 3rd July, but more importantly they will all be for sale, with all proceeds going to a local charity!

More Details on The Cally Festival can be seen here www.thecallyfestival.com

Mayton Street Festival Book Collage Post 63*

Heres some images from a workshop I held at the Mayton Street Festival, which is part of the 10 day long Holloway Arts Festival in North London.

We had a great day, meeting lots of really interesting familes and Holloway locals and other visitors to the festival. It was a slow start but by the end of the day we had some really great groups making some really unique altered publications.

I will be posting images of the publications made today as soon as I have the images!

All of the publications will be one show towards the end of July as part of Islington Exhibits, all details are below:

Altered Books and paper workshop with Rowan Arts Post *62

Here's some images from last weeks altered books workshop at The Old Fire Station Holloway!

Despite the low numbers I am very happy with the results so far, I am sure the more of people I can get having a go at these workshops the more collaged jems we can add to Holloways first altered book library.

I have been informed John Lahr, who wrote Prick Up Your Ears: the Biography of Joe Orton is going to be at a Rowan Arts-related event soon so may even be able to get a book collages by him!

More workshop images and new book editions for the library to follow soon.

The Peoples Tote. Post 61*

Another new Graphic Linoleum Print! Post 60*

Lino Prints Post 59*

Here are a couple of little lino prints I put together recently... ironic I suppose putting up a print about how dull white is on such a clinical looking blog. Enjoy them anyway!

CocaCola OOO. Post 58*

OOO.

Acrylic on Plywood

2010

OOO is a piece of work I have only just got around to documenting. I am suprised how it still feels quite fresh for me, despite being painted last year.

I think this removal of any structured message is interesting, instead of promoting or advertising itself, it is cut down to a lonely vowel. I am definately going to bring this idea of my regurgitation and iconography to my next The Community is a Collage workshop in Holloway on the 4th!

Joe Orton and Kenneth Halliwell Post 57*

  

I began editing the interview recordings made on the 7th last night, so to keep things fresh and exciting I thought I would post about my plans for the second micro-project!

For Saturday 4th June I am planning to have a day of book collage and editing, all inspired by the legendary Islington inhabitants Joe Orton and Kenneth Halliwell.

Orton and Halliwells guerrilla book altering project targeted middle class library goers. Their collaboration led them to deface book sleeves and pages, and to subvert and satirise the content of the publications they stole and returned to library shelves.

Throughout the 4th June I want to take this spirit of Orton and Halliwell and build Holloway a catalogue of alternative, and reinvented publications, to be shown throughout June at the Old Fire station. 

The project will aim to develop a slightly tongue-in-cheek intervention into the literature I collect from gumtree joblots and cheap little charity shops.

The Community is a Collage Post 56*

Islington Exhibits

Artist in Residence

Throughout the next three months I am developing three community engaged micro projects in collaboration with you the residents and visitors of Holloway.

The first instalment of these projects will begin on Saturday 7th May at the Old Fire Station Holloway. Throughout the day I will be finding interested parties who have a story to tell to participate in this exciting spoken word art project to have an informal interview.

The interviews that take place will be taped, as a record of the conversations we have. The resulting recordings will be edited together to construct a communal commentary on Holloway.

The work will be exhibited within The Old Fire Station during July this year.

Further details for the private view party will be posted here: http://www.therowanartsproject.com/

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So I began my residency last Saturday, starting with the first part of 3 public projects. The day went really great as I didn't really know the kind of turnout I would get before Saturday 7th. 

From just this one day I met and (very casually) interviewed a real plethora of interesting and very diverse people; from artists, whole families and friends to musicians and writers.

I am really getting a sense of how I can place these recordings together, and I am finding the more input I get back form the public encounters the more momentum my ideas develop.

From meeting one uke playing lady Kim, I am now looking into supporting sounds and textures to collage into the sound work, which hope will heighten the listeners envelopment into the work. I have already been asked for a couple of copies of the finished sound article, so am thinking of making up maybe 50 one off printed jackets for some CD-R's.

Artist Residency post 55*

Exciting news!

From May onwards I will be artist in residence with Rowan Arts. The residency is going to be very open, with me meeting local Islingtonians and creating new work in response to these meetings and conversations.

I am still working out where I will go with my ideas, but I am thinking along the lines of collage, and construction (as in a lot of my work)

I think in a way a community itself already is a collage, built from a plethora of people and cultures, all working together to create unique arrangements.

Click here to go to the Islinton Exhibits and Rowan Arts site, featuring more info about me and the upcoming residencies happening around Islington.

Daniel Baker & Contemporary Romani Art. Post 54*

I have been researching my heritage recently, and was aware my great grandmother was a Romani. I started researching the history on the trian back to London, and found out so many interesting parts of Romani history.

Due to their constant travelling there seems to be lots of different theories on the origins of these people. Egypt, India and Persia all recorded Romani people travelling through to europe. I like the way Romani people would still widely be passed off as common gypsies, but in fact their culture, art and design has become engrained and internalised as somehthing English.

one example of Romani design being appropriated by English artisans is evident in narrow boating culture.

The comparison of a traditional vardo, and a narrow boat shows how much this decoration has been used by english artisans.

I am really looking forward to making some new work in response to this traditional art form, and taking influence from this to create a more contemporary twist on the artform. (see above another artist Daniel Baker who is a Romani artist working alongside traditional folk art in a contemporary context)

Art & collage post 53*