A few years ago, I was lucky enough to get Arts Council DYCP funding to develop the writing side of my practice. Some of my previous installations had included text. Fast forward and I now can't stop writing! This drawer of my morning pages has given birth to many a poem! I hope to feel brave enough to share some of them soon!
Penyschnant Gallery
Pensychnant is a special place. A 150 acre Victorian Estate nestled within the outstanding natural beauty of the Sychnant Pass, with unhindered walks to the summits of the Carneddau mountains and views across the North Wales coast. A place to really appreciate nature, and our place in nature. A great place to have my art on exhibition all of Summer 2024.
www.pensychnant.co.uk
Poetry Makes Me Smile
Delighted to be part of this exhibition to celebrate World Poetry Day 2023.
Spring Forward
A poem inspired by me looking forward to the transition of Winter to Spring but still trying to live in the moment!
Ekphrasis
I’m spending some time at the moment responding to my own visual imagery/artworks through the medium of poems. I’m interested to see how this could develop.
Ekphrasis: “Description” in Greek. An ekphrastic poem is a vivid description of a scene or, more commonly, a work of art. Through the imaginative act of narrating and reflecting on the “action” of a painting or sculpture, the poet may amplify and expand its meaning (from Poetry Foundation).
According to Wiki, Ekphrastic poetry may have existed as early as the days of Homer, whose Iliad (Book 18) describes the Shield of Achilles, with how Hephaestus made it as well as its completed shape.
Although it initially came from the idea of description, the most successful ekphrastic poems go beyond mere description, responding to the work of art, conveying a deeper meaning.
The paintings of Edward Hopper have inspired many ekphrastic poems. Let’s see how I get on with inspiring myself!
Worldwide Exhibition
Delighted that two of my pieces (The Flow of Time and Trip the Light Fantastic) have an honorable mention in Art Room Gallery’s worldwide Waters Exhibition. If you like water, head over to the online exhibition to see some beautiful pieces https://www.artroomgalleryonline.com/current_exhibition.html
The Life Cycle of Words
On my recent but 40-year delayed proper tour of Stratford (I grew up in Warwick just a few miles away), I went on a walking tour of the town.
Hearing stories about Shakespeare and his family made me mindful of the passing of history and my lifelong quest of trying to work out what time really is, and does it actually exist!?
One of the soundtracks to my life when I was visiting Shakespeare country as a young adult was ‘Time’ by Pink Floyd.
“And then one day you find ten years have got behind you
No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun
And you run, and you run to catch up with the sun but it's sinking
Racing around to come up behind you again
The sun is the same in a relative way but you're older
Shorter of breath and one day closer to death”
These lyrics resonated with me as much back then as they do now, not in a morbid way. Quite the opposite really, they remind me to seize the day.
Tours of place and time seem to seek out the materiality of existence so we can somehow find our place on that map. So the pure physicality of buildings can help us to connect with the places Shakespeare was known to have spent his days, what he did there, what he might have been experiencing at the time.
The guide reminded us of the vastness of the over 400 years since the death of Shakespeare’s son Hamnet by explaining that it is not known exactly where he was buried in the churchyard of the Holy Trinity because the ground moves on with its deaths.
How lovely of Maggie O’Farrell to honour Hamnet and his twin sister Judith by planting a Rowan tree and plaque in the churchyard.
If you have read Maggie O’Farrell’s Hamnet, you will get a sense of his life, his dad’s life, and the connection to Hamlet. I love that how regardless of death, of burials, words live on, how so many of us have since been inspired by the written works of Shakespeare, how the cycle of inspiration and response continues through time between writer and reader, reader, and writer.
Art and Text – a good marriage?
In Wind there is Time, Installation, Rufford Abbey Country Park
As a visual artist and writer, I sometimes get torn between expressing my ideas in visual form or, text form. So, I am constantly exploring ways to bring the two together; to see how words can enhance the meaning of my visual pieces and how images can bring another dimension to my poetry. Part of me wants the two to always be happily married together but, I realise that they can also be sometimes better just living apart. I don’t want their alliance to ever feel forced or arranged.
I’m conscious that I need to let them walk their own paths, side by side, in parallel and only bring them together when it feels that the amalgamation benefits both.
Written language within visual art has the power to block, to channel or to enable thought or emotion. It can be a bridge to be crossed or a barrier. Perhaps though, it can never be simply neutral?
It can seem as if visual interpretations fall within a deeper and wider sensory spectrum than that of words. But then I eat those words as soon as I have said them as I also know that words (woven well) can be incredibly powerful, wide-ranging, and descriptive.
I guess it all comes down to weaving, to matchmaking, to sensing when the two want to live in harmony or when they need to thrive by being independent.
I like the way artist Sol LeWitt put it….
“Since no form is intrinsically superior to another, the artist may use any form, from an expression of words (written or spoken) to physical reality, equally”.
Sol was a multi-disciplinary artist who produced over 50 artist’s books.
I have returned to working with artist’s books, exploring how the format can provide the platform for my images, concepts, and words to grow happily ever after!
Sorry!
I've written a poem in response to an image of a lithograph at the wonderful Mary Evans Picture Library. It moved me. I suspect my strong feelings are also in part down to reading the wonderfully written (and vivid) Ian McGuire's North Water - giving the reader a true sense of the brutal, cold, cruelty of the bloody business of whale-killing in the 19th century. To read the rest of the poem, please head over to the Mary Evans Picture Library at https://www.maryevans.com/poetry.php?post_id=12664&view=poem&prv=poem
An Epiphany!
On a poetry course recently, I found myself saying these words to a fellow student. This was a revelation; up until that moment, I had no idea just how much I care for animals and how it all started when I was pet monitor at school!
Witnessing Words
My world of words has just grown larger and richer thanks to the insightful and exceptional poetry teachings of poet Sarah Wescott.
This exciting journey with the written word continues and each step seems to be cementing a deeper connection with poetry.
“Poems can bear witness to the deep-soul moments.” Sarah Westcott.
I have learnt to pay more attention to what I hear, that poetry can take on all shapes and sizes and that it really can be as true and as authentic of an expression as visual art.
Language can be connector, facilitator, soother, uniter, conveyor, and transporter.
And ultimately, “all writing is a collaboration with yourself”. Sarah Westcott.
Poetry is giving me the ears to hear myself, to listen out for mother nature.
A Welsh-Speaking Lamb
I’m developing my work with Larry and Andy and his friends as they still have a lot to say! I’ve been particularly mindful of Larry this week as the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2021 is in full swing and Larry was on those very same walls in 2019.
Larry has seen a lot of life and come to the conclusion that being able to find simplicity from complexity is the way to go, the way to be. Grandma made Larry a very long time ago. He is a Welsh-speaking lamb, strong and steady despite his slightly worn appearance. He doesn’t follow the flock and has a mind of his own.
Like some of his friends, Larry was inspired by Benjamin Hoff's book The Tao of Pooh. In this book, Pooh is described as the "uncarved block,'' a bear in tune with his natural inner self. Like Pooh, Larry is now able to experience living without complexity. Larry spends time with Andy and his friends who all have a story to tell.
Larry is keen to tell me more of his stories so….watch this space.
Between the Words
I have written short poems before and they often play a part in my installations. This week though, I have been reading about Haiku to work out if I need that kind of structure for the words that seem to come out at random, to see if Haiku and me are are a good match!
In Jane Reichold’s fabulous book - Writing and Enjoying Haiku, A Hands-on Guide, she writes . . .
“Poetry is what happens between the words. Words are like signposters or waymarker that allow the reader to follow the steps the author’s mind has taken to come to a poetic idea. Vision is seeing, and in seeing we recognise the thing which is portrayed in a new way…in poetry we do use pictures, but we demand that the reader supply them…….Haiku show the reader the things along the path the author’s mind has travelled.”
“Haiku are written from experience. You are not the author of haiku, they are gifts given to you …. they come through you but are not yours.”
It seems then that creating Haiku has a lot in common with the process of making visual art. I will have a go and see where it takes me!
Spending Time with Words
I think a part of me has been a bit shy of words up until now….believing that a picture could paint a thousand of them easily so, why the need? This from someone who loves books and has run out of book shelves! This from someone who has used words in previous works! This from someone who is in awe of good writing, in how it transports us, how it ‘speaks’ our language!
As I speak, I am embarking on a journey of spending time with words again; revisiting them, exploring language, text and writing in all its forms. Looking at how words and imagery can work in harmony - with me as some sort of conductor.
It involves discovering different writing styles, writing ‘morning pages’ and giving way for the pen to flow.
Thank you Arts Council.
Filling the tank
At a recent talk to art students about developing their creative practice, some students expressed that they doubted that they will be able to offer something different to the world. I suspect this is a question and wobbly we all have at some point … has all the art 'been done' before?
We can all be in awe of the creativity of others and, to me, that is a good thing as most artists or designers probably choose an art or design career in part due to being inspired by other artists/designers in the first place. One of my earliest art memories was my love of 'record album' covers and particularly any that had a touch of surrealism such as Dali's melting clocks. I loved the way art could offer an alternative reality or a different perspective.
When what I call artist's self-doubt makes an appearance, it can be difficult to see how we can come up with new ideas or creative something unique. This can stilt our own creative development or at worst - stop us in our tracks.
Some thoughts ....
Creativity isn't something we possess or hold - it is quite the opposite. It is something we give space to so it can flow and manifest, it is as if we tune into it. We have to keep faith that it will 'show up' just when we need it! Years of being creative has taught me that even when I am at that part of every creative process when the creative river seems to have run dry and I am struggling - I remind myself to just ride the invisible wave and yes.....something positive ALWAYS happens and the flow is there.
So, the creativity flows but what will make it unique? As simplistic as it sounds, you being you will do that. How can your art be the same as anyone else's when all of us are made up of our own unique life experience?
Sticking with the water analogy, imagine you are a water tank - the kind you have in a garden and the water in your tank has been collected directly from rain water. That rain water is made up of experiences, thoughts, teachings, practices, responses and feelings you have had under your local skies.
When you open the tap at the bottom of the tank to let the water flow to feed the garden (and in this case garden = creative output), the water which comes out is directed and made up of molecules which are unique to you. That exact water does not exist anywhere else so when it feeds your creative garden in whatever medium that may be, it has to be unique.
Everything is Connected . . .
Maybe it is an artist's ‘job’ to seek out the connections and make them visible? I don’t know about you but my mind is constantly finding connections between seemingly unconnected events, feelings, things? It is almost like creativity is an invisible thread. I liken it to the age old practice of dropping corn down on your route/the path you take so that you can navigate your way back should you get lost. That is a great methodology as long as the corn doesn’t get eaten! And if the corn does get eaten? Thats when creativity and intuition comes into its own - to find new routes or be happy not to go back to the same place!
Locked and Loaded Exhibition
Delighted to be part of Degree Art’s Locked and Loaded exhibition. “There have been many silver linings amongst the unexpected new challenges faced in 2020. Our first exhibition since lockdown celebrates the pure, multiplices and creative responses this period has enabled.
The momentum of creativity has never, in our lifetime, felt so powerful. Artists have always needed and have been driven to respond to the world around them. Art provides a means of not only recording a moment in history, but equally gifts a window that transports their audiences on a personal journey they may not have otherwise embarked on.
The ‘Locked + Loaded’ exhibition and the artwork it showcases, is a reflection of the unplanned journey we have been on, a celebration of what has been accomplished and a permanent reminder, that together, we can transform the world for the better.”
Click here to view the exhibition . And for more information, click here.
Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2019
It feels so special that Larry is part of this year’s Summer Exhibition and hanging in Gallery III. The Summer Exhibition has run without interruption since 1769, it is the world’s largest open submission art show and brings together art in all mediums – prints and paintings, film, photography, sculpture, architectural works and more – by leading artists, Royal Academicians and household names as well as new and emerging talent. Around 1,500 works are on display from selected artists and Royal Acadamecians.
The varnishing day experience was particularly special, it felt great to be amongst such talented artists and to know that the greater artist community is large and strong and able to provide positivity and creativity in times when other aspects of life may seem turbulent and uncertain! It was both celebratory and emotional to see my work amongst all the other work on the walls of the Royal Academy.
The Summer Exhibition is open to the public and runs until August 12th.
https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/exhibition/summer-exhibition-2019
Larry can also be seen at www.fiburke.com
Positive Habits of Creative Practice!
Cloud watching helps me get in the creative ‘zone’
I have challenged myself to come up with the 7 most important habits of my practice, the ones that keep the creativity flowing! What would you put in your list?
Here are my top 7:
My studio space is hallowed ground! It is the place where creativity is nurtured and fed, it has to feel like 'home'.
Creative time is sacrosanct! It is all too easy for things to interrupt the creative flow, so creative time is immersive time, it is special time.
Spreadsheets are saviours! Artists make connections and when the creative ideas flow and link, it can be mind boggling so being able to put 'ducks in a row' in a spreadsheet or table gets it all out of my head and enables me to look at it all in a more structured way!
Mindlessness is Magnificent! Being able to relinquish analytical thoughts, the 'inner critic', and be playful is a hugely influential and important part of the process.
Serendipity is my friend! Being playful without a desired outcome means that any 'happy accidents' aren't accidents, they are just 'what is'! And 'what is' is sometimes the most unexpected and creative output.
Research is Riveting! The partner to being playful for me is research - not usually carried out at the same time though! Who knew I would ever enjoy research so much! To me it is like being an explorer discovering distant lands, uncovering facts which change my whole way of thinking, offering new ideas and perspectives, very exciting.
The Body is a Temple! Looking after my body and optimising health paves the way for energy to ‘spend’ on creativity. Being aware enough to know what the body needs and what it doesn’t need is probably as simple as good sleep, the right exercise, spending time in sunlight and a healthy diet. Easy to say but not necessarily easy to execute!
Maintaining Creativity
One of my Doodle Dances!
A question I am asked time and time again is ‘what I do when I get artist's block’? Luckily, I no longer seem to suffer from artist's block but I did in the early days of my practice and remember that paralysing feeling of not knowing where to start. I love how we all develop our creative practice in different ways, below are some of the rules I live by to keep creativity flowing. A recent talk to art students encouraged me to put pen to paper :
Knowing that 'The inner critic' may sometimes shout loud but it can be silenced!
Most of us have experienced 'the inner critic', that judgemental inner voice that points out that the drawing is all out of proportion or there is no point in making art as it won't be good enough! It manifests itself in us beating ourselves up about our creative output and then we can't think where to start a piece because we dismiss every idea so we then sit there in the artistic environment we have set up for ourselves with all the equipment we think we need and what do we do? Nothing! It is like the inner critic has paralysed us. Spending energy on 'arguing' with the critic is energy wasted as it it energy which could be going into creative outcomes instead so the trick is to acknowledge the critic has a point of view but 'say no thank you' as it is not a point of view you wish to subscribe to today!
Dismantling the Displacement Activity Generator!
The time I carve out to be in the place in which I am most creative is sacrosanct! Creativity is top dog! I work hard at not getting involved in what I call 'the displacement activity generator' because it breeds itself! Displacement activities come in all shapes and sizes e.g. 'just' googling a supplier of paints or responding to an email we have suddenly decided is important, one leads to another and to another and the next thing you know....'creative time' is up for the day! The minute I recognise a displacement activity going on - I deploy a counter displacement activity! What works or will work for you? it could be as simple as writing down why you became an artist/creative in the first place and what it is you are passionate about even if you have done this exercise before, sometimes forcing yourself to do it again and again forces the revelation of new insights.
Dance the Doodle Dance!
And now the most important (and perhaps the most challenging) bit and if you would like to give it a go……
First, find a surface to make your marks on - go big or go small, paper on the floor or paper on the wall! Then pick up your tool of choice....a pen, a brush, and in my case some flour....it doesn't matter as long as you let it lead you as if you are dancing with it , thinking about what you are doing will kill the rhythm and the dance, just doing the doodle dance is the trick. Because if it is only a doodle, it is nothing but playing therefore it is isn't important how it turns out! This permission to play and relinquish desired results is key, it produces unexpected outcomes which feed the fire of creativity and silence the inner critic!
If in doubt, just do! And finally, if paralysis kicks in at any stage of the above....stop thinking and just do.
