http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 A Walk With Cosmo. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:35:54 +0000 a-n rss generator a-n The Artists Information Company and contributors edit@a-n.co.uk technical@a-n.co.uk http://www.a-n.co.uk/img/logo.gif http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Today we went for a morning walk in the woods, the frost was still around and it was calm, before a frantic day of entertaing family guests.The dog walk has become a significant constant, important and yet routine event in my irregular life.A strange parrallel time where surprises are found!... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Only to say that driving long distances in the car (something I have to do) is not the same as dog walking but there are similarities. Driving on the motoway provides the driver with the opportunity to mull things over, hold conversations and  practice talking to someone else, and inwardly reflect.Dog walking provides the walker with total abandonment to free-form think, as there are no likley hazards and the mind goes a little bit past the auto pilot of driving a car. I spend alot of time on auto pilot as making mosaics is the same kind of task that requires some low level awareness.All of these kinds of time do not satisfy burning creative urges that produce imeadiate results to work with and develop things. All you can do is think about the creative things you want to do, not actually do them, because your body is physically doing something else.To me, this has been a long term issue.Tonight I saw a labrador wearing a workmans high viz lime green vest, its owner was wearing a dark parker type coat. ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 A woods walk I think is Cosmo's favouite. Every single minute of these walks are packed with intensity for Cos. Total immersion into a world of doggy instincts and behaviour. These have been latent and dormont since the last walk. Information gathering is what he is doing very effectivly.Robert Motherwell painted about 150 versions of his 'Elergy to the Spanish Republic'. I love that. An image he worked on repeatedly over alot of his life. Something constant and core to his work. Now I have walked with Cos alot more than a hundred and fifty times and will probably continue to walk with him for about 3650 more times. So if I did one dog walk drawing a day I would build up quite a body of work? er................whatever! See what I mean about thinking art not doing it?... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 What is time based art?Is it to do with exposure length.Implies photography, video of a performance piece? Or video of something growing all speeded up like a tulip in 12 seconds? Does it involve computers..say.The languge of art eh..rubbish. I reckon exposure is the key word. Is Richard Long walking around a lake chucking a stick and picking up a stone throwing that and then picking up a fox scull etc? Is that time based art? I think it might be...I believe Robert Motherwell's  'Ellergies' are time based as well. I think he painted even more than 150 actually. Are aboriginal patterns depicting 'the dreamtime' which is both past and present in the same picure...wow that is time based or what.Is me walking along the shore line everyday with Cos and sketching the turbines of the wind farm and creating a map for each walk,for say 30 days... thats 30 maps responding to the landscape we are passing through.Is that a time based piece of work?If you throw a pebble hard enough it creates a spark when it hits another pebble or the concrete sea defence wall. You cant see it in the daytime, but if you do at night you can. ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 A classic walk with Cos today it had everything: A short chat with someone I almost knew from somewhere else. Whose youngest sibling had just been knocked over by a dog!A chat 5 minutes later with the owners of the dog (called Dylan) who had knocked the child down. Cos and Dylan played high tempo, while we chatted.That..... I'm a bit lost in the woods feel, as it got dark. (we never get really lost)Great landscape all around and ideas for developing that art I never do.While I have been writing this blog I been drawing as well see, and started an interesting little project which sees me doing art for my own creative reasons. Not commissioned no money, just me doing art because I have the time. Now tommorrow is Monday and everyone will be back to work, so the little holiday will be over and I'll be jumping to the paymasters tunes. Secretly I am hoping that it will be too cold in Stoke to install my mosaic. This is a double edged wish, as it would enable me to carry on with my little art games, but no doubt encroach into another of my projects later. Kind of like the congested fixture list that Arsene Wenger complains about every season after Xmas. ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 I have bewilderd myself today. I created an alphabet which describes these dog walks. Kind of symbols like letters which you could spell out the weeks dogs walks with! No one exept me could read it or understand the places and events they represent. So why have I done it? I dont know, and I spent a lot of the day reading, trying to place the exercise in some kind of context. This was hopeless.I have tried again to understand what postmodernism is, or does and can't. Tried to see what was Modern to become Postmodern? Consumption and Consumerism, theres a pair with a lot to answer for, I am sure they are involved.If you were an African tribesman, or a Native American Indian and you wanted to kill a buffalo or wilderbeast or something, that's OK, if you need anything, big or small from nature, you can take it.  But you must give something back to nature in return! Reckon nature's been lending to the sub-prime market then!... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 So its technology that usually brings us new periods and epochs. Will 'GREEN' technologies, sustainability, carbon neutral and renweable energy sources bring a new age..Post postmodern. Neomodern or Ecomodern.An age where consumption has no status? Now... its all about how Big is your fridge? You need cars, more than one and big ones, mind. TV's you need them big an'all, all over your house. The further away your holidays the better. Lighting in the garden and if you dont have patio heaters then the neighbours start talking!So the economy needs us all to buy this stuff, so people have jobs and the world goes round. Growth.Consumer and consumption, I dont see it changing. Can staus be measured by something else? It's a rare thing for Cosmo to give ground to other large alpha male dogs, in fact he does'nt (usually it's just the one particular Alsation and once or twice I have had to do my impression of a ref seperating the fighters in a heavyweight boxing match). But today a Giant Shnauzer made him retreat very hastilly. Then Cosmo stood his ground and decided to see what was coming?...and make a stand.....Just some sniffing of the niffy parts of a dogs anatomy. No violence, no noise just a stiff posturing. It was not as bad as I thought it was going to be.  In fact it was not bad at all. I hope Cosmo saw it that way as well.Perhaps things seem worse than they are, and things will work out just fine.  ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 I have been away alot in Jan, and missed a fair number of dog walks this month.  Today I found a paragraph explaining that dogs are watchful, and guard the transition from one world to another.They are................ and they do.They are gate keepers and know exactly whats around. If there is anything going on, Cosmo knows about it 24-7.I have been working on the Isle of Wight in a glass workshop. This was also watched over by a rwotwiler/alsation cross. He guarded a truly amazing world and I worked there with an very interesting guy. It was a world of magic that I enjoyed very much.I came away thinking that being an artist is actually the best job in the world.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Very late walk tonight because of the weather. But we went and missed most of the rain.I look at cosmo and he chills out most of the day. Laying around. He does often lay across internal door ways. One of his favourite places to lay and watch is the porch, he can see everthing from in there.  He really is guarding the threashold of the inside from the outside. If any activity happens in the road he likes to run up to the next threshold which is the garden gate and find out what's occuring. At night he sleeps either on the back door mat or against the front door. This notion of watching and guarding the transition from one world to another has been reinforced in my mind by Cosmo's behaviour patterns.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 I dont have a letter for todays walk, we just went to the woods. I read a sign on a tree explaining that exstensive work was being carried out to fell the many fir/pine type trees and replace them with native ones. The fir trees are planted very close together and is not so good for wild life and is very dark.This tall pine tree type landscape brought us to N.America and I was hoping to meet some indians (not ones from the plains, but canadian ones like the Tlingit). They make totem poles from the fir trees. I was a lone character (like Kevin Costner in Dances with Wolves) roaming the forests and wanted to 'Turn In'jun'. Totems eh....not spirits for religous worship ...more the quite protector.See now Rachels got mice and I think they may have been used as totems, cos they are like the spider for Robert the Bruce. They persevere and would provide a good totem for any artist.Anyway I didnt meet any Indians, only an old woman who had a Jack Russel, who kept quoting Rudyard Kipling works a little too often for my liking.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Our most frequent walk is the one along the sea front. For the whole of this walk the wind farm is visable 5 or something miles out to sea. I see it every day and it makes you wonder about the future?Are the iconic motifs of the turbines on the horizon a symbol of a sustainable future with hybrid cars, renewable energy infustructures completed, effective recycled waste management and different attitudes to conspicuous consumerism.May be conspicuous consumerism is the cause of the credit crunch and the downturn. Is this the opportunity to rethink our attitudes to the society and communities we live in?orIs global warming and climate change a media hype. Doom to replace the cold war and the nuclear threat with. Somthing to fan the flames of worry to serve their their own ends for profit. The goverment has seen an opportunity to use Green and Eco issues as stick to beat the populus with. Make us feel bad and tax us on our guilt? ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Almost totally unaware of cosmo on todays walk. I was totaly zoned into my own little world of worry and mild panic.There is a phrase which says something like 'doing nothing while Rome burns' Well is that a description of me at the moment? Not quite, but I am unable to get a number of projects  underway, very fustrating, which I know will create a bottle neck latter.  I want the work spread evenly over a longer period of time or I wont be able to cope with it all at once. All of my projects have gone on hold or been delayed or just move amazingly slowly. But the deadlines at the other end dont slide along the time scheduling in proportion with the delays...oh no...they are chisled into your contract made of granite and bassalt. I did explain this to Cosmo and told him things were just beginning to open up a little and asked him how good were my diplomatic skills when explaining to clients I might be unable to reach their deadlines? He is in his dog world, a high priority for him is: well just legging it after foxes as fast as he can and then having a drink of rain water collected in a square hole for the rudder of an upturned boat.marvellous.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Tommorrow Cosmo is having his hair cut! 10am.Some weeks ago I recieved a letter from a student wanting a work placement position with me. She outlined her graphics/computer and web skills and explained she liked working with groups and was a kind team player and wanted to focus on teaching GCSE after her degree studies.I did not reply. She emailed me asking why had I not replied?So I explained that I thought she could find a more relevant artist to suit  her interests as my practice was practical, hands on, with a craft skills base. I work alone (no team) and am workshop based with no real interest or experience in teaching GCSE level art.I feel slightly bad not offering. Would it have been a waste of time? I could offer work placements, but to someone with the right type of starting points. How bad could it be, after all I do work with animals and children. No I think the real reason was, I do want to work with someone, but more with an apprenticeship model in mind. Am  I allowed to say that? Are they good things or just exploitation. I can not tell anymore. The world is too deconstructed and people have forgotten how to piece it back together in the right order. The rules are lost and the lines rubbed away.   ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 My chidren are growing up. GCSE'S and 16th birthadays. They seem happy though. Life was just getting really good for me at that age. My kids seem sharper than I was, I was a bit confused before I was 16. I never really got the point of anything. They seem great to me and dont speak Chav. (well, only a little) I have just been offered a residency in a beach hut in the autumn. I am really glad about this, as I can focus on the wind farm I see walking with Cosmo every day.Cosmo has a very tender foot, that claw on the side and up a bit. Dew Jew claw something like that, a dog thumb. I think he's bent it back.My hand is developing many calouses from the mosaic nippers. It is turning into a dogs foot.And why do driving instructors wear Hi Viz vests? My wifes new car will be Manitoba Grey. Great name Manitoba I would like to go there, near Hudson Bay in Canada.  I live in Herne Bay, which is fine and I am very happy.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 The Kent Wildlife trust are the new owners of the woodlands where Cosmo goes on dog walks.Very large areas of pine trees are being chopped down. The plant machinery required are very large. 100's of tones of concrete rubble has been spread over the access tracks to enable veichles to move through more easily. The wood is being stacked and removed on trailers, the arrisings or loose stuff is being burnt, the opperation leaves the woods in a total mess and users of the woods seem shocked.The long term plan is to plant native trees and plants to encourage wildlife back into the woods again. The policy seems as if 'cruel to be kind' is what is happening. The pine trees were too close together and not enough light reached the ground. Its a long term project and I'm very interested to see the changes. The pine was I believe planted as a crop and fenced off. Now, it looks like Nagasaki. So it is a change of use, from produce for industry to leisure.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Recently I found the set of headphones for my mobile phone and these activate the radio in my phone. This has radically changed the nature of dog walking. Before I would to talk to anyone about anything however mundane and enjoyed the trivialness of it.Now I walk along listening and keep my head down.  Totaly insular and avoid contact at all costs, other people are just a such a drag in my new world. Listening about the poet laurette Andrew Motion  talking about writing poetry to commission as part of his duty as poet laurette. The poems he says are no lesser for being commissioned, he is just as sincere about them and they contain as much of him as his non commissioned poems. The only thing being he would not have chosen to write about these things.This is me and my public art work, exactly the same, only I rarely produce non commisioned work anymore. Well sometimes when I have time I make things which are kind of hybrid map/diagram things. I dont know what they are? All you artists out there probably feel quite comfortable with producing stuff, and develop things with intelect and it moves along ok.I have this thing where I cant understand what comes out? It is not going to contribute financialy to bringing home the bacon I understand that.And painting? This is the greatest thing for exploring ones own inner world, but what can paintings do in todays technodigital inter connected  user generated content world of e this and i that. Twittering, Flickering HD blue ray Hooray.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 The Death of Painting?Will history show us that this is true?Can it really be so, or just out of fashion for a while. I trained as a painter at St. Martins. Later I  learnt loads of stuff about pigments and binders. I even painted a freso in a museum once. I had to weave willow and make a partition wall then mixed horse hair with my mortor and did all those layers and lime putty. It was a cut away display revealing the layers of construction including the top pigmented layer.I love painting materials the pigments. I love making images, and painting them is the initial reaction...but oh yeh, paintings dead. I will have to find another medium. This is what I have done for over twenty years now.But  should I explore it again, but  here's the thing.. An inbuilt guidence system in me says 'Its a waste of time'. 'You had to throw away a skip full of paintings because you had nowhere to keep them'. This is true I did. They are bulky serve no purpose and waste time producing them when efforts could be made doing something to ern money instead.Painting is still there. It can show and commontate on our world, just like other techno media. What might have really changed is that collectors used to buy them and hide them in collections. That was the destiny of a good painting. Does that still happen or are paintings suposed to be out there for all to see on, or in public buildings, or are they like a pre war collection of personel writings, revealing inner worlds and stored away in dusty places. Painting is a thing with no place, abit like the Palistinian People......... destined to be, but where?... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 This evening Cosmo found a dead fish on the beach......he enjoys a dead fish, but today he did actually 'Leave it'. Most times he runs off and scoffes it. This used to anoy both me and my wife, but dogs are scavengers and that is kind of their reason given to them by nature.This is something I can not change without training the dog so much that it is unatural. I am not prepared to do this as Cosmo is a constant link and reminder of the natural world to me.I came across the term 'Muted Totemic Memory' on tinternet today, turns out somone at Yale University wrote a whole 27 page paper about! I could not read all of it, but what a great thing to have identified. I love aboriginal and native american cultures they seem so much more sound than ours. They are both Totemic societies. Western society this paper says is unable to include human activity and culture as natural. We have lost the ability to reference ourselves as part of the rest of the natural world, unable to see ourselves as natural creatures at all, that also live in a world with other animals and species. The result of this is the environmental mix up we find ourselves trying to understand and can not deal with.Bang On Annabelle Sabloff (she is the author of this paper).... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 The reason I like walking in the woods with Cosmo is the fact that I am in a world with aboslutley no human contact. The woods live as do the animals in it without human help. Things are controlled by nature and human needs and desires are absent. I am in some other realm non human. Cosmo's world. He totally involved in it, all his senses are alive and he is busy doing dog stuff.Me, I wander and meander around with a  way about me that is the exactly the same as when you walk around a catherdral and dont quite get or understand what your looking at but it envelops you totally.There is green, it is like the air is green. Last week there was a white carpet of flowers, this weeks it is blue. Walking through carpets of blue bells that like walking though water. The water you get in the land of adverts and fairytales.Then you get to the area where the plant machinery is left ready for Mondays work, and the signs start jumpimg out telling you what to do and the humans are back.I can feel a map/diagram thing coming on.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 I had to leave a note with my name and mobile phone no.Do you remember Sid the Shnowser from an earlier post. It happened in their garden. I was with my wife and ending our woodland dogwalk and we were passing the front garden of Sid's house and Cosmo gets all alert and perky as he becomes excited, because there are chickens in the front garden. There is a stout new fence with well stapled wire to keep these chickens in and other animals out. So we are not bothered.But Cosmo legs it through the wide open front gate  and into a cluster of about 8 chickens. He chases them round the garden under bushes and over a low fence. I rushed in shouting and it was pandamonium. Chicken feathers started blowing in wind and Cosmo has got one in his mouth!As it turned out this chicken managed to run under some decking when Cosmo droped it. and I was able to put him on the lead.My wife put him in the car and I knocked on the door and explained we had a bit of a to-do with chickens and the one under the decking here looks traumered at best.The guy was not the owner of the property or the chickens, they were out at the moment and he said 'Its only a chicken' and was completely unimpressed. I left a note with my contact details if the owners wonder what's up with their chicken they can contact me.We laughed all the way home in the car as we said that every time Cosmo goes past Sids house in the future he will say to himself 'you didnt show up when I had your chickens did you' and piss loudley on the gate post.Its a shocker though enit!... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778   Turnin' Injun.This evenings dog walk was one of those parralell ones, cosmo in his world and me in mine. He with two legs and him with four exploring the sea front along side each other.I was thinking about all this philosophy thats croped up on the comments to this blog. Its sociology  I think is where I want to look for information. Cosmo is constantly looking for information, investigation is everywhere nose driven. My investigation seems to be driven by other peoples behaviour.My arts practice is exclusively in the public realm, I dont do these paintings we talk about. I work with people at the moment, not brushes. Our communities are often broken and artsits like me are sent in to wall paper over the cracks and repair them!This is where the totemic interest comes in, because I'm looking for social systems that work better than our western capitalist insular, consumption pleasure liesure driven one. Walking tonight I remembered my toy soldiers from when I was kid; cowboys and indians. I had a set of 7th Cavalry Union Soldiers in blue uniforms led by General George Armstrong Custer and a set of Indians. They had many battles and when the Indians won I was secretly pleased, because I liked them. They had nice bits of colour on their trousers, and the feathers, they were great. They looked so much better, this one with white diamonds on his shoes and that one had only the one feather. The cavalry were always just blue. So I was really pleased when the Indians won. This has stayed with me The Battle of Little Big Horn where the Indians actually did win and mashed up General Custer. Retribution came at Wounded Knee and the indians were masacred as usual.This is where my interest in their culture must have first started. If I do ever find the time I know which painting I will be doing.'The Battle of The Little Big Horn' or 'Greasy Grass' as the indians called it.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Yesterdays walk with cosmo was in the woods. Funny because I had already spent the whole day in some woods.And days like it are too few and far apart. I did not even want to do it, I was cajoled into it by stealth and perseverance. It was a one day workshop on a creative partnership project and was really an introduction to a larger more wide reaching projcet.But I have been making villages, dwellings, shelters and shared communal facilities with teenagers, from string and selotape in the woods. Teenagers playing like nursery school children making communities and working together like Robin Hood forest dwellers.5 different groups in total, and half the 3rd group were unable to leave the perameters of learning as they knew it and ran away saying why, I dont get this. The rest played and even made head dresses to go with their new temporary life styles.The last group were the most surprising? They ran through the forest like marauding vikings completely smashing the previous groups settlement down with sticks. They then pilaged it completely and built many small isolated camps over a very wide area using the materials they carried. Some even raided neighbours camps for extra string etc.The title of this project was called changing spaces. I think we managed to do that. It has been one of the most amazing days I have ever had as an artist, playing in the woods with well over 100 teenagers. The deputy head made a visit and said if anyone was late for the next lesson it was all OK, there was an amnesty and she would take the wrath from the english teacher. I wish Cosmo could have been there, he would have ironically completed the 'Back to Basics' which I hear in the world of education.again; I have to say I have the best job in the world.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Its not often you take the dog out for a walk and end up with your name and address in a policemans note book!Which is exactley what happened to me yesterday. I climbed down a cliff expecting Cosmo to follow me down! He did'nt too steep. When I got to the bottom I saw a guy kind of lurking in the clefts within the cliff face. He was surprised to see me and ran off along the beach. I climbed back up the cliff as Cosmo was not able to make it down, when I got to the top there were a very agitated couple looking at me. Said nothing, and I carried on walking with cosmo towards the car. I was nearly at the car and two coppers in bullet proof vests walked up to me and asked,  if I had seen a guy in a grey and white hoodey.Yes I said, he ran along the beach with a bag on his back 10 minutes ago. They wrote my name and address down in a book.I have no idea at all as to what was going on there I was a totally random intervention in some kind of robbery probably? who knows. Oh, and by the way I was recently in the woods and I was acosted by the owner of an alleged 'Prize Wining Bantom' who called Cosmo a frienzied Chicken snatcher. He was joking I think, I laughed and said was everything Ok, because after years of carefull breading that must have been a shock. All is well and no harm done.I have also just watched a film called Marley and Me and if you have a dog or a family you will enjoy it even though it may make you cry.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Thought for the day:'The straight line leads to the downfall of our civilization. It is an uncreative line'. Hundertwasser.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Walking along the cliffs we wander into a natural chine type feature. In this place we find a small cave!It was enough to shelter in and dark. Did it go further back than I could see? I was just about to roll into it to see if there was anything in there other than a drinks can, but I thought Cosmo's good at investigating things. I'll sit and watch him.He did not go in at all, he was too nervous to just brazenly go in come what may. He sniffed at he corners of the entrance. Then he ran off and sniffed all over the vacinity. I thought he's not interested, but he came back went 2 steps further into the cave, gathered another load of sniffs and then ran off exploring the surounding area again. Returning again and again each time he went a little further in and on the forth time he scouted the entire cave. The information he was getting (or not getting) either, smells outside matched or did'nt match. Connected or not conected was obviously enabling him to get deeper in with more confidence. Apart from the can the only other thing was a circular form natural or man made I was unable to tell. It was of no interest to Cosmo though. ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Me and Cosmo been spending more time in the woods!Why?Because the fine weather, summer time and that means people have BBQ's on the beach. In Cosmo's world there is only one thing better that a dead fish on the beach and that is some hapless persons BBQ. Some people dont mind him steeling their sausages and laugh, others totally freek out. Its best to stay away.Theres been alot of activity in the woods. I went on a 'guided walk' where people could see and have explained the changes going on there.The areas of pine are being thinned and some areas totally cleared to create open meadow land, where indiginous plants will grow naturally. There will be no planting scheme and whats grows is because of natures way. Oak and silver birch trees have been left. The idea is to enable, mice, snakes, birds, berries, butterflies and plants to return, as the thick pine planting stopped foerest floor habbitats developing.Here's the surprising bit! They are using great european forests as models to copy which have a kind of bison roaming around, and will instead introduce Highland Cattle and some kind of pony to munch the grass and maintain growth levels. If they munch loads then the animalised areas will increase in size so munching is managed. I wondered if plant goes in the animal and droppings come out, and this was a way of spreading seeds?Now, I also had visions of stampedes caused by Cosmo, but chestnut trees are being cut down to provide fencing for these large cattle/pony areas. ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Well this blog is often about not doing art at all, only thinking about it sometimes. But me and Cosmo did actually create artwork yesterday. I know this may be debateable? We planted some wild flower seeds in the woods together. A little more background info for you to explain this was part of the Wild Flowers Project in Margate seminar thing I went to. I was given a packet of indiginous wild flower seeds for Margate which I rather randomly spread over Margate in car parks, at the war memorial, randon peoples front gardens, planters, bus stops etc. Kind of geurilla gardening. And the other packet of seeds we were told to plant at home or wherever. Me and Cosmo went up the woods and planted a circular ring of seeds around a lonley oak tree. It was in a cleared area of the woods. I scraped a furrow with the heel of my shoe and sprinkled the seeds in there. Then me and Cosmo sort of scuffed the soil back over the top. Cosmo is better at digging than scuffing soil back over the top. I also planted a furrow of seeds on top of an earth bank, which formed the side of a medievil road which went straight through the woods to Canterbury. This road was called 'The Radfall'. I will look forward to passing these places in the future to see if anything really grows there.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Lost part 2.  This is the totally amazing bit. I went back into the woods and had'nt walked too far and heard a dog barking somewhere? I carried on walking and could see a small tent, just here right deep in the woods. I thought ahh..a kids den, I,ll have a look at that while I'm lost. The barking dog was actually just outside the tent I could see as I got closer. Cosmo was over there and this dog was tied to a tree stump.  Then a bloke came out of the tent and said I should watch where I tread, as his dog had the squirts. He was right and chocolate was apprently the cause. I explained I was totally lost and wanted guidence to Hicks Forstall Road where my car was parked. He said the main track is just over there, follow that all the way and it comes out on that very road. I asked him if the tent was dry in wet weather as he obviously lived there. I could see water cans and stuff about. He looked like Ben Gunn. He said yeh its fine. I asked him how long he had lived there? He said about a year. I asked him if he grew food here? He said no that was what Morissons was for. I agreed. I felt a split between wanting to be not lost... and staying to talk with this amazing guy. He was not gushing with chat but seemed friendly enough and he did smell of drink. I decided to see if his directions were right. They were good, and the main path was a minutes from his tent, and I am actually very gratefull to him indeed, as I was proper lost. I have come across alternative communities living like that Wales, but never just a lone guy with a dog in the woods like that. What were the chances of stumbling across him as well. I thought I might buy him a big bag of proper dog food, as a way of thanks. When I got back to my car I found his initial advice had a lot wisdom. It's a long way to carry it though... a big bag of dog food. I'll count the yey's and nays if anyone reads this post, leave a vote for or against giving him and his dog a bag of dog food.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Lost part 1 About a month ago Rachael Howfield (Massey) suggested she might describe one of her LOST experiences. I thought that was a great idea: So here's my debut lost experience! I started to realise I was a bit lost as Cosmo was  never very far away from me. He was not running off to explore too deep in the woods. I carried on walking confident I would turn left onto a track I recognised soon. I was listening to radio 4 on my phone, Front Row and they were discussing Alfred Hitchcock movies........ I decided I was lost when I started to take more notice of the sounds of the birds in the woods and any noises outside that were not in my head phones. I realised I was not listening to the radio anymore and my senses were heightened. I climbed over a stile and into a field to see what I could see? The wind turbine that they recently errected at an a local wildlife park was on my left may be a mile away. I was not exactly lost then. I walked about 20-30 minutes around fields trying to find a tarmac road, I could see houses in the distance, but it was’nt happening. So I went back into the woods just out of spite hoping I might recognize any paths. I had been in these woods on a number of occasions. Thing was I had been in there during winter and now there was so much green growth everywhere the paths were not how I remembered them. Which is probably why I was lost in the first place.   ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Me and Cosmo went up the woods the other day to see if there were any signs of wild flowers growing around the oak tree? On the way we met a woman whose sister had a new golden doodle like cosmo, but it had a floating bone in its elbow and they spent £2000 on a leg operation and had to cancel their camping holiday! We also met a couple with two really aggressive dogs. Not 'trophy dogs' like Staff Pit Bull Cross's, but a Collie and an Alsatian. Peoples explanation of why their dogs behave like this is always interesting and on this occasion it was 'ever since Sid (the Shnowser who lives in the house with the prize wining bantams) chased the collie right out into the road. Since then just scared of every dog that comes up'. I was very disappointed to see absolutely see nothing growing on the Radfall mound. The oak tree was equally disapoing as this was our main site and I could see nothing to be enthusiastic about. When we got home I planted some of the remaing seeds in a bucket, and hope to have more controll over their development and see what things look like when they do grow. ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 I think our stars must be badly aspected at the moment. (thats mine and Cosmo's) I've got feckin tooth ache, Gordon Bennet, Jesus H Christ I've got tooth ache. Cosmo was surrounded suddenly by about 4 dogs on the beach and it developed into a bit of a tear up with a Beagle. These make short work of foxes, and it must have mistaken Cosmo for a large yellow fox (retard) and it attacked Cosmo really bad. Do you remember Bjork attacked a cameraman in an airport, it was on the 10 o'clock news years back. This apparently was because she felt her child was in danger with all the Paparazzi in its face, so she took out a cameraman with a rush of protective adrenaline...some story here, I ran into this pack of dogs picked up this Beagle and threw it belly up, head height into the air. This stopped the fighting and we walked off, some woman came up wearing a wet suit and took her beagle away, she did not say a word. Cosmo later I discovered was bleeding from a bite on his ear and by the time we got home he was soaked in blood. When were up the woods he also had a run in with Sid the Schnauzer, who charged 100 yards (ignoring his owners call to heal) to confront Cosmo, went all kind of flat and low and the inevitable happened as I expected, Sid was out for revenge over the chicken incident some while back now. I could hear his owner shouting out 'if he gets aggressive kick him hard'. Again I had to separate fighting dogs. What's going on here, I am a responsible dog owner? other news is my wild flower seeds are a disapointment, but some are growing in a bucket in my garden. I am slightly frustrated as I had wanted to read more about Emile Durkhiem, and totemic societies, but that will have to wait. I have noticed over the years that interests and research for art is often truncated and goes in steps, with other stuff happening in between. The current example of this is my work with maps, been interested in maps for a several years now and have made about 4 large scale mosaics using maps as a theme. I will probably have to make a 5th one soon. This means picking up dormant map ideas (if I have any) and going back to maps. Over the years a body of map work has built up, just that it doesn't flow in a joined up line. This is a result of of working only on commissioned projects. I dont think there is anything wrong with this, only you can't strike while the iron is hot, if you see what I mean. Compared to gallery artists who can work in straight uninterrupted lines on their ideas, or can they? blogs show the same pattern due to commitments etc. So totemic exploration will have to wait untill my 'little blue hut' residency later this year.  ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 It's one of those parralell walks, Cosmo's in his world and I'm in mine. Just following an unknown path in the woods. Paths in the woods are a bit like paths  in real life. Feeling overwelmed, small, grumpy and anyoyed that I have got to answer the same old questions, those same old questions for every job application. You know the ones, those ones you can never answer because you dont know the answers, yet you've had to answer them loads and loads of times before. 'outline your ideas.... and how you might approach this..... and why are you interested..... how will you fulfill the aims....... how do you meet the person specifacation........outline relevant experiance and show evidence of interest in this project?  I've gone all sulky and I'm walking in the woods saying..... Well...I dont know do I, because I've never been there have I, I havent met anyone there, I dont know how the dynamic between the stakeholders works, and I dont know what people living there think. I dont know whats interesting yet or how I'm going to do all the stuff you want to know. I'm not sure whats relevant and I think your person spec sounds like an administrative position and I dont know how to show you evidence of interest in this project either. Is'nt an application evidence of interest, what sort of questions that? Now....do some peole who think in logical organised processes have generic systematic answers to all these questions and they apply a formula to cover the range of stuff required. Can they invent hypothesis and systems they are going to use, without knowing what they are going to use them on. me.....I don't know how I'm going to do it, and when I write what I'm going to do, when I get there I might need to change it, as I can see a better way of doing it, as there are other intersting things i didnt know about before. But I can do it, I just cant tell you yet! Not much good sending that. So in the end you just write something and dont agonise over every paragraph cos who ever reads it does'nt know you agonised over it and you really tried hard to answer the questions and it took a day to choose the things you wanted to show them. or you just cut and paste from the last two or three applications you made, selected several nice photos and sent the whole thing off before 10.30 in the morning? So what are the best questions to ask then?   oh .... It's allways about writing, it frustrates me and I'm not in the mood for it. Just get on with it and DO IT, anything, it does not matter, so what if it misses the target. Next time move he target and you might hit it. These woodland paths widen, narrow, open out, take you to places you dont know, become impassable, lead you into sunny clearings, or go all bumpy. Metahors for life really.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 The Bird man of Alcatraz shows Bert Lancaster is a ‘lifer’ who gets up every day to tend his collection of birds; he feeds and nurtures them lovingly. He cures their illnesses and becomes an expert on them. In a way I see this is a romantic parallel to the expected life of an artist with a ‘true practice’! My wife says that my life as an artist has been more like the Great Escape. I have worked to commissioners briefs, tried to define my practice and jumped through more hoops than you can shake a stick at. But still working inside the defined parameters of the brief I have explored a huge range of areas of interest to me. I have emptied many many hidden bags of soil into the commissioner’s plans and schemes without them knowing, right under their noses. These bags of soil from the hidden escape tunnel of my artistic ideas and values have been distributed all over the country. I have explored and researched new mediums, new materials, new subjects, colour schemes, ways of working and topics I’m really interested in, just the same as non commissioned artist investigations. The difference might be I have had to wait some time for the opportunity to follow on with a subject which had formed part of an earlier work. Over a period of years and years revisiting certain ideas or techniques builds a body of work in that area. If you have lots of these little ideas following their own pathways simultaneously then you are always ‘finding yourself’ as an artist even though you are working to a specific brief. My training as an artist taught me to follow ideas in a straight line. My working life post education has taught me to meander, wait, work with other people’s ideas, work with things you never expected you would ever think of and work quicker than perhaps you want to. The constant pressure to define my practice is intimidating and the use of language used by those who want to potentialy work with me or know more about me is creative, but it does not make me feel confident or able to talk back and allow me to sound like I know what I am talking about. I am sure me and many artists want to work as artists within commerce, education, local government, services and industry. Are artists expected to converse in the same language, and if they can’t, is their work rubbish? I feel intimidated by this and worry that if my letter of application or my expression of interest doesn’t use their language or their kind of visioning, if my ideas are not razor sharp and clearly described to reveal some kind of Blofeldian master plan, that I must be below the standard they are looking for. Perhaps if I could describe that I didn’t have a deliverable concept yet, in a clever enough way that would be good enough and they would take me seriously.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 I've been feeling pants lately. I should'nt. I've got more work than I can keep up with and several oppotunities which look worth applying for. But I still feel rubbish, but did have a break through today. Drawings: my drawings are usually about, designing something to be made in a different material, showing some one else an idea or how to make something. Todays drawings I did two of those three things, but  I was creating little worlds that I inhabited and walked around as if I were inside a model world. The other thing I wanted to say was someone actually contacted me to paint a mural, did you hear that PAINT a MURAL. Not print something digital onto sheet materials, paint. Brushes favoured over spray cans. The economics of painting a mural are problematic because you have to go there and do it day after day racking up pertol and labour costs. Is it really true a painting is viable in todays digital high speed world, does it have something other media dont have, thats worth paying for. Painting, that is where it all started for me years back and I love it. Enough to work with teenagers and a site hoarding bloody miles away. Well we'll see? Cosmo is a little too hot in this weather and he's booked in for a hair cut next Tue.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 I turned the mural job down. It was a long drive at the start and end of each working day. They were not going to include any expences outside the fee. I just thought I dont need to work that hard. I have had my foot right hard down on the gas pedal for what seems 18 months or more even. You cant keep that pace up indefinately? I still have stuff to do but just with more time inbetween them. Now, Cosmo has no problem with leisure and active time. He chills out during the day and makes the most of his active walk time. I'm finding it hard to relax in the spare time. I should be reading, drawing, relaxing and reflecting on things. Reviewing my promotional material and approach, enjoying not working so hard. But there is a little nagging feeling says 'you should be earning money, there's a recession on. You should ern all you can, you berk. I think I'm punch drunk if you know what I mean! I am taking my lead from Cosmo and making an effort to chill out for fecks sake. So here are a couple of drawings from todays Walk with Cosmo.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 We got sort of half lost on today's walk. We walked through corn fields with hay bales in for a while, needed a bit of guess work, but never really that lost. I dont think Cosmo knew we were lost he was very exuberent. Sometimes I try to test him to see if he knows the way? Oh..he makes out he does, boldly goes off in one direction. But then coincidentally discovers the trail of a squirell or rabbit which takes him on a long wide arc back to the junction where I let him decide which way. At this point he waits for me to either carry along the path he chose, or go back to the junction and pick a fresh one. Now I noticed a blue flower in my wild flower bucket yesterday, turns out it is a corn flower. An endangered spieces. Named so because it's habitat is corn fields. But with modern farming techniques these 'weeds' are eradicated with chemicals, pesticides and stuff. This is the first flower I have ever really grown. I have told other people to plant flowers and that, but I never really bonded with those flowers.    ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 I dont have much to say but here are some dog walk drawings.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778  On this question of artists explaining/conceptualising/justifing what they do by intelectual juggelery  to others. I am able to see it from a slightly different position because I can use time, looking back 20 years or more at this issue. I remember being a recent graduate or emerging artist trying to establish their practice (how ever you want to describe it) and there has always been a focal issue as to why I'm not getting exhibitions/commissions/funding etc. First it was that the art world was all about who you knew, not what you knew. Then it was all about physical presentation of your work (I'm talking pre digital cameras). Could'nt afford to produce expensive laminated folders with printed inserted information sheets. How good were your slides? Then it was websites did you have one yet, it showed some kind of status? Even though it did not portray you as you wanted to be seen. Now it's this issue of how you think? Is it clever enough, critical, conceptual. The language has to be right. All these things are really just things to be cross about if you did'nt get what you wanted. TIME is the key to all this anxiety. Its much easier to look back at a body of work which may have taken two years, more to accumulate after leaving collage. Look back after time and its is easier to see what you did and why you did it. The complex issues in everyones lives prevents the creation of artworks but artworks still come out. They take longer and have limitations. These limitations shape the type of work that is made. Half a garden shed or the kitchen table forces a type of work, as does only a computer. The other thing is that: 'The Work' plus 'Something Else' is what may edge that funding or commission. What that 'something else is' is not nessacerily how good you are at writing conceptual critical intelectual justifaction for your work. It may be that you have completed a substancial body of work and documented it well so you can present it clearly to interested people. Which is a totally different thing. I am trying to help when I say Rome was'nt built in a day. The last thing I was going to say is I think artists are made by the lives they live, not what they were taught in collage.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 These are some of the places I walk with Cosmo. They need new maps because preparation for the arrival of the cattle has changed the woodland alot. 'Scandinavia' is almost unrecoisable now. ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Thinking in words or language and thinking through making? Have you noticed how Andrew Bryant drops these little incedurary devices into peoples blogs? (Not a critisism Andrew, an observation) made me think hard.  But can I just say: I thought about 'Little Hans' on the walk with Cosmo this evening and I dont believe 'Little Hans' needed the theory I think Sigmund Freud needed it!  Different types of thinking. Claire says its joined up and the result is a finished creation, with which I agree ....and thinking when making is definatley different from other stages in the process.   'Thinking through making' does that actually make sence? Thinking whilst making does. Thinking when making is often a tactile thing...what consistacy is the cement.. too stiff? How much preasure is required to bend that...not enough pull it harder.. how dry is that now and how dry will it be in about 10 minutes? physical repsonces not words. Some kind of technical tacit knowladge is gained and automatic in its delivery. Testing things to see if they do what you want is what goes on. Thinking before making, 'designing' is just pretty free-form in its conection from one thing to another to form ideas. It is a visual way of thinking using an eye that works in your head to produce relevant visuals but some about using words as well. Does it really become about words when you need to explain to someone else what your going to do. If you dont have to justify what your doing to anyone the language part never gets developed as the creator does not need to sharpen it, they can work with their instincts and intuition? Another thing is: does language develop your ideas and take them further?  yes I'm sure it does, but I think what really develops ideas are new experiences. Once you've perfected your language about what you do, time has gone by and you want to do something different and your stuck with your  mantra.   Change, new things, stimulas these are the things which create ideas. Why did Marc Rothco commit suicide? Was it because he was forced  to paint Marc Rothco's all the time? Sorry if I'm rambling, it was an extra long dog walk this evening. To Cosmo's benifit if no one else's.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Cosmo's Nemisis Sadley, I have to say again Cosmo has had another couple of run ins with Sid. On the last occasion I found myself putting Cosmo on his lead as I saw Sid advancing. Sid tears in and I am trying to protect Cosmo, but really I'm hampering him cos he's on the lead and Sid is as mobile as he needs to be. Cosmo fights back and I can see Sids owner coming up. So I do my best to keep them apart. Now Cosmo is making a wimpering noise I have never heard him make before as Sid is eventually put on his lead. What I wanted to do was grab Sid and let Cosmo do his worst, but somehow the unwriten dog ownership rules don't allow that. So I have to hold Cosmo back while Sid does his worst. A kind of showing the other dog owner that I tried to hold Cosmo in check. Now Cosmo has been worn down by Sids relentless agression towards him. I believe the wimpering sounds were not because he was bitten or bleeding, but because he just wants peace, and the wimpering is a surrender signal. This is Cosmo's retribution for running amock in Sids front garden chasing chickens. I feel sorry for Cosmo, as this is like a constant ongoing fight with the school bully. Something I can relate to. Sids owners were very appologetic and we disscussed it at some length. May be I'm over sensitive on Cosmo's behalf, but its spoiling my dog walks. The woods are big enough to go somewhere else. ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Cosmo goes to Town. The town.....Whitstable. A town where the high street is so narrow a bus going one way and a car going the other can sometimes cause a bit of a cufufle. The vast majority of the shops are independant with seaside bricka-brack, baskets of stuff hanging everywhere, ice creams, 2nd hand books, cafes, unusual clothes shops with womens swimming costumes  with German Junkers 88 with the bomb doors open printed on? Just a visual fest reminisant of Camden or Carnaby St in the old days. I saw a sandwich board on the pavement with a plastic crab nailed to it. Bright nylon fluttering kites, a cyclist wearing a very recognisable Heinz Beans 57 varieties shirt. People so big, I dont know how they get in their clothes, a woman following us wearing a pair of flourescant lime green crocs. Galleries, cds, sea food, and a plastic braclets for £13. As it turns out all Cosmo is interested in are lamp posts! A small wooden planter on the pavement with a bush in. Corners of walls or buildings where the down pipe discharges water onto the pavement. The whole plethera of 'Stuff' just no interest what so ever. Even a live Hank Marvin tribute Ghost Riders in the Sky belting out from the cafe over the harbour quay where I had the 'Famous' findus fish finger and tartre sauce sandwhich failed to have any impact and he waited patiently for us to finish our coffees. Short changed or what.  ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Ghosts Calling, We went to the woods this evening. One of the usual walks you know. Cosmo is a gun dog as he is part golden retriever I dont know if poodles are french gun dogs they might be? Anyway Cosmo is solid gone man....that place he goes..those places in and out the undergrowth, through the bushes, looking, investigating, checking things out, going back and and checking them again. Looking for stoats, birds, squirrels or foxes. I will never know, but he's really focused in his searching. Then an acorn hits the floor! He stops dead, he's heard it at 30 paces ears slightly raised and head movements like Tango Dancers on Strictly. Whasat?......er ...... nothing but  ......there's............a feckin ...........rabbit been over here and I'm leggin it after him. He dissapears.... rushes into the woodland..... and 20 seconds later he's trotting down the path towards me. Nah......no sign of it now. And so it goes on. Never catches anything, never dissapointed, allways looking though. Me, I got my head phones on Listening to my favourite track. I've only got about 5 tracks in there. But this one is special. Ghosts Calling. You could describe it as orchestral...its abororiginal didge, a snare drum with wishy washy sound and these clicky sticks. Fantasic in the woods. It is just totally fluid and I'm solid gone an all.  The noises from the didge are the animals Cosmo is looking for and I'm flicking my fingers in time with the clicky sticks. It fits with the woods perfectly, if I made videos it would be the start of something. If you played it in Picadilly Circus it would be rubbish, it needs the woods. Then smashing in my head at higher volume is Rock Star by Nickelback, the contrast is unbearable. And the culture shock between the life styles that relate to these two types of music is shattering me. stop back tracks open staiway to heaven play.  ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Twin Oaks Sometimes I get rather full up with art all the time. I think as an artist one does tend to try so hard, never waste a day, got to promote yourself or do something? I'm waiting for a decision from a commitee.....still. Yesterday I just thought I'm full up with all this art and went for a dog walk instead. Cosmo was alittle confused as it was not his usuall dog walk time? The acorns and sweet chestnuts are falling off the trees now and the single track paths in the woods are covered with acorns. This reminded me of a story on the radio ages ago, told by Martin Simpson. He said he had been asked to finish someone elses unfinished song! He discovered this twin oak storey. 'If you ever see twin oak trees growing side by side, (this quite often happens in hedgrows apparently) it is because Gypsy, travelling families had the tradition that if a young baby died, then an acorn was placed in each hand and the baby then buried by the side of the road under the hedgrows'. This provided the end for his unfinished song, I wondered if it would start someting for someone else, as I can't think of a way to use it, but it is a lovely idea. I'm thinking about art when I'm supossed to be not thinking about it. Why do we do that?  ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 My Phone has Drowned. The other night me and Cosmo got very wet. It rained so hard it would'nt have made any difference if I had walked in the sea. My feet were sloshing around inside my wellies and all I wanted was to get home. Cosmo was unpreturbed and still wanted to sniff this and that and was happy enough. He didnt seem uncomfortable! He looked like he had just had a perm. I was very grumpy and kept reminding myself that it could be worse. I might have been press ganged into the navy, and the Bosun was telling me to climb up the rigging and get the top gallants down. When I got home I realised my coat pocket had collected quite alot of water for a pocket and my phone had drowned. I bought a new phone today thinking I would put my old sim card in and all my contacts would instantly appear. 'NO CONTACTS' I must have changed some kind of defalt setting and all saved to phone memory not sim card! Which is a bit of a bummer.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Dogs Have 3 Gears. Humans have two. Walking and running. A jog does accelerate into a run, but the action is the same. Dogs have both walking and running (or galloping), but inbetween these two is this other gear, a sort of trot where they are not walking or running. This trot is where their feet hardley come off the floor but they can go quite fast and keep this up for along time. I am now artist in residence at 'The Little Blue Hut'. I rode my bike gently along the sea front, to pick up the keys. It was very windy. Its about 4 miles or so. Cosmo kept up, trotting the whole way there and back. It did knacker him though.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Firework Night with a fish supper. I was looking forward to a dog walk as I am just beginning to get really busy again and wanted to just chill and let things settle in my mind. I have already just made a stupid timetable/availability mistake. Something I described as an administrative error in an apologetic email. But; it is firework night and Cosmo gets what you might describe as 'excited'. So I let Cos off the lead and he legs it at full power across the grass towards the sea. Barking.  Just barking at bangs, wooshes, bursts, frazzle sounds, glitter, coloured lights and popping noises. Total full on, out and out wreckless barking at the top of his voice. He got that off his chest as it were and we settled into the walk. Next thing I know he's nowhere to be seen and I'm calling him, whistling and that. The tide is out and he's down on the beach amongst the groins. I know whats going on and walk towards him. Illuminated by the moon light there is a dozen or more glowing white underbellies of these kind little shark/dog fish all washed up on the beach and I'm treading on them as I realise what they are. So now I can smell Cosmo at 5-6 paces and I'm marching home with the hump. Then we meet a Wrottwieler on heat and now we are home he's barking again.  He smells too bad to get close to him in his distress.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Scyliorhinus Canicula (small spotted catshark) a bottom feeder that likes shallow waters. More commonly named the Lesser Spotted Dogfish, more colloquially known round here as those FCUKNIG FISH that get washed up on the beach. I did a pre dog walk earlier to check out the beach and could see crows and seagulls were still working, where there were still some remains of washed up Lesser Spotted Dogfish. Later, on the walk Cosmo's lead was attached a good 500 yards before this particular section of the beach (which is his favourite at the moment!).   Once the hazzard was passed I was able to remind myself that the glue I was using to make my mosaic had gone rather watery. I make my own glue for this purpose and had made two jars. The unused one, stored in an air tight jar was still all jelly, but the one I was using was open to the air, and over a period of about a month it had broken down and gone too runny. It is making the paper too wet and buckling is a problem. Also I noticed that the paper had got so wet it had soaked through and was well on the way to sticking itself to the table top. As it is so watery it is taking a long time to dry in this damp weather. another problem it would cause would be when I need to cut the mosaic into sections with a scalpal the still slightly damp paper will tear rather than cut. This is to be avoided as well. So, really  I was telling myself that for 15 - 20 minutes of time invested in pouring the glue back into a sauce pan add about another heaped table spoon of flour to thicken it up, a bit more salt to stop it going mouldy and boil it up for a few minutes would make the perfect glue. This would be time well spent. Perfect jelly like glue enables the mosaic tiles to slide over the surface of the paper easily for accurate positioning. It also has less water in so dries better in these damp conditions and wont buckle the paper quite so much.  The other thing that crossed my mind was that I have two schools projects coming up. One in a rural primary school with children who have started life with an advantage, compared to an urban secondary school where my 'transition' group of pupils are definately disadvantaged. I am looking forward to this contrast. Cosmo is walking home with a slight limp?  ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 A Local Creation Story. (part one) If you remember I mentioned I am artist in residence at 'The Little Blue Hut' and I've been spending a lot of time there looking at the wind farm from the beach hut which is the location for this residency. Even more time than usual, as I spend a lot of time looking at it when me and Cosmo walk along the sea front every evening. For this evenings dog walk the weather is rubbish, its raining and the wind is bowing very strongly. But in the beginning there were only the winds, the East, the West, the North and South Winds. For many years they blew all the moisture in the air to the same place to form the sea. All the dust in the air they blew into another place to form the land. After many years the winds moved away, leaving behind them 30 children. These are the white wind turbines in the sea and they manage the surrounding sea and lands. The 30 children formed the birds from winds left behind by their parents, and used the birds to survey the lands their parents had made. The birds knew the sea, the cliffs, the fields, and the forests as they flew over the area. The Blean Forests grew with wild flowers and grasses, from seeds mixed up with dust that formed the lands. After some while pieces of the land broke off and rolled back into the sea to form oysters and the other fish. In due course these Oysters formed pearls, and spat them out onto the land. The pearls then transformed into the first people,  our ancestors and lived as community by the sea, which became Whitstable. The people became known as the 'Oyster people'.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Not a walk with Cosmo. I didn't walk with Cosmo today beacause I might have had half a larger shandy with my new comrades and brothers of the 'West End Theatre Goers Collective', in the Russian Cafe in Shaftsbury Ave. I might also have sung Stairway to Heaven on the careokee machine. I do seem to remember introducing the band midway through the song Jimmy Page on lead guitar.....John Bonham on drums ...........and John Paul Jones on bass! To be a rock and not to roll... Good night London ...!... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 A Local Creation storey (part 2). I decided to walk along the beach towards Reculver the other day. This is dominated by the wind farm still and as usual it pretty windy but Cosmo, he's easily pleased and just likes being out, doing his searching thing. Me I am well wrapped up and before long I've drifted off into my little world and Cosmo's absorbed in his. We exchange glances occasionally to check where each other are, this is really unnecessary, as through an osmosis type of thing we know where each other are without having to look anyway. The North Wind which is one of the four creators lives in the North Star, above what we call ursa minor or the plough, this also looks like a sauce pan. These stars are positioned just above the wind farm.  The North Wind keeps all the stars in this sauce pan and each star has a dream inside. The pan is full with these stars and the 30 turbines blow the stars out of the pan every night. As the stars blow into the sky, one of the dreams may visit you in the night while you are asleep, but the dream always returns to the pan before morning for someone else on another night.                                                     Creation of the Animals: they are formed in the same way as the fish. This happens along the cliffs at Reculver. As bits of the cliff break off and fall into the sea on touching the water the dogs, cats, cows, horses, foxes, squirrels and chickens are all formed. All the different kinds of animals are created in this way, and Reculver has ‘country park’ status because of this, and is protected by the laws of the council. I have found a stone horse on this beach which never turned into an animal. The process went wrong leaving a stone horse buried in the sand.                                      Only the head remains visible now. But even that is now slowly sinking back into the ground. There are other animals in the rocks if you look carefully.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 The rise of sea levels! It's persisting down again tonight and we both got a little wet. We seen the two burmese mountain dogs and the woman who wears the high viz jacket when she walks them. She dosn't stop talking that woman, she tells me all about her family and friends, like I know them. I dont know who, what shes talking about. There's Dave and someone who lives in Dorset who breeds ringtailed plovers or something, and that bench there, oh they put it in the wrong place, that one is our one, when Verity died the council put them in its £500. Ted will be out later with my husband. (Ted is another burmese mountain dog, he's  the biggest dog on the manor. Ted and Cosmo kind of grumble bad temperedly when they meet, face up and growl. It never really kicks off like Sid). We seen a terrier, all mouth them terriers, Cosmo does his little 'Ali Shuffle' and side steps them lets them think he's been seen off good and proper. I just walked through a puddle about 25 feet long. Cosmo has his puddle he always lays down in, that same puddle. Every time its there he lays in it, even on cold horrible nights he does it. And then we met this bloke who says he has had his beach hut for about 6-7 years. He says in that time, the distance from the waters edge at high tide to his beach hut has halved! I dont know if thats true.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 The short cut.....or maybe not. An eventful dog walk which started by going down onto the beach at Reculver. Its the stone horse beach where the animals are created and Cosmo has just legged it up from the beach to the top of the cliffs. There is a special passage up the cliff face; we have often used this as a short cut. But it is a one way short cut, Cosmo has never managed to reach the beach going down it, the last section too steep for him. He can however, get up it in jiffy. I can do it both ways, except now in the mud. I can see Cosmo waiting for me at the top in the usual way, this is the third time I have slid back down with large cakes of clay/mud stuck to the bottom of my wellies like snowshoes. I now try a different tactic by trying to get him back down to the beach with dog treats and lots of enthusiastic ‘come on boy’s’. I even walk along the beach leaving him up there thinking under pressure like this; he will have to follow me. This does not work either, so I’m forced to climb up this wet clay cliff face. I have failed another half dozen times and the last one I got into the key part of the climb ‘The Gully’, but no grip nothing to hold onto and its the longest distance I have fallen. The epaulette on my jacket has collected some mud on the way down as I land on the beach upside down and head first. I know I’m not going to get badly hurt however many times I have to slide from the bottom of the gully to the beach. Cosmo is getting agitated and barking at me. I am pretty muddy all over and realising this, I think of course...... its ok to press any part of my body to the sides of the gully for traction. I’m not worried about how dirty I get anymore. Got to get in the gully and up it, then the rest is a formality. And I’m in there again now with my knees, elbows, the small of my back, everything pressing onto the sides for grip. The mud..... who cares, it is actually a nice orange colour, reminds me of an earthy red oxide pigment with an orange bias  called sinopia or sinoper, which was used for the under layer for fresco paintings. I was being dainty about it before. I’m taking the weight on my knee and pressing my shoulder in and it’s not that difficult really. I had to compromise by getting dirty so what, and at the top Cosmo is running around the cliff top in figures of eights as I get there. Something I have seen him do before. It has taken me 10-15 minutes to do this, he did it in about 10-15 seconds and basically he’s just run up it. In this mud? That’s pretty impressive.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Remembering Billy Connelly: We did actually see a St. Bernard the other night, before the snow came. In comparison with its owner it came up inbetween waist and chest height. Looked more like a pony from a distance. We saw Mason tonight, a scatty chocolate labradoodle and we were exchanging dog stoies. Apparently Mason was ill, £250 at the vets for introvenous drip and some horse pills to cure some kind of food poisening? I was explaing that Cosmo had eaten something on the beach recently which had made him sick. It was a carrier bag, I found out as I cleaned it up. Masons owner was unimpressed, but I did grab his attention when I went Ass over Tit, I still had my hands in my pockets as I landed very heavily on my backside in the mud. He said ' are you OK, did you slip on the mud' I found my self repeating a Billy Connelly joke I heard years ago. 'No, I'm trying to break this bar of chocolate in my back pocket'.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Every year I get an xmas card from this man and his wife and inside it is a photocopy of a hand written letter which he must send to all his friends and relations, explaining all the things he’s done and goes on to detail what his son has done as well over the past year? Me and wife have laughed at this, saying how old fashioned it is and does anyone really read the carefully written almost ‘Edwardian Script’ style handwriting often employed by older generations. But this year all we got was a personalised xmas card formally printed with their names on and only two lines about their son building a car, driving a rally in Norway and then selling the car! In a strange way I missed having the full blown version, my expectations were for a lot more info, and I was surprised to see I was a little disappointed. So In the time honoured tradition I have decided to compile a xmas message. Both me and my wife have prospered well in this difficult year despite the challenges faced by our current government. My high income tax demand reflects another year of hard and consistent work. Our 3 children are older now and all at secondary school, giving us more time to develop our own careers. My wife has just returned to full time employment in her ‘dream job’ which comes with high demands on time and commitment. I have noticed a similarity with Michael Bouble’s  new album cover and my own website home page! http://www.retcreative.com/. I have spent a lot of this year like the previous year or two in isolation, in ‘the cooler’ making mosaics. I have managed to obtain some work which brings me out of the workshop and into other people’s worlds, which is healthier as I fear my sanity slowly ebbing away, constantly confined to solitary. My recent projects are in folders which can be opened at  http://s213.photobucket.com/home/robturner/allalbums, these show my work over the last couple of years or so. As always I find it difficult to create work outside of commissioned publicly funded projects. But I have recently completed a residency called ‘The Little blue Hut’. This project had no formal outcome or permanent finished piece.  Unique for me. My local City Council were to host a regular blog update as the residency unfolded within their council website. Unfortunately their website froze and it was impossible to keep to this agreement. I hosted the blog on my Myspace site instead, and can be read at, http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.ListAll&friendId=260619173. If you are interested then you can view my Myspace site which covers a lot of stuff I have done and is nice and colourful. at,http://www.myspace.com/retcreative I would like to say that using a blog as a medium to create a body of work in its own right, is an interesting development for me. The drawings generated because of ‘A walk with Cosmo’ would never have been made otherwise. I have a ring binder with drawings in now, the resulting small body of work has made me realise that what is happening is artistic and that I need to now continue, not analyze, as that would stunt the process. Dog walks are just as artistic as pickled sharks or shutting your self in a room with a wolf! This blog has enabled me to find an inner world, and explore my own thoughts and record my surroundings and environment. Not someone else’s surroundings, which is what my portfolio shows. As for Cosmo he does’nt even know its xmas, but if you visited us he would welcome you with a slipper, a shoe, or even his blanket. Xmas or not he would be pleased to see you. So Merry Xmas from Cosmo and the ‘Cooler King’.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Meeting Family at Xmas Time. On xmas eve we were walking along the sea front and a man asked me, 'what kind of dog is that, I think it might be the same as mine'? To cut a long storey short his dog called Poppy, is Cosmo's sister! Same parents but a newer litter. And knock me over with a feather they live about  about a mile away? Poppy is smaller, round and fluffy and likes being brushed, a kind of Barbie golden doodle. Cosmo is a big boy and likes getting dirty, very much an alpha male, hates being brushed action man type. They chased and romped together happily for 15 minutes while we talked about our dogs. Poppy likes dog fish as well. Now I have been 'walking with cosmo' for about a year now, and this blog has enabled me to create art about my surrounding environment. The fact that it requires a blog to make that happen is something I hope to develop over a wider area than can be covered on a dog walk. So I am creating a new blog at http://retcreative.blogspot.com/. This will enable me to widen the area that I make art about. I have only noticed over the holiday that I have already completed three year long projects. 1) photographs of the four seasons changing, mainley taken in the woods. Aut 06- summer 07 2) numerous photos of  the wind farm from every month of the year. Oct 08 - Oct 09. 3) A walk with Cosmo. 09 so for 2010 I intend to record the wider kent countrside on my bike for a year. I have two bikes a mountain bike and a road bike. Plus I am carrying a little extra timber these days and I hope the riding will help in that respect as well.  So I will start concluding this blog, but I expect a further decade of walking with Cosmo, so plenty of time to share ideas again if thats the way things turn out.... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778 Chris Thomas said this blog might be a theraputic exercise for the artist. He is right about there being a theraputic exercise, but I did not know myself whether it was the writing of the blog, or the dog walk in the first place, that was theraputic? I now suspect the later, as I was really looking forward to going 'up the woods' with the recent snow fall today. I can still make art inspired by dog walking without having to blog it. So that is exactly what I will be doing. http://stroodcommunitytrail.blogspot.com/ Is my newest blog, about another part of Kent, and covers a current commission. As it is part of that commission and linked from the commissioners website, I will probably have to adjust a little so as to not to depict anything out of context, and probably less emotionaly, which will change my blogging style a little.  But this blog has enabled me to make art from a personel point of view and focus on what interests me, which is my surroundings and the history around me. My art has always been about other peoples suroundings and their histories. Not a hard thing to do you may say. For me it is the hardest thing in the world to see. And now after almost 20 years of making art on a day to day basis I can now say I will be making time to do stuff which relates to my inner world and drivers. So this blog has been a stepping stone for me, a stepping stone across a void too wide before. I do not know how to present or show this work yet, but at this point I dont think I'm going to worry about that. Far more important to create a substantial body of work and then look for the strands and threads within it and how they may be presented in different ways later. Of course time plays a part in these things and slow and steady is better than nothing. That is why the blogging aspect works so well as irregular but frequent updating slowly builds. The woods feel different, as work continues there. There is a clearer, lighter and more open feel to them. I will be in there alot this coming year with Cosmo and on my bike. So; adios amigos.  ... Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 http://www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/493778