Barton

While I think of it, I had another conversation there with a government official from the department of education. Oxford city council parks manager (who by the way has been fantasic, so have his team.) had an appoinment to show a party of various suits around. They all came over to me and I explained the project briefly, with focus on the community participation.

I also asked the if they were going to visit the school which I worked in. The answer was, 'oh yes we have already been there'…. blah …blah…'So now will the pupils know how to design parks and make mosaics and sculptures'?

Yes I hope they will, I said.

What I did'nt say was that they are only 10 years old and still in primary school, and this was about their play time. Far better to have outdoor inventive play here, than shoot-em-up games on the xbox every evening. The importance of play may enable them and the youger children on the estate to become well adusted citizens with prospects in good jobs in the future. I did not realise I was suposed to be training them to be landscape architects now!

Back from Barton and the paving is done. No one knicked any of my stuff and all is well. So far.

Just so you get the feel of the place I shall describe the front gardens of the houses just near where I parked the van.

An C reg caravan with moss around the windows, a divan bed, a sofa, large plastic toys to sit in with wheels, along a house or two were, a square yard of building sand, timber planking, fridge, monitor screen, set of stacked garden chairs, giant panda and a teas made.

on the generation game conveyor belt tonight we have….. …………..didnt he do well!

I have been installing artworks made with this community in their new park.

Snippets of conversations and comments while I'm working there, thus:

Is that cement?…..

me – yeh….

my dad used to do that.

My dads gone out to get me some bullets….

me– for what?……….

real bullets…..

me– yeh to go in what?…………

This. (its a plastic toy rifle)

Our dog cant walk got a bad foot.

me– Why's that then?

My brother took it over to the park for fighting (not the one I'm working in) and it came back with a bad foot. It can hardly walk.

The council spend all this money on this and they never put a fence round it.

me– Why do you need a fence?

Its full of shog dite (word change you get it though). Covered in it. They should keep the dogs out.

me– I dont think its the dogs fault, the dog owners should put it in one those three red bins.

This is the best one.

can I borrow that (Pointing to a 2m length of 3×1).

me– why?

So I can build my bedroom.

me– No I using it to get this paving level.

can I borrow that (pointing to a spirit level).

me– why

so I can put a shelf up in my bedroom.

me– no I'm using it to get this paving level.

can I borrow that (pointing to a pair of mullgrips.

me– why.

I want to build some screws.

me– no

can I borrow that (pointing to a metal clip for joining two harris fence panels together)

me– why

Cos I want to mend my grandmothers house.

We were both laughing at this point.

The, can I borrow that game. I expect I may be playing again when I install the rest of the stuff in a week or two.

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I have to pick this project up again now. My world totaly was: cracking small rocks in my workshop, listening to CD's and the radio. Totaly insular and mechanical, then sometimes muse about nature and the human relationship to it?

Now….. Bosh……..switch to another project. I've got to hire vans, cement mixers, generators and order loads of stuff from the builders merchants wear steel toe cap boots and lean out the van window and shout obsenities at passers by. Eat breakfasts in the cafe at 10am still wearing my hi viz vest and get down the sports bar for the european cup semi finals on Wed evening and drink beer.

I have a whole load of logistics to deal with and deadlines that wont be met. But I may be able to negotiate a later 'Park Opening'. I do have to pave the floor around the seating as quick as I can.

Now a lot has been done and the whole park looks even better than I thought it would. The stuff I told them to make and install seems to be comming together and the ball is very firmly in my court to put the final touches in place now NOW. I cant get there till Wed. It will be physical and intense, but it will be a park that is 100 times better than whats was there before.

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The groundworks and stuff are behind schedule and I just wait for notification for my installations now. In the mean time I have plenty to be getting on with.

Today was the last of my series of my community workshops in Barton.

In the blurb describing my practice I listed loads of things I work with, and on that list I said 'idiots'. Well on this particular job the idiots label could be won by the local press!

I wanted these pupils efforts triumphed in an article, following on from one already printed which had started this project. The Headteacher was worried that his school would be putting themselves at risk of derision by the local paper, as this had happened to him on several occasions before. I said that 'Fusion' the organisation who were commissioning me had a full time PR person on their staff and we would put together a press release highlighting the input by school pupils on this project. I wanted to big these kids up and make them feel they were achieving things. As it turns out Fusion had had projects possibly deliberatly ridiculed and misrepresented by the paper as well, suggesting they were encouraging squatting or something and taking bizzare angles on their activities. (I had this 'Freddie Star ate my hamster' vision of reporting style.) Their advise was to keep a low profile and may be send a press release at the end including all the community groups involved when all the park and equipment had been installed.

How sad is this story.

What does it reflect….a general confusion over what is art?…. that public money is not used in the way the paper want?

The result is that bit of badley needed social capital I wanted to put in place is reduced.

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