Day Four: On Track

Yesterday was spent locating some of the sites and views as recommended by Rhian. Cwm Bycham was one of the places that Rhian recommended I go, and the one she felt was the most beautiful.

I didn't know what I was looking for, and so each time we came to a beautiful place i would say 'Perhaps this is Cwm Bycham? This is a great view.'

It turns out that Cwm Bychan is a lake and mountain area. Not a bridge, or a waterfall.

There are roman steps leading up to another lake, which we didn't see as we had to rush back to John's for the burning. But I got some good shots on the way, of the amazing mountain. I am not sure why but it reminded me of a Japanese animation.

Driving around the amazing countryside, it is really just a pleasure on the eyes. Before we went to Cwm Bychan I went up to the Slidey Rock area to use my 'How To Explore Kit'.

I am quite pleased with the results, and will work on putting the images into a new Health and Safety poster, to explain how to use the kit, just in case any artists wish to use it, as it travels around to the different countries.
First I used the thermometer.

The idea here is to measure the temperature of the place - is the place cool to you, or welcoming. If cool, find ways to make friends.

Next I used the binoculars. Instructions here are to make sure you look closely at the place, and if you are used to looking in, then try looking out.

Naturally the next idea is to look closely, and if you are used to looking out, look in. It is important not to ignore the tiny things, they can be very important. One of my favourite things about Harlech is the alpines and sedums growing from crevices and tiny gaps in walls.

They are so resilient, clinging onto the mountain top despite the wind. They are like minute worlds, the magnifying glass is great for really getting in close to them. I went on to use the fluorescent stars, the dots, the postcards, the pedometer, the compass, and finally the tent pegs and string.

This was in order to mark out a particular small area, and then explore it in detail to see what could be found there.

A variety of grasses, and plants, ants and other creatures, small pieces of glass. I look forward to making the health and safety poster later on.

The Burning of Art: we got to John's just as Antonio was in conversation with Casoria Art Museum, where he is director. They were smashing up a marble sculpture live on skype. We watched.

The Mayor of his city was there, and said he would commit to save the other works in the museums collection. Then in John and Celia's garden a new piece of work was burnt. Fernando and John had made the piece that afternoon for the purposes of burning it. I think it is a very different thing, to make work purely for the purposes of burning it, to me means the work is not the work, but the burning itself is. In this way the action is actually creating new art, rather than destroying something in a protest against cuts. This is  a very interesting notion - Activism is therefore a creative process.

They covered thepiece in petrol and it went up in flames very quickly, and turned to ashes. We were recording the burning on the ustream link here.

Antonio intends to take the remnants back to his museum and hold an exhibition of burnt works. 

In the evening Andy and I went to the Lion's pub quiz. I was keen to go and tell Rhian about my visit to Cwm Bychan. We came 3rd from last in the pub quiz, which I believe is very respectable. 

Rhian had another recommendation for me that she had thought of, to add to the brochure. I hope I have time to get to all of these places.

Then two local lads wanted to tell me what they thought about Harlech. They had heard that I had been working with Rhian, and wanted to let me know their thoughts. The first, works in the Spar and still lives in Harlech, he told me that most of his friends had moved away, but that he was determined to stay.

He wrote down simply 'This is my home'.

The second was in the army, and told me he had been around the world, and had done two tours in Afghanistan. He said that Harlech for him is a comfort, knowing this place, and its people are there keep him going. He said there is nowhere more beautiful in the world.

I had not intended to gather these thoughts, they were volunteered to me. What I am discovering is that though the people of Harlech are aware of the problems here (mainly a tourist trade which seems to be disappearing) they are all in love with the place. Rhian had said the other day, the young ones all go off to live somewhere else, but they all come back in the end, whether it is to visit or to stay.

I am now ready to go on Bethan's walk. I wonder if I will get lost?

ICAW Residency - Day Three

Yesterday I went to the Lion Hotel to interview Rhian, the landlady in order to plan the guide brochure for Harlech. We agreed that this should be 'The Lion's Guide to Harlech' since it would be based on her recommendations.

The conversation moved on apace, and at times I felt quite lost in the descriptions of places, and place names as Rhian moved from here to there. I recorded everything so later today will try to piece everything together. We agreed that 'The Lion's Guide to Harlech' would have Taz, the pub dog on the front cover, and we will talk about all that the pub offers, as well as Rhian's tips for what to see and do in Harlech. The Lion is obviously at the Centre of the Community here, getting involved in the twice yearly flower shows, where cake and sloe-gin competitions take place. Rhian had won the Cake competition last time, with her pavlova.
I will have a busy day today, locating Rhian's recommendations.
Also today, I intend to use my 'How to Explore Kit' and have decided to go up to Slidey Rock and explore it, as it seems to be an important local landmark - and spectacular viewing point, and as Rhian says - 'The Best Thing About Harlech? The Views.'
After my meeting with Rhian I went back to the Coleg in time for tea, which was early, as we had a skype appointment with Neil Powell and Finola Gaynor, they toured us around an exhibition of prints by Lance Wyman, at Norwich University College of the Arts.

Then John Brown gave a talk about 'Art in the Age of Materialism.' These talks were recorded in order to be published on the ICAW website.
Today is Wednesday, and we leave in 2 days time, but have so much to do. With the 3 meals a day, plus organised talks and happenings there does not seem to be much time to make work, so today, as we have the art burning at 5pm I will miss the lunchtime meeting in order to try to get some more work done.
Before coming on the ICAW International Artist's residency I had made a number of plans which I intended to carry out, but of course once in the situation the place and the people necessarily have an impact on the ideas t be explored.

I have brought with me 2 traditional explorer's hats, thinking that this may be a good icebreaker for talking to people here. In fact there has been quite a lot of discussion about the English occupation of Wales, and in conversation with Rhian she discussed how important the re-acquisition of Wales is to the Welsh and how they still celebrate today. It would, therefore seem very inappropriate for me, an English person, to march around the Town in an Explorer's hat - a symbol of colonialism.
Being thrown together with artists from across Europe can at times be difficult, strangely, though England is right next to Wales I feel foreign here. I have found a small talisman in an antiques shop which I think will remind me of the feelings being thrown up.

It is a tiny shoe with a cat in it - and the word foreign printed across the bottom. It describes how I feel. Sometimes it is good to feel foreign, and sometimes it is confusing. I think that the way I approach practice is also foreign, the other artists seem very confident in their idea of what they are doing. Not a criticism, but an observation is that ICAW seems to be about bringing artists together from across Europe and beyond, it turns out that the group know each other well, having been on these visits in Portugal, Israel and other places. It does not seem so important WHERE the current place is. The works which are due to be made on this residency will travel to Italy, and to Poland and so I suppose need to be able to travel. My practice almost always involves a response to site - here in Harlech I am working with 'Local Experts' to create a guide to Harlech. This is not because I am interested in making guides, but because I am interested in conversations with people about the places they live, I really believe that Local people are experts on the places they live, even if the expertise may not be regarded as data, it gives a more human understanding of place. The problem then is in wondering how the work will travel.
DOUBT. I am suddenly aware of how parochial my work may seem. I am concerned with the small, the overlooked, the insignificant. I am not interested in sweeping gestures and bold statements, and my methods look much like social science techniques more than traditional art techniques. It makes me question my place here.
This can only be a good thing, can't it?
The guide that I am to make with The Lion is more to draw attention to the need for Harlech to be recognised as a place to visit - I want to send the guide to the local tourist board, as a pointer or a marker of the place, not because I want to make a guide for Harlech, but because someone here wonders why there isn't one.

Harlech Day Two

Overall, we didn't stray too far from the Coleg yesterday. I became infatuated with the Coleg's Halls of Residence which is an austere block building, now standing derelict, waiting for demolition. Much of the day was spent in the board room, making plans, and listening to calls between Antonio and the world press, building towards tomorrow's burning of an abstract marble sculpture.

We went for a drink in the afternoon at the local pub, stopping on the way at the outpost at the top of the hill to view the castle - this looks very much like the point which Turner's painting might have been made, and after that all discussed the need to get down to some serious work today. This may have spurred us all to sit and work all evening until bed.

I began to put together my How To Explore Kit, but I need to use it this week as well as consider how to display it in the exhibition. Also I had a good look through 'The Book of Harlech' by Lewis Lloyd, which was lent to me by John. And this leads me to the next part of the work which I am to do this week. A strange coincidence, and a remote collaboration.

Last October I worked with Bethan Lloyd Worthington, from Manifold studio group, London - on a collaboration as part of the BCB. See that Blog Here.
Bethan saw that we are here for the residency in Harlech and got in touch to let me know that 'Harlech is home.'
My practice in Stoke has for the past 5 years involved leading tours, sometimes as a tour guide, and sometimes as myself. It makes sense that I can create manuals and brochures about Stoke-on-Trent, I live there and I know the place well, but in a new place like Harlech, indeed a new country, it would be crazy for an outsider to try to come in and make a guide. It is great that I have met the landlady of the pub, and will meet her later today to think about the guide, but this coincidence with Bethan leads to another type of guide: Bethan is to become my 'Remote Tour Guide of Harlech'. Based on Bethan's personal memories and experiences and family connections to this place I will take Bethan's tour. It turns out that this fantastic book I am reading, 'The Book of Harlech' was written by Bethan's Uncle Lew, who taught at the Coleg where we are based. Everything is connected up. So it seems right that now, Bethan will be helping me to write an alternative guide/tour of Harlech. We are back in touch again, and the same push/pull that happened last time we worked together emerges: this is a secret/private place for Bethan - and my work is all about the public - this personal tour that I will take will reveal something. I plant to use my kit on Thursday when taking Bethan's tour. It is going to be interesting.
I aim to take this tour on Thursday, so today, I need to work on my kit, meet the landlady of the pub, and go to this evening's WEA lectures at the Coleg. Better get on with the day.

ICAW: Dash Art Harlech International Residency

I am currently in the board room of Coleg Harlech. It is a rotunda on the edge of a beautiful brutalist concrete building, looking out to sea. 

We arrived into Harlech early evening yesterday, and after dropping of our bags were immediately whisked up to John and Celia Brown's beautiful cottage at the end of a very long and steep track, through cow fields.

So far there are four of us visiting Harlech, myself and Andrew Branscombe from AirSpace, Helga Gasser, from Vienna and Antonio Manfredi from Naples. There has been a lot of discussion about Antonio's art burning which has caused an enormous stir across Europe.

Antonio's original action has spread, and now art burnings have taken place all over the place - and the Art War has made world news.
On Wednesday, we will return to John's cottage, where a live stream art burn will take place with Antonio and artists invited from the area to take part. Join the audience here: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/icaw and let us know what you think. Antonio and John are on the telephone to the BBC about the burning , and what it stands for as I type this. See below.

Now, what to do in Harlech on this residency?
My proposal involved creating a 'How To' Kit for May. This one would be 'How To Explore' and should contain a number of tools and instruments for exploring a place. I was also interested in making some sort of alternative guidebook, based on my connections with people in Harlech. I have created some postcards to give to the peple that i speak to (at the top of this post.)
I already started looking for places to intervene, or explore. One idea is to use the community noticeboard outside of Coleg Harlech to announce something.
After John's house, Andy and I went to the pub, where the first important connection was made.

We met a nice dog, I collected some images and stories and then the landlord wondered what we were doing here, and so I told him about the residency and Harlech Biennale. He said there is a real problem with a lack of tourism to the area, and that his wife is particularly passionate about this. He showed me a stand containing leaflets about attractions and places across Wales, but pointed out that there is no guide for Harlech. I asked if he thought his wife would mind having a chat with me about the need for a guide, and she came directly. She spoke passionately about Harlech being left out of the tourist loop. I have arranged to go back and speak to her tomorrow, and plan a new guide for Harlech. What better way to explore Harlech than through the recommendations of a local person, so well connected to the area.

The Greatest Show of '86

I started researching the National Garden Festival of 1986 back in 2009. As Stoke-on-Trent's biggest ever cultural regeneration project, the NGF was an example of many of the things I have been interested in and researching for the past 5 years or more. It looks at land reclamation in post-industrial cities, urban/landscape design, impact of culture and arts on regeneration, heritage, legacy etc. The fascination in many ways comes from the fact that this is a hidden and secret space in the middle of an urban conurbation.

The name of the retail park, Festival Park, may hint at the project which saw the reclamation of 165 acres of polluted, mineshafted land - but most of the shoppers who visit never venture into the now fairly mature parkland, which is a permanent gift to the city and a legacy of the Garden Festival. The site had been Wedgwood's Etruria Factory, and then Shelton Bar Steelworks. The land was in a terrible state, and many environmentalists say that the NGF team could not possibly have cured the land of its problems in such a short space of time. The hills and ravines were molded from tonnes and tonnes of slag - but despite this, the 26 year old trees and shrubs seem incredibly healthy.

My project has involved conversations, tours, collecting remnants and images and building an understanding of this fantastic project, which is not celebrated enough.
I had been taking small groups of artists on tours of the sites with maps, and as a result Rednile asked me to lead a tour for a group of 20 artists as one of their factory nights. For this tour I focused on trying to show the sites of a number of the sculpture trail artworks from the festival. Only a few of the pieces remain on site now, some have been dispersed around the city, while others have vanished. The idea was to inspire the artists on the tour to send in proposals to Rednile for a series of commissions, which would hopefully raise the profile of the Festival Site, and Rednile and I selected 3 of the proposals to go ahead.
Little Earthquake's Phil put forward the idea of intimate tours which would locate some of the artworks from the festival in the city, but also bring people from the city up onto the site.

Ruthie Ford was inspired by my collection of Woman's Weekly magazines, as they had commissioned a Cottage Garden at the Festival in '86.

Ruthie carried out a workshop in AirSpace Gallery resource room with the public, making crocheted flowers, and talking to people about the Woman's weekly planting scheme, and their memories of the Festival.

Ruthie also made some fantastic giant flowers, a delphinium, a hollyhock and a foxglove - all flowers from the Woman's Weekly garden - which were planted on the hill up to the Festival Site, which could be clearly seen from the retail park. The idea here was that people shopping might look up and notice the amazing parkland - and be intrigued to come and explore.

The final commission was David Bethell's 'Against All the Odds.' A durational performance lasting a day and a night, which was inspired by the changing use of the site. From factory, to steelworks, to leisure space, and now to office and retail space. In particular, David was interested that one of Stoke's largest growing employers Bet365 employees often visit the site in lunch breaks - finding a welcome escape from the office environment. David set up an office at the original compass point - the site of Richard Wilson's lighthouse 'Stoke Lightening Stack.' A sculpture made of scrap car headlamps, originally intended as a permanent piece, and one of the artworks that we cannot find out much about. The performance saw Dave setting up an office space, and working at his desk, then as night fell the office was dismantled and turned into a lighthouse, and then a life raft, and then back to an office again, ready for morning.
Originally, the organisers of NGF '86 put forward the idea that the park would become a Sculpture Park. This would have been a fantastic asset for the city, especially with the names of the important artists that had works on the site: Antony Gormley, Richard Wilson, Cornelia Parker to name just a few. My tours and the Factory Night commissions have raised the sites profile, and I hope more people will visit the site as a result. One of the fantastic outputs of the Factory Night project is the map which Andrew Branscombe kindly made for the project. This new map shows the site as it is today, and locates where many of the park's amazing features were, and some still are. This map can be found here. My final tour of the Garden festival site took place last weekend, and coincided with David Bethell's performance.

I linked up with the Closer to Homes walkers, who walk the site every weekend, so the final tour took around 20 walkers, using our new map, and visiting all of the sites of interest. A big thank you to Rednile for commissioning the series of tours and artworks that have reactivated the festival site, and brought colour, sculpture and fun back to this wonderful city asset.

Looking today at Ray Johnson's film of the NGF I realise something about my feelings about the site, since the first walk I took up there, getting lost with the 1986 map, - what I really want, while watching the footage, is to be able to go back in time and see it all for myself. I want to walk through the brand new landscaping, and figure out exactly where everything is. I feel frustrated by the short clips which do not linger long enough for me to locate the features geographically with the site I know so well. I will continue to visit the site, but I think that for now, my research is done.

CAM ART WAR

CAM Art War from ve strata on Vimeo.

On Thursday, 19th April AirSpace studio artists met up in order to burn artworks as a show of solidarity with Antonio Manfredi, Art Director of Casoria Contemporary Art Museum, Naples.
Antonio made world news earlier in the week with his art burning protests, which spread across the sea to John Brown in Harlech, Wales. See coverage of the burnings on the BBC here.
We were asked to show our support and join in the burning.
We met in the yard armed with our various artworks:
Pete Smith had brought a box full of his ceramic hands.
David Bethell brought a shire horse sculpture.

Behjat Omer Abdulla had 'WAR' the first drawing in the series of works he has been making in the past 4 years.
Bryan Holdcroft had brought a drawing.

Kate lynch had a mixed media piece with wax.
Joyce Iwaszko brought a painting.
Glen Stoker brought an etched photographic piece.

and I decided to burn the first of my handmade text pieces, 'This City Needs People Like You.'

My piece has been hanging in my studio for the past few years, and was originally meant as a message to the people of Stoke-on-Trent, an urge to be socially conscious and active - but also a message to myself. Sometimes, the job of the artist is one which leaves you feeling undervalued, and so a message like this can be important.

It is recognised that artists and art activity is often underfunded (if funded at all), undervalued and artists are often underrepresented. Since cuts to the arts have made the situation critical, many artists have been forced to stop practising and many fantastic art spaces have had to close or reduce their programmes. This is a terrible mistake at a time when people really need imagination and creativity in their lives, in order to stay afloat during the recession.
As everyone arrived and the fire was lit, the group went very quiet. There was a strange sense of trepidation and excitement in the air,as we one-by-one placed our works in the fire to burn.

It was over very quickly; my piece - which had taken hours to do burnt up in less than 30 seconds, and left a shadow of itself on the ground.
We hope that in some small way that our burning will draw attention to the cause. As Antonio Manfredi has pointed out, with cuts to the arts threatening to close museums and art galleries across Europe, the public will not have a chance to see artists' work - so why not just burn it, if it is so undervalued?
THE ART BURN CONTINUES: CAM ART WAR NOW SPANS 4 COUNTRIES
Artists - please show solidarity with us by burning art.
Greece: Antonio Manfredi, Naples. 
Wales: John Brown, Harlech 
England: AirSpace Gallery!
Germany: Thursday, 26th April - Artists in Berlin set to burn art: Barbara Fragogna , Ahner Petrov, Alexander Rodin and Martin Reiter will burn some of their work produced in art center Tacheles in Berlin  
Let us know if you plan a burning of your own.

Broad Street

Back in 2008 I did a project which aimed to look at the context of artist led spaces in two cities: AirSpace in Stoke-on-Trent and Window 204 in Bristol. I had the use of both art spaces windows at the same time, so decided to undertake an investigation to consult the public on their opinions of the two spaces. I recorded the process and consultation activities from the two spaces, and displayed the results of the Stoke activity in Bristol and vice versa.  See the results here.

I also created long photographs of the two places, showing the context of the buildings on their streets.
I thought it would be good, as part of the Stocktake process underway at AiSpace Gallery to see what has changed on Broad Street since 2008, and so have created an updated version of the long photograph now (see above to compare.)
Changes since 2008 include:

• a few tiles have fallen from the Francesco group frontage
• Unique tiles and flooring have opened
• Moon & Co Solicitors building are now to let
• Mercer Jones have new signage
• Toad in car hi fi have closed and the building is now to let
• Monzil Tandoori have painted their frontage from green to blue (I think the green was nicer)
• The Blue Wing Grill has closed and Monzil have extended
• Ahyan fast food is now Ibrahim Barber Shop
• S.B. Pedley Barbers have painted their frontage from red to blue
• Express Claim Care (Accident management) have become a second hand computer shop and the business above (Express Graphic design and Prestige Car Hire) have closed
• The Mitchell Memorial Theatre has had a massive refurb - and now has an impressive Spitfire Wing projection, and a cafe.
• The ABC cinema which was partially demolished in 2008 is completely gone, and is now the entrance to TESCO. There is now a large patch of waste ground between The Mitchell and the solicitors.
• Woolliscrofts Solicitors have not changed
• AirSpace signage now reads AirSpace Gallery rather than just AirSpace
• Swinton Solicitors now have scaffolding up