original?

Another full week in the Smoke...

I had my first chance to work in the hot shop with the new technician, James. Brilliant. And, it seems, I can just keep signing up for as many sessions as I need. Amazing!

On my bike to a 'Q-Art' seminar on 'the Value of Art'. Despite a distinguished-sounding panel of speakers and a waiting list to attend, the event swiftly descended into a slanging match between a broad-beamed lady academic from Stoke Newington and an angry young(ish) man from Whitechapel.

Tuesday's excursion to the Museum of Anthropology and Archeology in Cambridge to see an exhibition called Assembling Bodies was rather more rewarding.

An eclectic collection of anatomy-related exhibitions from all over the world had been thoughtfully hung together by a clearly passionate young team. The evening lecture by Philip Ball, Chair of the Medical Artists Association on the history of medical illustration was fascinating and inspiring. This is a detail of a papier mache model by the celebrated anatomical model maker Louis Auzou, in 1848.

Wednesday was something of a brain-drain preparing for the tutorial on Thursday, but I did manage to fire up the final set of tests in the kiln: finding out how transfer prints made using different mesh sizes look at different temperatures.

Tutorial with Martin on Thursday. To my great relief, I seem to have managed to come up with something that might be 'original' enough - for now at least!

Friday was spent making sense of the week, writing it up and planning for the next one...

And now to study the finer points of Somerset Cider!

studies in motion

Finally sitting with a glass of wine in Francesca's cosy flat in Notting Hill Gate after a busy and extremely urban week: complete culture shock after the open skies and clean air of the broads. 

Spent much of the week buried in books, going to the Wellcome and Science  museums and formatting a literature review for my first 'proper'  tutorial on Thursday.  It was inspiring but extremely daunting to realise how many academics and makers are working on the knotty and, I fear, rather old-fashioned 'science v art' question.  There is certainly a lot to learn. 

 

My tutor Martin Jones weighed in with the dreaded but inevitable question: 'so what exactly is the "original contribution" you are hoping to make...?'

Having readily admitted that I have absolutely  no idea, I agreed to have a stab at drafting what an 'original contribution' might look like for my next tutorial on Thursday. Hmmmm. Alongside the brain gym, this week brought a chance to learn how to use the lampworking torch, a tutorial on the ins and outs of the 'folio' self-promotion system (watch this space...), to flash up my first print tests, to prepare a lost wax mold, to get pleasantly tipsy at my first C&G bash and swoop through London's rush hour traffic in glorious sunshine. 

I also moved out of my room in Farnham yesterday, with special thanks to Sue Shaw for her kindness and patience (I will never know if we should have taken the A305 or the A309), to Francesca for giving me the keys to this haven*. 

And to Richard and Jo for taking care of the numerous boxes full of glass for a month for me. I will miss that extraordinary place.  And Pepe, who will probably by the time I return. 

Another full week ahead: tomorrow, there will be polishing and casting followed by a glass blowing session in the hot shop and a panel debate on the 'value of art' with drinks (;-)) Photography on Tuesday followed by a conference on the history of medical illustration in Cambridge; research workshops on Wednesday followed, lampworking, then a tutorial on Thursday and perhaps a film....

Magic ;-)

* I will be moving into the house in Frome at the end of November (11 High Street, Frome BA1 5HF). The best postal address in London is Francesca's house:  14 Edge Street, London W8 7PN

A following wind...

preparing to shoot a bridge

Back on dry land after a wonderful week on a traditional wooden yacht in Norfolk: hard physical work but completely relaxing. By the time we sailed smartly into Hunters Yard in Ludham, I knew my peak halyard from my topping lift - we even shot Acle Bridge! *


evening light on the Broads

Ready to get back to work: first tutorial on Thursday...

*the traditional but rather risky way of getting through low bridges in which all the sails and the mast are lowered at speed while the boat is still moving through the water...

New girl...

The view from here...

Sitting alone in the computer room of the glass department at the RCA looking out over the turning leaves of Hyde Park, the Royal Albert Hall just metres away glowing orange and gold in the evening sun.

Despite the comfort of Francesca's beautiful flat just across the park and pep talks from men in trendy suits about how we are the creme de la creme in the creme de la creme of art schools in the whole universe and should have total confidence in ourselves for ever and ever, until this morning, I had been rather wondering what I am doing here.


my new desk...

London, so fine in this autumn sunshine is as brutal and demanding as ever. Grit and tarmac everywhere, pressing, pushy people, constant tremor of tubes and traffic and expensive everything. The first year students mostly half my age seemed keen to smoke in the sunshine, while research students were mostly worrying about the extra years it was taking to write up their projects and what to do next...


High Street Kensington

But I have been shown around the incredible glass, ceramics and print studios by bright, professional and friendly people, and found the drawing studio - a wide sunlit space on the top floor with an apparently unlimited supply of big sheets of paper and charcoal to play with. I also had the first tutorial with my supervisor Martin Smith this morning. Excellent.

I think it's all going to be just fine.


Claude Butler and new friends

I'm off now to the Freud Museum to see some work by 2nd year glass and ceramics students, then back to Farnham for a last day of cleaning.

Then a week of sailing in Norfolk before starting here in earnest.

I will email a link to the next installment but do let me know if you'd rather not be on the list?