ARTISTS TALKING

# 97 [11 July 2007]

More good news

Dr Carole Reeves of The Wellcome Medical Trust has agreed to co-author the book with me putting it into a medical history perspective.

She's a workaholic so my own work has speeded up as a a result.

Now arranging to have an online photographic exhibition to coincide with the "real" one in Wales.

Meanwhile I am off to Berlin tomorrow for a few days.

# 96 [2 July 2007]

Good news!Heard today that the Heritage Lottery Fund has granted an extension to The Sleeping Giant Foundation in Wales to help me finish my project. They are helping to do some of the interviews- over 100 people came forward as a result of my article in the local newspaper.

# 95 [23 June 2007]

"The long-tail effect"
Still having difficulty getting my head around the "long tail"effect of the net but yet another example reminded me this morning  of its existence.
While I am deeply immersed in research for my book - and it now looks as if The  Wellcome Trust may be able to fund its publication  thanks to the historian Carole Reeves with whom I am working- my web videos have a life of their own.

Take  sheep-shearing ( over 3,000 downloads so far) there is an on-going net discussion over the breed of sheep I have filmed. ( And no, I dont know the breed either, since you ask).
Is it  art? I dunno but I do know its about communication and involving people through social networking sites such as this who would not normally get in touch with each other.
I prefer to think of it as another branch of social scculpture.

To view go to video blog:www.annshaw.co.uk or use the following link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJ_b00WTQ18#GU5U2spHI_4

# 94 [22 June 2007]

Glasgow School of Art Degree Show

Visited my old college yesterday. ( I graduated from the Dep of Environmental Art in 2001).

The photographer Harry Benson is about to be made Honorary Professor and there was a private party  for him in the Macintosh Room.

The Degree show, always worth a visit is outstanding this year. No point in listing individuals. Just go to the college web site.

The Painting Department is awash with rumours of the extraordinary sums that students have sold their work for. One is reputed to have made £20,000. I chat to another young man who has sold his double light box to a Dubai millionaire for £1,500. 

But the students say it puts a lot of pressure on them to commodify their art and one expressed a certain envy at the environmental art students who are not under this same pressure to sell to galleries.

I recall six years ago one tutor telling me when I was about to graduate and I expressed a certain concern over my ability  to earn a crust to support my artistic endeavours:”We don't care a toss whether you can earn a living afterwards. That’s not what we are about.”

Times have certainly changed at Glasgow School of Art...

# 93 [18 June 2007]

“Duet”

All too often pieces from Degree shows disappear and are never seen again.

 Well, I found a new venue for an audio sculpture I did for my Degree show at Glasgow School of Art in 2001.

I sited “Duet”, ( birds singing and cat purring) in my garden when it was opened yesterday for charity under Scotland’s Garden Scheme.

  One teenager commented that she thought it was the best bit in the garden!...it certainly caused people to pause and think and talk.

# 92 [16 June 2007]

The Secret Power of Objects

We knew about the power of the photographic image to unlock memories. Less well known is the secret power of things we hold dear.

Now Sherry Turkle, Professor of Social Studies of Science and Technology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology has written a book, “Evocative OBjects” , exploring this little known area.

In my own research for “The Lost Children of Craig-y-nos” I am struck by the wealth of photographs and memorabilia that I have amassed, all bringing with them stories.

These objects, faded, often damaged tiny photographs, autograph albums, locks of hair, postcards and even certificates act as keys to unlocking memories buried for half a century.

Turkle’s book is published later this month by MIT Press and I have placed an order with Amazon.

  I look forward to reading it.

# 91 [11 June 2007]

Photographic exhibition

Have confirmed the dates for a photographic exhibition of archival prints of Craig-y-nos Castle when it was used as a childrens sanatorium. 

This will take place in September. 

This is a result of my current research for my book on "The Lost Children of Craig-y-nos" except they are now found! I have been inundated with photographs though not a word has been written or are there any records of this missing piece of 40 years of Welsh history. 

 The reason I suspect is that TB, the "white plague" was a taboo disease.

Meanwhile my videos on You Tube continue on their merry way notching up nearly 50,000 downloads. Suddenly realise I am now part of what is known as the "You Tube" generation.

Have they any idea how old I am?

# 90 [7 June 2007]

Podcasts at Hay Book Festival

Thinking of the way we consume arts and media brings me to the recent week I have spent at the Hay Book Festival.

All the talks were available on a podcast. As the area is Wi-Fi you no longer need to sit in a stuffy tent on a plastic chair when you can sit back in your deckchair in the sunshine and hear it on a podcast.

So I did both. Those talks which were impossible to get tickets for I downloaded. But it raises an interesting question: unless there are visuals or something other than two talking heads (the author and the interviewer).

 do you really need to see them in the flesh?

Only one event I attended did I feel that the physical presence of the author was essential and that was with the South African photographer Austin Stevens (“the snake man”).

He made his talk interactive: he produced a python and a boa constrictor for people to touch.

And yes folk lined up in orderly queues for the pleasure/horror of touching live snakes.

Now you cant get that on a podcast!

# 89 [7 June 2007]

What is the role of curators in the future?

I ask this question in view of the changing way we consume new media and the arts today.

At present curators act as gatekeepers, they decide who shall be artists, who will be given exhibitions and who will be recognised in the canons of art as artists.

But the world is changing.

I have just returned from Wales and tired unsuccessfully to get an exhibition of my archival photographs in two art centres which both claim to represent the community and are heavily funded for this purpose.

  The first approach was to the exhibition organiser at the Dylan Thomas Arts Centre in Swansea . He did not reply for 3 weeks to my e-mail . After several phone calls I eventually tracked him down. No, he had not looked at my proposal , anyway they had a 2 year waiting list...

As for the exhibition organiser at the Pontadawe Arts centre I was told she was “too busy” ( though I could see her sitting in her office reading) and the message was relayed to me via a foot soldier i.e. man on the reception desk there is a 2 year waiting list.

Instead I look for an alternative space and find a genuine community venue. I explain the project and without hesitation I am offered an exhibition space for September.

So I am tying this in with an online photographic exhibition thus combining the old ( physical space within the heart of the community ) with the new (web based).

As one of my tutors at Glasgow School of Art used to say:”Regard each problem as a challenge. Look for new solutions.”

He would approve of my decision.

# 88 [24 May 2007]

Wrestling
Nearly 10,000 people have downloaded my video on wrestling at Bridge of Allan Games.

 Denise, the young blonde woman wrestler did not know she was being filmed and she has just  found it on YouTube and added this comment:"Hi! I'm the blonde girl. None of my friends understood the sport until now."

Click on the link below to view

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GncZoKF-v_c