Christmas Holiday stuff

one I made for Jaqui

and a bagpuss mouse for me !

Its Christmas Day

meh

Dreamt of Highwaymen

I rarely remember dreams so when I do I think they must be a little special...I had been thinking of highwaymen and they have been on TV and in my head... maybe its sign... should I go highwayman hunting? investigate alittle more?

Could art bring people back to the Seaside?

Maybe its time to accept that British seaside holidays as we remember are pretty much finished, there are a few places that still thrive in the summer but my childhood holiday town of Rhyl has now run down so much I dont feel it can be recovered, the seafront was redone a few years ago, but the old B&Bs and arcade shops are now very tatty and closing down.

Other places such as Liverpool has reinvented itself, its docklands area is now full of interesting shops and a Tate Gallery, yes its cost alot of money and has taken time but what a difference, my idea is to bring art to Rhyl.

North Wales is full of beautiful mountains and full of history which hill walkers already take advantage of, maybe if the area had a good gallery and people had B&B's with dark rooms or studios to work in, maybe a 3d area for people who love to scuplt.

Nowadays people can go to yoga retreats so why cant we have art retreats?

To my dear friend James

Words can not express the sadness I feel today, I will miss you everyday.

I hope you have found the calmness that you wished for

but its so sad for us that you have left behind.

places I have considered............

Ive looked in to the area that I live for a place that could be somewhere where a piece of art could be placed, my favourite place in Stonnall is Hangmans Hill (Grove Hill on the map) . the tree that stands on the top isnt old enough to of hanged anyone but it looks stunning on a clear day or moonlit night.  The tree its self isnt visited that much but many people walk their dogs along the path way which runs the hedge on the field.

The infamous highwayman Tom King (maybe Matthew) was born less than a mile away from me at Irish Harp pub which is on the Chester Road. I feel this is where the highwayman story of the hill comes from.

There is also the rumour that Mr Dick Turpin stayed in one of cottages on the Main St, maybe at one of the farmhouses as Stonnall wasnt really a village at that time. Tom King died in 1937 on the 2nd May.

Should we celebrate a man who killed and robbed ? or commerate his life?

misses the butterflies

not far off the winter solstice.. the nights have nearly drawn in as far as they can go and the mornings struggle to get started. The weather lady tells us its cold... as if we havent noticed and the possibility of a White Christmas, I must admit if it was it would make the day for me.. the kids can go out with the dogs and all come back frozen and rosey for hot chocolate and roasting thier toes by the fire.

find me

myspace.com/gooodart

more pics from the last year :-)

and the world moves on maybe to a better place ...........

Im not sure what it is about digital but its really not as satisfing making the work by hand, maybe this is a new adventure and I should look at as this rather than wanting to hide away from it... a slight change in direction is going to happen maybe a left turn then follow on northwards to the better place.

messages

messages in bottles.. to internet messages... not the same but similar :D  hopefully get more responses!

Tides of change

The thing I love about my way of thinking is that sometimes things come and go very fast LOL.. this also can be very annoying as you can imagine.. I have just started on another blog which is about a totally different art piece but dont worry chaps this one will still be updated and continued with, though will take a slight detour and not make it to the sea before Christmas.

I have done further research on returns to the sea and have found out that the Vikings didn't always go out on a burning ship, I thought this was normal but it seems it was mainly for chieftains.

I never did hear about the other 2 messages in bottles I sent out earlier this year... I wonder what they are doing now ? still bobbing around or destroyed by the waves and rocks?  maybe there is still a chance I will hear about them in the future......

The Beach

sea shadows

Return to the SeaSide....

While on the train to Nottingham I was trying to think of ways of getting people back to the seaside in Britain. The sea side town of Rhyl which I mentioned in an earlier is getting more and more run down, the B&B's are shutting down and the arcade area is tatty. Maybe its time for a change? we can look at how other towns have changed Liverpool has turned its self around and has the wonderful Tate at the Albert Dock and a super shopping centre and all The Beatles places dotted around, they have a good tourist base, and have money coming in. Maybe we can get other run down areas to pull together and improve their areas .

As a thoughts to do with my brief I have images of buckets,spades, children and ice-cream, to do with Rhyl.

For other ideas I am going to be researching viking burials at sea, as part of my last project was returning things to nature it made me think of burials, what do different religions think about when it comes to burying the dead? The Vikings particularly as they lived on some of the Scottish Islands.

These Autumnal days are getting rather Wintery

Usually at this time of year my brain goes in hibernation along with the hedgehogs but now I have a new brief thankfully I have load of ideas popping into my head to do with sculpture and art being outside, as I'm using my last project as sort of a starting point I have tried to think about the places I visited and what they made me feel. I went to Rhyl for my first visit and this was were I spent alot of time as a child. Sadly English resorts are on a downward spiral people don't go on holiday there and there is no money to make the places more attractive. Could a piece of art improve the place?

Off to Nottingham for the eve doubt I will see much as it will be dark :D

from Butterflies.. forward........

It started by the sea.... ended by the sea...

now I have a new brief and things have to go further with my work... part of this is blogging.. I have not blogged before so it will be a new experience for me. I hope to inform you of my plans, thoughts and how things go over the next couple of months.

I would like feedback on my thoughts etc and hope that you enjoy what I do !