More Opportunity

My good friend Aga at the Dong Ping Road cafe where I am supposed to be staging my first exhibition in around 4 weeks, called me a little while ago with news of a potential opportunity, which has now become reality.

As if I had nothing else to do, I gladly grabbed the opportunity to undertake a commission to produce a graphical installation at an art cafe near Jing A'an temple.

I have a stair well and glass wall, and a dumb waiter on which to work my magic, and will also face the challenge of working exclusively in contact film (like I used to use in shop display to create text and graphics for Jigsaw windows in Floral Street etc)

My proposal continues the current theme in my work to analyse and comment on contemporary youth culture, but instead of skateboarders I am working with an unsigned and independent Punk band. I hope to work with them to produce portraits and graphics featuring song lyrics and other funky graphotism. I will be catching up with them in some garage the other side of Puxi, and trying to translate the experience into laser cut sticky film on glass.

I just hope I can keep all these plates spinning!

Ginger Bob

So it has been almost 4 weeks since the last post here, but its been a busy 4 weeks and though not an excuse (my own adage: dont start a blog if you can't see it though...) it might help to explain the scarcity of reports UK-side or China-side... since we last exchanged thoughts, I have been to the UK, taken on more art lessons, accepted a new art commission, painted 5 pictures, sacked a client and bought 2 gerbils, 2 terrapins and around 600 herb seeds.

But none of this is relevant when considered along side the fact that our activities here in Shanghai are currently being accompanied by the one and only Ginger Bob, my father and our kids' favourite 'popgar'.

His daily exploration of the local area, and more importantly according to him, exploration of our daily lives has been a joy to behold. He holds a fascination with our miniscule and repetitive activities, from the bike ride to school to reading at bedtime. The joy he receives from meeting colleagues, parents and teachers, from playing with the kids at the ponds and catching tadpoles... from catching the metro to buying ginger ale by the crate... the joy is a pleasure to behold, and to provide.

Time is of course spinning by all too fast, and his return on the 2nd June is looming eerily already...