Inspire 52 - Week 13. One Momo in Time

"Time and tide wait for no man"

St. Marher, 1225

It was the obvious choice of quote so it had to go in ... forgive me by not starting off with a more original quote, but in my defence it's a pretty old one which is fabulously wise!

(Note to self ... find another time related quote before the end of this blog).

So here we are, time has brought us bright and spangly into spring. It's been glorious sunshine all week here in this part of England ... simply a divine way to welcome the longer days. It does strangely feel a bit like summer, so are we in fact ahead of our time?

I have been trying to give myself a bit more time and have started to voyage to nearby destinations on foot. This has given me the opportunity to enjoy the trees, which have begun to wake up, and take a medatative moment of 'just stop working the brain so hard 24/7'. I do love a good stroll, even if it is in an urban environment and the traffic is shouting loudly, I tend to pop in the tunes and absorb the fine notes, then find zen in the pace. Of course, one cannot beat a lovely promenade down the beach promenade ... that is, after all, what it was designed for and indeed fulfils it's role perfectly!

Take Time Out

From where do you actually take time 'out' of? Can we take time out of the cupboard, a box or a bag? 'Honey, can you just take the time out of the freezer, it needs to defrost in time for dinner!'

In Time

Can you actually get in time? Like, climb right inside it? If you can be in good time, can you also be in sticky time? What does it look like inside time? I think it would be an interesting place to visit....

Sorry ... I'm getting way too surreal ... it's 1:59 am on Friday morning and I am feeling a bit delirious ... need sleep ... must ... log out ... come  ........ back .................tomorrow ......zzzzz

I'm back! ... Friday morning ....

Time... an hour ... a minute ... a second ... a moment ... a beat ...

The inspiration hit me like a big surprise party this week. I really didn't know what was going to happen until Thursday afternoon. During a meeting with a collaborator for my upcoming exhibition it just all made sense and the light bulb came on. Music - art - music - art - music - art - perfect combination - indeed, 'thus not one and the same?' I ask!

I will be working with Timo Peach from Momotempo on the sound-scape for 'Adventures into The Monochronium' and I'm not going to say anymore than that because my plans for the exhibition are just getting more exciting by the minute!

Week 13

Ahh, a bakers dozen, an extra one in the pack, what a bonus ... can I have a scone with my tea? ... and nope, 13 O'clock does not exist on my clock!

Temporary image ... not with my nice camera at the mo'mo' 

Will re-post with lovely pics soon and let you know on www.facebook.com/HazelEvansArtist

Timo gave me some listening homework to do which was perfect for the creation of this new piece. I knew what I had to do, and it fitted in perfectly with an illustration I wanted to create using this old clock face circle. This clock design is going to belong on the front of my new portable artist home. It is, as we speak, in construction by Arts University College students at Bournemouth ... and this clock will feature on my front door. It is indeed coming along well and will be ready in about 3 weeks. It includes a wardrobe, a Post Office, a suitcase, a piano and a typewriter amongst many other things.

So back to the Momo ... I created this piece with time in mind and on The Midnight Road. http://soundcloud.com/momotempo/the-midnight-road

The journey was a short and a well executed one, as once I got on the path, it was smooth running from there. It took me over the threshold of midnight and continued into my dreams once I had put down my ink pen and rested my head in bed.

As usual, the story of this piece unravelled itself before me. And so the story began (this is the first time I am going to write it sentence after sentence by the way)...

One moment in time
Two spend or to keep?
See
Four you or me?
Jive alive
Biscuits travel
Elevens'
Wait for Tea.
Nine Lives ...
Play it again ...
Seven ...
Midnight Biscuits ... I think there is enough for everyone... you and me
Feel the beautiful warm sunshine ... I think there is enough for everyone... you and me
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
One ticket please ... where's my suitcase?
... all the trees are sleeping...
Trying to stay awake???

I think it makes sense! It does to me, I hope you get it too... (she glances at the text then back at the picture - text - picture - text - picture with The Midnight Road still playing in her ears) ... "Yes I think it makes sense!!"

Well that's this week done ... enjoy and have a great rest of week whatever you may be up to, wherever you may go, but what ever you do, make sure to spend a moment of utter enjoyment to fill your soul with joy ... somewhere and somehow it can be done ... music is a good place to start!

My next exhibition at Lighthouse Poole is going to be quite different from the last ... you will find out more next week ...  so much is happening ... it's all kicking of ... join the ride ... we are going on a journey! ....

P.S. Momo, am lovin' the use of Mono!

Check out Momotempo - Awesome stuff
http://www.momotempo.co.uk/     http://soundcloud.com/momotempo

Oh!! almost forgot that quote I promised at the beginning of the blog... here's two that jumped out at me ...

"I must govern the clock, not be governed by it."

Golda Meir

"Know how to live the time that is given to you."

Dario Fo

Inspire 52 - Week 12. Adventures Into The Passport

Week 12 of year 2012, and it's the year for a new passport for me... Yes indeed it has been a whole 10 years since my last one, and I am now preparing to get a new one, but before I do lets make some art about it!

The whole notion of getting a new passport has inspired me this week and it seems to be perfect timing numbers-wise, the perfect dozen! And what better time to think about the adventures ahead as we break out of the grip of winter into glorious summertime.... I AM ALIVE!!!

It has got me thinking about the journey of the last 10 years. Where has this passport taken me? Who is that girl in that picture in 2002 and what has happened to her? And what is the next part of the journey?

I remember which Post Office photo booth I went into to get this picture taken. It was the summer in 2002 and I had come back to England  from my first year living in Grenoble and teaching English. I was in love and living with my French boyfriend at the time. I was also working in a surf jewellery company and in the picture I am wearing one of the shell necklaces.

The journey of the last ten years has taken me far from one camera flashing moment in that photo booth. Looking though my passport I have stamps for France, Morocco, Slovakia, Egypt, Tanzania, HongKong, The Philippines, Borocay Island, and Namibia. These journeys have taken me not only physically to other destinations but have formed part of who I am today. Some of the journeys were in love, others in adventure or escapism.

Passport Memories

Road trip from Grenoble to the Tatras Mountains in Slovakia. Three days journey through Germany, Switzerland, Czech Republic and Slovakia over Christmas. It was a beautiful trip to visit my best friend at her family home for Christmas. Christmas day was in Saltzberg, Weiss bier and sauerkraut in the central square. A nice moment. Driving home in the driving snow. Life would get more complicated after this.

I remember walking down the street in Metro Manila alone, the colour of my skin and my height clearly distinguishing me as a stranger. My mobile phone rang. I knew the number. I didn't answer as I didn't fancy being subject to exactly what I was escaping from... if only he knew where I was, I am sure it would have made him even angrier! It was probably one of the most surreal moments of my life so far.

Hong Kong. A flighting visit. I was on my way back from the Phillippines and I had a six hour stop over. Any normal single white female would have stayed safely in the airport and read a book, but I fancied a challenge with my new found sense of freedom. I sat in the airport for 10 minutes and weighed up the pros and cons and then decided to go for it. I checked out, got on the navette train, then got a taxi, walked a bit and then got a boat over to central Hong Kong. It was about 6pm and all the town was illuminated. Nobody knew where I was in the world. It was great. I walked around for a bit took some photos and then got the boat, taxi and train back to get my flight home. This moment changed me.

So what now?
I long to travel again. I love travelling on my own, or meeting up with someone somewhere then going onto somewhere different. I love journeys. My next big soulful journey I want to be India. But the USA has been calling me to go back there too ... I don't know... one thing is sure, I've got a lot to get done here before I can go anywhere else.

What about this week?

So as you can see from the image at the beginning of the blog I have created a new passport. My next exhibition is going to be 'Adventures into The Monochronium' and I figured I needed a passport for this as the journey is quite an official one! I have made sure I have gained all relevant and official stamps and visas necessary and am now preparing to embark on the next creative journey.

You are of course welcome too. You can come to 'Adventures into The Monochronium' without a passport if you are just visiting for the day, from 26th May onwards. I will however be there until 7th July hence official document requirements! Now I know this seems like quite a way away, but like all great voyages it's all in the preparation to make a safe and enjoyable trip!
Who is the woman in the new passport?

Well that is a good question. I think she is someone who knows more about what she wants from her next journey.

Inspire 52 - Week 11. Lighthouse and the Ballet Boyz

Ooh, that title "Lighthouse and the Ballet Boyz" sounds like a new fairy story! Maybe I'll write one! But before that here is my inspiration for this week...

If you have seen any of my work from my life before Inspire 52, you will know that I am Artist in Residence at Lighthouse, Poole's centre for the arts, and have been developing my art practice with inspiration from the performing arts. This ongoing relationship with Lighthouse has been invaluable for the development of my work and you can see through my exhibition work, live art and 2D work that performance art has a great influence on my style.

When I began my residency at the end of 2010, I started making simple observations of shows by attending a wide variety of rehearsals and performances. These sketches have transformed my style and approach to my 2D work and have greatly influenced my use of black ink, as this is all I use now when I go to see shows. I tried colour a few times, but when the lights are down or up in various different colours, it is difficult to distinguish which pencils are which; I once illustrated a pink violin when I wanted it to be orange! And thus so, one of the reasons why my affinity with monochrome became affirmed in my current work.

In 2011 I created a collection of over 20 finished illustrations in direct real-time response to performances at Lighthouse, many of these were of The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (BSO), and exhibited works at The Monochronium exhibition in October 2011. Since then I have been developing new collaborations with artists and working on my upcoming six week exhibition which will take place from May to July this year at Lighthouse, which also features as part of Dorset Art Weeks 2012 (DAW).

So where am I going with all of this? Well, what I want to get around to telling you is that this week, I have started back with my observations of performances, and what better way to start than by watching a company of very fit men dancing and flexing around the stage! Yes, Ballet Boyz, hurrah!! It was a stunning show and in a way I feel my illustration does not do it justice, but I have aimed to capture the essence of the show through movement, set and the connection between the dancers.

It is always quite tricky illustrating dance or theatre as so much of it requires actively watching the performance, whereas when watching the BSO or other musicians or concerts I can let my ears do the watching for me and translate the sounds into lines whilst keeping my eye on the pen and paper. So when I say saw The Ballet Boyz, I probably only really saw half of the show!

Having said that, the music and the set were very inspiring and you can see this resonating though the journey of this illustration, also with recognition of the urban feel of elements in the performance. I very much enjoyed their use of projected film and brick work walls and windows as their backdrop. The use of space definition though lighting I felt was also really strong and absolutely loved how this interacted with the dancers.

As I like to create a finished piece in the duration of the performance, it is often very challenging when the performances are short. However, I feel that creating the work in real-time to the performance gives it a real sense of authenticity when representing the show, the lines are the movements and sounds that have been regurgitated through my senses and nerves to guide my hand in marking the page. I really enjoy this process, it is really relaxing and very absorbing.

Sometimes this process has been very challenging when I can't really see where my pen is moving because it is so dark in the auditorium, my favourite seating is therefore under the emergency lighting! I actually really enjoy sitting in 'less popular' seating areas because it gives me a completely different perspective, than when I go and see a show when I'm not illustrating it. I often like to be quite far from the stage, and in particular I love being up in the circle when illustrating the BSO because I feel like the music lifts up into the sky and that's where I feel I am up in the circle. I also love being right at the back with all the audience in front of me. I think perhaps I feel like I can absorb the whole arena this way and it feels more spacious. This way I also have a wider vision of the performance which helps with capturing the shows 'essence' in my work.

I have enjoyed this week, it has been good to start back at shows to continue the development and absorption of the influence of performance art on my work. Although the sketches I produce are in real-time, the lasting effects of the performances I watch are still cogitating inside me ready for other artistic expression. Some of these will be undoubtedly revealed in my upcoming exhibition from the 26th May to 7th July at Lighthouse Gallery.

Now for the story ...

Once upon a time, in a land where the grass was as blue as the sea, there was a boy who lived in a lighthouse ... 

 

Hazel Evans Artist in Residence Lighthouse Poole

Inspire 52 - Week 10. Brilliance and The Flower Forest

Tuesday 6th March 2012

Wow ... I'm into double figures! Week 10 = just under 20% complete... not that i'm wishing the end of the project to arrive, indeed not .. in fact I am riving in the fact that spring is well on its way and I am determind to capture some beautiful moments this summer so I can't tell you how excited I am at the onset of spring, it's very exciting for me.

This week is pretty full on... Brilliance, the art trail exhibiton in Old Town Poole is happening this weekend and I am taking part with a new illuminated illustrative piece. The images below only show sections of the pieces I have created for the site specific installation I will be exhibitiing in collaboration with New Street Florist. I don't want to give the whole thing away just yet, hence the cropped images, but I will publish the entire images and pictures of the show as an addition to the blog at the end of the week.

Brilliance 2012 is also part of the Twin Sails Bridge, new iconic landmark in Poole, opening this weekend and I shall also be singing in the Olympic Coastal Voices Choir as part of the concert celebrations on Friday 9th March ... It's going to be a great evening ... lalalalaaaaa!

Anyway back to The Flower Forest, which is indeed inspired by flowers! But it's about the magicality of flowers and I have cretaed a concise illustrative story that takes the onlooker into an imaginary world where the flowers are massive and two sisters are on the quest for the perfect flower to give as a gift to their mother ... yes Mother's Day soon too! This piece is aimed to be simply beautiful with a sprinkling of fairy dust ... nothing too deep this week you'll be glad to know!

Click on the image to enlarge

I will post the full pictures at the end of the week as well as some pictures of the event and feedback on how it went, so until then, have a great rest of week... by the way my favorite flowers are those roses that have a beautifully strong scent that takes you back to ye ol' England. I also love forget-me-knots and all those tiny little wild flowers that just pop up every where in all sort of different places.

Ciao for now :-)

Saturday 10th March 2012

Hello and welcome back. Yesterday evening was fantastic. There was a great feeling about the whole event. The Twin Sails bridge openeing was greta and we (the Coastal Voices Olympic Choir) did a great job of our first performance.

It was wonderful watching people enjoying my illuminated illustrative installation. There were light installations in over 20 locations throughout Poole Old Town and on the quay.

My piece consists of three framed hanging illustrations, ink on tracing paper, with back lighting. The picture sequence tells a short story about two sisters who go into the Flower Forest in search of the perfect flower, and like all good fairy tales, it has a happy ending.

The Flower Forest

Into the forest they went ... they searched all day and all night for the perfect flower ... they saw roses, lillies and tulips, every flower you could ever imagine. At night the flowers came alive with pollen glowing bright. It was there in the moonlight, they found the perfect flower, a gift form the heart.

Inspire 52 - Week 9. A-Z of Pen and Mind

The pages were absent of markings as she opened the book. Pure whiteness was waiting for a burst of energy as she remained caged only by her will to make the first mark. As she began the scribblings, she recalled how the journey this week had taken her to revisit a drowned soul who told her to go back to where she came from because everyone was waiting for her to arrive. 'Don't let fear wobble you', said her friend, as she was reminded of the grains of seed she had planted. Pen in hand, she continued to scribe her way to the highest mountain and from the top she could trace her inky footsteps that illustrated the path to the top.

Just then, from behind swooped overhead the Junky Funky Flying Monkey. He grasped her with his furry hands and flew her over land and sea. They flew for two days and five nights, she no longer knew where she was or even if she could ever return to where she had come from, but she knew she was safe with his kind heart. 

They were weary when they finally landed but loaded with places and faces they had seen. As she fell asleep in the warm embrace of Junky Funky she drifted into her dreams. She was dancing at a grand ball, all eyes were on her but no-one knew who she was behind the mask. She danced the night away, turning and twisting and gliding into the music. As the clock struck nought in a bolt of light she was transported out into the rain. There was a door that she could not open. No matter how hard she tried she just couldn't open it, 'If only I had they key' she thought to herself, as she resigned herself to being drenched and cold. It was now half past too long and in the midst of the quiet silence came a moment of rest. There were no thoughts and no more dreaming. But it only lasted for a moment as she was stirred from her sleep by the sound of tearing paper. 'What are you doing Monkey!!' she shouted. 'I'm clearing up' said Junky Funky, 'All this stuff needs to go'. Whilst she had been sleeping Junky Funky had been tearing paper all night, so much so that they were taken on a tidal wave of torn paper that swept them away in a gush of howling wind. 'Oh Junky, look what you've done! Why did you need to tear it all up?!!', But it was no good, the flood got bigger and the waves of paper grew higher and stronger, they were floating downstream in an upside down umbrella, rocking, twisting and twirling into a very big whirlpool.

'Paper floods are so much worse than water floods' she thought to herself as she wondered however would she find the X that marked the spot. Had the flood taken her on a new journey? or just down the same path faster, or down the wrong path slower? She just didn't know where she was. As the flood subsided and the umbrella stopped turning quite so fast, she found herself floating alone in the umbrelly boat. Funky Junky was long gone, he had dived into the depths of the paper ocean, she knew she would never see him again. Everything was still again as she twirled in the umbrelly boat under a starry sky, 'Yes!' she said to herself, something was becoming clearer as she looked over the side and saw her zheal reflection looking back. They both smiled.