Perthshire Open Studios

Perthshire Open Studios

Perthshire Open Studios, or POS as they are known as, are set in some of the most fantastic scenic locations in Scotland.
It is worth visiting them just for the drive there! Everything from a castle and stately home to a portakabin and converted garage.
And the scenery is breathtaking.

Three of us from Forth Valley Open Studios - Avril Nicol, Jacqueline Marr and myself- visited a number.

(caption) Jacqueline Marr outside the Tempest studio/gallery in Aberfeldy holding up a screenprint by Ryan Hannigan.

Diary of an artist writer online | Project blogs | Artists talking | a-n

Diary of an artist writer online | Project blogs | Artists talking | a-n

Perthshire Open Studios

Ipad drawing


Visited David Murton, chair of Perthshire Open Studios in Crook of Devon. He has a mini business going at home with his garage converted into a studio , garden shed into a framing workshop and his house into a gallery!
Tomorrow we do a tour of more studios.

Roy Petrie, former colleagues on The Herald, ( graphic artist) had his exhibition opening at Scion House, Stirling University on Saturday- big turn out of journalists and ex journalists from The Herald. It was more like our annual reunion.

Am busy going through major de-clutterirng of studio. Still experimenting with Ipad finding out exactly the limits of the software.

Ann Shaw Blog: Jupiter Artland

Ann Shaw Blog: Jupiter Artland

Jupiter Artland

Cornelia Parker, '"Landscape with Gun and Tree"', cast iron and corten steel, 14 August 2010. This piece by Cornelia Parker is based on Gainsborough's "Mr and Mrs Andrews" of a couple posed under a tree with Mr Andrews carrying the gun. Here the gun has been left leaning against a tree, possibly loaded. Photo: Ann Shaw.


It's not often I rave about work I see these days but I was gobsmacked at the quality and quantity of sculpture in Jupiter Artland the private sculpture park near Edinburgh opened last year.

These are some of the sculptors: Anish Kapoor, Ian Hamilton Finlay, Antony Gormley, Andy Goldsworthy, Mac Quinn, Cornelia Parker and Charles Jencks.

Well worth a visit. Or Google Jupiter Artland.
Diary of an artist writer online | Project blogs | Artists talking | a-n

Diary of an artist writer online | Project blogs | Artists talking | a-n

Diary of an artist writer online | Project blogs | Artists talking | a-n
This is the first time I have used the sharing link from AN - and it seems to work! just a short par about Francis Alys - an artist new to me whose exhibition at Tate Modern I have just seen - first time I have seen work that was truly "different".

Kirkcudbright riding of the marches

Just spent a few days in Kirkcudbright and stumbled across this ancient tradition of Riding of the Marches where 93 riders and horses and ponies ride the boundaries of the Royal Burgh of Kirkcudbright, a practise started in July 1485, and carried out every year since.

They make frequent stops at several pubs and hotels and they are given free drinks.

Kirkcudbright- Jessie King's former studio

This weekend is the Kirkcudbright Art and Crafts Trail .

I have just stayed in Greengate, former home of Jessie King, one of the most famous of the "Glasgow Girls" artists.

The new owners Pauline and Colin Saul are also artists and founder members of the Art and Crafts trail and they let me film inside their studio.

Melodala software

Just downloaded Melodala software to my Ipad. It makes a very quick easy to use interactive drawing tool- designed by guys in the Tate Modern and used in their current inter-active exhibition.

The Gurkhars in Scotland

The Gurkhars were performing at the Alva Highland Games despite the rain, noise from the fairground and an audience that were largely unattentive.

In the circumstances they did very well.

Forth Valley Open Studios - June

Well, I guess it's finally over and we are all chilling out and enjoying some well earned down-time.

But its been a fantastic success! One of the features of the first ever Forth Valley Open Studios were the unusual locations that some artists chose to show-case their work- portakabin, church, marquee, pub- partly because their own studios couldn't cope with an influx of visitors.


David Tapner hired the upstairs room in the Westerton pub, Bridge of Allan and had between 280-300 visitors ! Oh yes and he sold overe 20 paintings too.



Diana Hands from Stirling had a marquee in her garden and this proved popular too.

I had a stready stream of visitors - 82 in all and to be honest I couldn't have coped with hundreds coming through the house especially as I had a sound installation of wolves.

Neighbours complained so I only switched it on when visitors arrived.

Cathy Peattie at Delta Studios

Cathy Peattie, MSP, with Craig McKechnie, director of Delta Studios, Ann Shaw , secretary Forth Valley Open Studios and Lys Hansen, chair of Forth Valley Open Studios at exhibition launch.

(Photograph - Dave Hunt)

Cathy Peattie, the "singing politician" opens our exhibition

Cathy Peattie , MSP, ( bold pattern) with members of the Forth Valley Open Studios committee.


Lys Hansen, chair of Forth Valley Open Studios, with Avril Nicol, Project Co-ordinator
Well it's done!
We have just had the official opening of the first ever Forth Valley Open Studios "taster exhibition" with over 100 participating artists less than six months since we had the idea....and all without any official grant.

This is a totally artist-led initiative, something that the "singing MSP" Cathy Peattie made mention of in her introduction .
Then she sang "Bread and Roses" - to great acclaim.

But we couldn't have done it without a lot of support especially from Craig McKechnie at Delta Studios and Avril Nicol, who acted as our Volunteer Coordinator on the project and, of course, endless support from Gill and Dave Hunt of Perthshire Open Studios on whom we modelled the whole project even using their designer, Rosy Naylor from Edinburgh.

Cathy Peattie singing


(Video -Ann Shaw, photographs - Karen Howard)

Forth Valley Open Studios - June

Countdown to launch on Friday. Everything going to plan. Cathy Peattie, MSP, will sing for us to officially launch Forth Valley Open Studios- apaprently she has an amazing voice.

It is appropriate that Cathy will do the opening because her background is in the voluntary sector where she has played a major role in the community.
Check her out at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/msp/membersPages/cathy_peattie/

Cathy Peattie, MSP- gallery opening

Life has been so hectic recently that have not had time to update my blog.
Cathy Peattie, MSP for Grangemouth, has agreed to open the launch exhibition for Forth Valley Open Studios on June 4th in Delta Studios.

We regard this as something of a coup - especially as she has agreed to sing at the event too!

Screenprinting- Glasgow Print Studio

Screenprint right. Original image (left) created on iPhone and printed out as a photograph.


Where is the delete button? I have just completed a weekend screen printing course at Glasgow Print Studio and on more than one occasion I found myself automatically looking for the delete button - I work digitally - so it was something of a novel experience to be dabbling in this ancient technology invented thousands of years ago by the Chinese.


Yes I love screen prints but I found myself asking: why can't this be done digitally? and of course to a certain extent it can. The hand made print is superior to the machine made one but ... I remain unconvinced that it is for me.

What finally convinced me was that towards the end of the two day course I was about to print my fourth colour and accidentally picked up a squeegee left by previous student who
asked to take my place in the queue ("I will be very quick" he promised but of course he wasn't -).
The result? You've guessed - he had red paint on his squeegee, which turned my yellow into a burnt orange..
And there was no going back.
If only there had been a delete button…

Short list - medical book award

Carole Reeves and Ann Shaw taken in Carole's office at the Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of medicine, UCL


Well, we didn't win an award for the "Children of Craig-y-nos" but, along with four other runners-up, we received a certificate
commending us "for excellence in communicating medical and health information in a book for the lay reader".

The prize was awarded to "Medic: saving lives - from Dunkirk to Afghanistan by John Nichol and tony Rennell - a very worthy winner.

The Open Book Awards are given every year by the Medical Journalists Association.

Children of Craig-y-nos on shortlist - book award

“ A powerful story told in words and pictures assembled from first-hand accounts…reveals shocking details of children’s lives in a Welsh TB hospital.”

That’s what the judges say about “Children of Craig-y-nos”.

Well, I guess I never thought of it in that light. To me who spent four years in Craig-y-nos as a child it seemed normal. I didn’t know anything else.

It is only now with a distance of more than 50 years I realise in writing this book, along with Carole Reeves, that it was far from normal.

There are five books short-listed for the Open Book Award and the winner will be announced on Tuesday evening at a special presentation to be held at the Wellcome Foundation.

The others on the shortlist ( General readership, category) include “Manufacturing Depression, the secret history of a modern disease” by Gary Greenberg, “An Infinity of things: how Sir Henry Wellcome collected the world” by Frances Larson and “Medic: saving lives – from Dunkirk to Afghanistan” by John Nichol and Tony Rennell.

So you see the field is very strong…the miracle is that we have even got as far as the short-list!

I will be travelling by train from Scotland to London tomorrow…

Forth Valley Open Studios - June

iPhone drawing

Great spread in local paper - Wee Country News of our Forth Valley Open Studios.


This is a weekly freesheet and it updates its site tomorrow so will put a link in then.

Music pets - way of the future?

Are music pets that you train to go and fetch you favourite music the way forward? check out this new app.reviewed in Wired magazine.

http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2010/04/virtual-worlds-real-money-can-social-games-solve-musics-woes?

It says:
"The goal of Music Pets is to entertain a virtual pet by training it to like the music you like, then using points to send the pet out to find more music to add to your collection. It sounds silly, but this cartoon-ish virtual world includes every element of the real-world music experience: getting recommendations, deciding whether you like songs, collecting music, and going over to your friends’ “houses” to play songs from your collection, which, as with just about everything else, requires that you expend points."

Read More http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2010/04/virtual-worlds-real-money-can-social-games-solve-musics-woes?#ixzz0kymgA5bI

Forth Valley Open Studios - June

Phew!...our brochure is almost ready for the printers. It has been a steep leaning curve! What started as an idea between a group of friends at Christmas time has snowballed into a major arts event for the Forth Valley - by the way some folk don't know where that it . We are between Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Now we are going to start on the publicity and promotion for it....watch this space.

Book award- short list

I have just heard that our book "TheChildren of Craig-y-nos" which I co-authored with Dr Carole Reeves, has been shortlisted for the annual medical journalists book awards.

Winner to be announced at a special reception in London on April 27th.

Stirling arts festival

How about this for a piece fo serendipity- our first Forth Valley Open Studios project coincides with the first joint Stirling /Galway Arts Festival in June.

Watch this space.

World TB Day -"The Children of Craig-y-nos"

My co-author Dr Carole Reeves ( Outreach Historian with the Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine UCL), will be talking this afternoon on the search for the lost children of Craig-y-nos as part of UCL seminar to commemorate World TB Day.

Forth Valley Open Studios - June

We visited our designer in Edinburgh on Monday and handed over all our information for the Forth Valley Open Studios brochure- on two digital sticks! Once upon a time...well a year or maybe two years ago this would have involved huge folders and required a bulky briefcase , even a suitcase, to transport all the information.
Today the stick slips into my handbag next to my iPhone...such is the changing work environment.

We have all been astonished at the response - nearly a 100 entries, thats well over 100 artists.

Scion House exhibition

"Joy" iPhone art

It is always a bit sad to take an exhibition down though this one has been up for over five weeks. Feedback has been good though little sold. Part of the problem is that people are reluctant to pay money for something they see that has been through a computer even though you are using the same thinking process as if you were doing it physically.

The question is: what to do with the work? it is currently stored in the spare bedroom....maybe ought to sell it on E-bay? only joking.

Scion House exhibition

Just heard my Iphoto pix are selling at the exhibition but have not got the time to promote my work there because of all my work with Forth Valley Open Studios.

Fortunately I have had good coverage in the local newspapers because of the novelty of work drawn on an Iphone!

These are some photos taken at the private viewing by Karen Howard
Karen Howard with some of my iPhotos

Exhibition opening- Scion House

"Strength" created on iPhone


Delighted to see over 40 people turn up last Sunday afternoon to my exhibition opening at Scion House, Stirling University Innovation Park.

Many were intrigued with the iPhone pix but sales were nil.

The following conversation was overheard:
"I like the work and I would buy it if it was the original."
"But the original is in the computer."

So were does this leave digital artists?

Art Goes mobile- Scion House

Frank Sullivan, PR for Stirling University's Innovation Park, has just issued the following press release about my upcoming exhibition.



" The first art exhibition in the UK to feature works created on a mobile phone will staged at Stirling University Innovation Park.

The 21st century medium has been used by digital artist and writer Ann Shaw as a means of expressing her artistic vision.

A former journalist and graduate of the Glasgow School of Art Ann downloaded software to her iPhone that allowed her to develop her innovative style of art.


( Caption: "Dancer" created on IPhone "Brushes" app on train to Edinburgh)

A self confessed computer buff she has embraced the technology of the cyber world in the pursuit of art.

Ann, who spent more than 20 years as a staff writer for The Herald in Glasgow, has more that 60 short films on Youtube and can be found on Face Book and Twitter.

She is also a ‘blogger’ with her online Diary of Artist only a click away at www.annshaw.net.

Her first solo exhibition entitled The Journey will run at Scion House on Stirling University Innovation Park from February 8 till March 14.

It will include 30 of her colourful iPhone creations one of which ‘The Dancer’ was produced in four minutes as she travelled on the train to Edinburgh!



Ann has firm views on the perception and accessibility of art: “Art is so elitist and it shouldn’t be. What I like about this technology is that it frees it up and breaks down the barriers because it’s accessible, it’s cheap and it’s fun. You don’t have to be in a studio. It’s art on the go.”

“I’m delighted to be staging my first solo exhibition in such an innovative setting and being part of a project that supports local artists.”

The Journey Exhibition is part of an initiative called Art on the Park introduced to encourage local artists, giving them an opportunity to showcase their work.

The highly successful project was established four years ago as part of the Innovation Park’s outreach to the local community.

Lynn Blaikie the Innovation Park’s Operations and Business Development Manager, said:”Art and Innovation have gone hand in hand from time immemorial. It’s very fitting therefore that Ann’s innovative creative style using the most modern mobile communication technology should be staged here on the Innovation Park. I hope it will attract great interest, not only because it’s the first exhibition of its kind, but because it showcases a new art form that is accessible to everyone.”

Iphone and Ipad

Walking in the Scottish Highlands yesterday I decided to find out how Andy Murray had got on in the Australian Open.
So I googled it on my Iphone .

Next week I have an exhibition opening in Scion House, part of Stirling University's Innovation Park and a big chunk of the exhibition has been created on my ...Iphone.

It goes without saying I can't wait to get my hands on the Ipad.

Forth Valley Open Studios - June

A date has been set for the Forth Valley Open Studios - 12- 20th June.

This follows Saturday's meeting in Stirling where we formally constituted ourselves and formed a committee.

Tremendous enthusiasm from everyone concerned with the project.

Changing world of work- Twitter

Had yet another example this morning of how fast the world of work is changing.
I rang a printer in Oxford for a quote ( I am in Scotland) and I was asked for the web-site for Forth Valley Open Studios. Explained it was under constuction because we had only just registered the domain name and there was a silence the other end.
Then she said:
"Oh thats OK I have found you on Twitter."

Photos from public meeting - Forth Valley Open Studios

Angela Beardsley chairs the public meeting in Alloa for the Forth Valley Open Studios




Chair of Perthshsire Open Studios, David Murton ( with beard) with members of the audience.

(Photos courtesy of Karen Howerd)

Forth Valley Open Studios-Alloa public meeting

We held a public meeting in Alloa to "test the water" to see if there was any public interest in holding a Forth Valley Open Studios 2010- and we were delighted to find over 50 turned up!

Not bad for a mid-week January night in central Scotland. A lot of this was due to the publicity we had in the local papers, support of Kathleen ONeill the Cultural Planner for Alloa who arranged for us through Clacks Council to have a fantastic poster designed, refreshments and a room for the event - the temporary "Make Room" former shop premises acting as a very lively arts venue in the centre of Alloa.

The whole event was chaired by Angela Beardsley who did a fantastic job too. Oh yes and there was an army of unsung volunteers who worked their socks off to get everything ready for the night.

One thing is certain: artists are want to see a project like Open Studios in this area.

Watch this space.

Forth Valley Open Studios - poster

Richard Feehan of Clacks Council design team has produced a poster for us at lighting speed, very glossy A3 also one for the web which I have circulated to all 41 artists who have wish to participate in forthcoming event.

Whole project gathering momentum.

Forth Valley Open Studios

My garden today covered under a blanket of snow


Did you know that most people have never an artist and certainly never visited one in her/his studio?

this was pointed out to me last night when I attended networking event with several friends involved in setting up Forth Valley Open Studios in the Dunbalne Hydro.

It was organised by VisitScotland.com to promote tourism in the area.

Everyone we mentioned our project to was really enthusiastic because it ticked all the right boxes i.e. it offered people a new experience, it involved visiting beautiful parts of the Scottish countryside , it had something there for children too and it was free!

I guess we are on to a winner...

So far 34 artists in the Forth Valley have expressed an interest in participating in the project and we have anaother public meeting planned for January 21st in Alloa- weather permitting.

NEA Arts report

Are we moving from passive consumption to active creation? if one is optimistic that is one possible interpretation of the American study NEA report
(http://www.newmusicbox.org/article.nmbx?id=6221)
which shows a national decline in all arts and sports where there is passive consumption.

There's another scenario: would people rather consume arts and sport via digital media in the comfort of their own homes rather than sit with strangers in some expensive location...just a thought?

Celebrations for centenary of Macintosh building - people gathering for the projections on three sides of the building


Professor Roger Wilson, Head of Fine Art, Glasgow School of Art in his studio

View from the staircase

The Loggia, better known as "the hen run".

Attended the centenary celebrations of the Macintosh building yesterday. Place heaving with celebrities, politicians, and the movers and shakers from the international art world including Tony Jones , former Head of GSA and now with The School of the Art Insitute, Chicago.


Met the new Head of Fine Art, Professor Roger Wilson in his studio where he was painting and chatting to visitors ( nice touch!). He comes to Glasgow from Chelsea College of Art and Design.

I graduated in 2001 and it was good to be back in the Macintosh building. It reminded me again that the building is a "feast for the eyes", not surprising since Charles Rennie Macintosh, a part-time student, knew what art students wanted.

Amateurs versus professional artists

Iphone art: "dancing"


That hoary old chestnut "amateur versus professional artists" has reared its head again as the debate over Open Studios begins.

Pointed out to a professional artist friend that participants will have to pay only to be told:"they can afford it because they have jobs and paint part-time".
Oh dear!.... why can't everyone accept that there different strands of art and many different kinds of art and artists.


Let the public decide!

Forth Valley Artist Open Studios

I am still reeling from the shock of discovering at yesterday's meeting of Forth Valley Artists that no data base exists of artists in the area! I would have thought it would have been the first job of any Visual Arts Officer to make certain that he/she had an up-to-date list of all artists.

This accounts for the poor response to our first meeting - 10 plus our two guest speakers. I had assumed ( wrongly as it turned out) that the Changing Room gallery, a local funded gallery by the council, had a list. It was only discovered half way through the meeting that most of the people attending had not received an email from the Changing Room informing them of the meeting.


Later discovered a "glitsch". Sure enough the new Visual Arts Officer confirmed that such a list does not exist. Unless artists have approached them for grants or signed their Visitors Book then they have no record of their existence.

Now Perthshire artists have a very active art scene . They have a flourishing Visual Arts Forum which provided a data base for the Perthshire Open Studios to work from.

We have to start from scratch.....

e-Christmas card

Take time out from writing Christmas cards and view this e-card sent out by Glasgow School of Art.
Is this the way forward?

This card is colourful, lively, interactive and what's more environmentally sound , oh yes and its free!

er....if the link doesn't work try this: www.gsa.ac.uk/seasonsgreetings

"Dancer"drawn on my Iphone while travelling into Edinburgh by train.
Who says you need a studio now to create work?


Have put posters out for the open meeting for Forth Valley Open Studios. Response so far is good. Meeting fixed for Saturday December 12 in the Changing Room gallery's eduation room- courtesy of Arts Officer Emma Hamilton, Stirling.

The link economy- and artists

"Fish" created on my Iphone

In this new online world of the linked economy- OK I don't really understand it either but the world is shifting under our feet even though we may be standing still-I am not certain where artists fit in.

What sort of work do we make and how do we sell it? some pointers to the future come in today's Guardian"Money" section Tot Taylor , director of the Riflemaker gallery makes some predictions:

"It will be about formats and mediums ( new and old), not so much painting, sculpture and photography but more textiles and tapestries, digital art, gardening art, Eco at, all things cosmic, woodcuts and even wax."

Oh yes, and "outsider art".

Collapse of newspapers

I used to work on newspapers and I still love the feel of them and read them avidly. So it was with great sadness I heard yesterday that two of my favourite supplements Guardian IT and Observer Business and Media are about to be pulled. Yes, another sign of the rapidly changing world we live in.

Cafe Flicker, open cinema Glasgow

If you are interested in making films, especially low budget ones on a shoestring, then a visit to Cafe Flicker, the monthly open cinema in Glasgow is a must. It's run by Glasgow Media Access Centre and I have been a member for years , first introduced to it while a student at Glasgow School of Art.

They have moved into their smart new building on the 5th floor of 103 Trongate.

The standard has shot up - something we attribute to the ease of new digital technology and falling price of decent camcorders. Eleven films were shown on Wednesday night and they ranged from a documentary on Romanian gypsies singing, never seen footage of an interview with George Harrison, ( yes of the Beatles!) to a community documentary on the Citizens community theatre in the Gorbals.

Oh yes we had experimental films too and the funniest was one involving a frog...

Iphone art - David Hockney

My first attempts with "Brushes" the Iphone drawing app.

I was interested to read in last Sunday's Observer profile in the colour magazine on David Hockney , that he uses the Iphone app "Brushes".


He has always been known to be a fan of new technologies - remember his fax art?- so it was inevitable that he would "discover" the Iphone as a painting tool.

What's more he's 72 years of age.




Well, I have just loaded this app on to my Iphone .
Here's some tentative results...

Buena Vista Social Club- Glasgow

Saw the film Buena Vista Social in New York so was curious to see this bunch of musicians live last night.
I was not disappointed. They played to a packed audience in Glasgow's Royal concert hall and they had them on their feet clapping, singing and dancing.

Forth Valley Open Studios

Have started to sound out people who may be interested in opening their studios to the public next year - Perthshire and Fife already run very successful Open Studio weekends.
Among the first to express an interest is Polish textile artist Ewa Kuniczak . Her website feltheadtotoe is worth checking out.

It is just one example of the vast amount of talent lurking in the Scottish hills around here.

Screenprinting - The Big Draw

My first screenprint : "Untitled"

Thanks to the national arts project "The Big Draw" which aims to get everyone drawing I got a chance to try my hand at screen printing in a workshop held at The Tolbooth, Stirling .

Our tutor, Andrew Mackenzie managed in three hours to give us an intensive introduction to the process which ended up with us all walking away with several screen prints each! quite an achievement!

We used the current exhibition of Aladsair Gray's prints as source material. After an introduction and brief history of screen printing we were taken to the exhibition and given quarter of an hour to draw an image from which we would later develope a stencil for screen printing.

I must admit that I entered the workshop feeling a bit sceptical: how on earth could be do a screen print from scratch in such a short time? Andrew proved me wrong. I m now an enthusiast of screen printing and want to find out more.

Glasgow Print Studio

Have started to prepare work for my exhibition next February and the first piece of work I want to complete is some digital prints on Japanese paper.

Well, I went into Glasgow Print studio to discuss whether it would be possible to do this on their new printer.

"No way!" says the director standing in the middle of his state-of-the-art new printing premises.
"That machine cost us £6,000".

OK he has a point so its back home to fiddle with my own printer and try to work out why some prints are coming out so heavily inked as to be unusable.

Well, I guess it is just another hurdle that those of us working with new media face weekly if not daily. Unlike making traditional art we can't ring up a friend or seek out expert advice on how to solve these problems, because nobody has ever done it before. It is a case that we all have to work it out as we go along.

Writing- fluid process

I was interested to hear on Radio 4 this morning Jeffrey Archer discuss his book "Cain and Abel" which he has re-written after 30 years. A Professor of English literature was asked to comment and he said that in future with the introduction of electronic books we are going to be seeing a lot more of this taking place.

He said:"Writing will become a much more fluid process with books changing all the time."

Well, this is what I am discovering now for more information keeps coming in which could so easily be incorporated into "The Children of Craig-y-nos" if it was an e-book instead of a printed book.

But the fact is though that we are still of a generation that likes to hold a book in our hands.

I suspect the youngsters of today will have no such inhibitions and will take to screen reading of books like the proverbial ducks to water...

Transmission gallery

Had a look at the new exhibition in the Transmission gallery, Glasgow. Almost didn't go in because I glanced through the window and saw what appeared to be a room full of empty canvases.

Glad I did. It shows the work of Berlin based artist Klaus Weber who is on a mission to highlight the problems of disappearing bees due to global changes. The canvases were splattered with bee excrement.

Meanwhile I am getting into a bit of a panic over my forthcoming exhibition - I hadn't realised that the space I had been allocated covered two floors! maybe I ought to find someone to share with.