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The Binaural balance treatments were well received this weekend. We observed positive changes in most participants and are hopeful that the treatment has primed participants, opening their minds to The Other Place.
visit The Scientist’s blog to find out more about Binaural Balance Treatment.
The family book collection
The book collection in the Epstein Archive have been sitting on a few shelves in the basement of the gallery for a number of years. A few researchers have studied these books, but it is only now that I have come to catalogue them and some real discoveries have come to light. The books themselves were taken out of the house that Kathleen Garman lived in until her death in 1979. The collection covers 4 generations of the Garman and Garman-Epstein families, dating back to Kathleen’s parents in Wednesbury, books belonging to Theodore Garman and to those given to Kathleen by her grandchildren, Anne and Annabel Freud.
Amongst the collection we have a large selection of Shakespeare, a 1st edition of Bleak House by Charles Dickens and one or two James Bond books for a bit of balance. The books themselves are fascinating as they reveal the reading habits of the family. However, what is really interesting are the inscriptions in many of the books – these little fragments of writing give a unique insight into the world of the family. I would like to share just a few examples of the discoveries that I’ve made today – things are appearing all the time, far too many to write about here, but 2 inscriptions that were found this morning are particularly interesting – not in any great revelatory way, just in their insight into normal life that they give us.
From Esther Garman to her mother Kathleen, inscribed in Dante’s La Divina Comedia.
This book was particularly unusual as it contains some pressed flowers, which are very fragile. We have no may of knowing if the flowers were part of the gift from Esther to her mother, or if they were added later, but this was a really nice find and the flowers are certainly very old indeed. It is always slightly special when we find something new relating to Esther, as Bob and Roberta Smith have taken such an interest in her and her story when creating works of art inspired by the archive. The exciting thing is that there is more information on her in this archive, waiting to be discovered.
From Ralph Gustafson and ‘Ian’ to Sally Ryan, inscribed in Dostoyevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov.
This is a particuarly great inscription as you can decipher a surprising amount of information from it. Sally Ryan was a friend of Kathleen Garman and she helped create the Garman Ryan Collection that the gallery houses. A few of the books in the archive were Sally’s that may have found their way into Kathleen’s bookshelves through Sally’s will. The above inscription reads:
“To Tammy Ryan
a rummy prize winner, from the defeated
Ralph
Ian
October 22, 1938
12.35am
Silvermine, Conn.”
Ralph is Ralph Gustafson, a poet and friend of Sally Ryan, Ian is unknown and Tammy was Sally’s nickname. Also included in the picture is a feather that was inside the book. What we can gather from this is that the book was a prize given to Sally after she had beaten Ralph and Ian at rummy, a card game. The time on the inscription suggests that it was written after an evening’s cards had ended, with Sally emerging victorious with her copy of Dostoyevsky as her prize. This book has made the remarkable trip from Silvermine, Connecticut, to Walsall and all because Sally Ryan was a good at cards.
blisterpacks in close-up
been photographing olanzapine (antipsychotic medication) blisterpacks in extreme close-up. results are strange – like bomb craters some ov them; others have strange fissured landscapes that could be distant as the moon; and the languages of big pharma. these medications are cross-border – yu can read their name in multiple tongues. some ov these will be exhibited in my next round of work at tnagw. heres a few for now.
The Cage awaits
The Cage portal opened up in the artists studio space this week. The Scientists have harnessed it, and will use its unique properties to allow us to experience The Other Place and call forth the walkers of the forking paths.
This Saturday as part of the Wellbeing Festival, The Scientists will be offering Other Place Treatments, making use of The Cage’s wave blocking abilities.
Binaural Balance Treatments can realign your mind and help it to become in tune with The Other Place. A reading from the treatment will reveal the trace of your Other Place aura, the protective shield you will need to access The Other Place on your individual journey.
Eppy Daddy Battle Bot, The Life of the Mind and Esther’s Law
Hello all – there’s been frantic activity in the Epstein Archive over the past few months. I haven’t posted anything in a little while, so we have a lot of ground to cover…
Firstly, some good news. We were delighted to hear that we’ve received funding to extend the project for another 6 months, taking us to September 2011. A huge thank you to the Museums Association and the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation. This will give us the opportunity to create a lasting legacy for this unique project.
Eppy Daddy Battle Bot
The colossal Eppy Daddy Battle Bot was the product of Bob’s residency at the gallery in September. Bob began constructing Eppy Daddy in his studio in Ramsgate and worked on the painting of it in Walsall. A reimagining of Jacob Epstein as a large robot, Eppy Daddy will be displayed in the foyer of the gallery as part of The Life of the Mind exhibition, which opens on the 21st of January (more info below). Bob states that “Jacob Epstein invented the robot” – a nod to Epstein’s famous sculpture Rock Drill. Eppy Daddy tells the story of Epstein’s career and specifically the trials that he faced particularly with some of his earlier work.
I travelled down to Ramsgate to collect Bob and the sculpture and we made a little road movie. Enjoy.
The Life of the Mind
The opening of The Life of the Mind exhibition fast approaches – 21st of January 2011. For those that don’t know anything about the exhibition, which is being curated by Bob and Roberta Smith, I’ve included a little descriptive blurb below:
Inspired by Jacob Epstein’s sculpture of his then 15 year old daughter Esther in which she seems to be resisting the artist’s gaze, The Life of the Mind seeks to expose the myth of the great male artist who has special insight into the minds of his more frail female subjects. This exhibition will look at predominantly female artists who give form to the interior world. Each artist resists easy interpretation and in Bob’s words, “sticks a sharp pair of scissors into the soft underbelly of male hegemony.”
We have some really amazing artists confirmed already for the show, Louise Bourgeois, Helen Chadwick and Sarah Lucas to name but a few.
Esther’s Law
From the ideas surrounding Esther Garman that Bob has been developing for much of the residency, Esther’s Law has been born. Esther’s Law is Bob’s vision of truly proportional system of government, where every part of society is fairly represented in parliament, what Bob has referred to as ‘real proportional representation.’ There is much more to follow on this one, so get behind Esther’s Law!
Show us something that is certainly not art!
Throughout The Cover of a Book is the Beginning of a Journey we’ll be asking you to help us activate some of the artworks contained in the books on display.
Cesare Pietroiusti and Ralf Andtbacka’s book invites us to ‘ask a sample of 100 people to show you something that is certainly not art’.
Send us your images of the things you think are certainly not art to jonescheryl@walsall.gov.uk and we’ll add them to our flickr stream.
Here’s one to start you off…
‘ART GALLERY CLOSED’ SIGN IS ARTIST’S NEW WORK FOR CAMPAIGN
A new work by British artist, Bob and Roberta Smith created specially for the campaign supported by over 100 leading British artists against the government’s proposed funding cuts of the arts is released today.
The work shows a sign on an art gallery door with the following text:
ART GALLERY CLOSED
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
ADMISSION £17.50
Artist Patrick Brill, better known as Bob and Roberta Smith, currently lives and works in London. He is known for artwork that incorporates text – often commenting on art, politics, or popular culture — in his unique, brightly colored lettering style on banners and discarded boards of wood. He became a Tate Trustee in 2009.
Two challenging new works by artist Mark Titchner are also unveiled today across two UK cities as part of the campaign. The Turner Prize nominated artist’s work uses direct language in strong political graphic forms. His lead artwork demands ‘DON’T LET THEM DESTROY ANOTHER BRITISH INDUSTRY!’ tying the debate on cuts to the arts to other vital large-scale industries currently and previously under threat. The striking graphic works will be visible on a quarter of all available official city poster sites across Birmingham from 12 October to 26 October courtesy of Eastside Projects, an artist-run public gallery in the centre of Birmingham. Titchner has purposefully pitched the phrase in a city where cuts to major industries over the past decade have had dramatic impact.
25,000 flyers baring the slogan will also be handed out at Frieze Art Fair in Regents Park this week alongside two billboards featuring Titchner’s ‘Don’t Let Them Destroy’ image and his second work, which, with painful honesty, pleads ‘Cut Us, Don’t Kill Us.’ This will also be placed on the 6×3m billboard on the front façade of Eastside Projects. The artist is also developing a wishing machine to protect the arts organisation for the foreseeable future and which will also be installed on the public façade.
Each week the work of a different artist, created in response to the campaign, is being released. The campaign was launched 10 September with a new video by David Shrigley and a campaign poster by Jeremy Deller, Scott King and William Morris. This was followed by new works by Mark Wallinger, Yinka Shonibare and Cornelia Parker.
Supporters of the artists’ campaign are being asked to sign a petition which will be sent to the Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt. It points out that it has taken 50 years to create a vibrant arts culture in Britain that is the envy of the world and appeals to the government not to slash arts funding and risk destroying this long-term achievement and the social and economic benefits it brings to all.
The artists acknowledge that reasonable cuts and efficiencies are necessary but
they fear that the 25% cuts being proposed will destroy much of what has been achieved and will have a particularly damaging impact on national and regional museums and their collections.
The campaign is being organised by the London branch of a national consortium of over 2,000 arts organisations and artists dedicated to working together and finding new ways to support the arts in the UK.
Full petition details on:
MARK TITCHNER CREATES ARTWORKS FOR CAMPAIGN AGAINST CUTS
Two challenging new works by artist Mark Titchner are unveiled today across two UK cities as part of the campaign supported by over 100 leading British artists against the government’s proposed funding cuts of the arts.
The Turner Prize nominated artist’s work presents two hard hitting statements, using direct language in strong political graphic forms. His lead artwork demands ‘DON’T LET THEM DESTROY ANOTHER BRITISH INDUSTRY!’ tying the debate on cuts to the arts to other vital large-scale industries currently and previously under threat. The striking graphic works will be visible on a quarter of all available official city poster sites across Birmingham from 12 October to 26 October courtesy of Eastside Projects, an artist-run public gallery in the centre of Birmingham. Titchner has purposefully pitched the phrase in a city where cuts to major industries over the past decade have had dramatic impact.
25,000 flyers baring the slogan will also be handed out at Frieze Art Fair in Regents Park this week alongside two billboards featuring Titchner’s ‘Don’t Let Them Destroy’ image and his second work, which, with painful honesty, pleads ‘Cut Us, Don’t Kill Us.’ Within the billboard image the artworks’ clear request is backed by a more ambiguous landscape of civic sculpture, doctored language and geometric shapes, which draws on the less commonly used practice of magic. Titchner’s work argues a position whilst using a magic symbol designed to protect the arts through the will of the people.
Titchner’s ‘Cut us, Don’t Kill Us’ is also placed on the 6×3m billboard on the front façade of Eastside Projects. The artist is also developing a wishing machine to protect the arts organisation for the foreseeable future and which will also be installed on the public façade.
Luton born and London based Mark Titchner has become well known for work that explores the tensions between the different belief systems that inform society, be they religious, scientific or political. His language based works are often combined with other mediums such as painting, sculpture, photography and film. He was a Turner prize nominee in 2006 and he will be part of the Midlands based ‘Home of Metal’ exhibitions in 2011.
Each week the work of a different artist, created in response to the campaign, will be released. The campaign was launched 10 September with a new video by David Shrigley and a campaign poster by Jeremy Deller, Scott King and William Morris. This was followed by new works by Mark Wallinger, Yinka Shonibare and Cornelia Parker.
Supporters of the artists’ campaign are being asked to sign a petition which will be sent to the Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt. It points out that it has taken 50 years to create a vibrant arts culture in Britain that is the envy of the world and appeals to the government not to slash arts funding and risk destroying this long-term achievement and the social and economic benefits it brings to all.
The artists acknowledge that reasonable cuts and efficiencies are necessary but
they fear that the 25% cuts being proposed will destroy much of what has been achieved and will have a particularly damaging impact on national and regional museums and their collections.
The campaign is being organised by the London branch of a national consortium of over 2,000 arts organisations and artists dedicated to working together and finding new ways to support the arts in the UK. Eastside Projects is part of the West Midlands Turning Point group and the Eastside Contemporary Arts consortium leading a new generation of arts organisations in the city of Birmingham.
Full petition details on:
the languages ov pillbox
all taken from ads
the languages ov pillbox
handpainted
discrete
exquisite
all-purpose
combines medication and first aid
zip pocket
avoid bulky packets
highest quality
ornate and eye-catching
stylish
gold plated
attractive, pleasing colours
discrete
yr message or logo on
ezy-dose
(note the spelling!)
diamond cut
over fancy slim
heart-shaped fancy
secure latching
raised ridge lid
handy yet hidden
marble effect
removable divider
money back
yr medication management
all the languages ov pillbox
Comment > Archive for October, 2010