Cath Rive & Sonia Jarema - Chapter 4

Cath Rive - After Volume

I'm very happy to announce another instalment of the Rive and Jarema project. It's always a delight to see their continuing duel/duet that perpetuates the spirit of Patternotion. They set off on this collaboration in March 2013 when Sonia Jarema's poem inspired Cath Rive's image.

On this occasion Cath Rive has sidestepped my logical brain and dropped back to Sonia Jarema's poem, Volume, from Chapter 2. Check out the earlier exchanges in their designated page to the right or follow this link.

In response Sonia has written/adapted this poem -


Outside in

Bare branches show the trees

are reaching up and out. 

My lungs overlay them with bronchioles

terminal branching into alveoli 

out of reach a thought itches irritatingly.

There is some truth here I am missing.


AL.

Chapter 3 - Cath Rive & Sonia Jarema

Artist and Poet are back once again with their fascinating dialogue between image and word.
Cath Rive gives us her image 'After Duschamp' and in response Sonia Jarema lays before us her poem 'Inside'.
If you haven't dipped into this project before then visit their dedicated page on the right.
The Patternotion book encouraged us all to document or embark upon systems for living and working. Rive and Jarema's system lives beyond the book itself.
Here is Chapter 3.




Cath Rive - After Duschamp

Inside
by Sonia Jarema

 

I thought I had eaten into the dark with words

but they have rearranged themselves around it.

 

Sunk in my soul is a resting place

past which I  spiral up and down.

 

If I stopped moving,

let the dark compress me,

who knows what I could become.

Patternotion : The Film

Hot on the heels of Books For Free NW5's sad demise comes the news that it has been preserved forever by Peter S Smith. As well as being the backbone of the Patternotion book Peter films as we go along on our adventures. I would like to say we've got wise to his 'tactics' and guerrilla style of information gathering but when your guard is lowered some of the most interesting stories are revealed it seems.

Thank you Peter for working so hard to bring this social document to eyes of the world. Of course a thank you too to the players here, Steve and Victoria Cohen, Jacquelyn Guderley and friends, Mike and Gail Watts, Harvey Wells, Bill and Gina Mudge (with Harriet in arms), George and Sally Low, Ella Penn, Natalie Low, Daniel Leek, Melanie Ezra, Effra Aye-Maung-Hider, Jessamy Low, Geraint Evans, Katie Stone, Tanya Kreisky and Dawes Gray.

As you can see it was a long day...a long walk.....

AL.

Jacquelyn Guderley - NW5 inspiration

Jacquelyn Guderley

In the last few weeks we have been feeling a little flat here at Patternotion HQ. The sad news regarding the demise of Books For Free NW5 rocked us all. They say all good things come to an end but we all hoped that this wasn't going to be case. In fact, under the leadership of  Jacquelyn Guderley, our beloved Athena of NW5, we believed that the shop was impregnable. and had many years of life left in it. Jacquelyn's vision was that the shop would be a hub for the Arts and this bolstered our flagging esprit de corps on many an occasion.

From all of us here at Patternotion we salute you. Thank you for opportunity you gave us, the chance to launch our book and fuelling the spirit of our adventures.

AL.



Chapter 2 - Sonia Jarema & Cath Rive

The second instalment from Cath Rive and Sonia Jarema has just arrived at Pattenotion HQ.

Earlier in this blog you will have read about their collaboration between image and word.

Cath being the visual artist and Sonia the poet.

So here's the second part of their conversation below.
This time the image first and then the poem........
 

 

by Cath Rive

 

Volume
by Sonia Jarema

Heels lift up

walking caught as a dance;

her dress as loud as her daughter’s coat.

The volume’s turned down, 

on the older couple, yards behind.

They’ve hidden their hands from each other.

The woman’s head is tilted back

as though filling her lungs deep 

for her yearning song.

 

 

If you would like to view the whole conversation in its entirety then visit our designated page (right).

 

AL.

Mike Watts & Sue LeCren - Books For Free

Sue LeCren and Mike Watts
with Patternotion
 

Two for the price of one!

Both the books and the lovers of art, culture and  'Duke Special' that are holding them here.

A big welcome to the fold for New Zealand's 'Sue the Librarian' and hope you enjoy Patternotion. Don't let your food get cold either, looks delicious.
Keep in touch with Sue on Twitter at @LiSu and as she says herself, 

"I'm an escape artist for a living... I live to escape... well OK, I'm a librarian. Same thing"

Catch her if you can!

 If any of you don't know the distinguished gentleman pictured here then let me introduce you to Mike Watts, who is both a Stem Cell aficionado at UCH and photographer on London's live music circuit. As well as bumping into one another in live music venues he recently accompanied us on all 10 miles of our Patternotion Blue Plaque walk across North London.

It seems he has got itchy feet once again and has travelled a little further than those 10 miles of Patternotion. Have a good time in New Zealand and keep spreading the Books For Free message!

Mike Watts is @DrFizzy if you want to keep abreast of his adventures in your Twitter walking boots.

AL.

Sonia Jarema & Cath Rive - Poem Painting Conversations

There is a mysterious page at the end of the first chapter in the Patternotion book. On Page 60 we find no image or poem just a declaration for the ahead.
This is what it says -

 

Collaboration

I hate to make resolutions but I didn’t want the year to
start running away without having made any plans so I asked my artist friend, Cath, if we could collaborate and this is what she said,

 

"Great idea
You give me a poem
I’ll give you a painting
I’ll give you the painting from the poem
You give me the poem from the painting
We can keep going
And see where it takes us?"

 

So this year we will be  having conversations between
paintings and poems.

 

--------------------------------------------------

 

So here it is! The first rally between two creates minds. First the poem by Sonia Jarema and then a visual reply by artist Cath Rive.

New Kid on the Tower Block

 

New Kid on the Tower Block (after Duchamp)
Cath Rive

Balletic you tested each stair
with toe, pad and heel.
Your hand glided the banister
as you stopped to shake sunshine
into the dark staircase.
Your shirt held clouds
you’d clung onto on the rooftop.
I could see the skyline
in your legs poised like cranes.
That evening you brought in
the dank brook on your trousers.
You told me how the water
drank you as you waded her length
to find the unfamiliar way home.

 

 

 

Check out their page (right) where we will be documenting their conversation as it unfolds.

AL.

 

 

The Verdict - Colin Gray Photographer

Tim Cullingford - The Wrestler

Oscar Wilde said 'great art should be about life, death or whimsy. I found plenty of this here, there is much diversity in this edition (applies to both the Freedbook and Patternotion book) the edit is such that each page is a surprise and you don't know what to expect.

Some pieces looked liked they were done in minutes whilst others looked like they were done in days. I like the size of the book and have been carrying it around in my pocket, easy to pull out on the bus.

 The only thing that disappoints is the lack of production values though for the price you can't complain.

Colin Gray,
Photographer
http://www.colingray.net/



Colin Gray. I'm a photographer/artist/film maker. Based in Glasgow, UK
My personal work is based on the people I love. I think it is the hardest work any artist can do. It is often harder to coax you’re your nearest and dearest, than actually making the pictures.
The 31 year old project with my parents: In Sickness and in Health, now touring and 'The Parents', (exhibited in many of the worlds leading galleries and museums).
Work with my children forms many sub projects, some show on this site, many in progress.
I have worked worldwide for a diverse range of advertising agencies, design consultancies and record companies.
I have won many awards including a Euro Art Directors gold, 2 D&AD silvers with nine appearances in the D&AD annual.

Anna McNay's Review for Art-Corpus

 'Patternotion is a charming little book, full of idiosyncratic responses, and soul-baring offerings'  *****
Anna McNay, Art-Corpus blog

Read the rest of Anna McNay's review by following this link - HERE



Art-Corpus

In other news....
Patternotion can be now be bought on AMAZON - LINK HERE

Monika Fischbein - Patternotion's Big Bang

Monika Fischbein -
'The Start of Everything'

Photograph of a book presented to us, rather provocatively, on it’s side. That is to say the photograph is turned on its side so that the book appears at first glance to be attached to a wall rather than resting on a table.

I love books. During some recent toadying I said to my employer “making fridge magnets is charming, creative and fun but to publish a book must be a far more thrilling and rewarding exercise”. He seemed pleased.

I would like to point out that I do not approve of the way that books are treated by the artist on page 51 of Patternotion (see also page 27 of Freedbook). I shall make no further reference to this person except to say that I applaud the recent confiscation of her library card.

 

‘The Start of Everything’ is overwhelming as a concept and it’s a bit puzzling as the title of this picture. If it’s The Start Of Everything then why does the position of the bookmark (or “silk” as it’s possibly called) indicate that the reader is a third of her way through the book? Answer me that! Perhaps this title is a reference to the Book of Genesis.

 

Monika Fischbein -
Freedbook Page

They (experts) used to proclaim confidently that the start of everything was a Big Bang. Now our greatest minds are suggesting that there was probably some stuff going on just before the Big Bang. Asked why they’re now unhappy with a Big Bang as the Start of Everything the experts have replied “it seems an unlikely thing to happen”. As an expert in my own field I find this unsatisfactory. I’ve sent emails.

 

So why has Monika Fischbein chosen “The Start Of Everything” as a title for this photograph? A myriad of reasons I suppose. Artists tend towards the enigmatic. They tease us with possibilities. See also Fischbein’s excellent contribution to Freedbook for a further example of her elegant titular idiosyncrasy.

Being enigmatic carries with it a misinterpretation prerogative for the viewer. This is the loophole which allows me to ponder birds, books, big bangs and other tangents when almost certainly the artist would prefer us to be appreciating the more abstract qualities contained within her work.

For example. Are the birds at the left edge of this image in sharper focus than everything else? That might be important.

 

PKD

 

Link to Monika Fischbein's Website

Ella Klenner - The healthy human

Ella Klenner - Keep the balance
Patternotion book

As a general rule I reckoned that if we left the other lumps of rock and metal orbiting our sun well alone they could take care of themselves. Then that scary meteorite hit us the other week and I wasn’t so sure.

 

Ella Klenner’s little figure leans back precariously in a wooden chair. His face may be distorted by G-force but he has a quiet dignity about him. You will note, for example, that he is not shouting “Whooaahh!” and that his arms do not flail about in a traditional slapstick manner. The fellow may even have his hands in his pockets. The legs which are carelessly positioned between Mars and Jupiter play merry havoc with the asteroid belt.

 

For any non astronomers I should point out that this is an entirely realistic diagram of our solar system with 1. Mercury (top left) above the mans head. 2. Venus (top right) next to the word “buch”. 3. Earth with a picture of what might be an oil well gushing on its surface. You will have noticed that due to an entirely naturalistic perspective the birds depicted can be seen to fly behind our Earth but not behind any of the other planets. 4. Mars above the knee. 5. Jupiter below the heel. 6. Saturn easily spotted with it’s distinctive rings. 7. Uranus under Saturn. 8. the elusive Neptune (bottom right) hiding under the table.

 

Ella Klenner - Monkey Business 1
Brighton Open 2012

When I look at the surface of Neptune depicted here I see a rocky landscape. A certain friend viewing the same small disc called me an innocent fool to my face and said she could see “parts”. The surface of Neptune is covered entirely with male and female “parts” according to her. Even through a magnifying glass I’m not convinced by this reading. But just suppose for a moment that this is the case. How refreshing that not all creative people need to have their private areas waggling at us from centre stage the whole time. Here is someone who has had the discretion to put them on the surface of distant Neptune and then to hide that gas giant under a table. Such filth peddlers as Michelangelo Buonarroti could learn something from this.

 

I was born into a solar system with nine planets and I miss Pluto very much but what can you do? Up until age 46 nothing could harm me, I thought I was superhuman. No aches and pains to speak of, everything functioning satisfactorily. Someone recently told me that for him it was age 28 when things started going wrong. I’ve been lucky I suppose but never have I been more aware of the delicate balancing act necessary for remaining healthy than I am at present. My hero Mark E Smith once sang “I’ve got a nervous system” and he was dead right.

 

PJD.

Sarah Beinart - Yarnbombing-by-the-sea

Plenty of clues as to what kind of person we are dealing with here. Extremely pleased with myself for having remembered that “habit is a great deadener” is a quote from Waiting For Godot. Just to the right of the artist herself sits a pencil drawing of Samuel Beckett. Nobody in Beckett would have much use for the word “Renaissance” of course. His writing tends to be about people trapped in situations from which they are unable or even unwilling to escape.

 

 I had to google the other Beckett quote “Dance first think later…”. I was expecting it to be a BeeGees lyric to tell you the truth. Puzzled by the big fellow, slight resemblance to Peter Ustinov, in the drawing to the left of S.B.  I’m sure he’s another important creative influence. Do you think the word “Alma” (written inside the guitar) is relevant here? Or is it that just the name of the manufacturer?

 

 S.B. describes herself as a yarn-bombing experimentalist living by the sea. Well I hope she wasn’t the one who yarn bombed the Merry Maidens stone circle. Certain people I know of were very upset about that. Spells were cast, incantations were uttered in ancient cornish. This is just a friendly warning, don’t mess with the stones!

 

Page 12 of Patternotion contains a joyful self portrait and a bold statement of creative renewal. Hallelujah!

 

 

PJD

Launching Patternotion in Style

Blue Plaque walkers at Books For Free NW5

We launched the Patternotion book in style last Saturday (9th March 2013) with a Blue Plaque walk around North London.

Well, the style was mostly waterproofs and walking boots, but what do you expect with the threat of a 50% chance of rain.

We were hosted by some very stylish walkers (Jacquelyn Guderley and friends) though. Volunteers from Books For Free NW5 joined us too and sections of our procession resembled a fashion runway with these North London beauties in tow.

The artists and authors who started the walk we're Bill Mudge (with Gina and Harriet), NCRIPT (Steve and Victoria Cohen), Myself with Jessamy, Effie and Natalie Low, Mike and Gail Watts, Ella Penn, George and Sally Low, Peter S Smith, Melanie Ezra, Daniel Leek, Harvey Wells and Geraint Evans. And not forgetting Jacquelyn Guderley's BFF group of course.

The route (right) took us up hill and down dale and through some of the smartest corners of London. We picked up people and artists along the way including Tanya Kreisky, Katie Stone and Dawes Gray.

It was a strong pace so we could get round the full 9.5 miles of the walk and return to BFF in time so that the furthest travellers, Mel and Dan, could catch their train back to Swansea. In future though I'll be choosing a modest launch for next Sampson Low Ltd book. After this hot pace and tackling North London's hills we we're all glad of the 'breathers' we got when reaching each of the 17 plaques on our route.

We placed around 50 magnets along our route and you can view the whole day in the slideshow (right). If you'd like a closer look then click on the images and peruse at your own leisure.

Thanks you to everyone who walked with us and contributed all the photos (Peter S Smith, Harvey Wells, Mike Watts, Tanya Kreisky, Jacquelyn Guderley, Gerry Evans and Melanie Ezra). I'm going to have a well earned rest now because we have several Sampson Low Ltd books in the pipeline or at the printers including Harvey Well's Therapeutic interventions for mental health professions and Epsom UCA's The Future Bound Project.
But the one that will really test my stamina is SMartwalks' 'The longest Gallery in the World' book. They'll be putting out the call to artist's on April 1st, so keep your eyes peeled.

Hope you have enjoyed the Patternotion project and Blue Plaque walk. We'll be keeping up the reviews of artists work by our intern Philip J Deed and check out our latest reviews on our press page, including our most recent from Rainlore's World of Music, Art and Letters.

Goodbye,
Alban


Tanya Kreisky with her plaque and where she lived in 1971

Free Thinkers, Books and Blue Plaques - Join Us!

Blue Plaque walk route

Tomorrow, Saturday 9th March 2013, we'll be visiting 17 traditional blue plaques from North London's finest authors and artists.  Join us for part or all of this 8 mile walk encountering some of Literature's finest minds, and the chance to meet the latest crop of Britain's great thinkers along the way. Yes. That's right they'll be a number of artists and authors from Patternotion here too.

Artists like Melanie Ezra, Ella Penn, Tim Cullingford and Peter S Smith.
Photographer Darren Atkinson and poet Daniel Leek.
Folk empresario Gerry Evans and  published author Harvey Wells.

Hopefully a few guests too, Mike 'the Folk lens' Watts and his wife Gail, and freedbook contributor/graffiti artist NCRIPT. Writer Tanya Kreisky and papershuffler Katie Stone.



We'll be starting at the Books For Free Bookshop,
 147 Fortess Road, Tufnell Park (30secs from Tufnell Park Tube) at 10am.

We will be in the capable hands of Jacquelyn Guderley from BFF who'll be providing everyone with a map and list of plaques.

Of course this wouldn't be a Sampson Low Ltd book launch without a twist. So we've made 50 coaster-sized Blue Plaques of our own which we'll place en route. Follow our progress on Twitter though our SMartwalks chums @smartwalks or #patternotion.

In fact I helped our friends at The Kentishtowner get in the spirit of things this week by making blue plaques for 5 of London's lost nightclubs from the 1990's. Check out their adventures HERE!


The KentishTowners celebrating
the 1990's lost nightclubs

Now, we appreciate an 8 mile walk might be a bit long for some, so join in where you can. My mobile number is 07792 027716 if you need to get hold of me or get lost.

All going well we hope to return to Books For Free around 3pm-ish where we'll be signing and leaving 5 copies of our latest book Patternotion for people to pick up for Free.


If you've still got some energy left, Mike Watts is leading a raiding party into the nightlife of Kentish Town at The Torriano to see Joyce the Librarian. So after picking up 3 books for Free from the BFF NW5 carry on partying long into the night.

I'll have a few copies of Patternotion for sale (£4.99) on my person but I wont be able to carry the full stock. So if you'd like to buy a copy visit the BUY Page.

Find the list/itinerary of Plaques we'll be visiting below, hopefully you'll be able to join us.

Alban


Itinerary
Meet Tufnell Park Tube – Books For Free 10am
(Tube/train stops we're passing in Bold)

BETJEMAN, Sir John (1906-1984) Poet lived here 1908-1917
31 Highgate West Hill, Highgate, Highgate, N6 6NP

PRIESTLEY, J.B. (1894-1984) Novelist, playwright and essayist lived here
3 The Grove, Highgate, N6 6JU

HOUSMAN, A.E. (1859-1936) POET and SCHOLAR wrote "A SHROPSHIRE LAD" while living here
17 North Road, Highgate, N6 4BD

 LAWRENCE, D.H. (1885-1930) Novelist and Poet lived here in 1915
1 Byron Villas, Vale of Health, Hampstead, NW3 1AR

GALSWORTHY, John (1867-1933) NOVELIST AND PLAYWRIGHT lived here 1918-1933
Grove Lodge, Admiral's Walk, Hampstead, NW3 6RS

BAILLIE, Joanna (1762-1851) POET AND DRAMATIST, BORN 1762, DIED 1851. LIVED IN THIS HOUSE FOR NEARLY 50 YEARS.
Bolton House, Windmill Hill, Hampstead, NW3 6SJ

Hampstead Tube

SITWELL, Dame Edith (1887-1964) Poet lived here in Flat 42
Greenhill, Hampstead High Street, Hampstead, NW3 5TY

KEATS, John (1795-1821) POET, LIVED IN THIS HOUSE. B: 1795. D: 1821.
Keats' House' (Wentworth Place), Keats Grove, Hampstead, NW3 2RR

Hampstead Heath Overground

BRAILSFORD, Henry Noel (1873-1958) Writer Champion of equal and free humanity,lived here
37 Belsize Park Gardens, Belsize Park, NW3 4JH

Belsize Park Tube

PLATH, Sylvia (1932-1963) Poet lived here 1960-1961
3 Chalcot Square, Primrose Hill, NW1 8YB

YEATS, William Butler (1865-1939) Irish poet and dramatist lived here
23 Fitzroy Road, Primrose Hill, NW1 8TP

CLOUGH, Sir Arthur Hugh (1819-1861) Poet lived here 1854-1859
11 St Mark's Crescent, Primrose Hill, NW1 7TS

JACOBS, William Wymark (1863-1943) Author lived here
15 Gloucester Gate (Albany Street frontage), Regent's Park, NW1 4HG

Camden Town tube

THOMAS, Dylan (1914-1953) Poet lived here
54 Delancey Street, Camden Town, NW1 7RY

Camden Rd Mainline train

 FONTANE, Theodor (1819-1898) Writer and Novelist lived here 1857-1858
6 St Augustine's Road, Camden, NW1 9RN

ORWELL, George (1903-1950)GEORGE ORWELL 1903-1950 Novelist and Political Essayist lived here
50 Lawford Road, Kentish Town, NW5 2LN

Tufnell Park Tube
Books For Free - 13.5km – 8miles   Arrive 3pm-ish

Dawes Gray - Enjoy life for less!

Dawes Gray - Patternotion

Dawes Gray

 

I think that drawing items from the Argos (or whichever) Catalogue is a great idea. I mostly copy stuff from TV listings magazines these days. My sketchbooks are crammed full of badly rendered Phil Mitchells. Anything that gets me drawing is a good system.

 

Calculating how long I’d have to toil to buy all those desirable lawnmowers, beds, chess computers etc doesn’t appeal at all though. I’m sure that was Dawes Gray’s intention. This is her witty sneer at our consumer society I suppose. I like how we’re told to “appear happy” when following this set of instructions whilst relinquishing any hope of ever owning the fine shiny objects depicted.

 

 Excellent drawing of a posh teapot in a smart middle class kitchen. Nice dotty wallpaper, a hint of lush well tended gardens through the window. Who wouldn’t want a lifestyle like this?

 

 

 I personally have never bought a teapot. There’s always been a scruffy one around already that functions perfectly well. If I won the lottery I still wouldn’t spend much on teapots to tell you the truth. And I speak as someone who thinks a teabag dropped in a cup of boiling water is a crime against teamaking. I’m especially offended if that teabag is then crushed by some buffoon with a spoon rather than being allowed to infuse at its own pace. I’m sure that Dawe’s famous ancestor would agree with me on this.

 

PJD

 

Don't forget we will be launching Patternotion and embarking on our Blue Plaque walk from the Books For Free bookshop, 147 Fortess Road, Tufnell Park, NW5 2HP at 10am - This Saturday 9th March 2013.

All are welcome. So come along!

Our route will take us past 17 authors and poets that have lived or worked in the area. Including Sir John Betjeman, JB Priestley, DH Lawrence, John Keats, Sylvia Plath, Dylan Thomas and George Orwell. We'll be finishing back where we started from in Tufnell Park, where we'll be signing and leaving 5 First Editions of Patternotion for eager collectors to snap up for FREE.

AL

Listen in on Julia Colquitt Roach

A charming drawing rendered in charcoal and ink which JCR says was started after overhearing a conversation on a bus.

 

I have to mention this. It’s more than my jobs worth not to. My employer Mr Alban Low is known for his own drawings based on conversations overheard on public transport. There’s an excellent example of one of these in Freedbook by the way. Perhaps it’s a coincidence. Or possibly being a thoughtful type JCR selected this drawing for Patternotion with exactly that in mind.

 

“This might just be in accord with what Alban is trying to accomplish” she could have been thinking. I should quickly point out that her finished artwork looks nothing at all like any of Alban’s overheard conversation pictures. It is a unique and remarkable delineation of her own audio-voyeuristic travelling experience.

 

Nevertheless it got me wondering. Is it possible that over time the intuitive, intelligent and highly empathic contributors to Sampson Low publications might develop between them if not exactly a house style then at least some kind of loose shared aesthetic? Themes, symbols, systems even, whether unconsciously or deliberately would be shared. A clumsy new word “sampsonlowesque” would be brought into use in an attempt to caption this phenomenon.

Inevitably thuggish and undiscriminating minds would miss out on all this and their contributions would continue to stick out like a sore thumb. Yes, I’m looking at you David Bushell.

 

The drawing portrays a cycle of naughtiness where the characters seem trapped in a cheerful(?) slapstick existence. There’s clearly some sort of physical struggle for superiority going on. At the bottom of the page someone has gained control and sits triumphantly on a rival’s shoulders. Bizarrely the victor is depicted with a giant sick note on his/her head!

 

PJD

 

Patternotion is now in the shops, buy your copy here, visit the buy page and receive it in just a few days. AL

Buy Patternotion Book

Patternotion Book
Stella Tripp (left)
Patten Smith (right)

The Patternotion book has just arrived at Sampson Low Ltd and it looks absolutely fantastic. Over the next few days we'll be sending out copies to all the artists and selling the remaining 1st Editions.

If you would like to BUY your Patternotion book then click one of the BUY NOW buttons below and pay securely with PayPal.

60 artists and authors reveal the secret blueprints of their lives. Get inside the heads of these creative system makers, learn from their endeavours and be inspired to make a change in your life.

Patternotion is a 72 page softback book, There are 100 copies printed in each Edition.
ISBN 978-0-9534712-3-2
Each book is individually numbered.
Freedbook costs £4.99

Sampson Low Ltd Catalogue Number SLB0002
Currently selling 1st Edition
P&P is £1.20(UK), £3(Europe) and £4(Worldwide).

Order extra copies and pay no additional P&P



Buy a Copy and send to an UK Address (+£1.20 Postage and Packing) CLICK BELOW

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Send to an European Address (+£3 Postage and Packing) CLICK BELOW

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Send to a Worldwide Address (+£4 Postage and Packing) CLICK BELOW

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Don't forget to join us for the Official Patternotion launch on Saturday 9th March 2013, 10am, Books For Free Bookshop, 147 Fortess Road, Tufnell Park, NW5. Where we'll be visiting 20 local blue plaques and placing some of own on the streets for people to find and pick up.

The Patternotion book is published by Sampson Low Ltd

Bill Mudge - Jazz's Renaissance Man

Bill Mudge Trio's
Skylight

 

Bill Mudge is reputed to be a highly creative player of jazz organ. When I googled his name I found (on Youtube) an animation by Alban Low which is meant to accompany Bill’s composition ‘Skylight’. I say “meant to” because I was in my local library and all their headphones had been filched. I watched Alban’s graceful black and white images glide around that screen and tried to imagine the enchanting sound sequences which had inspired them.

(if you're curious listen here)

 

At various times there seem to have been Bill Mudge Quintets, Quartets and Trios. No doubt he also plays solo as well as in duos, sextets etc. I shall definitely make a point of checking out his music at some stage but at the moment I’m meant to be focusing on his fascinating visual contributions to recent Sampson Low Ltd publications.

Freedbook
' Let Me Show You To Your Room'



 

The photograph in Freedbook ‘Let Me Show You To Your Room’ triggers all kinds of associations for me, I’ve spent a lot of my life in small rented rooms. Your first glimpse inside reveals the end of a bed, a chest of draws, a wonky lampshade and bright sunshine streaming through a window. The door itself is scruffy, its paint flaking off but I’m sure everything’s clean and very few of the tenants will turn out to be serial killers.

 

 

 In contrast his photocollage in Patternotion documents an entire house. Before the Mudges moved in it belonged to Albert and Betty. The Albert-and-Bettys of this world should definitely be celebrated I think before they go the way of 8 track cassette cartridges, pennyfarthings and the eohippus.

 

In Albert’s own hand we read the cheery message, “Betty and I still enjoying life/modern sequence dancing/allotment garden etc”. Above and below these words are thoughtfully chosen patterns and textures from their home plus objects such as a lightswitch, a clock etc.

 

This week I took a photo of a local building which is soon to be demolished. I recall it mainly as having been a shabby charity shop in the late 90’s but when my Aunt saw the picture she told me it had been “an important piggery” during the war. Memories such as this are precious (to me at least). I’m grateful that Bill Mudge has chosen to give us an impression of how Albert and Betty’s place looked and felt before, as he says “embarking on the journey to make this house our home”.

 

PJD

 

 

(If you would like to find out what Bill Mudge sounds like for real then he's playing with the Kelvin Christiane Big Band at The Bloomsbury, Staines Road, Twickenham on Tuesday 5th March,2013 at 8pm. Free Entry. AL.)

Shona Davies & Dave Monaghan - Marvellous Warped Alternatives

Shona Davies &
Dave Monaghan's
Wheel of Misfortune

Freedbook contributors Shona Davies and Dave Monaghan return to tease us further with the mysterious objects and environments that they create. I might argue that if I want to be confronted by spectacles that cause me unease and disorientation I need only leave my home and explore the terrors of the world outside.

Obviously that’s never going to happen but it’s all out there.

 

These artworks are a marvellous warped alternative to that unpleasantness. Something new for me to worry about - and they do say that a change is as good as a rest. Inevitably a title like “The Wheel Of Misfortune” hints (along with thousands of other possibilities) at the title of a certain migraine inducing television show. Just for a moment you wonder whether Davies and Monaghan fancy themselves as mischievous presenters of such a show. Then you try to push those thoughts to the back of your mind.

(In reality 'Wheel of Misfortune' reflects a recent chapter in their lives, which makes their page even more poignant.

All fellow Patternotionists hope it marks the beginning of a new chapter for them both.)

 

FreedBook contribution 'The Diagnosis'

Collaborations by this hardworking duo have been displayed at such prestigious addresses as the Whitechapel Gallery - London, the One Church Street Gallery – Great Missenden and the Chapel Gallery -Ormskirk.

 

PJD (AL)

Artist Series returns - David Bushell

David Bushell's ill fated 'Rate My Menhir'
website

 Today the Patternotion artist series returns with a post about author Daivd Bushell from Philip Deed, who will be our guest writer/blogger for the next few weeks.

David Bushell

Following the withdrawal from bookshops worldwide of his controversial “The Scotch Egg Diet” David Bushell retired to Penzance to reconsider his position. There, with his wife Edith and young son Mark Edward Smith Bushell, he enjoys the delights of the cornish countryside and in particular the prehistoric sites which are so plentiful in the west penwith region. His popular “Rate My Menhir” website was voluntarily closed down in 2011 to avoid legal action.

He continues to work on an autobiography which may once again prove too hot for the world of publishing to handle. Excerpts from this along with his forthright views on music, lifestyle etc appeared in early issues of a certain publication. It’s editor, dismayed at some of the subject matter and fearing that his own job might be at risk, decided to discontinue Bushell’s contributions. On the subject of his dismissal David has no comment beyond “The man is an arse”.

Now Sampson Low Ltd have thrown caution to the wind and decided to include excerpts from “More Farted Against Than Farting” first in their delightful Freedbook collection and now in Patternotion. I applaud their good judgement.

PJD

Patternotion - Life's delicate balance

Life is a delicate balance. Drift in a perfect bliss of ignorance and you can find your personal Nirvana or find yourself lost. Structure our unpredictable lives and we harness our potential, achieve greatness or send ourselves to the edges of insanity.

So when I contacted our 1000+ artists with the book’s theme, I felt more like a therapist and just a little bit unhinged myself. The task was to analyse their lives and to root out the personal systems that helps them function in life and work.  I suspected that artists and authors were excellent exponents in the secret art of system making, with the flair and skill to explain them. What I hadn’t expected was such a swift and varied response: within 6 hours of the call-to-arms we had to close submissions and the pages of the Patternotion book were all reserved.

We at Sampson Low Ltd are unusual in the way we select our artists and authors..... Everyone is welcome. We run a first-come first-served basis and have never rejected an entry. This has given the book a varied palette of ideas from artists, authors, children, train drivers, research directors, company bigwigs and unemployed geniuses from all over the world including England, Scotland, Wales, Denmark,  and for the first time The Democratic Republic of Congo (see Thomas Yocum's submission below)

Thomas Yocum

The book is split into two sections. The first contains both prescriptive and open systems that may require some thought. In the second part I asked 9 artists to interpret systems from the previous section. With a mix of instinct and structure they have channelled their intellects, producing fascinating and unexpected results.

Read the book and you realise that a good system contains as few ingredients as possible and has a short shelf-life before being re-invented or adapted. In this book you’ll find over 60 recipes to inspire and amuse you. In its best known form a life system is the New Year’s Resolution, where the participant declares their intentions and like a social gladiator lives or dies under the gaze of the populace.

Patternotion is not a dramatic ‘do or die’ ultimatum of course, it is just a book. Read it though and the ideas inside could influence the next chapter in your life.

The Book is now at the printers and we have removed the slideshow with all the submissions, so you'll have to wait for the real thing. It will go on sale in the week of the Blue Plaque launch which is Saturday 9th March.

AL

60 Artist Blue Plaque Cover

Its been a long week making Blue Plaques for the Patternotion artists and it seems half of Facebook too. When Jacquelyn Guderley of Books For Free and I conceived the idea of a Blue Plaque walk to launch the book we never thought these little blue discs would mean so much to so many.

Like every good system we take it for granted when it works as smoothly as this one.The Blue Plaque scheme is a shorthand for pinning an identity and history to a specific place and it seems everyone would like to have one. After all we all have some Great moments in our lives.

Well here it. The cover of the Patternotion book. We're a few days away from sending the full manuscript to the printers so still some time for a few alterations.

Then it will be full focus on the launch on 9th March 2013- meet at Books For Free bookshop, Tufnell Park, NW5 at 10am. We'll be walking around the area, visiting 18 blue plaques from local authors and poets. Hopefully we'll have a couple of wild cards as Dick Muskett is currently researching some more blue plaques in N7 and N19.

Well finish our walk right back at Books For Free and cut the ribbon on the Patternotion Book. Where we'll leave 10 signed First Editions for people to pick up for FREE.

Hope you can join us.

AL

Patternotion Blue Plaque Launch - 9th March 2013

Citizen Skwith

Virtually all the pages have arrived at Patternotion HQ and we're busy sorting out the order of the pages and front cover. Today we finalised the details of our launch event and we're excited to share them with you now.

Patternotion is lucky enough to team up with the Books For Free organisation and in particular the inspirational Jaquelyn Guderley. Between us we've organised a Blue Plaque walk with a difference on the 9th March 2013.

We will be starting our walk from the Books For Free bookshop, 147 Fortess Road, Tufnell Park, NW5 2HP at 10am.

All are welcome. So come along!

Our route will take us past 18 authors and poets that have lived or worked in the area. Including Sir John Betjeman, JB Priestley, DH Lawrence, John Keats, Sylvia Plath, Dylan Thomas, HG Wells and George Orwell. We'll be finishing back where we started from in Tufnell Park, where we'll be signing and leaving 10 First Editions of Patternotion for eager collectors to snap up for FREE.

But we're providing you with a little twist........

We'll be placing our own magnetic blue plaques along the way like this one from world renown street artist Citizen Skwith (above). There will be more than 80 plaques of people nominated by the local community and Patternotion authors. Celebrating what is great about Books and the local area!

We wanted to support the scheme that has taken a beating in the last few weeks. In fact English Heritage's blue plaque scheme has been under threat because of budget cuts ( from £130 million to £92 million).
So why doesn't the local community (especially one with such a rich literary past) take up the reins! Guardian Article

If you'd like to nominate someone in NW5, NW3 or NW1 for a blue plaque then tweet Books For Free at @BooksforFreeNW5 with your suggestion, before the 15th February 2013.

If you'd like to join the action via the internet then look out for the #patternotion hashtag on twitter, where we'll be posting 'live' photos as the magnetic plaques hit the streets. We'll also have live GPS tracking of our every move at the SMartwalks website.

London Smartwalk 2011

 Our last book, FreedBook, worked with the brilliant Books For London, who maintain more than 7 book swapping libraries on London's transport system. So its with equal enthusiasm that we find ourselves happy bedfellows with Books For Free and Healthy Planet.

But do they really give away books for Free!

Yes they do! The "Books for Free" initiative rescues unwanted books otherwise destined for landfill or pulping. They redistribute these throughout communities via the Books for Free centres nationwide. By visiting the centres and taking a book, you are reducing the amount of waste that goes to landfill each year and helping to recycle valuable resources. There is no catch and the only restriction is that a maximum of 3 books are taken at any one time.

So we hope you join us for our unusual Blue Plaque walk on the 9th March and support both Books For Free and the Patternotion Book.

AL

 

Siobhan Tarr - The Mystery Mosaic Tour

Siobhan Tarr - 2013 Destination Unknown

Siobhan Tarr has always been one of those pleasant mysteries for me. An artist who I have worked with for two years since Nottingham's Lighbite exhibition in February 2011. I've exchanged numerous emails with her and she telephoned me once from her home in Germany, totally confusing me by talking with a Euro-Antipodean twang but we've never met in person.

Siobhan is primarily a mosaic artist but obviously has a flair for design and a keen sense of humour. Like many artists she posses destructive traits. She starts her artwork by smashing up plates and cups and decapitating porcelain figures. Although this might make her feel better, it is not the sole reason and is part of her overall system of working. She finds inspiration from the piles of porcelain chaos and her sometimes chaotic family life as a mother to then create order through her beautiful artworks.




(second from left) Siobhan's magnetic artwork
Rarities 2011, Hastings, England


Siobhan has exhibited widely in Germany and the craquelure of her work spreads slowly around the globe, but that isn't anything too unusual for this well travelled artist. Siobhan was born here in England (Maidstone) before moving to Australia. After a life-changing encounter with a handsome German backpacker she was destined for a life in the land of Lederhosen rather than skimpy swimming trunks. Now she's happily ensconced in the little village of Seefeld, near Bad Oldesloe, Germany with her husband and 3 children.



Siohan Tarr - Headline artist

In 2011, after we'd finished a mammoth year of exhibiting over 1,000 magnets on the streets of the world I hit the internet looking for new adventures and formats in public art. I stumbled across another mystery, a series of German towns had been invaded by a night time artist who had placed....yes you guessed it.... mosaics in public places. As I read about it on the popular Landsberg Blog one place name seemed vaguely familiar, that of Bad Oldesloe....now could it be?

So I contacted the local council and they directed me to their site specific map.
Right place but was it the right artist.....?

Unlikely?

My romantic heart had blurred my usually canny judgement. This was an underground mosaic art movement whose web stretched across the whole of the world. If Siobhan had been the 'Goldfinger' of tiled art then surely I'd have been inducted into this clandestine fellowship, with my street-art credentials.
So this meant Siobhan Tarr wasn't the 'Banksy of Bad Oldesloe'. Drats!

 

Back to reality and Patternotion.

Siobhan has kept up her air of mystery with her latest submission 'Destination Unknown' (top of the page)

She says

"This year, once a month, one of our family of 5 will plan and

organize  a day out to who knows where. 

 You can´t beat a good old mystery tour,  there´s a special thrill in not knowing

where you´re going or what´s in store .

 Lots of unknown fun and adventures to be had by all."

 

I'll be looking forward to hearing about where they all end up!

Hopefully I'll get a knock on the door one day, I'll be the last stop on the mystery tour and I'll get a chance to meet Siobhan and her family.

 

AL