I have been in bed for days.
Tired from recent activities, Telling at Ickworth is now in place and open and I am now working on pieces for Brantwood. The text from Lucinda is very revealing of the character of Ruskin and people in the shadow of Ruskin and I hope to have them all completed by the end of this week.
The launch at Ickworth was eventful with two openings, one private and one public, with Ben reading his text and Jamie revealing his beautifully crafted narrative cake. I am extremely happy with it all as the staff have been really supportive throughout and the volunteers had many questions to ask at the public opening. This is, as far as I am aware the first time that Ickworth has opened its doors to contemporary art and the challenge of getting it to work and be in place for thorough questioning was a really demanding but rewarding journey. Placing contemporary art in an unfamiliar setting is another beast altogether than showing in an art related context and is one that has made me question the validity of the work, its context and its value to a greater extent. This has been above all a personal challenge to place my work out of its ordinary setting asking new audiences to comment and raise questions that I hadnt already thought about in many ways.
Most of all it seems that the initial exposure has got people talking again about the past Hervey family and their eccentricities in a colourful and I hope celebratory way bringing the place to life again in a new and exciting way. I have had some very complimentary comments about the work in situ as well as some derogatory comments. This is all I can ask for in terms of REAL critique of my current practice.
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