My collaborator was never found, which resulted in auto-collaboration, although both the Slovenian and British post office literally put their imprint on the piece. The final contribution became a stamp depicting a football manager. That game certainly has a love for money, although in the 60’s , I think , they played for love, not money.
The print was sent back, completed in the end, to the arrangers of the project.

I am off to North Sweden for a monumental print workshop with master printmaker and artist Stefano Beccari. The town Ornskoldsvik is right on the Swedish East coast, and is still in the grips of snow, darkness and temperatures below freezing.

Let’s see how it influences the Littoral work.

The exchange didn’t work. A month later, the print came back with a stamp from the Slovenian post office stating’ adressee not known’. The image remained incomplete. As the post - office stamp was print of sorts, I took it and added it to the front and sent it on to the organisers. This had became a sort of an auto-collaboration.

We are now starting to define the sustainability aspect of the show, linking the meaning of our work to enviromental concerns.
The following woodcuts by Anna, Liz, Martine and I prompt future work.

LITTORAL - Marks from the margins

I and a group of artists, most of whom have recently graduated from the School of Creative Arts at the University of the West of England have now started to work towards this show at the Create Centre in Bristol. The Create Centre works with enviromental issues, and therefore this show feels both important, timely and challenging.Thanks to Anna Harley’s iniatative, Littoral has become a reality.

Many of our group now work locally from Spike Island Studios. We are united through our concern with an internal and external response to landscape. Our works reflect a broad range of print and other applied art processes, both traditional and contemporary in character.

The group aim is to explore the role of contemporary print and applied art within the Northern European Landscape Tradition, with a unifying theme of the littoral zone. The term, ‘littoral’ refers to the margin of land between the low and high tide mark that is characteristic of tidal areas, such as the local landscape of the Severn Estuary, with its dramatic tidal flows. Our individual and unique responses to this continually changing environment are expressed in diverse and innovative approaches to print and mark making.

Each artist taking part will produce a collection of work, in preparation for a group exhibition, in response to the theme of the Littoral.This group collection of work calls for an exhibition space that is itself located near the shoreline. The situation of the Create Centre, by one of the most dramatic tidal ranges in the world, makes this Gallery location particularly relevant to our theme.

In physical terms, the littoral zone is the area of land that extends from the high water mark at the edge of a body of water, to the shoreline areas that are often submerged. The adjacency of water gives a number of distinctive characteristics to littoral regions. Water’s erosive power results in particular types of landforms, such as sand dunes, and estuaries. The natural movement of the littoral along the coast is called the littoral drift.

Conceptually, the littoral zone can be taken to mean the areas of our psyche that are most often hidden from view - only surfacing at times of extremes. The transient nature of this marginal area and its continual state of flux, acts as a rich source of symbolism for our imagery. The twice daily tidal flow of water is a metaphor often used to explore the passing of time, that acts as a marker of our human frailty (time and tide wait for no man) and the endless repetitions in life (constant ebb and flow of life). As with water, the erosive power of time and our life experiences form us; our personalities, self- esteem, psychological profiles, physical strength and stamina and life choices.

This is feedback from Maxine Badger on the ‘artartart’ article Sun, 28 Feb 2010. She writes:

‘I found you in an article on Matt Roberts e-magazine, and have been
reading with interest about your attitude to art, particularly the
connecting affect of printmaking, and how it seems to suit modern
technology/communication.
I trained as a painter back in the mid eighties (graduating from
Bristol in 86!) and am still at it. One of my main worries about the
role of artist is the working in a bubble bit, and then expecting
people to like my work on gallery walls. I have sold, but can’t make a
living.

You talk of an honourable practice - I like this idea ‘being able to be
an individual in a collective environment’ This is something I battle
with! my love of nature (walks/cycles) seem cut off from society’s core
values and symbols of status..
I have just shown in a Haiti fundraiser exhibition here in Brighton and
only one persons photo sold, albeit we raised £350 on chocolate
brownies and cupcakes and camomile & straw tea!!’

I especially like Maxine’s comment on making money from the tea and cakes! Why not say that this is art too? A cup cake and a cup of tea can give someone a moment of pleasure - and it is an act of making and sharing, just like a painting.

I am starting to call my printwork an exchange medium. I believe now that the cupcake is also an exchange medium!

2010 seems to be the decade when we re-evaluate our relationship with money. Parallel to the Finnish global print project ‘4 Love not Money’ , my own , collaborative project ‘ The Moneartists’ considers the true worth of money.

I have learnt this year , it is better to work from the heart, and not just for the money. Although the bankers probably do work like this already- as their hearts are in the making of money.

The project ‘4 Love not Money’ recaptures the possibility of community building which seems to be inherent in printmaking. The organisers explain the project as follows:

For Love Not Money: A Global Mail Art Collaboration

This international collaboration between students, faculty, and artists from academic and professional institutions around the world will be inspired by and potentially exhibited at the 15th Tallinn Print Triennial. The theme for the Triennial and for this collaborative project is FOR LOVE NOT MONEY.

Concept (excerpts taken from the 15th Tallinn Print Triennial concept statement):

…FOR LOVE NOT MONEY is intended to present a timely reflection on the state of contemporary art production, presentation and reception _ during a period of world financial crisis. It also encapsulates a reflection of the status of ‘printmaking’ within the hierarchy of contemporary art practice and production…

…In the English language the aphorism “for love not money” describes any labour that is undertaken for passionate and not pecuniary reward _ it is almost interchangeable with the equally aphoristic “a labour of love”…

…The phrase also possesses a distinct cultural mien as it can be used to describe the plight of the young and/or struggling artist be they an actor, visual artist, director, or writer. Any person that sets out on a career in-the-arts knows that just making-a-living at what they have trained to do represents a modicum of success. They make their art _ for love not money…

… A range of concepts embodied within the project’s title, include addiction, desire, dedication, duty, family, love, lust, objectification, romance, religion, political commitment, and sex…

Mail Art Collaboration Guidelines:

*Each participant will begin making a 2-dimensional piece of art pertaining to the theme, using any combination of techniques, as long as printmaking/digital is included. Each participant must then accurately address, stamp, and mail the piece to their partner. Do not put the work into an envelope. The marks made by the act of delivery will become part of the piece.
*When the mail art is delivered, the receiving partner will complete the piece. (Each team will end up with two completed pieces in total.)

When finally assembled, the entire collaboration will be reviewed for possible exhibition at the 15th Tallinn Print Triennial in May of 2010.

I sent my print to Lenka in Slovenia.

Monika and I are now working with the Osaka team of Atsu-san and Inaba-san to launch the Puzzle Project in Warsawa. Early days still, but the theme will be:

‘ Wise and Young’ focusing on Knowledge Transfer between generations. We need to create a community of skills and wisdom, shared by , and between older and younger generations in order to create a new, viable consciousness for the new decade.

Emily Candela, artist, writer and research assistant and I, printmaker, began to play around with the idea of turning an ongoing conversation about the supposed social use of art into an article in September 2009. We wanted to slow down the reading of a text by adding images, and after thoughts in the way of mimicking our conversation in real time, although transposed to text.
We exchanged the text, and added our parts, then pulled the interview back together again.
It was supposed to have been published as such- raw, rough and messy with the images. In a way- breathing, being of art rather than a text on art, and an artful life. ( as below in the blog)

Read www.artartartgallery.com/interview to SEE what happened.

One week to putting up the signs. The images are completed. Left- is to construct the installation, and so, what was once an idea becomes a sign.
So far- an exchange with strangers have made the images. Now- they enter a greater arena, a dialogue on the street which I will most probably not hear. But then - you never know, when the words and ideas come back to you, once the visual thoughts has been put in the world. Time to let go. The image and the people who participated - are now the star performers.

I end, for today- with a quote by Bruno Munari from his 1966 book ‘ Design as Art’:

” Today it has become necessary to demolish the myth of the ’star’ artist who only produces masterpieces for a smalll group of ultra-intelligent people. It must be understood that as long as art stands aside from the problems of life it wil only interest a very few people. Culture today is becoming a mass affair, and the artist must step down from his pedestal and be prepared to make a sign for a butcher’s shop ( if he knows how to do it). The artist must cast off the last rags of romantiscism and become active as a man among men, well up in present day techniques, materials and working methods. Without losing his innate aesthetic sense he must be able to respond with humility and competence to the demands his neighbours may make of him.” ( 2008 edt: pg. 25)