Thursday 23 September 2010

The path is narrow...it is easy to fall off

I have been very lax lately, and have been buying way to much new stuff. It is like a drug. I even bought wrapping paper yesterday, something I havn't done in 3 years.
But having just come across this blog I am back on the path of goodness, reused and handmade!

Tuesday 14 September 2010

Melin Medi Weekend

So - a lot didn't go to plan, but that didn't matter.
Friday was a washout, so Saturday morning was spent building the barley sheaf instead of grinding oats. .
With help from Derren and Alyn, a beautiful structure emerged. We used sticks from various trees of the site, bamboo, gold silks, wool and threads.
Saturday afternoon I decided to embroider the Rumi poem onto a piece of linen attached to a hawthorn tree. I left it there for others to complete. Standing beside the river taking the time to stitch the words is a good way to contemplate.
In the evening at twilight I tried to light the fire to make the transformation to the next stage - it absolutely refused to light - of course I had used entirely non-flammable materiels so what did I expect. I think that secretly I didn't want it to burn. And so after three attempts I left it to see the Sunday morning sun.
On Sunday afternoon I finally made some oats cakes on the fire in the garden. I tried three different varieties of salt. I liked the plain best. With cheese and Mari's Plum jelly. Lovely.

Sunday 5 September 2010

Melin Medi


Notice how each particle moves
Notice how everyone has just arrived here
from a journey
Notice how each wants a different food
Notice how the stars vanish as the sun comes up
and how all streams stream towards the ocean.
Rumi

How to make Bara Crai / Oat bread

Location: Under the stone arch bridge

Saturday Midday: Rolling and grinding the oats to make flour

Sunday Midday: Making the flat bread over a fire.

Notice...

Location: The Meadow

Saturday Sundown: burning the haystack

Sunday Sunrise: transformation of the residue

The artworks made at New Mill are very much determined by a period and context specific spirit. The do-it-yourself process of constructing objects from odds and ends demonstrates the value of conceiving art as a model of engagement with the world, speaking not only with things but also through things. Through transformation and reinvention, the works effect a temporalisation of objects that articulates new forms, placing emphasis on the 'act' rather than on the finished 'product', seeking to dematerialise the art object as a commodity.




prepping at new mill. walked in circular direction to create space for the barley stack fire next weekend.
listened to the melody of a fallen tree.