I've had two events to go to over the last weekend, Friday night a thank you event for Madeinroath where I finally got to meet the poorly panel member, she did not dissapoint. I saw and reacquainted myself with people form made in roath, had a home made mince pie and slice of christmas cake, logo decorated and all. Also had some Mrs Beeton's recipe mulled wine, best I've ever had, will be looking that recipe up.
I did, here it is:
TO MULL WINE.
INGREDIENTS.- To every pint of wine allow 1 large cupful of water, sugar and spice to taste.
Mode.-In making preparations like the above, it is very difficult to give the exact proportions of ingredients like sugar and spice, as what quantity might suit one person would be to another quite distasteful. Boil the spice in the water until the flavour is extracted, then add the wine and sugar, and bring the whole to the boiling-point, when serve with strips of crisp dry toast, or with biscuits. The spices usually used for mulled wine are cloves, grated nutmeg, and cinnamon or mace. Any kind of wine may be mulled, but port and claret are those usually selected for the purpose; and the latter requires a very large proportion of sugar. The vessel that the wine is boiled in must be delicately clean, and should be kept exclusively for the purpose. Small tin warmers may be purchased for a trifle, which are more suitable than saucepans, as, if the latter are not scrupulously clean, they spoil the wine, by imparting to it a very disagreeable flavour. These warmers should be used for no other purpose."

Not sure that helped, but I can confirm you can heat it with tea candles, about 20 of them for a 6 pint saucepan on a stand, just be patient.

g39 had their opening, they are now just off City Road behind the Earnest Willows pub. Spent Friday daytime leafleting and scanning more library books, by Saturday the library had transformed into an intimate slide show space of shots of the previous venue and shows, it seemed warmer.

The main space contained the 18ft Christmas Tree with lights, I was told the story of treacherous balancing and stretching that made it so, I only hope that getting them down will be accomplished more easily. Also the outlines in real dimensions of the old space over three floors wer marked out. Tiny.

I remarked that use of the space was so cunning and of course in the new space new cunning ways will be needed. One visitor pointed out its all horizontals whereas before it was all verticals, too true. But it's still bigger and one wall being used her to project words with comfy chairs infront of it did make you realsie how easy it is to visually divide. 2  staff members were up into the early hours making soup and mulled cider was also on offer. Yum, worth the effort on this cold day and it was great to here people who had never visited g39 before had come for the first time. Brilliant. Always like a new audience.

Talking of which have started my Art Club Discussion group, feel welcome do, 14th January Gower Pub, Roath, Cardiff, 2pm

I will be taking time this festive season to assess my options. Currently working tomorrow and then first three weeks in January temp wise. Lots of other things have dissapeared been reduced or just gone quiet. Suspect busy time has part to do wth it. Hav eheard talking to people over the socialising about some interview questions and I am not the only one to perceive that feedback of why did not get it does not refelct the job advert. This was true of my first application for a finance person for a Theatre over a year ago, feedback was everyone else wrote pages on their enthusiasm for Theatre, wheras I had killed myself getting a Foundation in Financial Management qualification to boost my chances. Suggestion was they put very broad requirements so they can narrow the field. Makes sense, that or considering how many applications they choose the obvious known person, the one who suggests something they didn't even think of they liked or something like that. It's totally a recruiters market and It was suggested to me i was knew to the field. Well yes and no. All my life all my hobby time has been spent on the Arts, only followed sport since I got a son, not interested in shopping, oh well another hobby is food I'll concede that, but A level and degree choices and all the books I read nope, Drama, Film, Visual Art all the way.

At least I'm making more friends who share an interest and that's great. resources of time were too small to indulge my interests enough and I suspect that resources of money will dent it too now. But I shall try and maintain and look for work that will not detract too much from my goal.

No decisions till after Christmas is the plan, still have wrapping and delivering to Finish and a list of I shoulds to get through,

Jen

Hidden Art

At least inspired my Dad do go and have a look at some Art. He went to the St David's Hall show and make a shortlist of stuff he really liked, some of which I concerred with and he chose the other work by Pascal Michel-Dubois than the one I had actually considered buying him, so at least I hadn't spent in vain.

My new temp job is in Cardiff Uni on Newport Road. Had lunch in the cafeteria today and blow me but there are 7 canvases from around 1940-1960 and then in their midst a naff repro of Monet's poppyfield. No labels, one crooked and all being ignored. Some look really high quality and I will investigate!

One is a painting of the JFK assassination, its all dense layours of black paint, very matt and velvety with colour, mostly bright lime for outlines and Jackie's pink pillarbox hat, the view is cropped so the bottom is the top edge of the car, its brilliant.

People should see them.

Planning Art Club like Book Club more in my mind now.

Loving the new temp job, today "you've been marvelous" and slightly challenging and learning new word and excel tricks, thought I'd exhausted that, but good to learn. Only downside staplers and so forth not so great, in fact the keyboard is rather worn and slowed my typing speed.

Nous Allon

Jen

Books

Tuesday and back at g39/WARP and now Elbow room's library in their new space. Cavenous and cool, it is housing storage boxes and an 18ft Christmas tree that is dwarfed by the space. Its a bit surreal just braced into the mainframe of the structure.

I spent 5 very happy hours in the library, currently a small well lit room with empty white shelves, an apple mac and the most gorgeously wondrous scanner I have ever had the pleasure of working with. Its an Epson and it has a dual lens system. Its p*** easy to use and even makes crappy images look good and great ones look incredible. Plus its quick and it allows you to name and number things seperately so you can helpfully scan books and keep track of how many you have done, have the same description but different sequence numbers. Its so nice when things just work! Yay for Epson.

I'd been chomping at the bit to get the books out of their boxes even whilst packing them away. The range of books is quite amazing, some early arts council publications like "Paintings of Welsh People" and loads of collective Estonian contemporary artists books, many bilingual books and some on architecture, some chinese works, japanese works, Chapter show catalogues as you might expect but also all sorts of mad things like the Creative Whack Kick Game, I really need to look into that more, its a pack of cards that when you play it makes you think differently and gets you out of a creative black hole, also sculpture park guides on suggestions for ideas for sculpture. Basically its a unique wide ranging group of books and magazines and stuff that will one day with my help be on line and searchable and usuable by anyone on the Wales Artist Resource Programme, you could learn stuff, entertain yourself or make artworks out of what you find there.   I want to read them all and get an honorary Phd, Ok I'll settle for an MA.

Tomorrow I'll be the new girl again. May just last two days but its cardiff Uni and I am looking forward to that. I'll let you know if I meet the perfect hole punch or similar.

Jen

Decisions and Directions

Yesterday I went again to the excellent XSC after a lovely guest had left us on the weekend. He was kind enough to introduce me to a kindred spirit at dinner on Saturday, and all credit to my genius son who was on his best polite, charming and impressive behaviour, discussing the Villa de Signoria in Florence that was featured on the wall with great knowledge. I'd love to claim we've taken our ten year old on the grand tour but the truth is he plays Assassin's creed on PS3, naughty working class parent thing rather than nurturing middle class thing, and the certificate is too old for him. Actually he is clever enough to remind me it is just pixels killing pixels so I'm not too worried I've warped him and he has learnt Italian and lots of Art History. In think we would all get great joy from a trip to Italy though so it is in my plan to wangle that somehow, although I suspect stopping him climbing the buildings may still be an issue. 

Its great to be busy and this week I am. Today its a social trip for lunch with a stop off at the library first, tomorrow and friday voluntary work with lovely people and weds and thurs an interesting placement with my agency. 

Talking of which left the last placement on Friday and the rain soaked cold wait at the bus stop on my home journey did make me feel happy to see the back of it. I had taken time to settle in to the group their, although I'm fairly sure I hid that well, by the end I had a few really genuine laughs, none I can tell you about, aside from my reaction was "that shouldn't be funny but it is" and had my giggling internally for many hours. Good times. They gave me a good luck card and I need luck, plus this comment; "You are a really hard worker and I wish you good luck in your search for a position in arts admin." with the boss' thanks.

Talking to people in the industry, which as you might imagine, means I've heard a lot of opinions, and taking time to reflect is helping me reach some decisions. I've said that friends get fustrated that I'm being used and not being paid and I say well I'm getting valuable experience. This is true but it seems that there is a culture of artists and others in the industry doing a lot of admin and "dirty work" like marketing themselves that they have no desire to do. I imagine in times of success they pay people to do this but in lean times anyone able and willing does it and for no pay, the longer it goes on the more bad feeling it creates. So the long term may be continue to volunteer until everyone else drops out, or I could just be carving a niche as that helpful girl we don't need to pay, and then people expect it of me. So I need to trim my volunteer work. Keep active and have a profile but not prioritise it as I have been doing. 

Also I need to get more paid work. At the present just take more agency work and far more fundementally look at how I am presenting myself. 

I've tried to do this wisely but now I look back and see the error of my ways. My last feedback felt harsh but what I realise is everyone else worded it kindly, which meant really no lessons learned. 

I need to circumvent prejudices about large organisations, the civil service and talk more about my real day to day experience, I need to talk about my volunteer experience and passion and make all of this businesslike. My marketing has got me volunteer positions and thats what it has suited. When I graduated in 1996 it took me nearly a year to get a volunteer position so I must see this as a success. Although the world may just have changed but I've decided to take the credit.

So I am going to write for my kindred's spirits website. I am going to start the art club like a book club. I'll flesh that out when I have that defined precisely, and I'm going to pursue work that does not detract too much from what I want to do. It may be that that will be it and I won't do much more than what I have started and I'll be using my spare time or more accurately using up all my waking hours, but that should weather the storm of this economic situation and make me able to apply for the jobs when they reappear, or I'll just be happy with that. 

That's the new plan of attack.

Jen