Tuesday 19 Sept 2006

I received copies of the contracts today and the Artist's Brief. I am a little concerned as to the area I am dealing with; whether it is just Northlands Park or the whole neighbourhood. I will await clarification before signing. Yesterday I found a delightful publication in Oxfam called the East Anglian Magazine dated October 1955. I also want to get Betjeman's writings on England and W.G.Sebald's 'Rings of Saturn' to use as source material for the Basildon publication. I got very excited yesterday by the idea of installing a container onto Northlands Park to be my site office and a place where residents could come in and see what was happening. Did I say this already yesterday? I imagined it getting graffittied. Or maybe it would maintain it's white gloss sheen and radiate an ethereal presence? It could also be where the Big Brother style Diary Room could be. But there are of course issues of electricity, toilets, security. This morning I got even more excited about the idea of creating an allotment patch, bang slap in the middle of the park. It would be an honesty allotment. Anyone could come and work on it and anyone could pick the fruit and veg. of course in reality it would most likely end up either neglected or trashed. But wouldn't it be worth trying it to see, Maybe it wouldn't. Maybe people would love it? Of course you might then end up with the problem of some people getting very involved and working a lot on it and being resentful if people turn up very occassionally but share the produce? Still no photos as my man wasn't able to come over today after all. Maybe Thursday. Commissions east called. Everything is cool, so all stations go. Also, I ran the idea of the container by Joanna and she liked it and thought it could most certainly be possible. She also liked the idea of the allotment. Excellent. To buy a 10ft container costs £950, or they can be hired for £1.50 a day. I think I would buy it and then eitheroffer itto Northlands Park to keep; theycould use it for futre artist-in-residence posts, or I would sell it or have it craned onto my allotment in Norwich? Great. Felt very bupoyant after speaking to Joanna. I tink the container is a great idea as it will provide a public point of focus for the project. I could have a letter box and invite people to drop in drawings, photos, stories pictures which can A be put up inside and B be possible material for the publication. I could also create a link with a local school, to whom I could fax all the latest info that needs to be chalked up onto the blackboard which could be one whole wall of the container. And if I could harness some volunteers to be able to man it when I'm not there, so that it is open to the public at specific times. It would provide a meeting point for the outdoor events and a place to store the materials and the place from which to launch the publication. If residents are part of the ongoing process of the project as it develops I have a much better chance of them attending the workshops and events and of creating material for the publication. And it would personalise the project; I wouldn't be some fleeting external presence but would have a base, even if I can't be in it that much.