Why the postman won’t be worried about today’s piece
Another miraculous silk purse from a sow’s ear – no that is not the right metaphor. There must be a saying that sums up finding a sapphire ring in a pig pen. Another fine sapphire from a pig pen! This morning, for the first time, I was wishing I had never started this project. I was down in the dumps with no confidence and an idea for today’s piece that I really didn’t have any faith in when I had a little idea just pop in and immediately I jumped up and created something pretty special and something which caused me to do some prep for some other things as well as deciding to develop some other work from it. I have no idea where it came from and it was sort of a cheating way to make the idea that wasn’t going to work (and which I would have spent a lot of time on before accepting that it wasn’t any good) have a speedier and easier resolution. Then it just took off and I knew immediately it was going to work and was worth the effort. All that was said in one excited breathless breath!
Anyway the postman who is supposed to be a fan is on holiday: thus the exchange above!
I popped into Bridport Arts Centre today to buy some tickets and was told that the postman had said I would have to reduce the amount of writing on the outside of the envelope – it is holding him up on his round reading it! So today I put a little hello to the post people to thank them for the good work they do. Just like I used “gotten” the other day to better fill the space, today I have used “postperson” instead of “postie”, the non-gender-specific term I decided on some time back, because it looked better visually.
As you can see the printer problem has returned with a bang and we have Violet Lines appearing again. I’m going to play with some photos before I make it go away.
I could pretend that I was surprised and deeply upset that the special #Letter365 box in the Bridport Arts Centre foyer had disappeared when I went to deliver No103 by hand. The truth is that Polly had been kind enough to let me know in advance that another installation was using that space for a few weeks and a very interesting array it is too!
The email Polly sent
So I had to post this piece into the hands of lovely Dee, who finally appears in a picture with enough of her face showing to be recognisable. You will note the worsening state of the printer errors front of the envelope. My annotation about it on the back appears below:
Lovely Dee tries to hide behind my Postage Due payment
Having forgotten the stamp on yesterday’s #Letter365 I thought it only right to pay the fine so I made a special envelope for the payment and dropped it in to Bridport Arts Centre so they would not be out of pocket. Lovely Dee Fenton, who for some unknown reason hates to be photographed, tried to hide behind the envelope but I snapped her when she peeked round the side!
Seems like the postie that delivers to the Arts Centre is on the ball he noticed there was one missing when I popped it in the special box myself.
David Smith posts No58 into the special box at Bridport Arts Centre
Clearly we are going to run out of space with this box as we always knew we would, but it’s great to have it there at the Arts Centre as a talking point. I’ll get some cards printed with details of how to buy to fit in the little holder at the side.
As we were going to the theatre tonight anyway (to see the cracking Miracle Theatre’s “The Case of the Frightened Lady”) I thought I would deliver it personally and save a stamp.
The new #Letter365 box has arrived! Polly Gifford, Director of Bridport Arts Centre, emailed me yesterday to tell me she had taken delivery of the new perspex container for my #Letter365 pieces to be collected and displayed. The box is going to be installed tomorrow in the foyer of the Arts Centre next to the box office along with information about the project as it progresses. Hopefully it will become and remain a talking point and help to create interest and momentum. So thanks Polly and sorry that the team will have to walk a little further to store each letter!
I started on today’s piece quite early this morning as I was going to be out all day. I am glad I did because I was out longer than expected and got a bit hijacked by other events. My car is a bit poorly and I thought it best not to drive to Dorchester today, so it took a bit of extra time out of the day, especially as it was quite late on the way back. What with everything else (including a nice Curry at the Taj Mahal) it was gone 9pm before I got to the studio again. Fortunately I was pretty happy with it and just needed to make a few adjustments before packaging it up and posting it (in the drizzle)
No53 goes in the box with hints about its contents and a little slightly poetic message on the envelope
It’s only fair that people who will only see this on the internet will not be disadvantaged, should they be interested in buying it, compared to someone who might see it physically at the Arts Centre for example. This one is fatter than average! So fat that I was worried that it might not go through the little 5mm slot that says you can pay ordinary letter rate and so left off the sealing wax except for a tiny bit at the edges where it’s a little thinner.
No53 has only a small dab of sealing wax at each side
Of course it could be a very tiny and thin work that I have wrapped up with stiff, thick material to protect it. Whatever it is I like it very much and for anyone who likes my work this would be a good one to pitch for. I’m going to post a couple of other works that I completed today on my David Smith Artist blog – these will not be anything like this #Letter365 piece so that will help you guess what area this might be in!
Polly tries the double rabbit but it comes out a bit goatish, while Christopher’s cock pheasant and calf’s foot get obliterated
Clearly inspired by my recent successes with shadows that look like a rabbit holding a credit card between its ear and its nose, Polly Gifford and Christopher Winter went for high-scoring but difficult counter responses as #Letter365 No36 is delivered at tonight’s PV of Christopher’s solo show. at Bridport Arts Centre. Polly’s attempt at the double rabbit unfortunately has ended up with goatish features, while Christopher’s quite radical rendition of the cock pheasant and calf’s foot – a combination rarely seen these days – has been obliterated by a square shape presumably conjured from the spirit worlds.
This was directly following Christopher giving a séance performance in which he channelled Picasso who did some drawings using Christopher’s hand to guide the pen.
Christopher Winter preparing to channel Picasso
Berlin-based Christopher has channelled the drawing talents of many dead artists, starting with Hans Holbein the Younger. The table at which he is seated takes its inspiration from the perspectivally-distorted, foreshortened skull in Holbein’s painting The Ambassadors. Winter’s work is one in which the seemingly mundane and day-to-day is disturbed and distorted by random, etherial oddities so it was only fitting that when he graciously agreed to deliver today’s #Letter365 piece he should aim for it to levitate into Polly’s hands.
Christopher Winter levitates #Letter365 No36 into Polly Gifford’s hands
Oh dear Bridport Arts Centre had to pay for the pleasure of collecting No33
It’s brilliant that Bridport Arts Centre has given me the opportunity to do this #Letter365 project, but I don’t suppose they thought they would have to wander round to the sorting office and cough up cash to take delivery of my daily offering!
With my son and his wife staying I hoped to get my #Letter365 piece finished and away early so we could spend the day together. Good idea but slightly scuppered by finding my camera – my special #Letter365 camera – with a flat battery. So there was a pause while that charged up and somehow…well stuff happens. Worse thing is we ended up coming into town and could have delivered it by hand. C’est la vie!
The yellow ink has just about run out as well as the magenta, but I guess there’s not much to be gained from any more as the cyan and black are pretty full!
The keen-eyed may spot that they have found the TUES day marker on the post box.
An unfolding artwork created a piece each day for a year
