A 2023 Review (Madeleine memories)

Memories Are Made Of This

The year 2023 had a quite gloomy start for the art scene. The coldest Winter for several years, combined with a 'cost of living crisis', and ACE funding slashed for many UK arts organisations, left the arts community feeling quite bruised.

Promotional image for the madeleine zine, with a list of contributors (including myself)

My initial sense of artistic salvation came via Mastodon, the Fediverse micro blogging service that I joined last year (see previous post). On this site, I discovered a lively arts and writing community. The latter led me to re-start reading a book that had been lying idle on my shelves, called The Artists Way. Whilst this book isn't really about contemporary art, it is all about turning on the creativity tap and restarting the flow of creative output. When I found a few writers talking about it online, I decided to give the process another go. This led me to try out the 'morning pages' exercises, to get my creativity restarted. 

My aim was to create more artwork but I soon spotted a writing opportunity that was just up my street. It was to write a short piece for a one-off zine on the topic of memories and comics, which was also fundraising for dementia support. I loved my experience of comics fandom many years ago, when I was actively part of it, and the fundraising aspect tied in with my experience of having become a carer for a parent with dementia.

There's more I could write about that but, to keep my piece simple, I started at the point where two UK fandom subcultures first overlapped in my life. That ended up being about 900 words about the way the science fiction and comics communities were interlinked and how that was important to my memories of the comics boom of the 90's. As a bonus, I found myself listed with several comics creators I admire, including Paul B. Rainey - a Milton Keynes comics artist who took a trajectory to fame in 2023, after his dystopian domestic drama proved a hit with reviewers. 

The zine project, called 'madeleine' (a reference to Proust's madeleine memory), was a project led and designed by Simon Russell, an artist/designer posting on Mastodon and Instagram. As well as rounding up 28 writers*, Simon created a successful funding campaign on Kickstarter, which found 108 backers. With Simon in charge of the editing and design, eventually the zine project turned into a small, smart-looking book. After deducting printing and postage costs, Simon was able to donate £411.19 to Alzheimer's Research UK. 

My personal 2023 domestic drama was an experience of recovering from burnout. More about that in the next post. 

Click here for more about the Kickstarter madeleine zine project.

* Madeleine was made by Brad Brooks: Nick Bryan: Dan Butcher: Dan Charnley: Lee Christien: Ben Clark; Eamonn Clarke; David Cranna; Oliver East; Hannah Eaton; Shari Emerson; Tony Esmond; Martin Feekins; Sam Hardacre; Alan Henderson; Nic Ho Chee; Paul Hudson; ILYA; Guy Lawley; Iestyn Pettigrew; Alan Purdie; Paul B. Rainey; Suzanna Raymond; Simon Russell; Jon Sapsed; Dez Skinn; Giovanni Spinella; Myfanwy Tristram.
* The book has been edited, designed and illustrated by Simon Russell

The Woolly Elephant in the Room

Migration

Mastodon 2022 logo design 
By Eugen Rochko & other Mastodon contributors
 https://blog.joinmastodon.org/, AGPL,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=120470930

November 2022 is turning out to be period of rapid change and a questioning of power structures. Whilst a lot of the US was focused on political campaigns, there was also a test of boundaries on social media as the Twitter platform reacted to the new owner's radical and mercurial attempts to reshape it. What he couldn't control was whether the users approved and continued to use the site. 

Like many, I felt that Twitter was nearing a point where it may collapse, after many important staff were laid off or resigned. That led to many questioning whether it was worth hanging on what started to be dubbed 'the hellsite'. As a result, many looked to other alternatives and one new option started to get a lot of traction - the Mastodon federated server site, or 'fediverse', of networked online communities. 

What Next?

With so much up in the air, what does this mean for artists, museums and galleries, online collaborations and so on, that used Twitter as a key publicity and campaign tool?

Ultimately, I suggest that it means a period of upheaval and uncertainty but I see a new, positive community spirit emerging on Mastodon. Questions remain on how artists and galleries will network on that platform, as it has no clear focal point yet, whilst still keeping their other accounts alive.

Even as and when Twitter burns down, many useful links have been formed on that site and no-one should leave it until too late to note their key contacts, just in case their favourite faces aren't on Instagram or the like. If you're unsure how to make the transition, there are lots of guides about by now and tools like Debirdify, Fedifinder or Twitodon produce a spreadsheet for you, which you upload to Mastodon to follow everyone on it automatically.

We adapted to the rise of Meta (Facebook/Instagram), YouTube and TikTok without too much complaint since 2004/2010, so I think that where there's a will there's a way and I hope for great things.

You can find me with my new woolly friend at ohai.social/@srfirehorseart

The srfirehorseart profile on Mastodon.

Self-care in Creativity & Wellbeing Week 2022

The Self-care Learning Curve.

Self-care is often understood as a support package that we manage and construct for ourselves. When it's treated as a luxury, we may reward ourselves for our hard work by spending money on ourselves with a meal out, an expensive treat or a holiday. At least, that's how I viewed it until my world changed with three events that redefined my life. 

Fallen tree, 2020. (Black ink on paper)

Firstly, my part-time job with a local charity came to an end, due to funding cuts. As I'd been using that role to pay my bills, whilst I figured out a way to support myself from arts work and plan flexible breaks to support my health, that was disappointing. Most part-time jobs appeared to be mainly geared around working parents, which wasn't the arrangement I was hoping for, so I wasn't feeling optimistic about finding a replacement easily. 

Soon after, I became an unpaid carer when it became apparent that my mum needed help to look after herself. That, in itself, is a long story for another time. As a result I started to look for support for carers and ways to maintain my mental health as I adjusted to my new role. Locally I registered with Carers MK and went to Age UK Milton Keynes for legal advice. At this point I was still hopeful that I could learn how to balance a care role with some freelance arts work, though I wasn't clear how to make that happen.

Finally, the COVID19 pandemic hit the UK, just as my most recent sketchbooks went on display in the MK Calling 2020 exhibition at MK Gallery. The increased risk to my health and upheaval, together with a lack of funding support for freelancers, upset all my plans for urban sketching and community events, as we collectively locked down and readjusted to pandemic life. Whilst some people threw themselves into home baking, I started an occasional sketch journal over on Instagram.

Two years of learning how to live in a changed world. personally and professionally, have given me a new perspective on self-care. This includes day to day support and a new attitude to paid and unpaid work commitments. Here are my revised top tips for self-care ...

My top 4 tips for self-care:

1. Self-care is an essential, not a luxury. If you pass up early opportunities to care for yourself when you have minor health or welfare concerns, they will eventually grow into major problems. At its most basic, it can be as simple as remembering to give yourself breaks, drink some more water and have an early night. At the networking level, it could involve seeking out help and information from charities, support groups and professionals.
2. Ask for help. No-one is going to know you need support if you struggle on in silence. If you leave it until you're in a major crisis before you speak up then you may not get the help in time. Ask for help from friends, family, support groups or services. For example, carers (especially live-in carers) are advised to plan 'respite breaks' - these can be anything from a couple of hours to see a friend and relax away from their caring role, or it may be a week away, if they can get the support for that long. 
3. It takes a village. The saying "It takes a village to raise a child" also applies to public avenues for support - in the community, from your employers/collaborators and from public bodies. If you're trying to carry the whole world on your shoulders, continuous work without a break will drain you until you make yourself ill. Better to learn to spread the load early on and say 'no' a few people or situations that no longer support your aims, than collapse suddenly from the strain of trying to please everyone all of the time. 
4. Know your worth. Potential clients or employers may want you to work for a lower price, more hours or for exposure but you need to value yourself more highly. You have unique skills, experience and perspectives. If you are still learning how to negotiate and market yourself, look on social media for tips and active support groups. There's lots of free advice that's tailored to freelancers and artists, just take the time to find the best fit for your situation. E.g. art opps on Instagram - I share some in my Stories

Creative Respite?

This week I was reminded that it's "Creativity & Wellbeing Week 2022" when my request to join a related Facebook group was approved. If you're looking for creative events or ideas for activities in the UK, this may be a good place to start. If you can't make any of these activities, it's still worth using them as inspiration for days out or breaks when you've more time to spare.

The week's theme, according to their website - 

"Creativity and Wellbeing week is a partnership between London Arts in Health Forum and the Culture, Health & Wellbeing Alliance. It is an open festival where we encourage anyone who wants to host an event focused on culture, arts and wellbeing to join us in the programme."

Creativity & Wellbeing project events web page: https://creativityandwellbeing.org.uk/all-events/ 
Search on Twitter for #CreativityandWellbeingWeek

See more of my art on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/srfirehorseart/