Categories: and-another-thing, general-stuff
Date: 13 January 2012 11:56:50
Wowsers. Don't know where to start.
Well, the good, how about that?
I was made half redundant. So that's mixed news. And it wasn't a redundancy, per se, just a 'readjustment' of my working hours. So I'm now 2 days a week instead of 4.
Except I'm still in on 4 days because of my timetable: Mon for an hour, Tues for an hour and a half, Thurs all day, Friday morning.
So that's the good news, in as much as I'm very excited to see what comes next. Scared, yes, but excited.
To balance, how about some less good news. Was VERY sad to see the WYAC, the youth arts centre I managed for 6 years, shut down by Surrey County Council as one of their series of closures of youth, disabled and elderly services. It's a sad loss and I'll do a longer post about that later.
Back to good! Last year, shortly around the time I stopped updating the blog, I was asked to host a space at the World Skills Festival on behalf of my college and the students, focusing on iPad and mobile artwork. It was a HUGE endeavour, the week before and the week of the show both clocking in at 100 hour plus working weeks and that's before we even get to the finance, organising, logistics. Truth to tell I was utterly tired for a month after. But it was amazing and the students and I demoed digital artwork to over 10,000 people. More on that to follow too.
The week after? (Still good news) I was asked to do a similar something at the London International Technology Show.
And then Christmas is a bit of a blur, really. On the bad side just about everyone I knew was ill with colds or bugs or worse but we still managed to have our traditional two Christmas dinners over two days (long story) and a lot of fun on or around.
This week? I'm at BETT the huge Educational Trade Show at London Olympia for two days demoing digital artwork, next week meeting up with Mia Robinson of IAMDA, Shaun Mullen and Valerie Beeby which'll be lovely. Then it's private viewing of the Hockney exhibition (VERY excited about that, loved the Paris show) and then prepping for a children's workshop series in Feb. As well as all the normal teachey stuff like marking and UCAS and exams and all sorts. Oh, and a month long exhibition at the BAr Des Arts of 2nd years for a week, first years for a week and then teachers for a week. Also getting ready to be at the Learning Without Frontiers seminars too which is... next week or the one other, can't remember.
Also: very excited to have some work exhibited at the Grove, San Francisco in the Art Rage exhibition. And a piece in the MacWorld/iWorld show in association with Nomad. But on the bad news side: I'd love to be at MacWorld but the time isn't there at all (nor, really, the funds for an American jaunt, not just yet). There in spirit and I'll be watching the show unfold from a distance.
Oh yeah! I also won Nomad Brushes inaugural digital art competition! That deserves a post later as well I think.
But as for now I need a coffee before the next class. Just thought I'd post to prove I'm still alive (at the moment0).