I have started. It has begun. A time of studying. Self led work. Studying the things I choose in my own way with people I choose as peers, mentors and friends. I have finally given myself permission to be an artist. To explore the things that call to me and discover the things I do not yet know exist. I am here to be open and learn and commit.
I have worked for 10 years as a performer and maker in theatre, dance and outdoor arts. I have loved the interactive nature of the work, the people who have become my theatre family, the travelling to new places and returning to known places, being challenged by audiences, being supported and enjoyed by audiences, sharing joy and silliness with so many people, growing as a performer and as a person, learning and playing endlessly. But I am tired now. My body feels battered, my energy depleted, my ideas for how I want to live and contribute to the world we live have changed. I want to share and work in a different way. A way that is less harsh on my body and on my energy resource. A way that brings nature and our environment into focus for myself and for others. A way that allows me to flourish creatively but also means I can survive financially. “Is this possible?” I have asked myself many times. I am determined to make it so. I have been inspired by so many artists. I see their commitment to their work, their openness to play and to see new possibilities in the world and ways of thinking. And to make things happen. It is often not a choice to do what they do, it is a necessity. This time to study is necessary for me. I am so grateful that I am able to make this opportunity real.
“I am investing in building a creatively fulfilling life with an
energetically sustainable and financially secure future.“
And so I have begun my self-determined work. Over the next year I am engaging in a selection of modules in ‘Land, Body and Art'. I will explore various interests whilst holding a grounding in environmental learning and body/movement practices. Two key modules, Forest School Leader Level 3 and a Diploma in Holistic Massage form the basis for my practical examined learning. I will also participate in movement workshops, mountaineering training, environmental learning and drawing courses.
Alongside this more formal learning, I will be doing daily and weekly self-led practices in movement/writing/drawing. I will read. I will go on artist residencies, which will allow focus and space for making in different wild locations. I am aiming that there will be a body of work to show at the end of the period. I don’t know what form this will take. It feels important to have no expectation or intention for that. This blog is to share my journey and to document the work and my experiences. Thank you for joining me on the journey.
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Beginnings
Skin, muscle, bone
New faces
New bodies
New people
New focus
Beginnings
We begin alone yet together, our journey
Into touch
We sit with legs outstretched
Touching
Exploring, playing, watching, learning
Feeling the sensations we create for ourselves
Draped with a sheet
“Draping is an art form”
And now in partners
Legs
And
Backs
Flowing hands and forearms
Fingers and thumbs
Kneading tissue
Sculpt feather and flow
Tap tap, percussion on the landscape of my partner’s back
Fade to light strokes
Melting down the spine
Palms pressed outwards, skin stroked and muscles tendered
Finding the bits between bones
Working into them
Unknowing
What I will find
Touching the face
Flat thumbs stroke the forehead
Finger tips light on the temples.
Circling
Upside down mouth
Cheek stroke and skin stretch
Oil smoothing and easing
The journey of touch
Focussed
Connecting
Skin, muscle, bone.
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