Entrance

Entrance

Well, I was planning about now to do a big post about my exciting upcoming solo exhibition in Manchester next month … except that the venue has – suddenly and without warning – gone out of business.  So, there we go.

I’d already had some really nice frames made (from Jack at Creative Recycling) so if anyone was thinking of buying a print and would like a cheap framing deal just drop me a line.

Also, apologies to all the people who took flyers for the show.  Quite a lot went out and I don’t have any other way of passing on the news.

O Ano da Morte de José Saramago

Very sad to learn of the death of José Saramago.  I’ve actually just been going through a big phase of reading his work, and I suppose it’s a selfish sort of sadness to suddenly become aware that the remaining little stack of his books awaiting my attention will only ever get smaller now.

Anyway, if you haven’t already then now is the time to head out and find yourself copies of Blindness, The Gospel According to Jesus Christ, The Double, The Stone Raft, All The Names et al…

One-woman mosh pit

Pick

This is the fate that befalls all of Kat’s picks sooner or later…

Music on the Curry Mile

Under The Apple Tree

Apple Tree

Admire the honesty…

Bad Coffee

What has Steve sent me this time?

Housekeeping

Just a quick note to say that I hope you’ve made it here from the old blog.  The move didn’t happen terribly smoothly and the notification didn’t seem to come through for feed subscribers, for which I apologise, and in the process I also seem to have lost most of the comments that were left on old posts.  Again, sorry if your contribution have been lost.

I’m currently going through and tidying up old posts, adding tags etc… and there’ll probably be some changes to the look of the new blog too.  Once that’s all sorted I’ll have some new pictures to show you…

Sloe Learner

Snow

Just a digi-snap of what it looks like out the back of my house at the moment. -18C last night, and quite a shock for these usually temperate parts! You know something unusual is happening when people are building igloos in South Manchester…

Being snowbound – and the turn of the year, natch – tends to induce reflection about the year just gone. And, for me, the biggest thing about 2009 was upping sticks and moving to my new house. It’s been strange to move much closer to the centre of Manchester, and simultaneously feel like I can have a quasi-rural experience thanks to the huge areas of open country, woods and river just out my back door… One of the products of this has been sloe gin:

Sloes

A lot of people had bottles of this for Christmas from me this year! As well as the sloes that grow everywhere I’ve also been able to pick – either growing wild or at communal orchards – apples, pears, blackberries, gooseberries, plums, damsons, cherries and hazelnuts. Hopefully there’ll be lots more of this in 2010…

And, as for the whole photography thing… I know 2009 has been, for various reasons, a bit lean in terms of new work, but this year will definitely see a conclusion to the Radium Street project, and at some point some pictures from new series that I’m working on starting to appear here.

Gayn Gone

Getting Later

Goodbye to science lady and model extraordinaire Gaynor – Manchester will be that little bit more gray in your absence.

PS/ thanks to all the bands and everyone who braved the weather and came to the Stray Light. It was a good night.

Xmas Invite

Kings Arms