Welcome to Sunny Gorton / Coping with Covid

 I actually got Covid-19. I suppose it was just a matter of time. The illness stopped me working on my artwork for more than 4 weeks and I missed uni so much. I did however, manage to plan my making for once I felt better. I also attended online talks where I could listen and take notes without too much effort!

Now I am ready for the actual 'making'. I have been on campus twice but just for a couple of hours to build up to full time again.

My main project is called 'Welcome to Sunny Gorton'. I grew up in Gorton, East Manchester from birth to age 15. This is a memory of a large wall near my Gran's flat which had these words painted 5 foot high in white paint. Very crude and basic but memorable. It stayed there for my whole childhood. I can only assume someone refreshed the paint over the years. No one every grafittied over it and the irony made me smile every time I saw it, even at a very young age. 

I would like to paint the words on the campus wall in washable paint when we have our degree show. My decision is whether I ask the estates staff for permission or just go ahead then clean it off! Until then I have mocked up an image with the works (see below).

Mock up of planned graffiti - replica of wall in Gorton 1970s/80s

My project will revolve around my childhood in Gorton, Manchester. I seem to want to recreate this time in my artwork. I have been wondering why I want to re-live this time from the past. I wonder if it's because I moved to Australia age 15 and I missed 'sunny Gorton' a lot. When experiencing homesickness I think you view the place with rose tinted sunglasses. We also had to leave most of our possessions behind and were only allowed to take a few items. This could also explains my obsession with replacing these items from E-bay and charity shops! 

My other theory is we live in such a different time. The stories and experiences from those childhood days seem in a completely different world. I want to preserve these narratives so they are not forgotten. I also, maybe selfishly want to make art for myself and I think I take comfort from recreating these childhood days.

Making Plan for Welcome to Sunny Gorton:

Pleasureland Film - recreating a children's trip with Abbey Hey Working Men's Club (in Gorton) to Southport (a seaside town in the North West England). My sister and I were left there by mistake for the whole day on our own and couldn't find our way back to the coach. We were age 10 and 5 and although I was only 5 it is etched on my mind. I will use family cine film, stills from 1970s Southport and recreated footage to create the film. I will also narrate the story on the audio (in my voice/accent).
My inspiration is the film my Tracey Emin (b.1963) 'Why I Never Became a Disco Dancer' (1995). This film has stuck with me since I saw it, its honesty makes it so powerful and she is recording a past which seems unbelievable now.

Pleasureland Fairground in Southport, England (circa 1970)

Running Away (circa 1979) - Assemblange - I am recreating the bag I packed when I ran away age 7. I travelled on my Grifter bike to another part of Gorton, to my Gran's flat. This was quite a distance, across very busy roads and I'd never done the journey on my own before. My children think this is a shocking story, I travelled alone age 7 and didn't pack any clothes or snacks for me!
I am recreating the bag I packed which was a small red suitcase, its not the original but I have found one exactly the same. Inside I packed my Kendal Doll (I have the original), her clothes and a hairbrush. I think I want to add a made object to this artwork but I have not yet decide what this will be. 

Red case, replica of my original case from 1979, bought on E-Bay

Inspiration

During my weeks of illness I watched a really inspiring live interview with Tracey Emin by David Rimanelli via the WhiteCube Gallery website. I took 6 pages of notes, she was so generous with her knowledge and gave great insight into the meaning of her works. I find her work a great inspiration for my own practice, may be due to my age. I have followed her whole career and I feel I understand her stage of life quite well although she is a little older than me.

Tracey Emin and Munch exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts (2021)