Thursday, July 31, 2008

Animated Spray

Ello again !
Here is a nice animated film of moving graffiti art by a Brazilian artist called BLU and here is his film called MUTO
Hope you enjoy it , its a bit weird sometimes but i like the fact that everything is painted image by image
Love
S3

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Let us spray

Dear sistars,
hereby i send you a collage of pictures from just one bustling day in London town.
Bus, parks, oford circus,sound interactive sparkly light sculptures, wizards and tunnel art galleries ?
I wasnt expecting that last one but it was a pleasant suprise to find a huge unused tunnel filled with multi coloured happy scribbles and professional stencils. Apparently Banksy was behind it all and he is a clever lad and i like his pictures.
He is as famous as the queen here in London and as we went past one of his wall works with the night bus , nearly the whole bus started screaming "Banksy, its Banksy! Look! "
Spray art is really in at the moment , even the whole front of the Tate modern is covered with giant paintings.
In any case its a lot of fun and i enjoy the bright colours.
This tunnel was very impressive
Hope you enjoy the pictures.
Love S3













Sunday, July 27, 2008

The Delightful Smells of Antwerp & Summer Prospect

Dear Sisters,
Taking L's helpful comment cue, if you press here you will see a webcam on the national maritime school showing a view of Antwerp from across the river. I like the wriggling bushes, it doesn't seem real. Maybe it's a trick! But if you go back regularly you will see the river falls and rises, just like a mood. On windy days you can smell the sewage Brussels has dumped in.

On other days it smells more sweetly. On all days it is a place of solace and of rest, I think because the eye does well to have a horizon to gaze upon and this is the next best thing to being by the sea. In the distance you see windmills and churches and you wonder what time you are in. Antwerp really maintains some of its 16th/17th century charm. If you know where to find it. I hear it in the bells that sound a little ditty tune every fifteen minutes or so, outside my window; of which more, later.

Especially beautiful on the river is when you see the seagulls floating backwards on the current as the sunlight flickers off its ripply surface; lots of interlocking, simultaneous and different movements.

For some reason these days Antwerp smells like tar. I don't know where it is coming from. I went to the park yesterday - testing my ace new second hand bicycle - which is near the ring and smelt the fine dust of diesel wafting over which disturbed me in my reclining mode whilst I was studying the bugs crawling over me in the sweet smelling moist and bushy ultragreen grass. I then moved on, amongst the trees, and there the air and breeze enveloped me most peacefully as I was riding high amongst the leaves.

Today I am sitting peacefully upon my window's ledge on two cushions piled high and careful not to fall down, working on a text, it is so nice to get paid to read interesting things, and at times observing the microcosm of other people's lives in the gardens below. I have a view of two couples who very clearly really love each other. This is nice! Looking forward to sharing some Normandy views with you.
Love from S2




This is a picture from another city that has bitten me, and won't seem to let go. It is taken on the Galata bridge, over the Golden Horn in Istanbul. When you look to your left you see Europe. On your right you see Asia, with its golden domes of mosques all over the hills ablaze in the setting sunlight. Many a person has lost their heart to this city and I am also not immune. Tot ziens zussen!

Thursday, July 24, 2008

colourful tendencies

Dearest sisters,
Here is the information for the London show I have made a piece for: The Urban Tendency. In two and a half days in a huge former concrete testing bunker I did my thing on a wall and tried out some tricks with lights and mirrors. It was fun! A lot of white spirit was used, and the lights, they were a-trembling. Lots of other artists did their thing fabulously too, as did, and does, one long-suffering curator. Definitely worth it.

S3, you can go and see it until August 9th. It is opposite Madame Tussaud's only the queues are much shorter (none! fancy that?); it's at Baker Street Tube. Tell me what you think, yes? Can you get some pictures of the top bit, on the ledge? My photos are not satisfactory. Thank you...

All my love to you both, from a sunny A.
S2

Thursday, July 17, 2008

whale watching (and other fish) in Monterey

From the other side of the world, S1

And, yes, in answer to your question, we did see whales, and dolphins. You will have to take my word for it. At that point I was supporting my daughter who was kneeling down, clutching the side of the bucket her head was in. It was choppy.















Rise festival in Finsbury Park





Jigsaw Puzzle






Dear sistars

No news is good news, well thats my excuse.
I am doing alright.Have arrived safely on the island and am living in a little czech house in the prairy in London. Its quite strange, i thought i was escaping this difficult czech language but no! It is following me everywhere, ach jo do pytle !
London is fine as far as i can see, lots of bustle, buses, colours and Charity shops.
Have already purchased a new pair of second hand Jigsaw trousers ( its a dangerous city ) and am trotting down fashionable posh streets, handing in cv´s here and there.
Have already got three interviews in my Jigsaw pockets and it looks like i will be working in Starbukks or an Italian drinks bar with big paintings on the wall in West Hampstead.I will let you know how it all goes!
On sunday there was a big anti racism music festival in Finsbury park and we werent the only ones to turn up, another 10100 spectators popped by !
It was sunny and everyone looked very happy so it was a good event. Jimmy Cliff sang the reggae classic song " You can get it if you really want.." so that is now our new summer motto tune that we hum everywhere to motivate us for everything, it really works so i can reccomend this tune.
Yeti is no longer the hairy mountain man i once knew, instead he has transformed into Jean Paul but is still quite charming in his hairless way. I hereby send you a mosaiek of photos of my first impressions of London. All my Love and looking forward to seeing you soon!
S3

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Monkey Business

On my wall there is an empty space.







The Three Monkeys (painted after this photograph) have a new home. We went to celebrate by going to watch Obludarium, a pleasure inflicted upon us by remote control by S3, thank you. The amazing Forman Brothers are camped by the river Scheldt for the Zomer van Antwerpen festival for the the lucky inhabitants of the city who managed to secure tickets for one of the 40 sold-out shows.

I don’t want to give too much away of this Fellini-esque extravaganza of sheer mastery which breathes everything of a past time yet brings it so into the present with humor and absurdity. There was a bearded lady, a flopping mermaid, a rotating floor, a giant puppet show, a woman in a tutu on a horse with a loud cracking whip, and, most fittingly, a set of three “Czech Big Heads’ who came in from the mountains, and wouldn’t keep still, kept dithering off or looking up at the onlookers in amazement. I could watch it a thousand times. Their movements were so hilarious and subtle. One of them looked like Deirdre, the librarian person that I often play to you, S3. We laughed ourselves to pieces upstairs as we sat there like royalty sipping from a bottle of cava surveying the tumbling scene.

They imitate freaks, and by doing so, become freaks. Something to think about. So lucky Antwerpians are to have them visit these shores.

Outside sparks flew: the blacksmith hammering away. If you gave him a kiss you received the prize. I got it; the first nail to my coffin, or my boat, whichever (maybe both?); I even got two, I keep looking at them on my desk; I am not quite sure what to do with this two-some.



On our way back, as I was dropping off home my gracious benefactor, I took a wrong turning, and there, the theatre continued: three drunks in a row, holding each other up, arm in arm, standing up and collapsing by turns, and wandering in and out of the headlights. The monkeys have a suitable home.

Much to do now: I think I can start building my boat.
Love to you both! Safe travels!
S2

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Soundtrack



This cd we dug up from under one of my car seats, dusted, and listened to for two days, driving down the windy lanes of sunny Sonoma county. It fitted very well.

S1

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

The nature bunnies are back on firm ground

















Dear sisters,

The three 30 foot campers, six adults, seven kids and coffee machine have left the road, much to the delight of the other road users I am sure. We are back after traveling for two weeks through California, with minimal damage. Just a little scraping on the bottom of one and the loss of the rear view mirror of another. Not bad, considering the miles of white knuckled driving along sheer dropping ravines.

From Yosemite, to June Lake, back through Yosemite, down past Fresno, with a surpise stop at Millerton Lake, up to Sequoia, back down through the Central Valley, across to Santa Barbara and up to Monterey, before driving back to SF. Big Sur was burning, so that was out unfortunately.

I am still processing the trip, so many landscapes in such a short time, all in one state. The one bigger than the other. "What a good job, Walt Disney has done on this one", we would quip through the walkie talkies, whilst driving in convoy. Our holiday was filled with humorous little exchanges like this.



Rv camping means being very happy see signs for dumping stations.

Each campground had it's own wild animal to be aware of. June Lake had the blonde bear that visited every night, making us sure every rattle or shake of the camper was him. Santa Barbara luxury rv resort had rattlesnakes. The Veterans Memorial Park in Monterey had an 'active mountain lion" on the loose. In the end we were not convinced it wasn't the campground owner prowling aorund in his blond bear suit, providing a bit of excitement for his guests.

Change of scenery may be as good as a rest, but less so with seven kids between five months and seven years. Not one book read this holiday, not one posting on the blog. We managed a lot of fierce territorial conflicts and shouted "eat your broccoli, or no ice-cream" a lot. It may not have helped that they were given the same interesting meal for seven days running, broccoli, wheat pasta, ketchup, and maybe a piece of chicken. The five month old Evie was the easiest of the lot. She smiled and gurgled all the way.

The men went off on their two night trip to Vegas, returning with no shame about their undisclosed losses. We, the women have now left the chaos of the household and have spent two very dignified days in the wine country, in the pool of our hotel in sleepy Sanoma, at the spa being covered in cedar enzymes for relaxation and, oops, there were the Napa premium outlet stores.

One day to get ready for flying back to Europe. You still have washing machines over there? I may not get it all done in time.

See you next week sisters. Looking forward.

S1

Friday, July 4, 2008

free at last

Dearest and Lovely Sisters,





The trial has passed and so have I, and Antwerp is sticky and hot. The air is thick with the sweetest Honey-Scent-of-Lime-Trees-that-I-Learned-To-Love-So-Much-in-Bucharest many years ago. Two little guests from Czech Republic sleep in my bed and I am enjoying the couch.





Looking forward to 'regroup' as they say in the USA and getting everything into a little row again as they say in Flanders, but quite frankly, I think I'll make it a circle. For now I have many commitments, so let's make that a gradually progressing spiral. It goes deep.

Take it from me: this is going to be a beautiful summer. Looking forward to see you.
Love from S2