Momentum

A busy week just passed for Nicola with everything gearing up towards the events next week.

On Monday 26th November Nicola will be doing a talk and presentation entitled "Can art be evidence?" as part of “SHARING KNOWLEDGE & INVOLVING ALL”, KNOWFIFE 4th RESEARCH FAIR 2007 at the Police Headquarters, Glenrothes, KY6 2RJ

Then Thursday 29th November 2007 will be the first in the series of CLOCK PEOPLE – PUBLIC ART GATHERING.

Clock People, is the first of four Public Art Gatherings in Abbeyview hosted by Nicola Atkinson Does Fly, currently the artist in residence in the community. We hope all will enjoy this multi-media extravaganza to explore the 'art of time'.

The theme for first gathering will be 'THE IMPORTANCE OF TIME'. Nicola Atkinson Does Fly will show public artworks that she has created in places such as Cuba and Bosnia, while introducing possibilities for the future of public art in Abbeyview.

Co-hosting the evening with Nicola will be John Cavanagh, who for the last 15 years has worked for BBC Radio Scotland and the World Service/Radio International. He currently purveys twisted pop radio programmes to listeners in Latvia and New Zealand from a cellar in Pollokshields.

Nicola has worked with Nick Fells on a soundscape about time. Nick is a composer, performer and sound artist. He works in acousmatic, soundscape, instrumental and vocal composition, installation, and music for visual media and dance. Much of his music combines computer technology with live performance, extending and enhancing performance possibilities. He teaches composition & electroacoustic music at the University of Glasgow.

John Cavanagh will read stories especially written for this gathering by Phillip Miller.

You are invited to discuss your idea about time, with Nicola and Alan Grieve, an artist from Abbeyview. All Welcome.


The next Public Art Gathering, entitled ‘What is Beautiful’, is on 17th January 2008 at 7.30pm

You are also invited to this next Public Art Gathering ‘What is Beautiful’ in the New Year at the Abbeyview Community Centre. Nicola with co-host this event with Ben Spencer. To celebrate the life of Moira Shearer King who was famous for dancing in the film 'The Red Shoes' (1948) and was born in Dunfermline then attended Dunfermline High School, Nicola will perform with Aby Vulliamy, a Musician based in Glasgow. All welcome once more.

Image © Sophia Pankenier

Gold Oak Tree

Image © Nicola Atkinson Does Fly

FUTURE AND BEYOND

The week beginning 5th November found Nicola having meetings not only involving the future up until March 2008 but also the future beyond March 2008. This is, therefor, a good time to give an overview of the art works that have taken place since June 2007 and those happening between now and the future.

Tweed Street (29th July - 30th Aug 2007)
The Tweed Street Tour focuses on D6/D5 bus route into Abbeyview from Dunfermline. As a starting point we asked the people who live on Tweed Street, this is one of the streets that line the route, to photograph the windows arrangements of the houses. The residents of Tweed Street were involved in the creation of the temporary artwork by Marisa Privitera. Nicola & Linsey Leitch installed the posters on streetlights all around Abbeyview advertising the Tweed Street Tour. Nicola, Marisa Privitera, Stuart Murdoch and Marisa's cousin, install the 40 images on the streetlights. The Abbeyview Council Local Service Centre's plasma screen also showed Tweed Street Tour images by Marisa Privitera to bring the project to the wider audience of the community who use the Centre.

Bird's Eye View ( Sept 2007 )
Pupils from Woodmill High School's higher music class worked on a new rendition of Stevie Jackson's song, "Bird's Eye View" into their music lessons in preparation for a live performance with Stevie. This version included a variety of different instruments to give the song a different feel than the original. These included some extra guitar parts, a bass guitar, violin, flute, percussion and a group of five singers instead of the original lone vocalist.

The Cabinet of Curiosities (ON TOUR)
8th Dec - 30th Jan: Fife Contemporary Art & Craft
6th - 30th Sept: Whitemill High School
25th - 30th August: 26 Bruce Street, Dunfermline

The Cabinet of Curiosities has been designed and built by carpenter Nick Millar, in collaboration with the SEE EYE team. Stevie Jackson, from Belle and Sebastian, gave a live performance of his two songs "Bird's Eye View" & "The Electric Box" that he composed for Abbeyview. Nicola Atkinson Does Fly was there to answer any questions.

Clock People (Public Art Gatherings)
All who will attend these events in Abbeyview Community Centre will experience various ideas on the notion and definition of public art, with a chance to freely discuss their opinions. Each of the evenings' discussions will be annotated and, as a conclusion to the exercise, form a report to determine the future of Public art in Abbeyview.

The Importance of Time. (Thurs 29th Nov @ 7pm ) Abbeyview Community Centre
Nicola Atkinson Does Fly shall co-host the first event with John Cavanagh. John has created music under the name Phosphene since 2000. For the last decade and a half he has work for BBC Radio Scotland, all the BBC networks from 1-5 and World Service/Radio International. He currently purveys twisted pop radio programmes to listeners in Latvia and New Zealand from a cellar in Pollokshields. Nicola will introduce her working practices and John will read stories by Phillip Miller, written especially for this event.

What is Beautiful? (Thurs 17th January 2008 @ 7.30pm) Abbeyview Community Centre
Nicola Atkinson Does Fly shall co-host with Ben Spencer. He is a freelance consultant advising on a wide range of organisations from the public and voluntary sectors on the development of art and architecture initiatives. Nicola will preform with Aby Vulliamy a Musician.

Flowers vs. Portraits. (Thurs 13th March 2008 @ 7pm) Abbeyview Community Centre
Nicola Atkinson Does Fly, Claire Barclay Artist & Clare Simpson, Senior Arts Development Officer for Culture and Sport, Glasgow.

R.A.D.A.R. Random And Dynamic Art Risks. This is a series of artworks with the brief of organically using the unforeseen happenings and inspiration while experiencing Abbeyview to create pieces of work. Luke Fowler has made a film & interviewed people in Abbeyview and Nicola Atkinson Does Fly & Sophia Pankenier has created hand-dawn images of K & K Factors from Her fascination of the shop on her time in Abbeyview. Claire Barclay Is inspired by the open air space of the place.

Quick Art (10th Oct 2007)
In collaboration with Nicola Atkinson Does Fly, Alan Grieve wrote his memories of the Abbeyview chip shop as a story on the pavement. Temporary public art is very effective in Abbeyview given that the immediate interaction of passers-by.

K & K Factors. (29th Nov 2007 – 17th Jan 2008)
The K&K Factors artwork developed out of Nicola Atkinson Does Fly and Sophia Pankenier shared fascination with the character, objects and stories crammed into the local Abbeyview hardware shop. Nicola engaged in discussion with the shop owners & people visiting it. The series of drawn products based on the pieces arranged for sale there. Sophia took the images away to document, explore, renew and subsequently install as another ´shop´ in New York. Nicola will installed her series of drawings in the hardware shop, selling them for the same price as the product. A limited edition of the book was created. This will be Launch in Abbeyview on Nov 29th 2007

(still to be named) (28th Feb 2008)
Luke Fowler has filmed the day & night activity in Abbeyview. Conversation with the residents has been part of his process. He will also spend time with the community wardens during their night walks. This will be shown in Abbeyview Community Centre.

(still to be named) 13th March 2008
Claire Barclay create temporary artworks in open-air locations in Abbeyview. The residents surrounding the open air locations will be directly involved in the inspiration and creation of the temporary artwork.

'Art as Evidence' Book (31st March 2008)
Art give voice to people. A selection of artists work who have worked in Abbeyview since January '07
Text by Chris Hladowski
Drawings by Nicola Atkinson Does Fly, Carol Lambie & Hanna Tuulikki.
Images from the artworks by Nicola Atkinson Does Fly, Claire Barclay, Luke Fowler, Sophia Pankenier & Marisa Privitera.

Image © Nicola Atkinson Does Fly

USEFUL

I met with Nicola last week to discuss the SEE EYE Book that will be produced in February ‘08. The format of the last book was as documentation of the Art Event in March, and my contribution of drawings followed along those lines. For the next book however, Nicola would like it to have some stand alone quality, something happening between the pages that has been created for that purpose.

My projects ‘Bird’s Eye View’ and ‘Ghostlines’ were drawings of the present but with the knowledge that as I produced them they were already assigned to the past. This aspect of creating a drawing interests me, the artist may be representing the present as they experience it but that present tense may be in image of the past. The reality of the here and now is also altered by the purely subjective nature of the artist’s decision of what to put on the paper. Of course as soon as an image is drawn it becomes the past, as captured time. Therefor time is something that an artist can represent, manipulate and fabricate to their own end, working within layers of time and reality.

Nicola has asked me to once again produce drawings for the book but the challenge I have given myself is to draw Abbeyview but set the present tense out of kilter, bringing the extraordinary to the familiar or creating a blip in a well know image of the area. Where will this take me? To the past, to a parallel present or to the future? (The Lamb)

Image © Nicola Atkinson Does fly