Pea Arts About

The first time I heard the expression to give yourself permission that I recall was in a conversation with artist Victoria Gray upon finding we both experienced similar degrees of sensory overload. It was May 2017 in Vane and she was then embarking on her assessment for neurodivergence, which she explores on her website and in her performance work. This was an early planting of a slow-growing seed for me to look into my own brain wiring, but I had substantial healing to do first and I'm only reaching the point of readiness now. That now is coinciding with year three of this pandemic, and anything to do with our mental well-being or neurological status is far from a priority for an under-funded, overstretched and exhausted National Health Service, and so any progress towards certainty is slow. I  can't recall specifics from that quiet conversation with Victoria as my brain was in the early stages of recovery from a catastrophic (no hyperbole) burnout. I only know that her tal

Screenshot of Hirst's Instagram studio walkabout and our exchange. I know, it's been ages - the guts of 2 years since part 24 . Lately my interest in Treasures from the Wreck of the Unbelievable has resumed and I've been exploring avenues to properly kickstart and make a go of the book project.    It's funny when things spontaneously collide. I could almost  be tempted to believe in serendipity but I think we're just more alert to things when we're of a mind to be. So, I'm in the midst of writing funding applications and project proposals to do something with my 40,000 words (!) of draft work in these blog posts, and what pops up on my Instagram feed but sponsored posts from Damien Hirst's account promoting his cherry blossom paintings showing in Japan. This was no surprise given that the Audiovisual Cultures account follows a great deal of artists, including Hirst's fellow Young British Artist Tracy Emin. It seems that business or verified account

Commissioning Editor Dear Another Gaze editorial team, I was delighted to learn of this editing opportunity from a friend who made sure I saw your Tweet about it. I am a researcher of film and visual culture transitioning from academia to forge a career as a writer and podcaster. What I can bring to your team is a scholar with extensive knowledge of histories, theories and practices across cinema and the visual arts who pays great attention to detail and firmly believes lifelong education and knowledge-sharing should be for the many and not exclusive to the few. From my experiences as an educator and an early career researcher, I understand the challenges faced by writers of all levels. I strive to improve on best practice as an editor through the provision of observations aiming to work with authors to help them be the most effective communicators they can be. This includes ensuring ideas are logical and are demonstrated convincingly, that claims are evidenced, and that structures a

Prompt word: sunshine Are there any memories which this word ignites?   On an appropriately sunny afternoon in Newcastle upon Tyne, I have joined my first ever New Writing North writing hour. It’s a shut-up-and-write session that offers prompts to get the creative juices flowing. It is perhaps a little strange to do this over Zoom, but it feels less lonely and we’re more accountable to ourselves if we remove all distractions and feel the connection to other writers, even if we’re not seeing or listening to each other. I wish I had discovered it before, but there we go. I miss the shut-up-and-writes with the Deeners.    But I digress, for I am supposed to be writing about memories to do with sunshine. This is a struggle at the moment as I’m in the premenstrual phase of my cycle and I’m battling with insomnia, so my brain’s not interested in recall right now, but just muddling through the day! Andrew and I had a great cycle in the sun on Sunday, which it just occurs to me was the equinox