My take on Bigotgate.

I’d like to start by making the point that the Gordon Brown gaffe now being named as “bigotgate” has been blown out of proportion, mainly by the media but also through sites such as twitter.

I’ve seen a number of responses to what has happened, many more sensational than the last. Firstly, there’s the Murdoch angle. I label it the Murdoch angle because The Sun and Sky are doing most of the Tories dirty work when it comes to spinning. It’s no secret that The Sun has changed allegiance to the Conservatives and Murdoch is doing all in his considerable power to see us return to the dark days of Tory government. I haven’t written anything about the Murdoch Press thus far as I was outraged by the reporting of last weeks debate by Sky News. I was so disgusted by their blatant Tory bias that I felt unable to coherently write about what I was witnessing without resorting to expletives or libelous language.

Bigotgate has been a field day for Murdoch industries and I wouldn’t be surprised if there have been tears of Tory joy over Gordon Brown’s gaffe. They certainly have done their part to fuel the incident and blow it out of proportion in an attempt to further smear Brown’s public image. Take for example the gagging of a poll which showed a smidgen of support for Brown.

The opposite angle to this is that in defence of Brown. I’m thinking in particular of an oversensitive article by Milena Popova. People have the right to be offended by whatever has that affect on them and I’m sure Popova has her reasons for being offended but was what Gillian Duffy said really bigoted?

Gillian Duffy raised a point on immigration, in particular the number of Eastern Europeans in Rochdale. Let’s make it clear, it is perfectly acceptable to tackle the issue of immigration. It is a major issue in all policy making. Throughout her discussion with Gordon Brown, Gillian Duffy spoke intelligently with knowledge of party policies and has been let down by the unfortunately comedic sound bite of her saying “Eastern Europeans, where are they coming from?” which it is not fair to judge her on. In her defence I cannot see how anything she said could be considered bigoted. Immigration is there to be tackled and if people are afraid of talking about it then as a society were are entering dangerous territory. Here are some facts on Easter European immigration.

We must remind ourselves that Gillian Duffy is a self professed life long Labour voter, precisely what the Tories are targeting. It is no secret that David Cameron et al want to swing Labours core vote their way. Is it any surprise then that Gordon Brown calling one of his own core voters a bigot was leapt on by the right wing press?

It must also be highlighted that Gordon Brown tried to steer away from the subject of immigration when challenged by Duffy, probably because Labour policy on immigration, while they “recognise people’s legitimate concerns about the impact it can have on communities”, takes a slightly different angle to that of Duffy. There is not much on cutting back on immigration as so much as putting more controls in place. I think our diverse society is something we can be proud of in this country with race relations constantly improving. That is not to say that for people like Gillian Duffy it should not be a concern.

It seems Gordon Brown doesn’t like the subject of immigration being addressed and to me this is a reflection of the uber-politically-correct movement we have seen during this Labour government. To mention immigration or to be concerned by the opportunities available to the British population is to be racist. This is ridiculous. British people have every right to feel aggrieved if job opportunities are being taken by immigrants just as the population of any other country would have the same right. Writing this I am actually wincing at the thought of me coming across very Daily Mail. I think this a result of the overly cautious, easily offended society we have become under this Labour government. It’s about time we were able to tackle issues such as immigration head on and allow people to voice their opinions as they have a right to do.

Also, I’d like to put to bed any notion that Gordon Brown is alone in his dual facades. Do you really think no other politician moans about the public after having met them? I cannot for a second believe that David Cameron says nice things about the “hoodies” he has met once he gets back into his Jaguar. Remember, and I don’t like defending politicians, but we are allowed to say what we like about them but they can’t say what they like about us, but I guess that’s the price they pay for getting into a position where they need our votes.

As a final point I’d like to highlight two more concerns. Firstly, whether he was right to say what he said or not, do we really want a man who will say something that will land him in hot water while wearing a microphone, leading our country? And secondly as the Murdoch machine keeps rolling and getting stronger with every day I just hope the general public are intelligent enough to see through the bias and vote for what is best for them and not what suits Rupert and co. I’m sure we are, aren’t we?

A fairly middle of the road article about a fairly middle of the road story.

The Modern Role of the Artist.

I just listened to a BBC Radio 3 programme about art as a means of tackling difficult emotional debates and complex, modern social dilemmas. The programme was presented by Matthew Sweet and featured a lecture by Tom Shakespeare. A lot of the following is reiterating and giving my own views on what was said in the programme.

This is something that strikes me as interesting right away as I can relate it to my own work looking at British society and the class system. Art has long been used to highlight contentious subjects in an impacting way. Art moves people and makes people think at a deep level, it opens our minds. Looking at a piece of art evokes hundreds of emotions and thoughts and these can help us tackle difficult problems in the world and our lives. People can relate to art, they can see it on a number of levels in a way which one can’t with statistics or scientific facts. The emotions evoked through art is what allows us to dwell on difficult subjects in a way which rationality can’t.

One of the points made was that an artist should force people to think. I thought this was obvious, I’ve said this since my school days that good art is something which makes you ask questions. It was suggested that artists should be seen as intellectuals in our societies and I agree. The degree to which artists research and follow various enquiries can be equal to any scientist or philosopher.

Art is difficult, it is a life long commitment to a form of enquiry, it’s research before it’s communication. Artists have a greater responsibility than we can imagine.

Art is a means of communicating and opening a platform for public debate on subjects that affect us all but are often only addressed in specialist scientific jargon. Art can speak to our human condition about complicated social and moral dilemmas, when science can’t reach the average layman. I would like to see a greater responsibility put on artists to challenge and enquire into problematic areas and to communicate their findings. I would also like to see the funding available for artists to do this. It would improve the contemporary art world and result in more work with real social and cultural value and less trite and trivial art made for the market.

I’ve said my little bit, now listen to the programme.

28/10/09 Tutorial

So, yesterday was crap but today has been really good.
I had a tutorial today and to avoid a incomprehensable stream of consciousness and to organise my thoughts I will create a list of some of the points that were brought up.

• My work definitely works better on wood than canvas.
• I need to bring the subject matter up to date with my own photographs.
• My paintings are working differently to the photographs so far because I am putting more energy into them and restoring some of the energy that would have been there when the moment of the photograph was captured.
• The subject matter works for me as it is something I feel strongly about and can relate to.
• The energy in my paintings and some of the frustration and anger that comes across in the work is from an inherent frustration at the treatment of the northern working class society but also from my own anger and frustration at the feeling of losing those connections and roots. Moving down south and to university has made me feel I have no ownership or right to my northern, working class roots and background and that I can no longer claim that as my own. It is a fear of a loss of identity which is providing the emotional charge behind my work.
• The work incorporates social, political and economical themes as well as themes of human experience, whether it be my own, or the characters in the image or me sharing my experience through the characters in the image.
• I have to be careful not to become nostalgic or sentimental.
• I have to look carefully at the use of text in my work and the context from which it's been taking and is being used - a quote from a miner in the 80s doesn't have the same resonance if it's me repeating it. I need to avoid it appearing as a sort of teenage angst. I also need to look at dialogue vs. written text and the use of expletives and whether it gives a piece a different meaning.
• I need to continue to improve my photographic composition.

There are all the points I can think of now, it was a really helpful tutorial and I thank Mia Taylor for it. It's allowed me to see my work in a new dimension and really given me some focus to move forward. It also seems to have gotten to the root of what's fueling my work. 


Hopefully I'll be able to post some images of new work soon.

"My line of enquiry is fueled by my growing cynicism"

Ok, from now on I'm going to try and regularly update this blog. Frequent writing and reflection is one aspect that is majorly lacking from my practise and I feel I need to address this.

I can feel the academic aspects of my course stepping up and I'm trying to stay on top of different avenues of research and enquiry. I feel busier than ever and I'm straining to keep on top of essay and background reading, artist research and contextual research. 

Despite this I am enjoying my work at the moment, being busy seems to drive me forward and keep me producing work. I've had some fantastic feedback on my work recently and have even managed to sell a drawing. I'm not totally happy with my painting but I think I need to find a style and medium that suits the subject matter. (Take a look at James Holliday's blog for an insight into the anxieties facing a painter in his practise!)


I am exploring British society. (Though strangely the drawing I sold was from a Cartier-Bresson photograph in Paris). My line of enquiry is fueled by my growing cynicism. As much as I try to have a positive outlook at all times, it's hard to ignore the media coverage of the problems in today's society. (Though admittedly, whether they are really problems or just scare mongering is up for debate!)

I have been looking into British social realism (I recommend the book "No Such Thing as Society" by David Alan Mellor). Films such as Kes and Saturday Night and Sunday Morning have been great examinations of British working society, though I feel I need to focus my work on my current affairs. The British working class (and even the "comfortable classes", a term coined by photographer Martin Parr) are something that are close to my heart and of great interest to me. Along side a possible enquiry into the North-South divide in England (something which I have become increasingly aware of since moving to the South of England), I believe I have a veritable cornucopia of possibilities layed out in front of me.

I have rambled for long enough now and I can't remember if I had anything else to say, so here are a few (poor quality - excuse the camera phone) photos of some of my work and studio space.

 

 

Hopefully I'll be able to get organised and keep on top of this and other writing as well as my practise and reasearch. I shall endeavour to keep you updated.