the clocks go back
what’s the difference
20×20 prints in 2020
HotBed Press in Manchester request 20x20cm from a broad range of printmakers annually. The printers in Birmingham School of Art usually manage a group of 20 submissions, but in covid times we mustered 5. But they were five good ones!
The virus or the experience of the it feature in the prints that were all made in lockdown: woodblock, lino, etching, hand coloured and inkjet. Each artist looks forward to receiving the box similar to the one pictured with a random selection of prints from all submissions.
Family matters
While in isolation this weekend in Birmingham, the oldest member of our family who lives alone in West Wales fell and broke her hip. She pressed her ‘panic’ button and was promptly taken by ambulance to the nearest hospital. The family whats app became the conduit for keeping up to date with her care, hip pinning operation and first steps of recovery. With Wales under severe lockdown, including any travel from outside her borders no visiting was possible. This morning she is thankfully recovering steadily surrounded by mail ordered flowers.
On Saturday morning the youngest member of the family, a 6 month old boy began coughing and struggling for breath. His parents, new to this role in life ,were frightened for him and rang the emergency NHS line. An ambulance was dispatched to take them to hospital where there was great concern for his health. He was fitted with a Cpap (strong oxygen machine) wrapped round his head and connected into his mouth, and wired up for tracking progress of his lung function. A frightening sight for his parents and whats app watchers. He has his own whats app group since his conception as his family is spread around the UK and Canada. The channel was active all night with reports of progress and avoidance of being taken into ICU. This was the Sunday when British Summertime pushed the clocks back by one hour. Throughout Sunday hourly blood reports tracked the up turn in his oxygen levels. Evening came and to the relief of all whats app group members he was taken off the oxygen machine and allowed to breathe unaided. In Covid times digital comms can keep families in touch, through thick and thin.
Hold Still -Thank You NHS
https://www.npg.org.uk/hold-still/
Hold Still is an ambitious community project to create a unique collective portrait of the UK during lockdown. We invited people of all ages to submit a photographic portrait, taken in a six-week period during May and June, focussed on three core themes – Helpers and Heroes, Your New Normal and Acts of Kindness. Over 31,000 submissions were received from across the country, with entrants ranging from 4 to 75 years-old. From these, a panel of judges selected 100 portraits, assessing the images on the emotions and experiences they conveyed.
A selection panel, including The Duchess of Cambridge, National Portrait Gallery Director Nicholas Cullinan, the author and broadcaster Lemn Sissay, the Chief Nursing Officer for England Ruth May, and award-winning photographer Maryam Wahid, met via a video call in July 2020 and undertook the challenging process of selecting 100 portraits for the exhibition.
Covid App update
First ONS Test Survey result: ‘Inconclusive’
Lest we forget
Thats it
