The Briggait

I was delighted on Saturday when Donald Parsons the president of the Hamilton photographic society came to the Briggait in Glasgow where the SGS exhibition is being held. He actually only came round to look at the old building but offered to take some pictures of me with my work.

What Happened to Christine Henderson?

While up at Northlands in Lybster and  inspired by the hilarious Richard Slee's 'Unknowns' masterclass I found some horse harness parts in the scrap pile of a local known as Fred.  Fred also provided a surveyors chain which I fashioned into a nest to blow glass into.  The glass got kind of stuck in this so I was very pleased the next day when on our town mission to witness the master at work in the Wick poundstretcher, I was lucky to chance apon, in the the bins behind the Highland Hospice charity shop, a cheap wicker basket. It was the kind in which dried flowers are presented.  I threw the green foam stuff out which was a shame as Harry, an ECA buddy, had had to buy some using actual money. A badge bearing the name Christine Henderson, Shop supervisor was also on top of the bin.

This time when the glass was blown into the basket the entire hot shop got  got smoked out.  I blew into the vessel but mostly it was James Maskery who did the honors.  You can see Richard Slee in this image.  Unfortunately Vicky Higginson has darted behind James.  I was really weird just letting everybody else do all the work.  Richard had come to get me as I found it really hard just standing there watching as I really want to be able to work the glass I make myself.  Ultimately however because I knew the were serious time constraints on the work I just held my wheesht!  I wore Christine Henderson's badge as it seemed appropriate this time round. I wasn't working I was only watching what was going on.  I wanted to describe a narrative within my work and I imagined that Christine Henderson had been ejected from her workplace but not because she had done anything wrong but purely because she had been misunderstood.

When we were asked to set up our work like an exhibition I waited until everyone else had set up andworked with what I had been left with.  It was ideal as I saw the opportunity to stick the plank out between the plaster buckets and the shelf above.  I was able to put the bowl on the end of the plank and the badge next to it.  It described my narrative perfectly.  Christine Henderson metaphorically walks the plank.  I also made a spontaneous artwork to try and describe the mysterious hidden patterns in nature.

Later on the work took on another dimension when I considered the meaning of names.  Christine Henderson means Christ (or Annointed) homeruler.  I hadn't intended it but this seemingly jokey work had taken on a wholly more serious symbolic meaning.  Jesus also had to walk the plank and he too hadn't done anything wrong, he was only misunderstood and betrayed for money.

This made me quite sad and I worried that night about injustice and what happens in the world.  In the morning I received a phone call from Susan Ratliff a degree student at the National Glass Center in Sunderland.

This is how it went...(imagine Susans part in a Geordie accent.)

SUSAN;  Sarah, Sarah, I've got some really good news for you, its like fate....or Karma or something like that

ME : What, what is it Susan..(rubbing eyes)

SUSAN:  Its Christine Henderson, she has been reborn....she didn't have to walk the plank at all, she's best friends with the lady we have been staying with all week, shes now a really successful textile artist.

Phew light at then end of the tunnel.  The concept of rebirth is important to me and I was really happy that Susan used this term as quite often rebirth is confused with other more negative connotations, but this was so positive and synchronious that I held my breath when I heard her using it.

On another humorous note, if there is a God theres a bloody good sense of humor there.  I found, also in a bin a tiny Henry hoover which lives in my cupboard next to a real Henry.  Henderson not only means Homeruler but also Henry's son...I start to feel a little embarrassed when I imagine that if God is real Ive been keeping it and his son in the the closet next to all the shoes! Clearly though this mighty overseer has taken all the rejections on the chin and is always prepared to forgive!

Oh I nearly forgot, I got all the wood from Jenny Ross a local ceramic artists wood pile. Thanks so much for that!
Unfortunately because I wasn't able to pick up my things myself I have lost the origional plank, some chain and the additional horse harness parts.  If anyone reads this and knows where they are please let me know as I still havnt finished the work and I do need them to finish it!
Also massive hugs and thanks to Roy, Steph and Skye for letting me stay in my own wee turf roofed hoose and taking me up to Strathy beach where I swear I saw horses heads on the crest of the waves!



The remaining images are of Richard Slee's work, 'Rasp' and my other pieces, Power of the Horse and Face the Sun.  Its unfortunate that for mysterious reasons I keep being sent out broken phones by Orange, which even they admit cant be a coincidence.  I took a heck of a lot of photos while I was up Northands would have liked to include the work of everybody that I met up there.  Unfortunately once again they all got sucked into the void that is digital technology!  My work will be on view at the up coming Scottish Glass Society exhibition at the Briggit (?) in Glasgow.

Richard Slee Rocks!

An explanation is due!

The rope with l.e.d.'s inside.

The question has been raised about what on earth is going on with Cast in the Past and its a bit of a long story...... an allegorical one at that.  Some stories can only ever be considered just that .....stories but in the case of my degree show work the characters escape from 2D fiction into 3D real life.  They do this by means of an anchor which has been thrown out through the window and these people are attached to it using a rope.  The doors needed to be burst open for this phantasmagorical event to take place. I need some more detailed pictures of the hands that are holding the rope methinks.

  It turns into a bit of a tug of war between what is considered to be real and those other things regarded as fabrication.  Personally I think life is more fun when the line between these two things are blurred.  Perhaps its advisable to take a ladder down a rabbit hole with you but I certainly don't think Alice would agree!  Unfortunately this work is the kind of thing that really needs to be seen face to face to get.  You can see it for yourself if you can get down to New Designers in London between Wednesday and Saturday next week.



I like double meanings and in this case scenario the rope looks like an umbilical chord and the anchor does look a bit like an embryo.  This wasn't deliberate, the glass was in control.  I was stretched for time trying to do so much in a short time space so I just allowed it to happen.

  The anchor actually lights up and there is an animation projected onto the central characters face which you can watch if you scroll through my blog.  Unfortunately its not dark enough here to see it in all its glory.  Hopefully I'll get some more pictures of it when its on tour throughout the summer.  The real beauty of what happened here was that I was asked to move my work unexpectedly as it had really annoyed somebody so I almost had to anchor myself onto it to prevent that from happening.  It would have been quite a scene if I'd had to attach myself onto it along with all the other characters!!

In this case fantasy certainly did become a reality and I'm quite proud of this fact although it was really unpleasant at the time.  Just to show I've still been busy since I finished my degree here is my new business card design of which I am also very proud!!

After an arduous and eventful three years it is finally all over!  I never expected that I would be making stained glass but here it is.  As per I managed to make it as large as I possibly could in the time that was available to me.   If you want to see the work properly and with the animation running come to the ECA degree show from the 1st to the 9th of June.  Glass are based in Evolution House on the Lady Lawson Street corner of West Port.

                                                                             picture credit: Angie Catlin

Night View!

Thanks to everybody at Saint Giles who made it possible for me to have my work installed for nearly two weeks, it has been a brilliant experience. This is how my work looked at night from the street.  It has been really excellent speaking to people about my work while loitering outside.  Even non glass people were interested in the process and I've made some excellent contacts!  Future commission imminent, the Frankenstein Pub.  Its always good to stop in at a bar on the way home to see if they need any glass!

Cast in the Past

This is my degree show work, "Cast in the Past."  It used to be called anchored to reality but I opted for a play on words instead.   It's under the stairs in Evolution house if you want to go and see it.  There's a couple more surprises to see in the work.  There are also a few more componants including a blown glass rope that attaches the characters in the window to the glass anchor and the animation I showed earlier in the blog is projected onto the central figures face.

Seven Sisters

I've been running up and down from Evolution House to Saint Giles to switch the  lights on and hide the cables in the day time.  I didn't realize that the Cathedral was going to allow me to have the doors open so that everyone who visited the place would be able to see my work from the inside.  I feel really honored!   My mum was outside last night and apparently a crowd had gathered to look at them in the darkness, I think she may have a tendency towards exaggeration there though.  Its raining tonight but I might go and have a look at the alleged crowd.  I need some pictures for my hand in tomorrow anyway.  Expect a few more art attacks between Saint Giles and ECA over the next couple of weeks!  Thanks to Austy Finnegan for taking the pictures for me!

I got on a box but it wasn't for soap!

Here's some fun stuff that I made.

I refuse to give up on this motley crew, I love them all.  Ive worked hard on preserving the fragile piece of glass that i started with. It may be in a lot of pieces right now but I brought it back together.  Because of all the accidents that have happened I have discovered a whole new way of painting.  I've had to replace one of the face's..... that's it right next to us but I've yet to discover what it is that contaminated the flat bed in order for the excellent green( what looks like silver stain  contamination to happen. ) Let me k now if you have any clues!

Rock and freaky roll, these fused scroll grall panels are coming together a treat.  Circles are made out of the waste parts of the bottoms of the vessels.  I've use the diamond wheel to engrave and the sandblaster to create more detail.  I've also screen printed  some of my repeating pattern knotwork designs onto the glass.  To some it appears chaotic but to me theres just an interesting thread to follow.  Not all weaves are simple to understand, that's life! I've used the vinal cutter in repro to make sandblasted hand pints. They are reminiscent to cave paintings, art has been important to humanity since before we became mechanised.

The Horror in Paper! Bwaaahaahaaa!

I have an animation....YES MAN!!!!! I though it was kind of middle of the road but apparently it gives other people the fear....after more discussion apparently a lot of my stuff does that.  It must be providence. I was brought up on the bible so, to be fair, there's not much that's scarier than that in my mind.

Scroll Graal

This is one of the windows for Saint Giles,  things have started to get heartily smashed up now.  One of the wheels fell off the circular saw so a glass peice I blew got broken......I really love those breaky noises.  I use bashed up frits to fill in the gaps.  I was trying to line everything up together before but have found the effect and the outcome to be better when things are allowed to overlap.  I made a rather wonky pink plate as well, that got completely smashed and layered up together.  I used some circles from the broken vessel and filled them up with some of the smashed up parts from when the overlay is done in the hotshop.  I call this technique Scroll Graal as I'm following the swedish overlay taught to me by Ingrid Phillips. I then flatten the vessels out in the kiln so that I can work into them using engraving or sandblasting, like unfolding a scroll.  They are then fused back together.  Once again making something whole out of broken or dissociated parts.  I 'm looking forward to turning them back into vessels at some time soon.