Professional branding for Sanitisation Station and new work.

Part of the Business Revival Grant was for a sanitisation station, so last week, I spent some time designing the bespoke branding for this. The artwork template I was sent originally was wrong, which meant that some additional tinkering meant that now it has added Hall & Oates to remind everyone to continue to safeguard vulnerable people during face to face workshops and events.

This sculptural maquette is entitled The Best Thing. 

The Best Thing is a nod to the phrase "The best thing since sliced bread", as food banks clearly are NOT, despite the toxic positivity that surrounds them. 

Plastic forks, spoons, knives and kintsugi.

The plastic cutlery was donated material just sitting around in my studio, as thoughts have turned to Marcus Rashford and food banks, and my determined avoidance of the indignity of austerity. 

The Best Thing - kintsugi detail

The Nobel Peace Center are currently hosting discussions about #fixthefood food and peace, and as a single parent, my concerns are for other single parents currently struggling through the pandemic and the Free School Meals scandal.

It's so good to have Photoshop back that I've been digitally editing photos taken with my new camera. Here is The Best Thing juxtaposed with a field of white poppies. 

Following earlier research about Imagine, and John And Yoko, my thoughts remained fixed on the way the Imagine album cover was created. The image of clouds is not a photo, as I always assumed, but a painting that John And Yoko had at Tittenhurst.

My lockdown walks have taken me along the Viking Way at the top of South Common, which overlooks the city in a very similar view to that of Ekebergparken in Oslo. So if I want to imagine being back in Oslo, I go up there and imagine The Best Thing is on display amongst the Damien Hirst and Sarah Lucas sculptures.

I have recreated the double exposure style of the Imagine album cover, to place the same view from The Viking Way with my original photo from Ekebergparken.

This sunset image juxtaposes the field of white poppies with a view of Lincoln Cathedral from South Common. 

White poppies are grown in Lincolnshire fields during June to harvest the seedheads for the pharmaceutical industry. 

For the horticultural and botanical out there, it's Papaver Somniferum.

White poppies are obviously symbolic of peace.

Of course, a similar image was sent to The Lincolnite for their Picture Of The Week, but it was grifted from this, not mine. I will forever have my work copied by grifters in Lincoln, who will always claim all the glory for themselves.

 

Business Revival Grant

 

Last month, I was awarded a Business Revival Grant from City of Lincoln Council, to replace my iMac (which broke down last year just before my birthday!) some essential software (Creative Cloud), a new camera, and some COVID equipment for future workshops.

I've also more recently received a few small grants to help to clear off some of the debts caused by my son's destitution / austerity back in 2019, and which haven't been helped as a #ExcludedUK artist.

The grants aren't enough to mitigate against the whole amount, but it's better than nothing, and is more helpful for my wellbeing than grifters.

I finally got a DYCP application sent, and am awaiting the outcome.

Fingers crossed this is awarded.

I'm also awaiting the outcome of the Cavendish Arts Science Fellowship, which I applied for for Lost Dreams.

I have been able to apply for these, as well as to replace my non arts work to hopefully become a Creative Mentor with The Mighty Creatives, which would be so much better, as I have a wealth of experience that is transferable from my old job, and it would justify all the years I was forced into it!

I'm having more Kafkaesque nonsense from my Carer's Assessment.

We are being told that if you're experiencing Carer Fatigue / burnout - which tbh is all carers, to have a respite break!

But when I had a small respite break to visit Mum after a year of being unable to, and to spend time with my nieces, I was told that if my sons can cope on their own, I don't have a carer role :-s

So this is why carers won't say they're carers. Because when we do, we're made into liars.

But anyway, I've been out testing my new camera for research for Peace Painting, and this is a positive step towards returning to creative work after being #ExcludedUK and for both #payingartists and #wagesnotclaps

So, social prescribing is a hot topic.

People want to know what works and what doesn't. I'm currently highlighting parts from A Restless Art to identify this. 

My colour code is 

Blue: Positive

Yellow: Negative 

Green: Important / information 

Pink: Relevant information that is applied to my work

Purple: A statement where the opposite is true in my own experience

Here's a list:

What works:

1. Artists determining our own requirements for equipment, materials and time costs, and having the funds to source our own, not having some organisation going "we have materials x, x and x, so we don't have funding for materials."

2. Not having to apply for funding, but when organisations have been successful in applying for funding, approaching me to commission workshops. "Hi, we need a qualified artist to run some workshops, would you be available to run a series of your workshops for us?"

3. Organisations looking at my workshop costs, and thinking "our budget is only £500, we can fund two of them". But I still run two workshops and I am paid properly, so that's fine.

Or "Our budget is higher, and we are regularly funded, so let's pay Helen to run her workshops, because she's an expert in her field", and not getting an amateur to run them for free whilst keeping the extra funding for themselves. (See blog link for an example of grifting, which is a severe problem in Lincoln for artists.)

4. Organisations that specifically choose to fund my workshops to stop Lincoln Art Ninjas from destroying my career.

5. Anyone that provides a free iMac. Thanks to City Of Lincoln Council for the Business Revival Grant 2021, which was used to purchase a new iMac, Creative Cloud software, and a new camera etc.

6. Being paid on time. Being paid enough to not need to rely on welfare or have welfare reduced. 

7. People clapping when I've successfully delivered another awesome art project!

8. Paying money to my own #wagesnotclaps campaign for carers to be properly paid.

9. Respite breaks for artists that are carers - allowing time off away from any caring responsibilities. Preferably also paid!

10. Artist led open calls where the artists are paid to organise and curate, with all contributing artists paid to contribute work, including artists that are carers, and then any PROFITS go to raise funds for other causes.

Some useful advice here:

More recommendations to support artists here: 

What doesn't work:

1. Telling artists there's no money because they've kept Arts Council funding for themselves and refuse to pay actual artists (corruption). Whilst there is a ton of money funding a Margaret Thatcher statue, but I may as well just scream into a void than expect to see a penny of it in my bank account.

2. Non artists applying for funding to deliver arts workshops under the auspices of participatory art, while actual artists starve to death because we are #ExcludedUK from any funding, including Arts Council funding, with insane criteria.

3. People asking why artists don't apply for the pitiful amounts of Arts Council funding that only covers the cost of the application process itself, and receiving rejection emails, which is really bad for wellbeing.

4. People providing arts workshops for carers for free, whilst ignoring the fact that artists don't work for free, and nor do I as a carer either, and thanks, now you have completely undermined my workshops, because now all carers are getting free workshops from amateurs, not a professional artist qualified to run them, who is now starving to death because you're going around telling people that art is great for wellbeing, but this is a LIE if artists are being forced out of our own PROFESSION. See also Lincoln Art Ninjas.

5. Expecting me to use the free library resources because you refuse to pay me enough that I can afford to replace my broken iMac, or expecting me to lower my expectations to fit some lowball fantasy of how you think I should work, not how I think I should work.

6. Expecting me to work for free at all, then offering the indignity of foodbanks because you refuse to pay wages. And then refusing foodbanks because I'm not over 70. Also, workfare - expecting me to work for benefits whilst at risk of destitution.

7. Clapping.

8. Expecting artists to provide charity to others, who do not provide any support to artists in any way. Similarly thinking that you have something to offer that we need, and getting uptight, mardy or abusive when we tell you that is not actually what we need. 

9. Harassing / abusing artist-carers about work whilst away on respite breaks like Gemma Baker from fraudulent and plagiarist WITA (Lincoln - not the actual Women In The Arts).

10. If you're a nature organisation organising competitions asking artists to send work, but do not offer any Exhibition Payment Fee for displaying work, and are offering our work for auction or sale, with proceeds from the sale not covering the artists' own overheads first, but to raise money for some other charity while artists ourselves are left to rot on benefits, and someone feels good because they didn't ask artists relying on The Alternative Arts Council funding to pay entry fees.

Some amateurs get to show their work because they have ADHD, and this is the basis of any "positive" feedback.

I am not in any way involved in the example here, because I would never participate in any project where my whole time was not remunerated, but this article describes the failures of cultural policy where artists are treated so appallingly.

This article explains how economic abuse is rife for single parents, ergo, single parent artists are often stonewalled from the arts completely, as is my xp.

I have since fixed this issue, however, it was too late for this round of funding, so I will have to wait until the next round. I hope nothing else breaks, or any other issues arise in the meantime.

New Year, new research

My son very kindly gave me a copy of Imagine John & Yoko, which has been on my reading list since I went to see Double Fantasy in Liverpool.

The drawings below were by Klaus Voorman, 2004, recalling the time he met John Lennon at a Beatles gig in Hamburg, showed him some artwork, and got to work with him.

It sounded very similar to my own old collabs with A-ha and Apparatjik.

But now it would be impossible for a single parent artist to do this in the era of COVID-19!

https://open.spotify.com/track/5CG4RXjli90Zd1KDalPqeK?si=5zad5MtFSa-rhVvo41ZGUg

 

#carersweek - #wagesenotclaps The Lost Wages Totaliser!

It's #carersweek this week, so my campaign is #wagesnotclaps

Carers charities are campaigning to make caring visible.

As an artist, I am obviously the best person to do that!

But not for free, as obviously this is my career, not an expensive hobby.

Carers FIRST apparently produced some kind of virtual magazine featuring carer's artwork.
I wanted to promote my last workshops, which they had funded. 
But I had an email asking for artwork. So obviously, I'm not going to just give it away, as I'm a qualified illustrator, and would need to know the publishing fee.

I don't know if it was included, as the link from Carers FIRST on twitter won't open.

Current events that are overshadowing #carersweek are the obvious events happening globally for #BlackLivesMatter

Which is obviously important.
I wholly support #BlackLivesMatter 

AND it's also important to note that carers remain shockingly unpaid.
In no way does this mean I wish to be accepted into any racist all lives matter bullshit.

We are told of our rights, our rights to work, which we seem to be given no choice but to give up.
We are told we are entitled to benefits, which are Kafkaesque to claim, and are not enough to live on, and force us into debt against our will, which is economic abuse.
I'm not the only carer to point out the basic fact that it is modern day slavery.

I am still waiting for my son's PIP appeal. If he is awarded PIP, I might be entitled to Carer's Allowance, which is a pitiful £67 per week.
There is a limit to how much I can earn on top of that, and if he is not awarded PIP, I will be entitled to nothing.

Zero. 

•Update Thursday 9th July* We have a date for his PIP appeal coming up on Friday 17th July.

Yet I still have bills to pay, food to buy, higher household expenses, and on top of that, to be able to practice as an artist, I need materials, the internet, time and labour costs, and respite breaks. I also have hobbies that are unrelated to my practice as an artist and illustrator, and for self care, it's important to have non work related activities.

It's EXPENSIVE!

Quite rightly, statues of slave traders are being removed. I went on a tour of Lincoln's statues, as an artist, whilst out on a bike ride for exercise.

The Usher gallery has several non slave trader statues

What I'd like to see in this space outside the Usher Gallery, or maybe outside the bus station or train station, is a neon piece about being a carer, commissioned for me, not any of Lincoln BIG's God awful statues. 

Now is the time to recognise artists that are carers, and to pay us! 

Then perhaps I can afford to join a union.

The current amount of lost wages is now £998,172.8 MINIMUM

This is worked out following this framework for artists' rates of pay.

The first three years following graduation, 2008 - 2011, works out at £63,225 per year x 3 years. Plus the next two years, 2012 - 2014, works out at £82, 982.75, then from five years postgraduate, it is £91,790 for 365 days per year, times 7 years up to 2020, which comes to £998,172.8

This blog begins to explain how it is for other artists.

I'm a single parent, and now a carer, so I never get any holidays, so I should be paid for every day of the year. "Holiday pay" or "sickness" should be included on top of that. I'm not going to deduct any benefits or wages from non arts jobs from this amount, because I am an economically exiled artist, who has been prevented from producing work.

I applied for two COVID grants for artists unable to work due to the current situation, and BOTH OF THESE WERE REJECTED.

I can't live like this!

But equally, I'm NOT going to give up the career I have worked to achieve, because there are MANY that have tried so hard to ruin it at every stage.

The bully that framed me for stealing art supplies at G.C.S.E. level. 

The vengeful student at college that hated me for rejecting him on induction day, and spent the rest of the two years being an abusive loser.

My abusive ex, who tried and failed to destroy my university ambitions.

And the maniacal struck off mental health nurse that kidnapped my son and nearly drove him to suicide. And these are just a few of them. 

NOTE: If you're thinking of causing any more mayhem, you're NOT welcome!

I'm not here to provide unpaid mental health care. Nor am I here to watch as my sons are denied NHS mental health care in place of claps, virtual cuppas, signposting, self referrals, waiting lists as long as a piece of string, COVID excuses, mindfulness, or any other virtual signalling about talking, visibility, awareness etc, whilst actually doing NOTHING to change the fact that caring is slavery in the UK.

And no, I DON'T DO IT OUT OF LOVE. LOVE IS NOT GOING TO CLEAR MY OVERDRAFT. 


Oh yes. Full Joyce Byers Mode Activated.


If however, you're an organisation that fits this funding criteria, you could apply for this funding, and then fund my work.

This blog will still be here next week, and the week after, ad infinitum.

I will no doubt see tweets, articles and links from all sorts of sources, asking what to do about artists ineligible for SEISS grants, and those that fall through the cracks of government support.

None of this must be permitted to be used to sidetrack from the ongoing care crisis, and the appalling lack of proper wages for carers and artists alike.

Nor must some male politician, or any other mansplainer be allowed to take any credit for repeating the same words from this blog to advocate for change.
Most will continue to cook up various media storms designed to distract.

*Update Thursday 9th July*
I rang HMRC earlier this week, to check Tax Credits.
Remember that women are usually told to apply for these things, because no one seems to ever seem able to provide us with properly paid work.
I did this back in 2009 when I became self employed, thinking it would be a temporary measure until I started to receive a proper income. Austerity destroyed any chance of earning enough, and I've been stonewalled from arts funding since approximately 2016.

Last year, they were too low, due to the situation with my son's destitution (see previous blogs). But I'm told I am "receiving the maximum amount".
THIS IS NOT ENOUGH TO LIVE ON! 
IT'S NOT MY WAGES! #ExcludedUK
They steal your entire livelihood, then weasel out this option, then try to make you feel somehow guilty / indebted for the measly amounts paid, that you should somehow be grateful for, as if it's a loan from some "generous" benefactor, not money paid for services given, or work done.
It's simply not good enough. 

It's my birthday coming up, so I would prefer to go back to wishing for travel somewhere nice, not to have to fight for basic survival income that is constantly stolen.
I can't use money off vouchers for things I can't afford anyway.
I need regular online shopping deliveries, not discriminated against by supermarkets. Sainsbury's have been good for this during lockdown, Asda have lost a lot of respect. Morrison's have been great for nipping in to get the things that weren't available.

News this week from my carer's group was that one of the carers lost her son.
We are all carers of people with mental health, and we all dread this every day. 

If you wish to help with the #wagesnotclaps campaign, please email Rishi Sunak here: https://www.rishisunak.com/contact and tell him that carers cannot live on clapping. 

*Update Jan 2021*

This year, my lost wages goes up to £1,089,962

I have set up this fundraiser for #wagesnotclaps

Please donate generously.

Thank you.

*Update Jan 2022*

This year, my lost wages goes up to £1178,752.80 with the Business Revival Grant reducing it from a higher amount.

*Update Jan 2023*

This year, my lost wages goes up to £2437,505.60

*Update Jan 2024*

This year, my lost wages goes up to £2529,295.60

#ExcludedUK are calling for COVID compensation for self employed small business owners affected, and news at the moment of the Post Office scandal means that justice needs urgent attention now.

*Update Jan 2025*

This year, my lost wages goes up to £3527,468.40

*Update Jan 2026*

This year, my lost wages goes up to £3617,258.40

Lost Dreams

I wasn't going to release Lost Dreams online, as I was in the process of seeking a gallery or festival to potentially perform it this summer.

However, Coronavirus has changed all of that.

It's made some decisions for me.

During lockdown, I made some very basic videos for the tracks in Minecraft.
The only reason for this was because all I had to do was do a screen capture, and it created a video with no work involved. I am still avoiding any effort to spend lots of time doing lots of work that I will not be paid for.

“Artists-as-Artists value themselves for what they have gotten rid of and what they refuse to do” – Ad Reinhardt, How Art Made Pop (And Pop Became Art), Mike Roberts, 2018, Tate Publishing.

Shirking is now the new working.

It was for me all along, but now it's for everyone else too.
Many people have been plunged into my world of home working and panicking about not being able to pay bills.

The reason I made the videos was merely to upload the sounds to Youtube so I could chordify them, to find out what the chords are.
Then I can pretend to play the songs on the keytar as a performance.

I later discovered a button on Soundcloud to monetise uploads, so I have uploaded them there, because that was where the original Apparatjik collabs went.
I have created a Patreon page for Lost Dreams, so I decided reluctantly to upload there.

I have sent the track Hlör U Fang Axaxaxas Mlö to BBC Introducing, and it was also played live here

I'm currently the only carer campaigning for #wagesnotclaps

Please do not feel bad if you don't clap on Thursday nights.
We didn't ask for clapping, and all it does is insult us.
It is no replacement for the income I have lost due to austerity, or actual wages.

The next broadcast is the first track Dreamfall. An update - due to #BlackLivesMatter the previous scheduled broadcast will now be this coming Saturday 13th June from 12.00p.m. live here

Listen out for Dreamfall, the first track from Lost Dreams :-D

Massive thanks to Filip for supporting the project :-)

Number one Soundcloud musician Filip Clements says “Hey cool! Best of luck with your project :-)”

Filip’s song Spaceship is #1 on soundcloud’s new hot and trending rock chart in the UK and Norway, and #4 worldwide.

New Year, new research

It's a new year, and although still fighting against my own economic exile, I was given this book for Christmas - How Art Made Pop.

I'm interested in how artists studied at art college and then continued their career as pop / rock musicians after graduating.

This is of particular relevance to my practice, in refusing to do tons of work for little or no income as a powerful statement against exploitation.

John Lennon on Yoko Ono

Obviously it covers John and Yoko.

Fanzines are something I'm exploring via my Illustration practice, as the art side, and amateurs, try to exploit artists and illustrators, trying to make us create and produce editorial work for no money, when I so obviously need to earn a living.

I'm experimenting with the keytar when I can...

Interesting info from the Sheffield scene of the 1970's.
I've been observing the activities of Weird Garden, and the use of tape loops.
It's something I moved away from following Apparatjik work, as I wanted that piece to be far better than any amateur or DIY aesthetic, and I felt that the only people that were supporting my proposal were amateurs, not fellow art grads that had a similar practice to my own.

I couldn't do the collaborative work that I had aimed to, due to all the economic exile that has done nothing but increase since 2012 onwards, and I have no intention of returning to that at all.

However, I'm thinking a lot about Cindy Sherman, and how those who are interested in hearing my sound work will experience it.
I've thought of ways to "perform" it, and ways it would work as an installation.
I keep thinking of doing lengthy music videos that would require a lot of unpaid work that I would risk not being recompensed for, and I can't justify doing that at the moment without a record company to finance it. 
And I don't even take it that seriously!