Calling all contemporary art lovers!

I have another programme to plug! This is the time of year when I like to bring the Royal Academy's Summer Exhibition to your attention. For all of you who won't be able to attend this, the largest world's largest open submission contemporary art exhibition in person, BBC2 ran a Culture Show special last night which is now available to watch here!

Boo hiss that they didn't give the Wollaston Award to Gillian Ayres, though having said that, the winning piece is wondrous. No more spoilers here - you'll have to watch the programme to find out who won.

May I offer you a delicious serving of eccentricity?

Courtesy of the BBC, a televisual offering can be found here: 'Behind The Scenes at the Museum'

This film is the epitome of all that beautiful BBC2 & BBC4 do best. It's one man's look at the community who oversee the running of the Freud Museum in London. It may sound dull, but I can assure you it isn't! From the developing 'atmosphere' between upstairs & downstairs to the organisation of the dating evenings - yes, you really could meet the partner of your, ahem, dreams ( joke? get it?) and the delightful Freudian slip-pers in the museum's gift shop, this is an hour full of gentle delights.

Fancy making friends with the museum's official dog? Or does finding a lost painting by Lucien Freud appeal? If so, please watch and enjoy. Because you're worth it :-)

The time has come to re-read...

Each year, aside from all the other books I'm reading ( four at present) I like to choose a book to reread which represents a bit of a literary tussock - one of those 'Books to Read Before You Shuffle Off This Mortal Coil'. For instance, and I swear this to be true, my Everyman editions of Proust's 'Á La Recherche du Temps Perdu' are well thumbed! That was quite a year and one in which I didn't get much else done. (Note the literary snobbery I allow myself by not using the imprecise translation, 'Remembrance of Things Past'. Purveyors of petty literary snobbery are not a pretty sight, don't you think? Please read the 'The Times Literary Supplement' for further evidence.)

Another year I forced myself to reread 'Jude the Obscure' by Thomas Hardy. Bar Mr Hardy's poetry, he & I do not make for happy company. Scholarly study means that we are overly acquainted. When my library shelves are finally installed, I shall allot a space in D rather than H for Mr Hardy; the D stands for 'Dismal Old Goat'.

This year, inspired by the BBC's exquisite version of Elizabeth Gaskell's 'Cranford' which was broadcast before Christmas, I've settled upon another book which unveils a canvas of life in a C19th small town & have picked up George Elliot's novel, 'Middlemarch' again. Pleasure awaits, but given my ditzy brain, I'm wondering how many vast tracts I will have forgotten by the time I reach the page entitled 'The End'.

Who he? Rufus Sewell as Will Ladislaw.

(May I put in a good word for Mrs Gaskell? She's a superb writer & often overlooked, thanks in part to her biography about Charlotte & championship of the Brontë sisters. It's my belief that if you like the Venerable Jane (Austen), you will savour Mrs G's volumes with relish!)

The Spell of 'Amélie'

I'm a huge fan of French films. This is a slightly guilty pleasure because no one else in this household shares my addiction. Thus I can sit undisturbed without sticky children bouncing all over me or blonde ones rummaging through my dressing table. I've now discovered an exception and it's one I shall encourage - Ellie and 'Amélie'. 'Amélie' is one of my all-time favourite films and when watching it for the three thousand & seventh time the other day, the music lured Miss Ellie into my room and, draping herself along the end of my bed, she watched motionless & transfixed. I noted this in my diary - my children don't do motionless & transfixed so a diary entry was definitely called for!

If you haven't seen 'Amélie', I urge you to snatch up the first copy you come across & watch this funny/poignant/beautiful film. If you have art bones buried in your body, then you are in for a visual feast. Inspiration from 'Amélie' creeps up on me in strange & unusual ways - this blog's vista is a very good example!

( Postscript: I love the BBC!! It's nine o'clock in the morning and whilst I've been writing this, I've also been listening to a reading of 'Portrait of a Lady' by Henry James & in a moment, I'm promised a short story by Evelyn Waugh. Do have a rummage for broadcasts in http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/. For large chunks of time during the day and overnight, the priniciple background noises of my life emanate from Radio 4 & Radio 7 so these qualify for a 'Dangerfield Recommends' nudge as indeed does 'Amélie')

Next time I reappear, I have a Lulaism for you & it's quite a swell one because it involves Emily Dickinson & the school bus. Miss Über Sticky strikes again!!

A hair gel that's hood proof??

I've just watched an advert for hair gel that promised it was hood proof. This sends shivers down my spine - surely the hair will mould the hood?

So it's not enough that I have to wade through a swamp of discarded clothes whenever I venture into Tom's room on a plate/bowl/mug hunt. I may now have to clamber over a series of distorted head shapes too? This is either a vision from a nightmare or a future entry for the Turner Prize!

An Empty Paradox

I'm having a Paula Rego time at the moment which is a state of mind so hard to describe other than by telling you it has a Paula Rego-ish feel. Motor away from the state of my mind and have a look at Paula's work in the Tate Gallery and in The Saatchi.

Like it or loathe it, one thing is certain about Paula Rego's work and that is the fact that you cannot ignore it. So, as there is an etching by Paula on the cover of the poet Amanda Dalton's book, 'How to Disappear', methinks this is a good example of a paradox.

The title poem is extraordinary & it too reflects my current state of mind, but can I find an example of it on the net? Noooooo! Well that's not quite true because I found one copy, but it was on a site so sharply bleak that I backed out as quickly as can be.

It's a beautiful poem - taut, haunting & another 'sticker' that I would try to persuade you to read over & over again if only I could find you a copy. Dang, dang & double dang!! I can take you by the hand to the Poetry Book Shop to meet Amanda and her poem 'Cut Off', but as I can't find 'H to D', I'm going to leave Aunt Jennifer in the Life's Candle slot.

I've only had my copy of Amanda's collection of poems for a week, but I've been utterly faithful to it ever since, which is a reasonably rare occurence for me. Her work is extraordinarily visual & accessible which are qualities that I greatly appreciate because, not only am I'm a slow thinker, but I'm very lazy too. So lazy in fact, that as I can't find a copy of the poem nor a painting that I'm allowed to paste into this entry, the paradox remains unillustrated!

How's that for saying something about nothing :-)

A 19th Century Zine?

Look what I found! Could this be an early example of a zine? Click for more information about 'The Saturday Press'. I think I would have enjoyed a conversation with Mr Henry Clapp.

I had a letter this morning from a Mrs Testbutt. What a thought provoking concept!

Laurel Sparks & a question for all the artists amongst you

This painting is called ' Beautiful Blah' - I love it. Laurel Sparks is a new artist to me whose work can be seen here and here. There are some more paintings which I'm close to worshiping, but out of respect for Laurel, I won't show any more images on here. You must go & see.

How did I find her? This demonstrates how thoroughly bored I am at present. I typed 'blah' & searched for images! It was undoubtedly worth it because Laurel's work intrigues me & I'm going to ferret around to see if I can find some more of her work.

But doing an image search for 'blah'? Pursuing 'the art of curiosity...' can sometimes lead you into doing odd things :-)

As a matter of interest, what do the artists amongst you feel about about having images such as the above, displayed on people's blogs when they 'discover' you? I would welcome your opinions & guidance. I'm going to send a 'fan letter' to Laurel later, but in the meantime, I would be interested to read your opinions.

If you could provide this curious searcher with a little guidance, as soon as I'm able, I promise to skip along with respect, purpose & a large ladle of loopiness.

With love from Ditzy Daisy xox

Sitting with The Vicious Circle

Before you read the following paragraphs, please pay a visit to Jean Yates' blog, otherwise it won't make any sense. I call Jean 'The Rock CHICk' because she put the chic into rock. Earlier today, I called on Miss Margot * of 'The Impatient Beader' & 'Sparkletastic' fame (Margot's books are superb - you will love them. If you're a Brit like me, 'Sparkletastic' will appear on our shores any minute now, but until then, buy 'The Impatient Beader' books & frolic in the fun) and I read her post about titles. I would hereby like to make an official application to whomsoever deals with these things, that Miss Jean be also known as The Rock CHICk™.

Have you read Miss Jean's post yet? Her wish is my command :-)

"Today I lunched with the Vicious Circle, though why they allowed me to join them is beyond me. I cannot get my copy past the editorial team at the New Yorker - they are SO picky - but Mrs Parker made a scathing comment about me & I sniped back with a witty retort so I was invited to join them. I could tell this irked her - I suspect that Mr Benchley's invitation was an attempt to hold my flimsy red rag in front of her dangerous, piercing bull. Thankfully I sat next to Mr Ross so my meat wasn't minced today."

I do enjoy a nice day dream from time to time :-)

* I call her Miss Margot because she's a belle who wears beautiful dresses & has skin like porcelain. She also has a mind like a razor & this demands respect!

Project Procrastination & the Mslexia Effect

I procrastinate every single day of my life. Indeed I would go so far as to say that it's become a fully fledged hobby - let's call it 'Project Procrastination'. So far I've worked on three projects today. Dreaming up the name 'Project Procrastination' was the third.

Number one took place when I added one of the two photographs that I like of myself to my profile. It was a toss up between me aged two & me aged twenty five. Twenty five won. It's a totally misleading photo, but I can be whoever I want to be on the web, so I'm a twenty five year old with permanently wet hair.

For number two, I thought about sorting through the pile of things to read which totters by my bed. This is dangerous - this shows that unconsciously at least, I had no real intention of doing anything today. Fortunately I picked up my copy of July/August's edition of 'Mslexia', a UK magazine for 'women who write' - there is always something in here that I want to talk about so finally I'm active.

In my humble opinion, 'Mslexia' is one of the finest magazines currently in print. Each page is absorbing & full of interest. It's published every two months which is perfect because this gives one adequate time to assimilate the content of each issue.

In 'Diary of a Literary Agent', you can read how 'It's odd to receive a wastepaper bin in the mail.' There's also an update on the 'Save Our Short Story' campaign, an article about shoes (writing about them rather than a retail recommendation) and a feature about writers on the web, 'the marketing tool that's taken the ether by storm'. This is soooooooooo interesting!

My friend, the Rock CHICk spoke to me recently about Tracy Chevalier - Tracy's sister has developed a cool website for her. Erica Wagner is a writer & journalist whose opinion I have never knowingly disagreed with. I could go on ( and on and on), but now that I have dropped these titbits into your lap, I feel I have accomplished something so it's time to move on & do the work I've been trying to avoid.

Having said that, I may have to pay page 5 another visit & re-read the article about shoes by Julie Farnworth. She describes the effect that a pair of ring-a-ding shoes ( my expression & not Julie's) has on her:

'but when I do occasionally wear them I am transformed from a stewed cup of tea leaving an unsightly ring on a glass coffee table into a firecracker.'

I know what she means. I've got a pair of boots that can perform the same trick!

A Poem for People Who Don't Like Poems!

A copy of 'Poetry' by Marianne Moore is permanently pinned to one of the corkboards in my study. When I began the reading adventure that led me to give part of my heart to poetry, I struck gold by coming across this one at an early stage in my journey.

As I've mentioned before, I use poetry as a sieve. I use it to make sense of things which are elusive. Here comes another metaphor - it helps me to sew thoughts & feeling into comprehensible strands.

Marianne Moore is a poet that I often turn to. She's a very special tutor.

Fourth Post of the Day - Pencil Revolution

I've been out hunting for Tom Friedman on the internet & I came across what to me is an interesting site: Pencil Revolution If you're not a devotee of Moleskine notebooks or the owner of a KUM automatic long point sharpener, bypass this site & bypass me. I draw - I want the special edition Palomino Long Point Sharpener. I also like Bob Newhart & one post features a photograph of a statue of him simply because he is holding a pencil. I love the internet!

I'm not overly fond of Tom Friedman's pencil sculpture - I prefer the toothpicks, as seen above. I wonder if there is a toothpick blog? Please don't tell me if there is - I can't handle too many exciting things in one day.

Third Post of The Day - the 'Rockin' Girl Blogger' Awards

Here are my five choices for the 'Rockin' Girl Blogger Award'.

I love the work & the wit that the following ladies produce. I admire them with a genuine heart. They have spirit & they explore - they go that extra mile. In other words they ROCK!

Laura Sparling

French Toast Girl

Violette

Angela

Someone somewhere deserves more than one 'Rockin' Girl Blogger' award. May I therefore present the Rock CHICk with her second?

Second Post of the Day - Aspens & THE Rockin' Girl?

My beloved mentor & one of my 'aspens dear' has kindly awarded me the 'Rockin' Girl Blogger' Award. I've just managed to add the logo to the right hand column & it's landed above dear Dorothy. Don't you think that Dorothy would have been the EPITOME of a Rockin' Girl Blogger?

Did you know this about the beautiful aspen tree?

Lying under a tree, a good friend read 'Binsey Poplars' to me when I was 18. He was cute!

First Post of the Day

We all have blind spots. Whoops - there I go again making assumptions for which I can offer no evidence. Back in the days of educational yore, I would have been 'slapped down' for my posit. Please allow me to re-write my opening sentence.

In my experience, most of us have blind spots. I have one about the writers Thomas Keneally ( Schindler's Ark') & William Styron ( 'Sophie's Choice'). Sometimes I mix their work up but worst of all, I occasionally morph them into one writer!!

I'm telling you this because I've just been listening to Thomas Keneally being interviewed on 'Desert Island Discs'. ( BBC Radio 4 is one of our national treasures & it's quite literally in the background of my life because I listen to it all day, every day.) Aha, I thought, he'll talk about 'Darkness Visible'. It took about 30 seconds before the light dawned & I realised that, once again, I'd mixed them up.

'Darkness Visible' by William Styron & not Thomas Keneally is a window which looks into the experience of depression. I'm certain that I'm responsible for a fair sized slice of royalites because I buy a copy of this book, lend it to a friend & never see it back again. This is one of those books that I'm delighted to lend on a permanent basis. It's a bell that rings true - it's a bell that sings out loud.

My copy is packed away ( the bulk of my library is packed away whilst our house is being torn into shreds & as I live with a man who boasts that the only non-fiction book he's read is 'Lord of the Rings', I do get rather acerbic when I try to explain that, frankly yes, I do need to refer to such & such book) so I'm going to buy another copy because I want to read it again.

It's a joy to find a book that one can read over & over - one that will be a legend for the amount of copies which are borrowed on a permanent basis. Such a book is 'Just this Side of Normal - Glimpses into Life with Autism' by Elizabeth King Gerlach. It's wonderful - so pure & beautiful. I'm going to order at least 10 copies!

Elizabeth - thank you :-)

'The Hug' by Tess Gallagher

I have a lovely poem for you today. It was incredibly hard to find a legible copy online & this is the best that I can find at present.

'But when you hug someone you want it
to be a masterpiece of connection,'

Isn't that perfect?

Alan Fletcher & 'The Art of Looking Sideways'

Today Ditsy Daisy would like to recommend two books by the graphic designer Alan Fletcher. 'The Art of Looking Sideways' has been my thousand page friend since I discovered it earlier this year & yesterday the substantial 'Picturing and Poeting' was delivered. How can I describe them? This article is helpful.

They're not to be looked at or read progressively - the idea is that you open them at any page you wish. They're rich with succulent ideas, images & inspiration. When I'm on an even keel I 'eat' books, but I lose this ability when I experience a blip. I'm particularly drawn to these volumes because it doesn't matter if your mind is in grasshopper mode - they keep up with you!

For the aforementioned reasons, I hereby declare that 'The Art of Looking Sideaways' & 'Picturing & Poeting' are Official Battle Books!

Miss Dietrich was not amused!

The BBC came up with another scrumptious morsel for me to savour today - the life & times of Mistinguett. If you'd like to listen to an interview with the experts in which you will discover why Marlene Dietrich was not amused plus some suggestions about what Mistinguett & Maurice Chevalier were doing in a carpet, please knock on Woman's Hour's door. Some glamour puss pictures & information can be found in here

Style never goes out of fashion!

High Society!

Here in little England, the High Society season is well under way. Wimbledon's on the horizon & thus far, we've had the Chelsea Flower Show, Ladies' Day at Ascot, the opening of the Royal Academy's Summer Exhibition & now Glastonbury, the newcomer to the list, is well underway.

At this point I need to sing - I'm no Amy Winehouse so cover your ears & read the lyrics instead:

'Mud! Mud! Glorious mud!
Nothing quite like it for cooling the blood.
So, follow me, follow, down to the hollow,
And there let us wallow in glorious mud.'

Google Glastonbury to see how well the new drainage system is coping ;-)

Glastonbury is the only one on the list that my Step-Grandmama would not have attended. Were she still alive, we'd be more likely to find her in Burlington House, the home of the Royal Academy. Join her ghost, be curious & pay a visit to the Summer Exhibition.

Can I beat agrophobia before 19th August when the exhibition closes? Not at a chance, so I'll try to work towards next year instead. I've been saying this for blah, blah years now, but one mustn't give up hope. When you have bipolar, anything can happen!

A short postscript to yesterday's entry. I'm working on a another 'Melanie' bracelet which features a set in beautiful shades of chocolate, chestnut & cream. What a treat!

Thomas Heatherwick & Melanie Moertel - the ones to watch!

Clear Vision

Have you come across any of Thomas Heatherwick's work? He's a sculptor, architect & designer and I'm a HUGE fan of his! He's been interviewed for 'Front Row', a cool arts & culture programme on BBC Radio 4. Check this out!

You might also like to pay a visit to the Heatherwick Studio which he set up in 1994.

Drift off & look at all the wonderful, fabulous, funky things he's made & designed. Come back here when you've finished & I'll tell you how old he is. Now go on - shoo!

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Ah, you're back! You're not going to believe me when I tell you how old Thomas is. He's 37! That's right - 37! He's 37 and he's responsible for alllllllll of the extraordinary things you have just seen.

Keep your eye on Thomas Heatherwick!

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Another person to keep your eye on is the glass artist, Melanie Moertel . Her beads are quite extraordinary. I urge you to acquaint yourself with her work. Her beads are blissfully beautiful - a designer's dreams made real! Have a look at Clear Vision or Coral Garden Her work is exciting, fresh & vivacious - it stuns me!