Archive for September, 2008

Awhile back, I featured the fab video made by the Eepy Bird team choreographing a spectacular dance piece with Diet Coke and Mentos.

They’ve now created their second blockbuster using Post-It Notes:

Veteran explorer John Blashford-Snell has been an inspiring and controversial figure leading some of the most extraordinary expeditions in modern times. Fusion View’s occasional guestblogger Alan Lane talked to Britain’s own Indiana Jones about his life and the continuing passions: scientific research, the future of the planet and solving inner city problems.

John Blashford-Snell will be giving an illustrated talk about ‘Stanley and Livingstone’ at the Royal Geographical Society, London on 1st October 2008 at 7pm. Further information from Anne Gilby: Tel: +44 01747 853353

The Royal Geographical Society on London’s Kensington Gore is a place where you don’t easily forget the past. In the Map Room, a portrait of explorer Henry Morton Stanley stares solemnly down on the crowded room. In a glass case just outside, is a copper bolt used by mutineers from the British Navy ship HMS Bounty in 1789 to split wood. Next to it are Stanley’s boots, repaired with canvas from his tent during the 1887-89 Emin Pasha Relief expedition.

By the door, relatively unnoticed in a sober business suit stands who I had come to track down: Colonel John Blashford-Snell; Royal Military College Sandhurst, Royal Engineers, Order of the British Empire (OBE), Doctor of Science, Doctor of Engineering, Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. Within the hour, in the great lecture hall he is recounting tales from 40 years of expeditionary life to help raise funds for the International Trust for Nature Conservation.

Blashford-Snell is difficult to tie down. We were to meet next at a London gathering of the Scientific Exploration Society (SES), which he helped to found in 1969.

Now, some years on after our first meeting, I am at the Society’s headquarters deep in the English countryside, ready to pick up our conversation. It is an historical moment for him. A month ago, he stepped down as Chairman of the SES after almost 40 years to follow the many other passions on his agenda.

The telephone rings incessantly, bearing messages of progress from the latest expedition or inner city project as I begin to unravel an extraordinary life.

HIS REPUTATION AMONG modern-day explorers has inspired admiration, controversy and a feeling that he is perhaps Britain’s answer to Indiana Jones. He led the first descent of the Blue Nile and forced the first vehicular passage through the jungles of the entire Darien Gap between North and South America. He navigated 2,700 miles of the Zaire River. In the wake of these expeditions, he set up Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh to give young people exposure to expeditions and responsibility.

More recently, he has tackled aid and conservation projects in the Mongolian Gobi Desert and discovered giant elephants, lost cities and unknown tribes. Headlines have been made by other equally exotic projects: lengthy voyages on reed boats along South American rivers, delivering a grand piano from the UK to the music-loving Wai Wai people of Guyana, and discovering a two-nosed dog in Bolivia.

Now 71, Blashford-Snell is very much a product of the British Army: just over six feet of durability, quiet authority, and a clipped, no-nonsense delivery.

As we rewind his life and career, the pale blue eyes at times resemble gun sights which look through you, preoccupied with the next logistical challenge in some far-flung corner of the world.

The family history is, like his life, unusual. The Snells were common in the south-west of England. The Blashford came from a small hamlet in Hampshire to where the family had moved. Around the late 1700s they went to Jersey in the Channel Islands, which he regards as his roots. Grandfather Blashford-Snell was a sea captain who commanded a packet steamer between Jersey and the south coast. John Blashford-Snell’s aunt thought many of the ancestors were pirates; and she was probably right. He recalls with fondness, great uncle Albert, a beard to his navel, sitting in his great deck chair looking out to sea with a telescope to a bloodshot eye. Everyone thought he was looking at the ships but he wasn’t, he was watching the women on the beach.

A childhood he describes as “heaven”, was split between Jersey and Herefordshire, where his Army Chaplain father had a parish. The only child of adoring parents - “my father prayed for several hours when he saw me arrive” - he began life as a shy, sickly child with a slight disadvantage. This was a withered arm from a difficult birth. Mother was a determined woman who claimed an impressive assortment of forebears, including King Louis XV of France and Oliver Cromwell, leader of Parliamentary forces in the English Civil Wars of 1642-51. Using her considerable skills with animals, she put the arm into a splint to stretch it and encouraged exercise.

Blashford-Snell’s early health problems persisted. Shortly after he was born in October 1936, a nurse at the hospital dropped him on his head and split his head open like an egg. “I’ve got the scars to this day,” he tells me, bending to (more…)

Update: 3.45pm Wed 24 Sept 08 - this issue now seems to be resolved. Thank you for your patience. You should now be able to click through via the email newsletter links and also to subscribe to receive email notifications in the usual way.

There seems to be some problems with the links in the email newsletter - this is due to tech issues at the third party provider, Feedblitz. Apologies to my email newsletter subscribers for the inconvenience but I’m afraid I’m in Feedblitz’s hands so I hope they can resolve it soon.

I love encountering people who show me a new way to see something or who introduce me to a fresh perspective. I had always thought of music as intangible and invisible - I hear it but I can’t see it. And then I met artist Caroline Tate, who paints music.

We met at the Hilary Gialerakis exhibition last week while we were both taking in the Girl with the Unicorn. “What do you mean, you ‘paint music’?” I asked.

“I put onto canvas what the music evokes for me,” Caroline explained. “You know, the emotion, the mood. Sometimes I also use the actual notes, the musical notation, and incorporate it as part of my painting.”

For me, paintings always seem static, capturing a moment in time whereas music takes time and cannot be captured like a snapshot. So it took awhile for me to understand how one could paint music. But as Caroline described her love of music and her attempts to capture it on canvas, I began to visualise fluid movements of a paint brush and the balletic flowing of an artist’s hand and body as music danced around them.

I said to Caroline that I tend to prefer narrative so books and movies and writing are what capture my imagination and music and painting lack sufficient narrative momentum to draw me into their vortex and keep me there in the way that a story told through time would. “That’s the writer in me, I guess.”

“You paint with words,” Caroline said. “That’s the only difference.”

Later on, over the weekend, I was thinking about what she said as I pottered about at home and I remembered the first time I heard Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.

The four movements are meant to evoke spring, summer, autumn and winter and it’s an easy piece to “get” - there’s the jolly frolicking tune for summer, the darker notes for winter and so on. But for me, it didn’t make me think of the seasons of nature. I found myself imagining the music as a narrative about the four stages in a love story in a cityscape - how a little nothing leads to an argument and one of them storms out of their city apartment; the other is left alone in the silent apartment, sitting still in a rocking chair, thinking back to moments in their time together that gets them to this point; the question is, does the other one come back, does the woman left alone get up and go and find him…. And I would listen to the piece over and over again, fine tuning the story in my mind and teasing out the details of the emotions and how tension could be built into the narrative in counterpoint to the music.

Huh.

I can see music after all.

~~~~

Picture: Caroline’s painting of Gustav Mahler’s unfinished 10th Symphony

Caroline’s next exhibition “Patterns of a Landscape” is at the Barbican from 4-30 November and is based on her month long trip to New Zealand earlier this year. You can check out her website at www.ctate.co.uk, where you can see - and buy - her paintings.

Following up from my post the other day about using the live streaming video application, Qik, it looks like the Singaporean Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong, is also a Qik fan:

The Singapore Straits Times reporting on the event, wrote, “Mr Lee’s candid camera moment held a serious point. Anyone can now be an amateur film-maker, capturing politics on film, and people will do so.” The PM’s use of Qik indicates a relaxation on the ban of political films that had been in place for 10 years, according to the report, and is welcomed by local filmmakers.

Interestingly, Singapore’s satirical blogger “mrbrown” is also using Qik . The tagline of his blog is “L’enfant terrible of Singapore” which hypes up his reputation as the country’s “badass” blogger. In 2006, he hit the headlines for “hit[ting] out wildly at the Government and in a very mocking tone”, as reported by Asia Media. He was allegedly suspended from his position as a part-time columnist for a local newspaper for this, according to Vnunet.

As new technology empowers citizen self-expression globally, these are going to be interesting times for countries like Singapore which have traditionally preferred their citizens not to engage in outspoken public debate about political matters or matters that are deemed culturally sensitive by the powers-that-be.

Last night, we went to the opening of a retrospective exhibition of the work of Hilary Gialerakis (1924-2003) which included her paintings, drawing and the launch of a book of her letters and writings. It was the first major retrospective of her work - work which had enjoyed critical acclaim during the 1950s through to the 1970s. The exhibition was curated by her daughter Antonia Gialerakis, who is also the editor of the book, “Hilary: An Unquiet Spirit”. The exhibition is at the OSO Centre on Barnes Green - hence the title Hilary on the Green - a lovely hiddenaway space overlooking a leafy green and a quiet pond in the charming London village of Barnes.

The late Gialerakis had a multi-fusion background. She was born in the UK but in her childhood lived in Switzerland, Portugal, Spain and France - moving to warmer and healtheri climates for her health. She studied art the two major London art schools, Central and St Martins Schools of Art and then moved to South Africa with her first husband, the artist Vere Holden-White. Her professional name comes from her second husband, actor Andrew Gialerakis, who is South African but of Greek heritage. Our connection to this event is through Andrew and his second wife, stage director, Patti Gialerakis. The evening was an opportunity for us to catch up with old friends and meet some new ones amid the crowd of artists and theatre people with a South African connection, which included Janet Suzman - and discover the paintings and writings of Gialerakis in a personal way. And for me, experiencing an exhibition where I know the artist or the people who have a connection to the artist is quite a different, much more personal experience, than one where I’m just going along as the member of the public so I found this event quite a moving one.

Gialerakis’s style has Cubist elements, which infused with the dream-like quality of the images, is at times beautiful, at times haunting and occasionally disturbing. I loved the Girl with the Unicorn painting that you can see in the photo behind Antonia - there is a wistfulness and a sense of fleeting tranquillity to it. It contrasts strongly with another painting in the collection of a piece of driftwood that seems to loom and reach out at the viewer with clawlike tendrils. In her pen and ink drawings, rock formations writhe with tortured human forms. From what Antonia told me about her mother, these contrasting images seem to reflect that dualistic aspect of this gifted artist who had what Antonia called a “Sylvia Plath-like” life. “It was challenging, shall we say, going through her letters and writings to bring together in a book, ” Antonia told me. “There’s a lot of difficult, all-emotions-bared stuff in the book. It was hard for all of us - for my father and me and I imagine for Patti. But my father said to me: those are her words, you mustn’t cut them, if you want to tell her story through her eyes.”

Here is an extract from the book. Gialerakis is writing about her first husband Vere Holden-White during sessions where she is sitting for him:

“[Vere] looks wilder than ever, is not laughting and appears to be angry. He tries with angry, clumsy violence, to make love to me - and fails repeatedly and finally chases me downstairs into the night, cursing horribly…. I spend much of my time here being painted by Vere during the day. He makes me sit quite still for hours and hours without a break, which is horribly exhausting but I do not dare move or he will hit me…. His behaviour towards me consists of terrifying menal burtality, suddenly followed by extraordinary tenderness, consideration and general expressions of love.” (pages 77-78)

Gialerakis’s tumultous personal life and dark images contrasted starkly with the people gathered at the OSO Centre on that mild September evening. The exhibition was the culmination of 5 years planning and preparation for Antonia, Gialerakis’s daughter. Andrew and Patti had come over the week before from Crete to help with the final preparations - the picture hanging and all the details in the organisation of the event that need doing in the last few days. Their friends and colleagues were all there sipping wine and laughing as a jazz band played in the background. The personal pain of one woman had become art that spoke to many and also drew many into its fold. Looking around last night, I was struck by how artists find release through their art and somehow transform emotion and mood and pain into something beyond the horror or tragedy of the lived experience - and in so doing, can bring people together through their art in a way that reaches beyond their fragile selves.

Antonia has kindly donated a signed copy of her book, “Hillary: An Unquiet Spirit” for the Fusion View prize draw. Click here to find out how to win this signed copy.

The exhibition continues at the OSO Centre from 19-21 September.

Antonia Gialerakis has donated a signed copy of the collected writings and letters of her mother, artist Hilary Gialerakis, “Hilary: An Unquiet Spirit” for the Fusion View prize draw.

Click here for my review of the exhibition of Hilary Gialerakis’s paintings and an extract from the book.

One winner will be picked at random from the list of email subscribers to Fusion View. To get a chance to win a copy of the book, subscribe to this blog. Subscribe now.

Subscription is free and you will receive free email notifications once a week with the latest updates on this blog. You will automatically be entered into the prize draw to win a copy of “Inextinguishable” and also all future prize draws (unless otherwise stated). You can find out about how to subscribe/ unsubscribe by viewing my subscription policy.

The closing date for this prize draw is Friday 31 October 2008. You can still subscribe after that date and you will automatically be entered into the next prize draw.

Please read the Rules of the prize draw below.

Yes, please enter me into the prize draw - I want to subscribe now. Click here to subscribe now.

The Rules for the prize draw
1. The closing date for this draw is 31 October 2008. Within two weeks of that date, one winner will be picked at random from the list of subscribers.
2. I will notify the winner by separate emails and ask for your name and land address to which to send the prize. I will be entitled to assume that the name and address given is the name and address of the winning subscriber and I will not knowingly post the prize to any other person.
3. When I receive the winner’s land address, I will post the prize to them and delete their land address from my records.
4. I will post the name of the winner on this blog (but not the land address or email address) .
5. I will not enter into any other correspondence or discussion regarding the winners or regarding this or any prize draw and my decision on the winners and prizes is final. You may not substitute the prize offered for anything else.
6. I will post the prizes by the public postal system. I am not liable for any acts or omissions of the postal services in the UK or any other country.
7. Where the address is not in the UK, I am not liable for any taxes, duties, or customs or excise or import requirements that may be applicable in the country of receipt nor for ensuring compliance with any other laws, including but not limited to laws relating to copyright, censorship or any other matters that may arise regarding or in connection with the prize. These remain the liability of the recipient and it is the responsibility of the recipient to ensure compliance with the laws of their country.
8. By subscribing / entering this prize draw, you are confirming to me that you are over 18 or that you are over 13 and have the permission of your parent or guardian to subscribe/ enter this draw.
9. Your email address will remain on the subscription list (unless you unsubscribe) and will be entered into all future prize draws (unless otherwise stated). For my subscription policy, click here.

by Angie Macdonald

My associate at ZenGuide.co.uk who specialises in web writing and communication, Angie Macdonald, offers some tips on improving your written communications, especially when emailing and using other online spaces.

Angie writes:

Have you heard the one about the two psychoanalysts who bump into each other on the street. One says to the other, “Good morning. How are you?” And the other one thinks, “I wonder what he meant by that?”

We’ve all had that experience. We read an email from someone and it makes us sit back because this person seems rude, abrupt, aggressive, sarcastic or brusque. You read a phrase or a sentence and you think, “I wonder what they meant by that?” because you feel that they are getting it at you or making a dig at you. Your perception of this person changes and you may start to dislike them.

When it comes to writing business emails, it’s worth taking your time if you don’t want to have that effect on your recipient.

Check what you’ve written and rewrite parts if you need to, before clicking on send. In fact, it’s not only emails. Any written interaction, whether it’s commenting on a blog, instant messaging on Skype, or writing on friends’ Facebook walls can benefit from taking your time to make sure you use the right words and right tone to say what you mean.

Ask yourself: How are your words going to be perceived by your recipient?

The person reading your email isn’t going to be able to see you smiling and they won’t be able to hear your lighthearted or ironic tone or sense your attitude. All they’ve got to go on are your written words. Delivered and read in silence. What if they take it the wrong way?

How many people read an email, feel offended or confused, and pick up the phone to the author? “Hi John, I’ve just read your email and I wondered if in line 2 where you say such and such, if you really meant to insult me?” Not many, I’m guessing.

So you may never know that your email sent off in haste has offended, upset or angered someone. But you may find that your friendship or business relationship with them may cool in the future for no apparent reason.

Or you may find that the person comes back at you all guns blazing because they have been offended, upset or angered when you didn’t mean to have that effect on them at all. Trying to untangle that and reconcile in those circumstances can be exhausting for all concerned.

And what about spelling and punctuation in emails? Some people think that because email is an informal communication medium it’s okay to conduct business in broken English, without the need for spelling, punctuation. Some people use the same language they use for sms text messaging. On a mobile phone it makes sense to abbreviate but in an email? It can be perceived as laziness or sloppiness, especially in a business context - and that can be damaging to your reputation over the long term.

It’s easier to communicate effectively if you know and understand a little about the person you’re communicating with. You can then tailor your words to their personality – treat a matter seriously if you know it’s important to them, wish them a good holiday if you know they’re going away. Or ask them to do something in such a way they feel it’s their decision to do it.

Here are are a few points you can bear in mind next time you have to draft an email.

# Take your time
# Read your communication from the recipient’s point of view
# Be sure what it is you want to communicate and what response you’d like from the other person
# Be consistent in your approach and style
# If you use capitals people will think you’re shouting at them.

Whatever you do, don’t let your emails reflect badly on you. A little time spent planning what you want to say can save a lot of misunderstanding later.

Photo: thanks to ronsho on flickr.com (CCL)

I’ve been reading Naomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine and I’m not sure I can finish it any time soon.

The main thesis is that governments and those in authority take the opportunity when we are in a state of shock to foist onto us all manner of laws and policies that we would never agree to if we were in a more together state of mind.

The book opens with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina when many of the poorest people in New Orleans were killed or displaced by the hurricane and floods and the city was partially destroyed. According to Klein’s book, policy makers saw this as an opportunity to rebuild schools and introduce voucher-based education, a hot potato in US politics, and much funding was poured into that rather than on housing and other more practical regeneration schemes. Similarly, after September 11th 2001, governments took the opportunity to pass many laws curtailing civil liberties for the sake of national security and we allowed them to do it eg increased surveillance, longer periods for people to be detained without charge etc. And on top of that, there are many private businesses and others that make money and benefit from all these projects that have been created while we’re all in shock eg the companies that built and run the new schools in New Orleans, the defence contractors and others selling their services in a post-911 world at war.

She relates the policies back to psychological experiments between academic researchers and government agencies like the CIA. One story she reports is of a Canadian psychologist at McGill University who did mind control experiments on patients without their consent. One woman came to see him for mild depression and was left severely psychologically damaged after his experiments returned her to a state of infantilism.

Shock Doctrine is a powerful book but I find it all very upsetting. I feel outraged, angry and powerless in the face of the evidence of institutional abuse of power and disregard for human rights. It’s one of those situations where I feel it’s good for me to know about all this, that the truth must be told - but on the other hand, when I settle down to read a book after a long week, I don’t want to be beaten into an emotional pulp, learning that the world is an evil place and that our lives are controlled by the monstrous and inhumane.

Perhaps I’m just a wimp for wanting to bury my head in the sand and read less emotionally fuelled books. Yet I feel that I ought to persist and read more as I’m sure it’s “good” to learn about these things….

What do you think of Shock Doctrine? How do you deal with your outrage when you learn of injustices - whether through books, documentaries or news reports?

I’m pleased to announce three winners drawn at random from the Fusion View email subscription list - each of them have won a copy of James Woods second poetry collection Inextuingashable.

They are:

# jenp

# andrew

# willow

I have obscured the real names for privacy reasons.

Congratulations to the three winners! I have emailed them direct to arrange posting the books to them.

And thank you to everyone who has subscribed to receive Fusion View by email/ Twitter or Skype.

More information:

The Inextinguishable prize draw

James Wood blogs about Inextinguishable

Fusion View subscription policy