Guest posts

Southern Fairies

Our guest post this week is from Rachel Price who co-runs the curatorial programme at South London art studio & gallery Hatch Space in Deptford. Rachel also currently runs art tours for the South London Art Map in and around the Deptford area. We asked Rachel to give us an insight into the creative momentum thats sweeping through South London in the last few years.

For some reason unbeknownst to me, many a Londoner still seems to have a difficult time venturing south of the river. These days you don’t even have to hitch a ride with the boat man, you can walk across a bridge of your choosing (I’m a fan of Waterloo) or board one of those locomotives you’ve heard so much about.

River Thames and Waterloo Bridge, London. ©Tom Arthur

The reasons for heading down here are multi-faceted: Great markets, cheap clobber, chatty locals (especially in Le Penge when you’ve fallen asleep on the night bus, apparently it happens a lot), superb galleries, and special parks. My personal area of expertise is Deptford where I have lived for 5 years. There was a burgeoning art scene here when I first moved here, Deptford X was going strong and there were a few decent art galleries and studios in the locale, the area has since, artistically, boomed. This owes partly to the enterprising South London Art Map (formerly Deptford Art Map) that decided the best way to survive outside of the obvious art hubs in London was to pool resources and give people a decent reason to head south (or 150 decent reasons going by the last South London Art Map gallery count).

The character of these areas, especially Deptford, owe a debt of gratitude to the market traders, independent traders and gems of characters that grace the streets of Deptford making it one of the most friendly, open, unpretentious places I have ever had the fortune of living – traits that don’t normally go hand in hand with ‘creative hubs’. This in turn has lead to an art scene that is both socially engaged and politically aware, whilst of course benefitting from the masterful menagerie of tat and quite frankly visual feast that graces the markets – happily this is Hew Locke’s inspiration for this years Deptford X festival.

Whatever convinced the vendors that Capri-sun and Timotei make happy market bedfellows I’ll never know, it’s not a logic I’m willing to question, because those guys could sell snow to the Eskimos, and probably convince them to take a few Vienettas while they’re at it. My point being artists are lucky to be in Deptford, Deptford is not indebted to the artists. Deptford was built on its trading prowess, and in fact a couple of us galleries could probably learn a thing or two from our boys at the market. With the public purse well and truly tightened art establishments would benefit from learning to create their own income streams and shake off the assumption that a commercial art enterprise can’t possibly also be a risk-taking, experimental one.

Hatch Space is an artist run studio and gallery provision based in Deptford, providing space and a platform to show to both national and international artists in the formative years of their careers. Hatch Space Flickr
– Galleries in South London are open late on the LAST FRIDAY of every month.

Deptford X 2011 runs 23rd September- 2nd October: Deptford X are currently accepting submissions from artists in response to Hew Locke and Indra Khanna’s Statement of Intent.

Vintage Retro Reclaimed

The ok corral was started by Steve and Joy Jolliffe and their daughter Holly, Isle of Wight friends of Applied Works partner Joe Sharpe. We rather like their stuff and wanted to share it with you, so we asked them to send us some words and pictures for the blog. Enjoy.

The ok corral began because we have a problem. Our problem is a lack of space. We just can’t resist poking about in other people’s stuff. Our little collection of favourite bits is now a big collection. The many odd plates and pots sadly no longer fit into the kitchen cupboards.

But there’s more great stuff still out there and it’s all irresistible but there’s no more room here. So, we decided to share with everyone else and this became the solution.

At the ok corral, Steve designed and now manages the website and generally keeps it in tip top condition. Holly takes considered photographs of humble objects and releases their inner beauty. Joy writes about our finds and gets the chance to wax lyrical and transmit her enthusiasm.

Now, we can all just keep on searching for those amazing things in a calm and guilt free way because they’re not for us any more, they’re for you.

The ok corral – born 25 May 2010 on the Isle of Wight.

www.theokcorral.co.uk

こんにちは from Japan

Friend of Applied Works, Lidia Leto, is an Accessories and Leather designer for luxury menswear brand Alfred Dunhill.  Working with products and fashion, Lidia’s job constantly references both craftsmanship and creativity. Here we ask her to highlight some of her recent finds.

I recently travelled to Asia on a research trip as well as visiting Duhill offices and stores. My time was split between Shanghai and Tokyo. Tokyo really lives up to it’s name as a Metropolis, it is a city where you are overloaded with amazing buildings, people, shops and products.

The first thing I noticed was that the consumer market I am designing for in Japan is completely unique and after a few days it became clearer why. Japan is truly a place of creativity and innovation. Incredible craftsmanship has been passed down through generations and reinterpreted into innovative new products, from fashion to home design, creating a unique hub of creativity. Brands who are already respected in their own rights frequently collaborate on limited edition products, constantly striving to bring something fresh to the market. There is always something new to see.

In terms of bags, lightweight and practical is the key. From the businessman to the trendy shopper, nylon totes and document cases are everywhere. A far cry from the rich leather bags the western luxury customer would be carrying.

Taking a break from fashion products, I went to the amazing stationary store Itoya in Ginza and the incredible Tokyo Hands in Shibuya, possibly my favourite store on earth. A whole morning had to be scheduled in for that one store….and here are some of the things I found:

A wonderful eraser with never ending corners! Everybody loves a precise corner on their eraser, here lies the solution. Designed by Chiaki Murata.

A lemon squeezer that so easily becomes a mexican!

An intricate and delightful greetings card titled ‘Infinity’, designed by Masahiro Chatani.
Here’s the blurb written on its packaging;

‘One piece of paper creates an ultimate space. Countless lines produce 3-D space beyond reality. You can have numerous different images whenever you see this paper from different angles.

Infinite bright possibilities are waiting for you in the future.

This would be a gift ideal for an unforgettable happy occasion in your life such as an entrance ceremony at schools and companies.’

To: Margaret Huber

This ‘guest post’ has been written by London based artist Riitta Ikonen. We first met Riitta in 2008 when she installed a giant worm at our studio. We love her work and are very happy to be sharing her ‘postcards’ with you. The cards are now on display in YCN’s window at 72 Rivington St, London.

In 2004 a holiday project titled ‘Location Vocation Vacation’ called for mail art. One post card per week was to be sent as a document of experiences to Margaret Huber, my then second year Illustration tutor at the University of Brighton (Margaret’s thoughts on being the project’s official recipient follow below).

Around a hundred and fifty A6 sized cards have since been sent (and received) from all over the world. Hair, fish, a sachet of white powder, a piece of broken record, mossy bark… all dutifully delivered by postal workers. Only five cards have never reached their destination, (a few of those due to very poor crocheting). Margaret still receives mail at irregular intervals.

A selection of the cards have been published in the book ‘POSTCARD’ by Laurence King Publishing in 2008.

Sent as is from Exmouth in England.

Carved on a lovely afternoon at Fragrance Lake near Bellingham in Washington State in the US.

Christmas present red leather gloves.

I was very surprised to see this made it. The whole lump from Exmouth beach.

Chinatown, New York. The salesperson was very worried I’d eat these seeds unboiled.

See all of Riitta’s cards on her website: http://riittaikonen.com/projects/mail-art

Riitta started the postal project when she took part in a student exchange programme with Nagoya University during her second year at the University of Brighton. At the time, I was her second year illustration tutor and before she left for Japan we discussed ways to keep her own work going while studying in a very different educational environment. A postcard project that I had previously set as a summer project formed the basis of the idea as Riitta felt she could develop it further as a way to document her experiences abroad.

As the postcards began to arrive in Brighton I soon realised that Riitta was not only recording her experiences, but also using the postcards to test the dedication, patience and humour of the postal system. Somehow circumventing official rules and regulations, the safe arrival of a clear plastic bag full of suspicious-looking white powder, or a neatly sewn cloth postcard with my address on a slip of paper carefully tucked into it’s pocket, was evidence of postal workers who were willing to participate in the game.

Being asked to choose a favourite from Riitta’s collection is difficult. In the years since the project began I have received postcards from all over the world.  Each is a new and surprising treasure in it’s own right, but is made even stronger and more valuable when seen as part of a series.  Whether constructed from bits of hair from a recent haircut or a piece of tree bark found on the northwest coast of America, all are true reflections of Riitta’s creative ingenuity and her unique view of the world.

Riitta’s postcards are a reminder that sometimes, small ideas can lead to an amazing body of creative work. I feel privileged to be the official recipient of Riitta’s extraordinary ongoing postal adventures. The project is an inspiration to everyone who sees it.

The social media ‘cherry’

The web is full of social media experts all with varying degrees of capability. If you take time to read any blog posts, tweets, etc around the subject of social media, it soon becomes apparent that the same content is regurgitated again and again….and again. Having read, sat through presentations and had many discussions concerning the social web, one thing is very clear; there are in fact very few people who have a real in-depth understanding, especially when it comes to quality and effective consumer interaction.

Understanding the intimate workings of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, FriendFeed, Foursquare, etc. is all well and good, but how does this help enhance consumer engagement? The answer is: it doesn’t. The social web is a fantastic medium; it offers immediacy and accessibility to anyone (as individuals or in groups) who choose to use it. However, as great as it is, it is only under exceptional circumstances where it has real value on its own. It’s essential for it to be fully integrated and complimentary of all other communication channels, online and offline.

99% of the time (and 65% of statistics are made up on the spot) effective interaction and engagement requires many communications channels working in harmony. These channels include offline mediums such as print, events, TV and radio. But, before you can decide which channels to use and create the magic mix for maximum engagement, there are three things which must be considered.

1. People:
• Exactly who are you trying to engage with?
• Where are they?
• How do they behave?
• What are their expectations?

2. Objectives:
• What are you trying to achieve?
• Is it creating awareness and interest?
• Is it based on sales and conversions?
• Is it about encouraging advocacy amongst existing loyal customers?

3. Content:
• Does your content have value?
• Will people talk about it?
• Will they align their own credibility to it and share it?

Without understanding the above in detail; agreeing the key performance measures and indicators, it is impossible to select the correct mix of communication channels. Although many organisations do it; setting up a Twitter channel and using it to pump out marketing messages believing they are “sorted”. The most probable outcome of this knee jerk tactic is a tarnishing of the associated brand.

Today, people multi-task and they are lazy. Not the best compliment, but it’s true. Sitting in front of the TV with a laptop or smartphone in close proximity, and maybe a big bag of Doritos too. If measured correctly, it is clear such things as TV advertising or any mentions on TV research programmes (i.e. Watchdog, Panorama, Loose Women etc) are driving more online activity. The same can be said for radio, especially digital radio. This activity may not result in increased visitors to an organisation’s website directly…people don’t behave this way anymore. People will talk to friends online and therefore this triggers activity on Facebook and Twitter; increased search activity, which then may result in additional website traffic. The more accessible, visible and responsive an organisation is across all these areas the stronger the likelihood of achieving your objectives. But remember the initial “trigger” comes from compelling content from other media.

So what is this post saying? If you have already, or are thinking about embarking on a “social media campaign”, consider what it is you wish to achieve from it and who it is you wish to engage with. I guarantee you won’t achieve your objectives by using social web alone. Also a “campaign” is not suited to social media. If you decide to incorporate a social web presence as part of your overall communications approach; you need to realise that you’re in it for the longer term. It’s a strategic medium offering an on-going dialogue, requiring continual management. It isn’t tactical and not an isolated channel…it’s part of a much bigger mix. You need the cake, before you can put the cherry on the top.

Karl Havard has been involved in the online world for 12 years plus. He has a deep understanding of all aspects of the social web, and the key role it can play across all areas of a business and consumer brand interaction. He is the Founder of pownum and of Somatica Digital, a small but beautifully formed consumer brand trust consultancy. We’re please to welcome Karl as the first of our guest authors on the Applied Works blog – we’ll be featuring further guests here in future.