Writing

As a writer I believe-in and use the word as a kind of artist’s material – like paint, clay or pixels. I feel writing is part of my practice and a skill I can wield to clarify my thoughts, ideas and opinions.

I learned to manipulate and master words in order to articulate and identify my own opinions and create convincing compositions (N.B. I don’t think ‘rhetoric’ is a dirty word.)

There is a thirst for written acknowledgement among all artists, galleries, curators of course and so the first things I found it was possible to publish were some finely crafted art reviews (for AN, Untitled, Contemporary, Third Text, Zing and other art journals.).

However, this activity led to people assuming that I was or wanted to be a critic, which has never been the case.
Nevertheless I have recently returned to investigate the critic persona via my new Blog ‘ONLY YOU: 750 words a week on art and life in London‘

Review-writing did give me some exposure however and led me into teaching – which allowed me, for the first time in my life, to pay the rent by doing something I care about.

In teaching I use writing to produce lectures, and through these I have acquired skills in public speaking.

I have always liked to ‘colour’ academic writing with style, expression, sentiment and experiment.
My PhD was examined by Jon Cook, an expert in Creative and Academic writing.

Currently I publish essays on art and culture in Third Text journal and Art Monthly magazine. I also write the occasional catalogue essay.

I recently published my first book, ‘Where Is That Light Now?‘ mainly on photography and memoir.
I  published a few-what I call ‘very short stories’ in a (short-lived) journal called Aspidistra and the one or two poems I write each year I add to my website.
One day I would like to publish a collection of my very short stories and perhaps even a volume of poems.

I also write and perform songs and see this as just another form of writing or poetry.
During the late 1980s I wrote an number of raps which also allowed me to explore and extend language and writing.