London was great fun for two days, but that was enough for me for a while. I don't really have any desire to return until there's a new wave of art exhibitions in the galleries. I'm happy to be in what seems to be a much more pleasant and vibrant city. When I was unpacking, I noticed an odd brown sock in my suitcase (I don't own any brown socks). It was dark when I was leaving the room at the hostel so I guess I grabbed it unknowingly and left someone sockless.
While I'm in Brighton, I'm staying with a couple, Sofia and Glen, as well as their lodger Mandy (who I have yet to meet). They also have two (actually nice) cats. Sofia is 6 months pregnant which means by the end of my time here she will be getting quite close to her delivery date! Sofia and Glen are both really lovely people. It was bizarre to finally meet them, as I had known nothing about them coming into this except for their names and professions. The house is also quite lovely; it's a new build and is very cozy (it's a little like the ones in the photo below in the sense that it's connected to others). It's a comfortable place to live and I don't think the arrangements here could be any more perfect. It's neat that I get to experience day-to-day British life through Sofia and Glen. So far, it's not too much different than life at home; little quirks here and there, but very similar. Sofia kindly cooked stir-fry for me last night, and used the same ingredients and spices (peppers, onion, broccoli, chicken, ginger, cilantro) that Will and I often use. Tasted like home :). The main differences between UK life and Canadian life that I've picked up on in the last few days are:
1) the CHEESE (which I already knew, though I was pleasantly reminded of how much better it truly tastes here)
2) There is a really subtle and smart humour that permeates EVERYthing. Sofia was watching the news earlier and I noticed that the anchor was interviewing someone in a very witty manner (the anchor clearly felt contemptuous towards the man and was not afraid to hide it). Even the cooking demos on tv are full of that subtle humour I'm becoming very fond of. Also, yesterday, according to the news, it was International Call Everyone Dave Day, which, when Sofia explained it to me, I found to be really lamely funny. Something along the lines of a character on a popular, old British tv show would address everyone by the name Dave and the actor died so the fans made a day out of it.
3) The scents. Women's and men's fragrances are notably more sophisticated(?) around here. And used more widely, I think. Cigarette smoke seems to be a much more constant scent in the air, too.
4) The density of absolutely everything. There is no space untouched or unfilled. Much different than Newfoundland'd ability to put you in the middle of nowhere.
This morning, I headed out to do some exploring (it was so windy out, I actually had to fight it when walking against it at times)! Pretty much all the houses in Brighton look like this. Endless rows of colour. I was reminded a lot of St. John's.
My house is about a 20-minute walk from the town centre area where I found gulls, saltwater, rocks, and the Brighton Pier.
A beach slug.
While I was wandering through town, I stumbled upon the ONCA Gallery, where I believe I'll be doing a "placement" this semester (8 or so hours). ONCA's programming heavily involves ecology/the environment so I'm excited to get involved. Today was the last day for the current exhibition so I'm glad I managed to get in there. The artist's name is Beccy McCray. Here's a snippet from the handout:
"Full Circle is a playful and immersive art installation created for The ONCA Gallery by artist Meccy McCray. It simulates a human snow globe and a super-sized snowball, made of tens of thousands of tiny hole punches. These punches are made from used, un-recyclable wrapper paper, Christmas cards and waste paper, much of which has been sourced from within the community.
After the exhibition, all of the hole punches that would have otherwise ended up in a landfill will be given back to the local community and re-packaged for arts and craft use. This allows the unwanted paper to evolve, bringing the lifecycle of the project full circle."
I really loved this installation. The gallery attendant told me I was welcome to take off my shoes and socks and step inside the structure, which I did. The bits nearly went up to my knees, and felt like over-sized glitter. I had loads stuck to the bottoms of my feet afterwards. The gallery space itself was also really structurally interesting.
After my visit to ONCA, I headed back home for a quick lunch then walked to Antonia and Lewis' place where we chatted and had tea. It was so nice to see a familiar face (and meet Antonia's husband)! I met one of their friends who is also in the printmaking program at University of Brighton. I guess it won't be long before a lot of the faces around here become familiar. I'm looking forward to that!
No comments:
Post a Comment