As my first residency I was really please how it worked out. There was plenty of fantastically rewarding and encouraging feedback from the librarians, the volunteers, staff and vistors to the library. I found an audience who shared my passion for the library and who was far more willing to engage with the work than gallery visitors.
Intuitively we all knew that the library was/is a living being. Yet having an artist capturing the essence of the place in three minutes was something else.
Morrab Library is full of living books and brings together a community of like-minded people. Humour, doggedness, cake and cups of tea drive the place. A peaceful tranquillity greets you when you walk through the door. But there is plenty of action, fast pace and perseverance happening behind the scenes. We might overlook those little details bordering on the surreal before they tip into moments of madness and laughter. There is always laughter. What better tool than to capture this through animation?
The artist’s residency has strengthened my voice as an artist and the trajectory of my practice. For me, experimental animation is the way forward. I found the tool to make sense of the surreal climate that underpins our daily lives. And for that alone, I am grateful. This playfulness had a purpose.
