Tullie House Install Day#3

Finishing touches and discussion of exterior lighting. Amused to see sign!

Tullie House Install Day#2

Hydroponics installation nearly complete and ready for tomorrow's opening. Thanks to John Stokes, Donna Marris (for sorting out those lovely holes) all at Tullie House, Chris Dobbinson, the Sparkies and Fiona Venables for helping get the grow room ready.

I'm wondering what the impact of walking through the gallery door straight into a stud wall with a door in it and a sign on that that says 'Restricted Access' will be for a visiting public! No one can go in without getting instruction from the gallery staff! It is really good to be included in the show. The other artist's work is terrific and I'm looking forward to meeting them. It was especially nice to see Jae Dudman today with whom I worked in 2000 (She has aged more gracefully than I have!)

Still thinking through the fact that we tried to run a 2645 watt draw through a supply fused to three amps! (Not what I asked for!). Co2 cylinder and release control system fitted and water pumps, pots and clay balls with timed nutrient piping installed. Input and output fans in and commisioned. Some work still to do on the white black sheeting and an irritating plug that I don't like! We could could grow something.... but we won't be. http://www.vistaprojects.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TH-Sedition-Programme-20pp-LoRez-v81.pdf

Tullie House Install Day#1

Long day but by the end of the day the weirdness of it has begun to come together. Fantastic build by Chris Dobbinson/Tullie House staff and John Stokes. Thanks everybody.

Plants in Films!

Harry Brown. 2010. A recent release starring Michael Caine and directed by Daniel Barber is a fictional account of geriatric vigilante action against a street gang set on a London housing estate. Brown, the protagonist (played by Caine) takes on a gang who have killed his only friend. He visits a pair of local drug dealers to buy a gun to realise his revenge but the encounter is volatile and twisty.

It ends in a violent confrontation with Brown murdering both dealers. The final execution shot is taken amongst cannabis plants in their hydroponic garden. Brown ends the scene by burning the plants.

Little Shop of Horrors originally directed by Roger Cormen in 1960 and remade in 1986 by Frank Oz. A comedy film about a florist’s assistant Seymour, played by Rick Moranis in the 80’s version, who cultivates a plant (Audrey) that feeds on human blood and flesh. The original, which was was shot over two days on a budget of only $30,000 on a borrowed set, gained a cult following as a B movie perhaps in part because of a cameo appearance by the young Jack Nicholson which was featured rather more prominently than was appropriate on the promotional material! In the later version Audrey is voiced by Levi Stubbs of the Four Tops. Audrey demands to be fed with Seymour's blood leading to the film’s most hysterical musical number.

Silent Running 1972 directed by Douglas Trumbull and starring Bruce Dern. The film is set in a future in which all plant life on earth has ended. The remaining specimens are preserved much in the manner of Noah’s Ark in enormous geodesic domes attached to a series of space freighters orbiting Saturn. Dern plays the resident botanist/ecologist who is charged with the preservation of the forests for their eventual return to earth accompanied by three robots called, Hughie, Louie and Dewey. The film depicts the disintegration and loneliness of Dern’s character ‘Lowell’ as the forest dies. His last act is to jettison the forest to safety before detonating his ship and ending his own life. What is so remarkable is the almost exact correlation between the domes on the spaceship and those of the Eden Project in Cornwall. It's almost as if... Actually I can't bear to say it!

Wiring and testing

Yesterday collected the Hydroponics gear for the show and drove it up from Manchester. Tested the lighting which takes a while to warm up - because I'm wanting to go with 4, 600 watt sodium lamps. The ballasts are huge and very heavy. I may have to hang them off the ceiling. The lamps are quite hard to look at! We were interrupted by a neighbour who thought the house might be on fire (leaving me with a little explaining to do)

Delivered the material to Tullie House today for the install and PAT testing.

It's going to look really nasty.

The exhibition guide has been published and it all hangs together well. http://www.vistaprojects.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TH-Sedition-Programme-20pp-LoRez-v81.pdf

I'm looking forward to the preview and party. I've fixed up to talk about my work and thinking at the Gallery on Saturday 27th November at 1:00 in the afternoon book on 01228 618700