Teesside Artists

An Exhibition

I took a trip over to Middlesbrough to have a look at a joint exhibition by Mary Lou Springstead and P.A. Morbid called “the light beyond the dark”. I had the good fortune to meet Morbid who walked me around the exhibition and discussed some of the themes that the paintings explored such as magic, loss, family and the state of everything. I’d definitely recommend that you go and take a look Mary Lou Springstead’s and PA Morbid’s strange and wondrous art.

When I got home I started reflecting on my day.

As I get older I find that I’ve become quite insular, I definitely don’t interact with as many people as I used to. I suspect that my experiences during the pandemic and the nature of my job have left me a little more detached from people than I used to be, I’m guessing I’m not alone in this.

My view of the world has been increasingly governed by what I read and see online, my contact with the ‘real world’ has diminished. So I’ve decided that this year I’m going to start making a little more effort to change that balance.

It’s odd but rather beautiful how something as simple as visiting an exhibition or having a conversation can cause you to reflect on the circumstances of your own life. I guess Alan Moore is probably right..

Art is, like magic, the science of manipulating symbols, words, or images, to achieve changes in consciousness.

Marcus H

As 2023 comes to a close I’d like to remember Marcus, a friend who we lost earlier this his year. Marcus was an artist, musician and sonic explorer. He was kind, funny, intelligent, a gentleman in the true sense of the word and we are poorer without him, rest easy mate.

Marcus left us a large body of work some of which can be found here https://marcushmusic.bandcamp.com/music

Here’s something Marcus and I made in 2016

Shooting Time – Ian Macdonald by Jamie Macdonald

As a lecturer of photography at degree level, Jamie Macdonald wanted to create a series of films that would inform, educate and inspire others. Where better to start than with a film about his own father, internationally renowned photographer, Ian Macdonald?

Ivan the Tolerable

I received a copy of this album a week or two ago and hadn’t sat and listened to it properly, last night I played it during my walk to Marske where I was meeting a friend for a pint. When I arrived at the pub the album hadn’t finished so I kept on walking. The whole album is a stone-cold kosmische killer, the dub track, An Interior, was a total surprise and is just brilliant. The best new album I’ve heard this year.

The Old Stones Exhibition March 2022

My friend Tony Galuidi asked me if I’d be interested in a joint exhibition, I agreed and here it is. If you like big old prehistoric stones and you happen to find yourself in Cumbria, pop in and have a look.