I experienced technical problems and was unable to document the entire show - hopefully Paul will send them from rainy Jamaica. You may have noticed (from the original map of space) that there is a new addition... a kind of bump that appeared for the show. I thought it could be a sort of heterotopia, Paul might disagree with me though...

Black star Wallhill 2009 installation view

untitled_Wall Hill_blackstar series 2009 from Paul Jones on Vimeo.

Twilight

Black star (detail) 2010 Paul Jones

Intuition cuts in when one has to make something urgently. I can’t talk for anyone else here – we all have our own ways of doing things… I never really manage to do all the thinking research and making in the same sitting. It’s more like cycles for me, times when I can’t make, I read or look at someone else’s work. But when I want to make my own, I can’t look elsewhere for months!

So working earnestly towards this show I was very much in the state described above. In some ways I wonder whether it’s a failsafe to stop criticism and doubt from creeping in - disrupting my resolve. It doesn’t make one open to in-depth critique though... Mainly I like to watch people navigate the work spatially, but the few conversations I had were useful.

Black Star 2010 (Background) Untitled Black series (foreground)

I had less preciousness about the situation; the space had its own ethos. Because it had music nights and so forth, there were many coloured lights - we didn't change them. As darkness fell we were plunged into a strange twilight, it felt rather comfortable. We spent most of the night there, some how it was like keeping the work company or maybe it was the other way around...

going the distance @ 3am

Visit to Falckenberg Collection Hamburg

On the night of our opening we visited the Falckenberg collection... but to confuse you the work featured was from the Reininghaus Collection Cologne. There were some brilliant works - I was drawn (of course) to the work that litterally had bells and whistles! We had great fun in immersive installations by John Bock and John Kessler. Each dealing with violence and mortality in very humourous ways...

John Kessler installation

hot inside John Bock

My lasting vision of the Bock installation was the artist himself drowning in a bucket of baked beans! Strange to visit a private view on the night of your own, but this is Hamburg - we'll do what Hamburg people do - we're open till 3am!

Homemade boxes

We had a pa system at our disposal… now I can string up a regular domestic stack job – but this was serious soundman stuff. I love music and looked forward to attaching my ipod. First problem was where to put it? It was a substantial bit of kit, we spent about an hour (well it felt like it) trying to find a place that wouldn’t interfere with the show. We didn’t succeed, in the end we built a false wall to hide it.

I made a box of my own, people needed to see what I was seeing. The real depth of the image only works in the flesh. I’ve been taking photos for some time, but photography is expensive. Light boxes are expensive too, but I think better value - plus it’s a bit more hands on. I had a great time finishing the metal box – although I’m sure nobody noticed my (anal) wet n dry job. I put a German (black rubber) plug on – which tucked in rather nicely to a handsome three way circular socket. The box sat comfortably at the end of the wood panel/glazed corridor and was the first object visitors encountered in the exhibition.

To reduce stress levels - I had decided not to make new drawings for the show, but to experiment with installation. My new drawings are developing a different character anyway, but I think this show will help to resolve them in some way. Paul was more open to the space and its dictates. I’m a bit of a worrier - I need answers and tried to have them all before I got there… Wot I didn’t tell you, is that I went all the way to Lakeside for trestles...

Yes thank you IKEA !

I chose – well not exactly - actually the bridge presented itself as the natural location for the animation. This rear projection territory was new to me. Because the projection was so small, I allowed myself to use the proper stuff Perspex vision – which usually costs around £300 for 2m x 3m sheets - obviously I didn’t spend that kinda money… Even though I had the proper stuff it wasn’t all plain sailing… There was still the hanging issue and the technical problem of ‘hot spots’ (this is when the projector creates a bright spot on the screen, which obscures the projected subject).

lets say I’ve still got some work to do, but in general I was pleased with the results…

The vibes

Paul and Tilo getting deep into computers at 2am

We had dimensions, (but apart from it not being a pristine gallery space) I didn’t know what to expect. my experience of working in industrial spaces has usually entailed clearing lots of pigeon shit - they're not my favorite spaces. I was pleasantly surprised however, it was an office in its former life and so quite intimate in scale - it had a really nice feel to it and they had done a little work. largely though the character of the place remained, some partitions were wood panel and glazed. Ok... So I have to apologise - I don’t have many pics. Apart from the fact that we only had one day to get it together, my camera also stopped working...

The space consisted of two rooms (the second not on this map) a corridor and a bridge. Our hosts were really generous and accommodating, especially Tilo who stayed up (virtually all night) during the installation. We were making an exhibition, but really if felt more like a marathon - not in a stressful way. In fact there was a certain level of ease about the situation, which made it fun. The Sübalkon group are serious about what they’re doing, (they invest a great deal of time, effort as well as money into the project) but because of the mix of people there isn’t the preciousness about status as a visual arts space. That stiff professionalism wasn’t around – I found this rather refreshing and empowering…