PADRE CIRCA 1975

I’ve been ill for the past couple of days, so my dad sends me two emails:

“Hi Sweeps,

This is from Wales 1975, hope you feel better,

D xx”

(NB: The kid isn’t me)

Subject: Ken loves horses!

“This is me with a Welsh horse.

D xx”

Incredible. The one with the horse is going on my wall.

I LOVE YOU KINGSTON.

THINGS MY MOTHER NEVER TOLD ME

It’s something we had to write at Uni, I wrote this ages ago, blah blah blah… I actually interviewed my mother to find out about the subjects in this piece. It was quite difficult for her to talk about and I’m not sure I should have asked in the first place.

My mother first tried to run away from home when she was eight. She and her elder brother Lenny had had enough of working in their dad’s shop, so they decided to call it quits.

As Lenny scrambled onto the roof of their Dalston home, my eight year old mother realised a major flaw in their plan: siblings. Her younger sister Helen wouldn’t be able to keep up and Lisa was just a baby. There was no way she could hold two children and a bag of nappies. Still, she couldn’t leave them behind.

She would have to stay and watch her brother escape.

“SWAN LAKE”

While London and the rest of the UK have been stuck in “FROZEN BRITAIN” madness, my friends and I went sledding in a valley in Abergavenny for a few days.

In the valley was a frozen pond, so we recreated Swan Lake. Very, very gracefully of course:

Swan Lake part one: The Awakening

Swan Lake part two: The Dance

Sometimes it’s very fun to be filmed while making an absolute tit of yourself.

“BEATLES TO BOWIE”

The Beatles to Bowie exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery is huge. It is filled with photographs of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Jimi Hendrix and David Bowie, along with the bands that didn’t see it through the decade but we’re huge hits at the time. I can’t remember their names.

There are records and magazines in glass cabinets next to clothed mannequins, badges and more paraphenalia.  The best bit however, is the wall dedicated to self portraits of the photographers responsible for taking the iconic images of the sixties. They’re only small prints of people looking serious or silly, but they’re super cool.

These are the postcards I picked up:

“I’M SHIT AT CHRISTMAS”

Some of my friends are really good at Christmas and make cards like this:

And write funny things inside them:

Thanks Eli.

“SHOWFLAT: THE ANNUALE”

London has a new organisation that takes art back to basics. They’re like the fairy godmother for the art world’s unemployed. Their unique type of guerrilla exhibiting creates a new way to see work: no more silent shows with people whispering in front of the sculptures. No more waxing-lyrical about the meaning of a portrait. And no more sky-high price tags. They create fewer boundaries and more interaction. And there’s always a party. They’re all about the struggling artist that can’t afford studio or gallery space, and they’re making art fun again. They are SHOWFLAT.

“AGAINST TYRANNY”

John ‘Hoppy’ Hopkins is not a name that is instantly remembered. Yet his images are. The black and white scenes of 1960s life in London mix pop culture with underground movements. His pictures of liberation are constrasted against filth and poverty: dole queues, The Beatles, freedom protests, The Rolling Stones. Lonely streets and lively clubs depict the turbulence of the era and Hoppy’s role in it.

“WHAT’S ALL THE FUSS ABOUT?”

This is what the G20 riots were like for me. I’m sure it would have been a different story if we’d been allowed to join the protests.

“BORIS JOHNSON, YOU ARE MAKING A MISTAKE”

Boris Johnson you are making a mistake. It is sad that as the Mayor of London you are unable to see the importance of multiculturalism. What is worse is that you cannot see the importance of uniting Londoners against racism.

Rise was Europe’s largest anti-racism festival. Since 2001 it has been supported publicly and financially by the Mayor of London, the trade unions Unite and Unison, and by the National Assembly Against Racism (NAAR). Last year 100,000 people from all over London – notably families and young people – turned up to support the message of previous years: ‘London united against racism’. It’s a simple line, but a strong one.

It is the young people who will react to the cancellation of Rise, the people that Boris should be trying to please the most. We are the generation who have been taught in school to appreciate others’ religions, heritages and skin colours. We are the generation who hate racism but can still see its presence in the capital. And, as we are constantly reminded, we have a vote – and therefore a voice – which matters. Boris, take note.

While announcing last year that the slogan was to be changed to ‘Celebrating Diversity’, our Mayor did not realise how effective a few words could be. The trade unions and NAAR decided to pull funding from an event that did not directly promote anti-racism. This should have kick-started Boris “piccaninnies” Johnson, but he pulled the festival altogether reasoning that: “Without a major sponsor in place it is not considered appropriate to spend such a large amount on a single event, particularly during a recession.”

Boris is instead planning launch a two-day festival called Rhythm of London. Its intent is to give youngsters the chance to “have a go” and gain “access to music education, instrument tuition and venues”. The first day of the July festival will see schools hand-picked by City Hall having the chance to learn music performance and education. A nice idea, but a bland one. Music education is an important part of children’s education, but surely the curriculum has music classes firmly stamped into its timetable already?

The second day witnesses live performance across the capital, including the project ‘Street Piano’, where pianos are placed at public landmarks for people to “have a go” on. But Mr Johnson’s motivation is a little more transparent than he would like to appear – he has also commissioned live music from local musicians to play in bandstands. Coincidentally, the bandstands are in areas that supported Boris in the election: Barnet, Hillingdon and Redbridge, among others.

The problem is not that the Mayor has replaced one musical event with another; it is that he has replaced the overarching message. Rhythm of London promotes musical education – well done. But Rise promoted anti-racism, addressing an issue that needs focus and attention now that the BNP has won its first place in the London Assembly.

Rise festival was not perfect and last July it had its’ technical glitches – the power on the main stage was cut bang on 20:30 when Jimmy Cliff was practically mid-song. But it didn’t matter. The festival worked because music is something that can be communally enjoyed despite the racial or cultural make-up of the audience. It created pride in the community and pride in the city.

The atmosphere of the whole day was that of celebration, inclusion and fun. It was community created through the belief that racism is wrong. Boris, do not shelve this belief, it is important that Londoners hear it coming from you, too.