Friday 23 October 2009

The Big Picture: Diwali

Here are just a few of the beautiful, fascinating and enchanting photographs of Diwali celebrations around the world collected by Boston.com's The Big Picture:Image Source: The Big Picture, Boston.com
Image Source: The Big Picture, Boston.com
Image Source: The Big Picture, Boston.comMore here

Thursday 22 October 2009

Pumpkin Carving Competition

Anna Goodson Management are holding their annual Pumpkin Carving Competition which this year is open to the public as well as AGM artists - hurrah! Vote for your favourites, be inspired and get carving here.

Monday 12 October 2009

Visiting Artists Campaign Update

Manick Govinda, Visiting Artists Campaign Co-ordinator at Artsadmin writes seeking assitance in the petition against the UK's ridiculous laws hindering overseas artists from visiting the UK, making it difficult for some and impossible for others. Please sign the petition if you agree that these draconian measures do nothing but hinder the vital growth and development of global arts and culture.

"The petition against the home office's ludicrous restrictions preventing non-EU artists and academics from participating [in] the UKs cultural life is getting closer to our target of 10,000 signatories. When we reach our target we will send a delegation to 10 Downing Street with the petition. We're nearly there, but I'm writing to you for your help.

The points based system which replaced the far more flexible work permits will be a year old on 27 November. We want to hand the petition in by that date to mark that moment when our freedom to invite artists, writers, poets, dancers, musicians, academics and intellectuals - professionals and amateurs - were [sic] taken away from us.

Very recent examples of barred entry included:
* US artist Cristina Winsor detained and deported for allegedly intending to sell 2 small paintings at a local arts event in east London
* US artist MP Landis, his wife and 4 month baby detained and deported for not having the correct paperwork; Glenfiddich Distilleries invited him for a summer residency
* Indian artist Anirban Mitra refused a visa for the same residency opportunity after waiting for 4 months for a decision at great expense
* Russian author Sergei Mironenko of Memorial and Evgeni Tsymbal, Russian film director, were were refused visas despite being invited by reputable organizations (the London Book Fair and Queen Mary University of London respectively)
* The Lahore Pipe Band from Pakistan were refused visas to participate in Scotland’s World Pipe Band Championships

The home office and the UKBA needs to get a sense of proportion. Hundreds of community, amateur and cultural groups are being affected as well as big national arts institutions.

We need to send a loud message to the Home Office that these ludicrous regulations need to be seriously reviewed and reconsidered. This petition has collected a huge breadth of voices from all walks of life, nationalities, political and religious persuasions.

If you haven't signed it, PLEASE do so. If each of you can persuade a friend, colleague or family member to sign the petition then we've more than reached our target."


Access the petition here

"This threatens the exchange of ideas in the arts and sciences which means so much to our culture and also helps promote the cause of international good will. These new regulations will have the very opposite effect of that intended. It will also tend to make UK security authorities something of a laughing stock, since it so obviously exemplifies the narrow bureaucratic mind at its most foolish."
Petition signatory, Michael Moorcock - editor/journalist/novelist

"A few months ago I attended Marina Abramovic presents during the Manchester International Festival. This was undoubtedly one of the most important performance art events to occur in Britain for many years, and there was an empty space where there should have been an artist from Indonesia. The organisers had to explain that the artist had run into visa trouble. Thousands of people attended this event. This means that another several thousand people now see the Border Agency, and the whole policing and population control infrastructure of the United Kingdom, as mean and ridiculous. Why bother having the British Council to promote British culture abroad when you have this stupid agency and these stupid laws undermining all the work that it does to earn respect for the United Kingdom?"
Petition signatory, Robert Persson, artist.

Further info on the visiting artists campaign here

Thursday 8 October 2009

Not Stupid Greenpeace Grafitti


Not Stupid - Greenpeace event time-lapse Graffiti video
from Karuna Guzmán Møller on Vimeo

Artist: Christian Olsen
Music: Jonas Werner
Compositing and After Effects: Andreas Blinkenberg

"This video was created by Greenpeace for the Copenhagen screening of the Global Premiere of The Age of Stupid. It was shown at the IMAX Planetarium theatre by the lakes in Copenhagen on the 22nd of September, leading up to the COP-15 Summit." More here

Wednesday 7 October 2009

iknitlinks: Changing Our World One Stitch At A Time

Warming the very cockles of our heart shaped craft world, wonderful news from the knitting world has reached the open doors of bluAngel Almanac. Not only is there heaps going on as usual in the I Knit London department - including book groups, book talks, a knitting weekender, Sunday knit roast (yum) and some fascinating and enchanting films about Lower Marsh SE1 and local specialist shops by getcarterpr - but... wait for it... iknitlinks has begun... *contented, feel-good sigh*

Image Copyright: iknitlinksBut, what is iknitlinks? I here you cry, eager to share in this wealth of loveliness. Let me tell you. iknitlinks is an extraordinary knitting community in the making. This wonderful non-profit community interest company (check it) has been set up by I Knit London needle master Gerard and Stitchlinks' yarn guru Betsan. And their mission? To make a positive difference in the world through knitting. Bless them... no, really - may a thousand blessings rain down upon them and iknitlinks!

Before we get too gushy and teary over this quite lovely enterprise where all profits are directed back into the business (as should happen in all business) and users are aided and encouraged to set up and join our own local community groups for social, health, well-being, educational and any other socially beneficial reason, we'll let iknitlinks explain the project in their own words.
Image Copyright: iknitlinks"I Knit Links is a non-profit Community Interest Company (CIC). As a CIC iknitlinks profits are ploughed back to benefit our knitting community not the company owners.

How it started: Knitting brought together Betsan from Stitchlinks and Gerard from I Knit London. The idea for iknitlinks grew from our friendship and our mutual desire to use knitting to make a difference in the world...

We will:
- Set up a network of knitting groups with the purpose of building local communities.
- Provide a communication network for local community groups to communicate globally.
- Provide an infrastructure for group leaders around the world.

Image Copyright: iknitlinksOur groups will provide a place:
- For local people to meet, chat and knit.
- Where knitters and potential knitters from all backgrounds, beliefs and age groups can mix and make friends to grow safe community networks.
- To grow self esteem and social confidence through learning a new skill or developing and sharing existing knitting abilities.

Our aims are to:
- Promote wellness and positive living.
- Build supportive local and global communities through knitting groups.
- Provide information, training and on going support for group leaders.
- Provide a communication network for group leaders and group participants.
- Put into immediate practice the information arising for Stitchlinks’ research.
- Share our expertise with you.

Image Copyright: iknitlinksWe believe that by changing and nurturing local communities we can ultimately change and nurture the world! Why not join us to be the change you want to see in the world and make this happen?"


bluAngel Almanac is truly touched and inspired. Once you've dried your eyes and thanked the universe for such beautiful people with insightful, generous ideas find out more and sign up here.

Thursday 1 October 2009

Blacker Designs: The Natural Fibre

Image Copyright: Blacker DesignsLooking for some lovely fibre to spin into wintry warmers and gifts but want to support local producers? Look no further than Blacker Designs (previously known as The Natural Fibre) who also sell natural and dyed organic fibres - yum! Needles and hooks ready? Let's go!

"All the fleece we use for our yarns, and all that used in Blacker Designs' products, is British and processed at our mill at Launceston on the Devon-Cornwall border...
Our fibre comes from four different kinds of animal: sheep, alpacas, goats and angora rabbits. We use silkworms, too, which are an entirely different form of animal life; the Tussah silk we use does not kill the silkworm.
The main source of our raw materials are sheep. It was Rudyard Kipling who wrote 'poor little lambs have lost their way' and 'little black sheep who've gone astray'. But if you think that one little black sheep is the same as the next, then think again. There are over 60 different breeds living in the UK alone and in the last three years we've processed fleece from over 50 of them."