Failed states.

The Economist published this world map of failed states:



It shows Columbia, Nigeria, Congo, Somalia, Myanmar, Afghanistan, Iraq... and Netherlands.

I am sure it makes sense in the context of the article, but I was slightly surprised to see our close, tolerant neighbours highlighted like that!

Failed states.

The Economist published this world map of failed states:



It shows Columbia, Nigeria, Congo, Somalia, Myanmar, Afghanistan, Iraq... and Netherlands.

I am sure it makes sense in the context of the article, but I was slightly surprised to see our close, tolerant neighbours highlighted like that!

Do drummers dream of electronic drums?

( This one does. Cut because even I find other people’s dreams can be boring… )

Do drummers dream of electronic drums?

( This one does. Cut because even I find other people’s dreams can be boring… )

Charles Avery: The Islanders - An Introduction.

Last Sunday, we walked to the Gallery of Modern Art to look at the Charles Avery exhibition - The Islanders: An Introduction.

I found this very curious: it was closer to a novel than an exhibition; it brought to mind Alasdair Gray’s Lanark. Avery has created a complete world, with its own geography, creatures and mythology – an island world complete with gods and strange life-forms. The website describes Avery as the author of the work, rather than the artist, and it really does feel like a book being created. (I was surprised that there is no catalogue – no book of the exhibition.)

I found it fascinating, but it didn’t really work for me: I couldn’t work out why he’d created it. Avery describes it as a work in progress, but as a viewer, his world – the island – appears fully formed. He has drawn maps; he has created sketches; he has sculpted bizarre creatures that fit his mythology of the island.

It is almost a study in fictional anthropology.

Apparently, Avery has based his island on Mull, where he was born. It is a very strange vision, fascinating in ways, imaginative and fantastical, but it actually left me quite cold.

Charles Avery: The Islanders - An Introduction.

Last Sunday, we walked to the Gallery of Modern Art to look at the Charles Avery exhibition - The Islanders: An Introduction.

I found this very curious: it was closer to a novel than an exhibition; it brought to mind Alasdair Gray’s Lanark. Avery has created a complete world, with its own geography, creatures and mythology – an island world complete with gods and strange life-forms. The website describes Avery as the author of the work, rather than the artist, and it really does feel like a book being created. (I was surprised that there is no catalogue – no book of the exhibition.)

I found it fascinating, but it didn’t really work for me: I couldn’t work out why he’d created it. Avery describes it as a work in progress, but as a viewer, his world – the island – appears fully formed. He has drawn maps; he has created sketches; he has sculpted bizarre creatures that fit his mythology of the island.

It is almost a study in fictional anthropology.

Apparently, Avery has based his island on Mull, where he was born. It is a very strange vision, fascinating in ways, imaginative and fantastical, but it actually left me quite cold.