Leaping horses, poppies and pennies.

Stewart Ennis and I spent the day in Govan making interviews for the Facebook site. We began with an interview with Thomas McMahon, Secretary of the Govan Youth Information Project. Thomas's interview will be on Facebook soon,where he gives a short, perfectly formed history of Govan from pre-Vikings to present day.

Then we went to talk with Jimmy Stringfellow and his son at the show-peoples' place near the Pearce Institute. It was a great pleasure to talk with Jimmy.He told us about Colin MacLeod coming to visit them over twenty (?) years ago, dread-locked and bearded - and how they gave him a place to carve wood in the corner of the yard. A little while later Colin mentioned that some more material would be coming...a lorry arrived with an enormous tree trunk. Somehow they found space, and the tree trunk eventually became a totem pole with the sign of two fishes and two boats at the top. Then another lorry arrived with huge chunks of granite. 'I'm carving granite now,' said Colin. Macleod's carving and genius said Jimmy attracted followers. They made a long house from wood. They built boats. Galgael formed.

Around five hundred red indians came to visit the totem that Colin MacLeod made, cramming into the ground around it. Jimmy said it was an event to remember always. He said some of them were wearing feathers, the whole gear. He persuaded the minister at the church at the time to let the indians come to - worship, to pray, to dance. He said their feathers would commune with the feathers in the church, the angels' feathers. I had a picture of feathers falling through the air from the roof and the rafters of the church.

Then there was the story of the sharks. Two sharks were brought over and had to be kept in a tank in the show-ground. They had to lift the sharks from one tank to another. The first shark was docile and Jimmy and the 'shark doctor' (sorry, forgotten his name, but Jimmy said he was an amazing and knowledgeable man) lifted it easily enough into the tank. Shark number two - the alpha shark as they now discovered - woke up and started to thrash about. Jimmy hugged it to him as this shark starts snapping and snarling and Jimmy's thinking Oh My God. Eventually Jimmy throws a blanket over the shark so it gets a little disorientated and Jimmy and Shark Doctor manhandle the beast towards the tank. But then the shark must have smelled the water and Jimmy said it cantilevered itself up on its tail (strong as an elephant's trunk)and shot straight into the tank. Cleverer and older than us, said Jimmy.

The leaping horses are famous. They are the beasts on the carousels. As we left, Jimmy gave me a little horse that was made to commemorate the First Govan Easter Carnival in 1991. The Carnival took place for three years. I think it was free. I've taken a photograph of the little horse that jimmy gave me and will put it on the blog....there'll be more about the show people later.

Stewart and I made lots more interviews in the shopping centre and these are on the Facebook site. All of them are interesting portraits. One lady came back with a little cup to show us. Her husband had left her the cup before he died. He left it with two poppies inside it. It's a little tiny coffee cup with the emblem of the Govan Weavers on it and the seal of a mermaid on the bottom. A man called John MacLean showed us an old and battered Govan penny. Minted in 1902. We've got a photograph of that on facebook too. A very full day, lots of stories and pictures.

Govan Old

Govan Old Parish Church and environs from the air.

I've just uploaded this picture of Govan Old from the air to the Facebook site and I thought I would put it into the blog too because I think it's such a great image. I was given it by Jim Ward, from BAM Construction, the company who are building the Riverside Museum. The photo itself was taken by Hawkeye.

Why do I like this picture? I think it gives the best image of what I read described in Historic Govan , as the 'heart-shaped' space of the old parish grounds. It's even got a nice strong bit of red showing at the doorway to the church, the red seems to glow. And I like the way the little paving stones, or slabs, around the perimeter edge of the church and through the grounds make such a regular pattern in the grass. (You might need to zoom into the picture to see these slabs in all their glory.)




Illuminated letter from the Lindisfarne Gospel

I remember reading years ago that the monks who drew illuminations in old manuscripts used to make patterns by adding little dots of colour to certain letters to attract the eye of the viewer. I've just looked it up again and apparently it's even got a name: 'rubrication'. The stones in the pathway look a little like that to me - like they serve a decorative as well as a directional function.

The picture of Govan Old also gives a great view of both the new-build houses and of the travellers' communities near Water Row, of which more, I hope, later....

More things slowly happening

I was at the Govan Cross site today, and the kerb setts have been laid down. Chunky pale grey. The loos still haven't been filled in with concrete yet. I spoke to Andrew Thomson, the site manager, a few days ago and he's said that he would be glad when that task (was going to say job, but reconsidered) was over. It must have to be a huge amount of concrete. I noticed today that they have some sort of netting over the hole where the loos are sited, so maybe that will help to decrease the amount of cement they will need. Dunno.

Am itching to get on with some drawing. I worked with Stewart Ennis last week to do some interviews with people around Govan Cross on opinions as to what should be in the engravings and got suggestions as diverse as pictures of seagulls and doves, to ships and the ancient stones to Govan's history of resistance and its strong propensity for a sense of community (that sounds a bit of a mouthful - the interviewees said it better).

I'm also itching to do some more work on the history. I've come across a great document in the form of, of all things, Glasgow City Council's 'Conservation Area Appraisal'. Go to http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/Business/Planning_Development/PlanningPolicy/Conservation/Appraisals.htm to see more.
I think it's really well thought out and thorough. So I'm going to have a bit more of a read of that tomorrow. Food for thought.

Govan Shopping Centre Site

Visual Art Workshop

The Macleod Hall Vestibule is booked for next Wednesday afternoon (30th June - 2-4) for an art workshop. I'll be working with colleague, Stewart Ennis, to make pictures and also interviews for the Facebook page (and/or any other pages I can work out how to use.)

I handed out around twenty laminated A4 posters this afternoon to advertise the workshop - it took a lot less time than I anticipated as people were helpful on the whole and we chatted. Phoned the primary schools yesterday to introduce myself, and to mention the workshop, but the schools are off on holiday very soon and it's a really busy time of year - any children who can make it along will be a bonus.

Stewart and I will be interviewing people in the morning of the 30th, before the workshop, beginning with Lisa MacAlinden at the shopping centre and three volunteers from the Govan Care project....

Planning the Future of the Past

Did I say last week there was a sense of urgency? Well, there is and there isn't. I went to meet Tony Traynor, site manager, at the Shopping Centre site this morning and he said that they have been held up for the last couple of weeks because of a delay in the supply of stone, some of which comes from China. Frustrating.

But it was good to meet Tony and make a decision about where and what size the stones for the engravings will be. It seemed sensible that the shopping centre stones will be in a square format, same as the ones across the road at the Square.

And I spoke with Norrie at the Pearce Institute: the first art workshop will be in the Macleod Hall Vestibule on Wednesday 30th from 2-4 pm. It sounds from what Norrie was saying as though a lot of really interesting projects have been taking place over the past year or so in Govan, to "plan the future of our past", as Norrie put it.

Govan Cross Art

Hello,

I've recently been appointed as artist to design a series of new artworks at Govan Cross and Langlands Path.

This is my first week in post and it has already been very full-on. By the time I had finished the interview and been appointed the whole of the Square at Govan Cross had been dug up! It looked totally different from when I had been there the previous week. Now you get a much better view all the way over to the Riverside Museum on the north bank of the river.

The building works certainly made me realise how urgent the work is to be done. There are only around two to three months to design paving engravings which will go on site at the Underground, in front of the Shopping Centre and at the Square.

As much as possible I want to involve the people who will be living with, and using, the art that is made in its development and creation. That's the reason for this Blog - to explain what's going on. There are Facebook pages at 'Govan X Art' and 'Govan Timeline'.

The Govan Timeline will be about the story of Govan from earliest times to the present and into the future...Highlights from the story will be engraved into the pavement or the road at Langlands Path.

I'll post more as I go along and update on progress.