Its been a while for me to make an effort to go to jams. Theres loads of reasons why I don’t go to them, and non of those reasons have anything to do with not supporting the scene. I love graffiti, its practically my entire life these days, but I just find jams uncomfortable. I only go to ones that I really truly want to, and generally for a specific reason – there will be someone I particularly want to see paint, there will be an area I haven’t been to before or there will be a damned good reason that someone went through all the hard work – and making jams happen is a HUGE amount of work – to create one. And this jam – the Getting Up North Jam, Preston, July 2017, really ticked all those boxes. The event was in honour of a gentleman called Mick, a relative of the organiser and for me making a graffiti event in honour of someone really is a beautiful part of the graffiti culture. The fact that this was Prestons first ever large scale graffiti event and that it was brilliantly supported, organised and produced some beautiful walls was also a massive part of it.… Read the rest
Its funny you know. A single question from a writer that I was asked a month ago hasn’t stopped bothering me. I keep going back to it. Its lead me to stop and think loads about all sorts of things and allow myself a little dwell on some of the amazing stuff I have done over the last couple of years. Now, I have always been a sort of ‘what will be will be’ kinda girl. I still am. I think. I still think that we are meant to be where we are doing what we are supposed to be doing even if its sometimes seems that we are not and that everything is a bit pointless. I still believe that. Some days I believe that a bit more than other days, but still……
Now there is no denying that I have had a few turbulent years. I have had things happen that have quite literally knocked me from pillar to post. I have had time when I have just stopped and stared at my navel for hours, having planned to do something, write something, be somewhere, then just not managed to leave the sofa/bed/house. These times have then been followed by a mass amount of guilt poured on myself by myself like petrol – with the fact I have ‘wasted time’ being the wick my thoughts then ignited. … Read the rest
To all those that have been loyal and stayed with me – I promise I have a hundred updates on the way – however, work, PhD, health and a few other life things have been getting the way of regular blog updates. I haven’t stopped however, Im just taking a breathe from a few things just for a little while including this site for a couple of weeks. Ill be back soon as, but in the meantime take a moment to re- appreciate one of my favourites tunes – Im off to see ELO at Wembley tomorrow and to say Im excited is an understatement. Brummies are best, truly madly deeply x
LWL xx… Read the rest
I don’t do events. I do do events which involve me flying or being invited (generally) though – and I damned sure was going to do THIS event as it involved both. I’ve never been to Glasgow either so there were a lot of boxes that I got ticked by travelling up to the Yardworks Event arranged by a local writer Gaz Mac a few weeks ago. I’m not sure why, but I was convinced that Glasgow was going to be wet – mostly because in previous (not many to be fair) visits to Scotland it has always rained but I was still excited to be going up and when I got there to be greeted with glorious sunshine, a huge welcome from people I already knew and from people I didn’t it was a really lovely weekend. The following are a few shots I haven’t shared anywhere else, a few I have but also a few of the beautiful City itself. Big ups to Glasgow, twas lovely….
Little Wing Lost, Glasgow, May 2017
With massive love and thanks to Gaz Mac, The Easy Riders, Akme, Tizer, Sokem, Cheo, Bonzai, Rask, Mac1, Astek, Musa and all the other amazing people who I had never met before but made me so very welcome x… Read the rest
A very few of the thousands of shots I took when visiting Alicante and Benidorm. I had a few technical issues with my kit and so Im not really very happy with these shots from here but heres a few non the less.
LittleWing, Alicante/Benidorm, November 2016
My favourite colour is blue. But I never want to see my toes go blues ever again. Hyperthermia is not big or clever. Even though this night in forgein lands was both – as well as a memory Im not sure I will ever beat.
Little Wing, Outside of UK, Sometime ago.… Read the rest
Ive been reading a lot of stuff about ego and validation recently. And Ive also been spending less time on uploading and looking at my Instagram accounts. I also recently got accused of ‘showing off’ about something (which horrified me as I haven’t/didn’t intentionally). And all this has led me to start thinking about how the world has changed and for me to take a really honest look at what I actually think/perceive/project.
Its tricky isn’t it.
You can’t really win in this world. If you work hard you get the opportunity to do things out of the ordinary and then they become the ordinary to you. If you share that then you can be seen as being cocky, showing off, getting ‘too big for your boots’. If you share things – why do you? Personal gratification? Showing off? Pride? Over indulgent ego?
But if you do these things and you don’t share them why did you do them? Personal gratification? fear of showing off? shame for your skill/culture? or to smother your over indulgent ego?
For me its really simple. I genuinely do the things I do because I love taking photographs and I love a challenge. I get a HUGE personal satisfaction from my photography and from the adventures I have or have had.… Read the rest
One the very best things I do, and have done for a couple of years is go searching for original old skool graffiti. Im privileged that I get the opportunity to do that with some of the original people who either did it or were there at the time. This makes the adventure a damn sight more interesting and special because its like they are showing me one of their oldest friends.
I recently went on a such a trek with a writer, who gave up his time to take me to several spots in the Midlands and this is a selection of just a few of them.
Whats really interesting to me particularly on the one above is the full date. May 22nd 1991. Thats the first time I have seen an actual full date on any piece anywhere.
What might seem like some nice red bricks to a general passerby holds treasures for my eyes.
And this is where the old and the new collide. Thanks to the internet I am not only able to have these connections with people but then I can share the finds back with the original writers. And thats a bit mind blowing. The debate about what the internet has done – be it a good or a bad thing – to the graffiti culture – is one which takes place pretty much every day.… Read the rest
I spend a great deal of my time researching these days. Im always reading something, talking to someone about something, travelling to look and photography something or writing about something. Its part and parcel of doing a PhD on a part time basis and its very very often a lonely road because I have to do all of this away from my main full time job. But I believe that if you are passionate about something then you should behave passionately about it. This was my bedroom in 1983. This wall was completed by me and my best pal at the time Suzanne – she was an amazing portrait artist and unlike me also did art at school (which by this time I wasn’t attending all that much). I was a nightmare at this time in my life. I was rebelling against everything and everyone and I was also suffering/hiding the beginnings of what was possibly early signs of an eating disorder. But apart from the eating disorder bit – an explanation of which I fully intend to return back to at some point on this blog – I was – quite honestly – having the greatest days of my life.… Read the rest