2012 Review

Photo above by Malc Stone

As is the custom at this time of year I’ve been reflecting on 2012 and professionally it has been a successful one for The Pansy Project. Highlights of the year include my participation at Hayward Gallery in London with Fritz Haeg where I contributed to the Wide Open School there I spoke about my work and was able to share The Pansy Project with new audiences, a small publication I contributed to as a result of my participation will be available soon.

In May I worked once again with Homotopia in Liverpool, this special collaboration with IDAHO 50 broke new ground for all contributors and resulted in a fascinating documentary that premiered at FACT in Liverpool in the autumn, the film covered the collaboration with the Merseyside Probation Trust and the planters created by participants in the ‘Community Payback’ scheme that were then filled with pansies for IDAHO on May 17^th, when the documentary is available on-line I shall share it with you here.

In September I was delighted to be invited to contribute to ‘Truth is Concrete’ in Graz, Austria where I spoke with Richard Reynolds about our respective projects and where I planted several pansies around Graz. The short film above was made there by Richard Reynolds and really captures the mood and feel of the festival which was a really fascinating exchange of ideas. ‘Truth is Concrete’s website is a rich resource and a fascinating read go and look at it here.

Also in September I was humbled to be ‘highly commended’ for The Pansy Project by the Alan Turing Memorial Award, organised by the LGF in Manchester.

I was also delighted to be included in the magazines above. The cover-image for GEM (left) with a fascinating article by Sean Curran about queer art in museums and in ‘Et Alors?’ (right and viewable on-line here) which is just out I was really pleased to finally share the above picture taken by the hugely talented Malc Stone. The piece in this pioneering magazine helps spread the message of The Pansy Project and this image which I think is marvellous and may lead to further opportunities with Malc Stone in the future. For me the pansy placed in my mouth in this context powerfully communicates my intention with the project and expresses the mood of it quite succinctly. It will certainly be the cover of the Pansy Project Publication, which though slow going is coming together, I am still working on it and I’m aiming to get it ready for the spring. It will have some fascinating contributors and new images of planted pansies. The Pansy Project website has recently been thoroughly updated with a full archive of the plantings, videos, and press articles and feels very much more polished than before.

So as ever I thank the many of you that have ‘LIKED’ The Pansy Project on Facebook and my followers on Twitter and for the many international visitors to my blog and website. I send you heartfelt thanks, season’s greetings and all the very best for 2013.

As ever my research continues…..