Last Friday was the preview of the very first showing of By Our Own Hand, a collaborative artwork devised by the artist Richard Grayson. It was also the first exhibition in Matt's Gallery's new space in Nine Elms - a double celebration! The finished artwork is made up of 42 panels designed and stitched primarily …
Author: Hilaire
I am a writer of poetry and prose. I was born and brought up in Melbourne but have lived in London most of my adult life.
busy elsewhere
Three months to the day since my last blog post! What on earth have I been doing? My biggest news, in case you missed it, is that fellow poet Joolz Sparkes and I have been awarded Arts Council research & development funding for our London Undercurrents project. This has been my main focus since September, …
on the wireless, in print, reading
I have quite a bunch of garden-themed poems now, thanks to my recent residencies with Thrive in Battersea Park, as well as my ongoing involvement with my local community garden. And it's rewarding to see some of these poems emerging into the world, like seedlings planted months ago starting to bear fruit. During Thrive's week …
my favourite three things about being in London, revisited
I reached for my 1997 Time Out London Guide recently, and remembered why I have a copy of this edition, and why I have kept it. Twenty years ago, the guide's editor, Nicholas Royle, asked 20 or so Londoners, including me, our favourite three things about being in London. These were then compiled, anonymously, to …
Continue reading my favourite three things about being in London, revisited
walking to art
I'm lucky to live within walking distance of both Tate Britain and Tate Modern. Neither is a short walk - about 40 minutes to Tate Britain and closer to an hour to Tate Modern - but if the weather is fine it's great to combine mild exercise with some culture, and along the way take …
reading beneath the trees
On Friday, Chelsea Flower Shower was in full swing, and over the river in the much less frenetic environs of Battersea Park, I gave a poetry reading under the gum tree in Thrive’s main garden. This was part of Thrive's week of Chelsea Fringe events, and an opportunity for me to share some of the …
a week in the Thrive Hut
This hut, in Thrive’s main garden in Battersea Park, was my home for five days last week. Well, between around 10 in the morning to 4:30 in the afternoon. No sleeping over! In the run up to Thrive's Chelsea Fringe week of events at the end of May, invited local artists have had the opportunity …
what I told the canvas
I tell myself I can't draw, that I've got no visual sense. So what was I doing in an art workshop called Tell the Canvas on Saturday morning? Testing myself a little, and enjoying myself quite a lot. This was a one hour drawing and collage session facilitated by Mel Barry, and held in Thrive …
notes towards a blog post
scatterbrain I'm not feeling very focussed at the moment. ARTEMISpoetry Hurrah! I have a poem accepted for the next issue of ARTEMISpoetry, due out in May. Re-Mixed borders e-pamphlet It seems a long time ago that I was poet-in-residence at Thrive in Battersea Park for Open Gardens Weekend 2016. Now The Poetry School has published …
nice bit of kit
Much as I love nature and spending time in parks and gardens, I also find heavy industry and construction work aesthetically interesting. Stimulating, even! So one of the highlights of my week was being invited to a viewing of the Tunnel Boring Machines at the Northern Line Extension's Battersea site, before the TBMs were lowered …
Hilaire 