Tyrone Guthre Centre for the Arts at Annaghmakerrig

The magic of Annaghmakerrig! Up to Chapter 15 already. The book is in better shape than I feared. Meanwhile the setting is ideal for focussing on your work while allowing plenty of time for walks in the beautiful countryside, occasional visits with friends, and long chats with other artists. I will return before the year ends.

Back to Writing SOON

Heading for the Tyrone Guthrie Centre for the Arts this month where I'll return at last to my travel diary The Deep Road to Santiago written in the haibun style of Matsuo Basho, 17th century master of haiku. He wrote about his pilgrimages around Japan in short passages of lyrical prose accompanied by haiku. His masterpiece Oku no Hosomichi (The Narrow Road to the Deep North) is known to every school child in Japan even as Dante's Commedia is known to every Italian. Like Basho, my haibun will feature landscape, shrines and churches, experiences with fellow pilgrims in hostels,convents and monasteries, and moments of magic and spiritual epiphany. The book also includes black ink drawings. Halfway through a second draft, I haven't looked at it for over a year. Last year I went a-wandering around Canada and India. This year I've been a taker of courses, attender of webinars and filler of forms (grants, residencies) as I upskill into creative tech, XR, digital and immersive art. Must admit, I'm looking forward to a dive back into old world writing. 
 

Immersive Storytelling: Scaling the Interface of Art and Technology

I'm immersed in a fantastic course at IADT (Institute of Art, Design and Technology) in Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin. Learning about VR, AR, motion-capture (MoCap) and all sorts of futuristic amazing things. Despite the fact I'm a VRgin when it comes to creative tech, I'm eager to engage and ready to play. 

 

Indiahhhhhh!

Not long back from a glorious month in India. First three weeks in Tamil Nadu, south India. Began in Pondicherry, formerly a French possession, famous for the Sri Aurobindo Ashram (also beginning scenes in Life of Pi). Took a day visit to the temple town of Tiruvannamalai where I got monsooned on after morning pooja with over 10,000 worshippers; myself and my pal the only Westerners in sight. After this we walked barefoot 2 k up the sacred mountain of Arunachala, the manifestation of Lord Shiva himself.