LOCKDOWN JOURNAL: COVID-19.9 (Richard Taylor)
Three-edged sword for family time
Richard Taylor | March 2020
I am dutifully in a state of reconnaissance into how family-time is established during lockdown when geographically distanced from paternal and maternal influence.
A hopeful attitude is applied to this research and with positivity I am finding out exactly what ‘family’ consists of in our new-found global togetherness.
With three edges to my sword I can virtually wade through the viral contemporary swamp that is COVID-19. I have my actual family (AF), my gay family (GF) and a new family online (NFO).
WhatIsThatApp has been extremely helpful in keeping in touch with AF. We have been sharing aspects of creativity, producing a poet’s corner sending long rhyming messages predominantly about COVID-19 and its ramifications. The latest update, from a friend of my sister in law, who works with someone who works in the local hospital near Chesterfield in Derbyshire, is that all patients over fifty who are admitted to wards because of the virus will not be given ventilators to help with their breathing. Both my mother and father are over 50 – in their 60s in fact even though sometimes they never look it – so we are of course concerned about their safety and the NHS’s actions.
My mother works in administration for wheelchair support for a Derbyshire-based private company that used to be a provincial stronghold of the NHS. After the strand in which she works was sold by the NHS to the private company, in these emergency-times they are being declared as an essential workforce. If my mother contracted coronavirus, and if then she experience bad symptoms meaning she needed to be admitted into NHS care, she would have to go to a hospital further than her local one – either in Sheffield or in Nottingham. After taking annual leave my mother is due to return to work next Monday 30 March 2020, where she will be working in proximity with other colleagues in an environment that does not allow suggested social distancing. In good spirits she remains and she is hopeful too of getting a personal protection kit. She always talks to me in anecdotes, using names of people I have never met so I have to make up their faces in my head. She is creative even though she does not like to admit it. She is good at poetry and contributes to the WhatIsThatApp poetry corner very effectively.
In terms of GF I am actually bunking up with my ex-boyfriend in his two-bedroom flat. We are isolating together and forgiving one another’s behaviour. I am mostly tidying up after him and we throw things on the floor pretending we are in a strop. He still wants a pink horse. WhatIsThatApp is used extensively to keep in contact with GF members living elsewhere. Like my pal down in London who has a balcony attached to his bedroom. We have video called twice now and I find I know the structure of his teeth better. He is in good spirits and has told me tales of signing up to Universal Credit, with him being self-employed, unable to work because of medical issues and COVID-19.
Me being an active part of GF means I can share my knowledge of Universal Credit with him. I have been claiming what consists of Housing Benefit and Job Seekers Allowance as well as Council Tax Reduction since November 2019. A sorry state to be in and if I was not a part of GF, by now I’d be financially fucked. Strangely enough I seem to have built up a bit of armour in terms of stability within Governmental support, in advance of COVID-19 – so I feel a bit more prepared than perhaps others do.
NFO is a global network of online gamers through a new download I have infected my iPhone 6 with. I now log-in every day to get rewards and have joined an alliance led by a user from South Korea known as *DRAGONX*. Each time I load the game I can update my supplies, buildings, forces and taxes, as well as invest in military research. I can even use eight-hour ‘truce agreements’, which effectively create an impenetrable bubble over my city meaning nothing can infiltrate. I mostly do this before going to bed, so I don’t have to worry about being attacked with the potential of suffering huge loss overnight – rather like a bit of Vick’s Vapour Rub to ease your breathing and avoid suffocation. NFO is good to be involved in. The community makes me feel far less isolated and I now have a positive outlook on how I contribute to virtual society. I have friends in NFO from Russia, as mentioned above South Korea, as well as England, Japan and Ireland. The more time I spend with NFO, I realise *DRAGONX* is so dominant in organising us all within the alliance because they actually make money using Bitcoin currency, to divvy out advancement and self-protection packs.
As I think and read more, and avoid reading the books I was given last year, and avoid reading the news too much, and avoid looking at Facebook for more than ten-minutes a day, and avoid having notifications on Instagram, I find that self-isolating is something I am well trained in. Anyone outside of the art ecology bubble (but who hopefully still enjoys a bit of Studio Ghibli from time to time, especially as they are now on Netflix) might laugh at this. But, to be an artist in many respects is to be in solitude even when surrounded by others physically.
We are fantastically resourceful beasts and we can rely on our creativity to keep us occupied. Don’t fret if we withdraw into our own worlds and come back out again at the end of this global disaster better off than everyone else. We are used to living off very little, finding ways to occupy ourselves within an occupation 83% of the world’s population believe to be a hobby. We are expert at finding ways to progress. Below is my current CV as evidence of how we can apply our skills to everyday life.
Richard Taylor exhibited at BasementArtsProject in 2013 and documentation of his exhibition ‘Epigone’ can be found at https://www.basementartsproject.com/epigone
He also participated in the ‘Peripherique’ series of artist talks organised by BasementArtsProject at the Henry Moore Institute entitled ‘Give Me Your Rhombus I Want To Play Without Rules’
Personal statement
As a well-rounded individual I apply enthusiasm and curiosity to various working environments. With a distinction in postgraduate studies, I possess transferable academic skills to collaborate and generate results. Through experience in sound recording and editing, as well as copy-editing and proofreading, I use a rigorous attention to detail to complete tasks. Having worked in art galleries, libraries and archives I can deliver excellent customer service and accessible methods of interpretation.
Key skills and qualities
• Responsive analytical approach to solving problems and completing detailed tasks
• Resourceful self-starter and quick learner who delivers with pace, accuracy and responsiveness
• Enthusiastic and curious learner who seeks opportunities to develop specialist skills
• Focused in working independently under my own initiative
• Highly proficient with Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite, sound editing software
• Key listening and interpersonal skills in group facilitation, team working, events organisation
• Impeccable eye for detail within written communication and handling objects with care
Relevant experience
Archive, library, administrative and public-facing roles
March-June 2019. Volunteer archive assistant. The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow Sorted, cleaned acquisitions; managed and indexed information; learned new skills and procedures; met specialists in the field to generate knowledge of collections; handled delicate material for preservation.
August 2011-April 2015. Information and Bookshop Assistant. Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh
Provided exhibition interpretation with tours, talks, private views, events, workshops; administrative duties updating contact details in database and updating online exhibition archive; handled stock intake and phone/online/face-to-face sales in the bookshop; managed collaborative work flow in Excel.
December 2009-April 2010. Resource room coordinator. Transmission Gallery, Glasgow
Managed implementation of archive and publication collection; handled material comprising varied mediums including sound and video; supervised volunteers to delegate tasks.
November 2007-June 2009. Information, Library, Archive Assistant. The Henry Moore Institute, Leeds
Dealt with research queries and re-shelving; conducted site visits to The Henry Moore Foundation and archive; produced cold-light photography of new acquisitions in the sculpture archive; assisted in developing resources on British sculptors; uploaded material to digital archive catalogue.
Project management and group facilitation
June 2007-present. Visual artist and writer, UK
Exhibition and research production in multiple locations; technical skills in audio-visual installation; original approach to writing, recording, editing vocals; creating footage and editing digital video with text and sound; streamlined project flow with Excel, Word, Google Docs; collaborative work with resourcefulness and flexibility; photography of art work and unique approach to self-promotion.
April 2015-October 2017. Writing and editing workshops in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Leeds
Delivered various workshops for students of varied levels whilst developing a unique approach to group learning; effectively shared knowledge of how to write and edit creative writing; introduced flexible and confidence-building methods for reflective learning.
Editorial, communications and content management
July 2018-present. Co-director and assistant editor Hedera Felix C.I.C., Glasgow. (voluntary work).
Management of independent publishing projects; submission reviewing, copy-editing, proofreading; team communications through Microsoft Outlook, Trello, Dropbox, Google Drive.
March 2009-September 2019. Content producer and online community support. a-n The Artists Information Company, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, London and remote work in Scotland.
Researching, interviewing, writing material; maintained and built relationships with stakeholders and press; complied with copyright, style sheets and GDPR; managed assets within Wordpress CMS and CiviCRM database; monitored and pursued communications around user-generated content; handled large amounts of data for publication and internal use.
February-October 2019. Proofreader and copy-editor. First Edition Translations Ltd.
Detailed fact checking, copy editing and proofreading for print; excellent time management working independently; organised approach to focus intensively and productively; specific attention to text and image captions translated into English.
January-April 2018. Communications officer. Glasgow Zine Fest.
Experience with a small-scale publicly funded organization; social media, online content management, mail-out distribution; workflow using Dropbox and Excel; supervised volunteers and onsite staff.
December 2014-June 2019. Sound editor. The Fruitmarket Gallery (remote work).
Assisted in uploading images for exhibition archive in Wordpress; produced clear and accessible sound files for online publication; developed skills using sound editing software; used exceptional and focused approach to detail.
Education and training
2015-2017: Masters of Fine Art (Distinction), Glasgow School of Art
2004-2007: BA (Hons) Contemporary Art Practice (1st Class), University of Leeds
Training pursued in previous roles and studies
• 2020: Sound Production BTEC Level 3: Academy of Music and Sound
• 2016: Postgraduate elective: Fine Art Studio Teaching
• 2015: Postgraduate elective: research skills in Archives and Historical Resources
• 2019: 2018: Visual description workshop in interpretation for the visually impaired
• 2018: Train the Trainer: intensive three-day workshop on facilitator methods
• 2018: User Experience (UX) workshop, building digital stakeholder experiences