Tag Archives: education

What does the future hold

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I read a brilliant article from Andrew Hankinson this morning about redundancy, the previous generation and the future:

I really think people should read this, it's a rather bleak look at the past, present and future, and I have to say it isn't the most upbeat article I have read recently, but I guess that is the essence and aim of the article. It does make you think and wonder about what the government was wanting to achieve by aiming to send 50% of people to university? Why send 50% if only 40% want to go? How many people did you sit next to in the first year of university who then never showed for the second, third and fourth year, having already got into debt?

I think I have had this 'chat' with my parents before, saying that their generation had it, in some ways, much better than ours, but like Andrew says, I guess every generation would say that.

Anyway, I'm glad the sun is shining because I don't think I could take looking at a grey sky after reading that.

Way back when

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Recently I managed to get my hands on some of my artwork I did about 10 years ago and it now hangs on the wall in my house. I have to say that it really does bring back some memories, always good, from that period of of my life. So this was back around 2000 when I was finishing off my G.C.S.E’s and hadn’t started working at the cinema yet (and therefore not met my wife to be).

This is only going to make me look like a geek, which certainly isn’t the case (promise), but I use to go to art club after school so I could get a lift home from my mum once she finished work. I use to have to walk about 2 point something miles to and from school, and doing that in the cold of winter didn’t really appeal.

When I say Art Club, it paints a picture of loads of people who signed something to say they were part of it, or wore badges to demarcate them from the rest. This really wasn’t the case, it generally was just myself, Sam and one of the best teachers I ever had: Ian Watson. We basically listening to a lot of R.E.M., James, Manics, Catatonia and a load of other stuff, and just “faffed” around with our artwork. It was great, best part of any day really.

So the piece above was part of a collection that formed my idea of 20th Century Popular Culture and included loads of 3D artwork, which deep down I hope Ian still has, although to be fair to him he can’t keep everything. I even made about a 10 inch 3D model of E.T. out of clay, and painted him up good and proper. Sadly I gave this piece away to a blonde lady who was 2 years above me and had a nice smile, how very shallow I was!!

Good times, and maybe I should try and see if I can reclaim some more. I am sure there is a pair of 3D trousers modelled on the idea of Han Solo frozen in carbonite from Star Wars knocking around somewhere.