One of the assignments

MA in Creative Entrepreneurship

I started on UEA’s MA in Creative Entrepreneurship in September and have a year of learning and thinking about my creative practice. 

It seemed a good time - what with the cuts and generally depressed and depressing outlook - to step back a bit and look around. 

So I’ve had nearly a couple of months now of classes, assignments and reading time with visiting speakers from a whole range of fields - the copyright and contracts, finance, digital media, the arts sector and cultural policy. And I get time to think about ‘routes to market’ and opportunities and where and how I work best. Such a treat.

Women Photograph Men

Women-photograph-men.html

Talking Shop

Just finished a project interviewing and photographing independent shopkeepers in Watton, a small market town in Norfolk.

Click here for all the slideshows

Refugee Project Audios

http://soundcloud.com/lydiamartin/sets/refugee-project-audio/

Refugee Project Slideshow

Refugees In Norwich - an on-going project from Lydia Martin on Vimeo.

Refugee Project

Some photos from a project I worked on or Refugee Week - portraits and audio interviews with refugees living in Norwich and those working with them displayed at the Cathedral and broadcast on local radio. Very well received which was good.

Until I decide on a way to show this work you can find the audio on Future Radio www.futureradio.co.uk

Istanbul in April

Some pics

Way behind on uploads....These were from a visit to Bryony's studio.

Norfolk

A week time visit to the seaside

Naples

My first trip to Europe in years....nearly 10 I think. We didn't make it to Pompei or to the National Museum of Whatever but sat around and ate and laughed and watched Naples pass by. I was surprised by how much I loved it, seeing as I've been consumed by another continent for a decade, more or less.

Footprints

It was a hectic, inspiring, challenging, full-of-laughter couple of weeks. Over 20 people working and playing at 100% and the two of us leading the thing running to keep up. The digital stories are wonderful, better than I could have imagined and we're all proud of the work we produced.
I'm working on them with the editor as I write this and they should be out there and online soon.

Addis pics

Not much of a chance to go out exploring - but on my way to work I did try to snap.

Then to Addis

And then the day after the exhibition opening I flew to Addis Ababa for the start of the British Council Footprints project workshop. We met the group in Nigeria last year - did some basic photography, audio and research training enabling the participants to go and research their family histories. Participants came from 6 African countries and the UK and 6 months or so later we were to meet in Addis and make digital stories from their research.

So over 20 of us more or less took over the hotel we were staying at and most definately took over the British Council's Addis office.

Addis was a beautiful setting for the workshop - very high up, cool sunlight and very warm people. Although from the start I was pretty flat out coordinating participants, schedules and training with Katharina.

The Opening

The PhotoReflect exhibition opening at Wits University went well - we're slowly creating a support network around PhotoVoice and the project there which is exciting. People are so supportive and enthusiastic, a reminder that the idea is unique and worth promoting.
There's been a lot of interest in the exhibition and the project since the opening - academics, press, mothers wanting to take their children all making enquiries. It was lovely to see some of the participants as well, however short. They're still so committed and want to do what they can to keep the project going.

The exhibition is moving to The Artists' Proof Studio in Jo'burg in the next few days.

Press interest

PhotoVoice is organising exhibitions of the Orange Farm project's work, this time in Jo'burg itself and I'm the one coordinating the whole thing.

So since we've sent out the press release last week there's been some press interest. Interviews for me on Talk Radio on Friday and now a feature in the Sunday Times. Here's a photo of the piece.

Birthday Bash

Just been re-reading the blog and came across my thoughts last year on Mugabe's birthday. Well, we're here again. He's 84 and another huge party was organised accompanied by an event at a stadium in Beitbridge, a town just over the border from South Africa.

The South African media report consistently on the events in Zimbabwe and are just as outraged as the British media. Of course there is outrage.

But world leaders allow the situation to continue - South Africa's Mbeki in the spotlight here for failing in his duty to mediate between Mugabe and Zimbabwe's opposition parties and to setting down the foundations for free and fair elections at the end of March.
What does Mugabe care about these talks though? He changed his mind and announced he's running again in the elections, as well as creating a new constitution to allow him to do this, rather than rolling out the one that was agreed to in the talks.

He was flown in by the country's air force to his birthday celebrations joined by 10,000 invited guests apparently. He is still a formidable figure inside and outside Zimbabwe and in this world of freedom and fairness, of democracy and transparency - that's the extraordinary thing.

But it seems that these modern day checks and catch phrases mean nothing when it comes down to it. Look at Kenya - a robbed election victory and the players themselves seem to be happy to negotiate for Prime Minister positions and the power this role will come with, rather than a re-run.

The Event Pics

Photos from the Workshops

Durban Workshops

The Durban stint has whizzed by and I find myself back in Jo'burg and the workshops up in the Valley of a Thousand Hills are over.

The whole process was intense and exhausting - 3 weeks of solid working 14 hour days - but I learned a lot. And a big plus was working and being with Karen and NN. Workshops, training, creating an exhibition and organising an event. Here are some photos from the job.