I guess it kind of goes without saying that the forthcoming end of March solo show at Shipton Street Gallery here in East London is postponed, as are another couple of events that were happening over the next couple of weeks that i was involved in. I was rather looking forward to the Dwell Time launch up in Yorkshire, I did paint a number of Skyline pieces focused on the Penistone Railway line that runs from Sheffield to Huddersfield for a magazine called Dwell Time  Dwell Time kind of reminded me of some old drawings I had from some time ago, I did some new paintings based up them, I have written about this already, but what I wasn’t expecting at the time is that the Dwell Time/Penistone line people would ask if they could reproduce the paintings to go on a billboard that would hang on public view on the platform at Huddersfield Railway station. The magazine and the billboards were due to be launched and unveiled this coming week, the launch has of course been postponed now for obvious reasons, not sure when it will happen, I’ll write more about it when things are rearranged. Pewrsonally having art hanging on a railway station platform excited me far more than having art hanging in a gallery…

Dwell Time is,amongst other things a magazine that focuses on people’s well being, and at at times like this we need to think about that and che kon people more than ever  I  wrote a little piece on the Organ website earlier today, I’ll share it here as well unerneath the proof of the billboard.

“As artists hunker down and bands come off the road, galleries close and future events are cancelled, I see the hits on the Organ website are flying up, I guess you’re all stuck at home and surfing the web? I hope you’re all taking care out there, whoever and wherever you are, indeed who are the 21 people from Mozambique who have joined the many people from Spain, Italy, France and the rest of globe who visited these fractured Organ pages in the last couple of weeks? I hope you’re all taking care out there and that you’re all pulling together and helping each other, checking on each other. It almost seems trivial to be writing about art, to be sharing music, to be posting about artists or bands or new releases (or indeed our own art and such) at times like this. But then at times like this art surely is a force for good and creativity is a positive in terms of spiritual and mental well being? Surely music is a power and sharing together is important?

I was just debating with myself about the point in going to the shop over the road for more canvas and paint, I was debating with someone else about the value of bothering to cover the forthcoming Kavus Torabi album or the latest Philipp Rumsch release for instance? But these things are important, we do need art to flow, we need painters to paint, we need exciting new music, more than that now we need communication, we need to share things, do things, we need radio stations broadcasting more than just the vital news about the current situation, and even more than all that we need to check on each other (even if it is just on line while we isolate), we need to support each other, we need to look out for each other…

Personally I’ve had three events I was taking part in as a painter/artist later this month closed or cancelled, right now I have a gallery show in a space we’ve hired for and exhibition I’ve put on as a curator – that was going to take up all of March, the show and the art is hanging there in limbo right now, do I leave it there? Do I go and take it all down? All a bit of a financial disaster right now but hey, in the great scheme of things that financial disaster doesn’t really matter that much, I have no idea how home rent will be paid or indeed any of the other bills, but hey, neither do most people I know. What are they going to do, kick us all out on to the street at the same time? The important thing is we all pull together and look after each other and check on each other and protect each other – and as trivial as it seems while people are dying, while people are losing loved ones, we do need to keep on creating and sharing and being who we are and doing what we do, we do need music, we do need art, we do need engagement, we do need creativity and community, we probably need it more than we ever did…

And so as we hunker down here and wonder if we should go on posting relatively trivial daily Organ Things of The Day on these not very important pages or we wonder if we should even be thinking about art or the next radio show or sharing new music, the answer is a resounding yes. We need the fresh air of creativity, we need art, we need it more than ever, come together, create, contact, switch the other, pull together,support each other – and if you can give a tiny bit of support to the smaller artists, the little bands, the small art spaces, the sound engineers, the people who run music venues, the painters who just had their shows cancelled, the curators who make the small art shows happen, the little record label who just pressed a new release before the crap hit the fan, the little galleries who live hand to mouth at the best of times, if you can support a little I’m sure that would be appreciated, but most of all just hang in there and look after each other and if you need help ask, don’t sit there in isolation…and so, on with the not quite as trivial as it may first seem posting of things on those fractured Organ pages and if you do live in the Hackney area and you do need help then do be silent, do ask…”

Here’s some art, hang in there people, look after each other, take care…