. . . Llandeilo and the Towy Valley managed, somehow, to escape it all!
Llandeilo
Towy Valley
However, en route we saw more of what we already have. This weather also provided me with a great StillWalks production day at Lliw Lower Reservoir yesterday.
En route to Llandeilo
Jenny Deans
We admired Jenny Deans‘ jewellery in a shop window whilst there – good stuff!
The RSPB Big Garden Bird Watch is coming up again at the end of January and the other day I did a dummy run whilst waiting for video to process.
Regular feeding – Having realised that feeding the birds a little regularly is better than a lot all at once, I started on a daily regime of a couple of fat balls and some nuts. I guess they are very pleased to have it there now that we have some proper winter weather.
Potential StillWalk – the other day I took a walk down a footpath I hadn’t been to for a number of years, pre-StillWalks times. Looking with “new” eyes and listening with “new” ears was fascinating.
The sound of water – There can sometimes be a recording issue with the sounds of an environment that includes running water, i.e. a stream or river. The sounds of the flowing water can so easily drown out other sounds of the environment such as birds, and can become wearing if it is permanent.
However, the small Camffrwd River that the footpath follows did not present this problem. The sounds of the river ebbed and flowed in volume with the arrangement of rocks on its bed. The photos below are accompanied by some sound clips recorded on my iPhone, as were the photos.
Recording 4 birds ftstps stream The birds make their presence obvious as the sound of water is less dominant and the flow sounds change as I walk along the path.
Recording 5 walking stream This is a longer clip (2:15) which demonstrates very well the changing sound environment as I move along the path and river.
Unique sounds – All the sound clips and photos prove the need, in producing a StillWalk, to carry out the sound recording at the same time as the photography. The sounds on any day, at any time of day, at any time of year, will always be specific to conditions at the time . . . makes me think of the chaos theory and the interconnectedness of things! Chaos by James Gleick is a fascinating and very accessible book on this subject.
Yey! Listen to the Debbie Evans Arts Show on Radio Tircoed tomorrow (Friday) from 11 am – 12 GMT and you will hear me talking about StillWalks and the projects we do.
At last! Finally there is a Welcome to StillWalks video on this website. So if you would like to know a little more about StillWalks and see some production images, please click the link above and explore the site.
Other pages on the website such as the About page and What Are StillWalks will give you the Story of StillWalks as well as information on me with links to some of my other work as an artist.
I questioned the accuracy of my studio clock yesterday morning because it said it was 9.30 AM but it felt and looked more like 7.30 to judge by the lack of light.
Today, however, we have had light again 🙂 After so much darkness and rain it was a huge relief and good for the soul. I wasn’t the only one enjoying the evening light and this Song Thrush was out to prove it as well – recorded on the new RODE iPhone app (not on their new iPhone mic though, that will have to wait a little while).
Click below to hear the Song Thrush I recorded this evening.
We are a week into 2013 now so a belated Happy New Year to all.
Whilst away over the New Year I took a few photos that I hope to use in the near future. They help to show that if we were not around anymore, it would not take long for nature to recover from our antics on this planet. Sometimes (in late Spring usually) I think I’d only have to blink and the bushes and trees would pounce – these images are, perhaps, preparation for that pounce!
Suburbanature 1
Suburbanature 2
Suburbanature 3
Suburbanature 4
Speaking of what we do as humans, some of what has been produced can be seen at MIMA, Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, where I saw two great exhibitions – Jannis Kounellis’ Work Unwrapped and Liliane Lijn: Cosmic Dramas – both well worth a visit if you are in the area.