Rebecca Gove-Humphries

An army of armchairs!

rebi — Sun, 13 May 2012 13:29:46 +0000

My blog is something I really enjoy doing, so today is all about planning it back into my routine. I have been galavanting in Cumbria and frolicking by canalsides, so I canny complain! I have been receiving lots of discarded furniture photos from around the country, which I will be sharing in the next week. I got a tip off from my friend Ali about an army of armchairs, not far from where I live. I was in my element!

To see more art, that is the plan – Part I

rebi — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 18:30:57 +0000

I have been a bit rubbish at getting myself into gear to see as many exhibitions as I would have like in the last year. I pretty much always enjoy it when I do, it’s just making the time. It’s something that makes me happy, so I will do more of it. There is nothing like seeing a piece of art that you really relate to. There are obviously times where you see things that aren’t your cup of tea but I think that reminds you how great the things you like, really are. I have seen two exhibitions recently that I have thoroughly enjoyed. Here is the first:

Sarah Browne – How to Use Fool’s Gold, Ikon Gallery Birmingham

I haven’t written about art for a long time however I found the exhibition to be exciting and thought provoking. It was also extremely aesthetic and spoke a language me and my family understood. It spoke about people, industry and the obselete technology. I think my favourite piece was ‘Common Knowlege’, wild flowers pressed in different books that were written about ‘traditional feminine craft and an intellectual enquiry into amateurism, economics and mass cultural production’. For example ‘May 2010: Bluebells in Glenn Adamson’s Thinking Through Craft, 2009.’ I thought they were beautiful and I loved the relationship with what they were pressed in.

www.sarahbrowne.info

In the book ‘How to Use Fool’s Gold’ I spied the below piece of work called ‘The Gift’ which wasn’t in the exhibition but it is right up my street! The sofa’s were sourced by the artist and then re-upholstered using patterns created out of Irish potato bags and articles from the Irish constitution about the home. They were then given away, as gifts to various members of the Irish community (Including a man living in a council flat who had previously been homeless). They were asked in exchange, to document the sofa in their home. I wonder if the sofa became a talking point for their guests, and was treated as an art object and looked after with extra care. Is it now part of their furniture, a member of their family or prehaps living with a new owner? Could it be that it got tired and was discarded alongside it’s DFS equivalents? The reappropriation of an object like the sofa is fascinating and these sofa’s have an extra couple of chapters to their story.

www.sarahbrowne.info

It runs in the family

rebi — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 15:26:40 +0000

My Brother Theo took this photo recently and I love it! As a massive fan of wear and tear, I thought the rust made it but I also think the colours are marvellous. Theo is great at composition and has a fantastic eye for straight lines.

A table tale

rebi — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 14:51:47 +0000

Caroline sent me these photos of the demise of a small white table, day by day. It’s a tragic tale.

Tuesday at 7am

Wednesday at 7am

Thursday at 7am

Friday at 7am

Friday at 5pm it was no more.

Mr Toad

rebi — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 13:18:08 +0000

Last week I met the loveliest toad on my road. He was an elderly toad and walked at a leisurely pace. I helped him cross the road and thought ‘How lovely to have met such a toad.’ I am sorry to say four days after meeting Mr Toad, I found him lying peacefully on the side of the road. He looked like he was sleeping, but he wasn’t. I picked him up and took him to sit by our pond as I thought he might just be exhausted. He was still there in the morning so he is now buried by the pond. I have decided to draw Mr Toad and imagine his life before I met him. He looks sad because of his toad mouth but I think he was just a great thinker.

This was middle aged Mr Toad, thinking of retirement and of exotic ponds.

When I see discarded furniture, I think of you

rebi — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 18:38:59 +0000

I met one of my Mum’s friends for the first time this weekend and she said that she loved my discarded furniture project and always thinks of me when she sees them. It’s amusing and lovely in equal measures to be thought about as someone sights what most people would consider waste or rubbish. She had been in the car many times with my Mum as she stopped to photograph a sofa.

We had a good conversation about how people’s furniture, especially sofa’s are intimate items. Whilst thinking about how I personify them, I started to imagine how much of their owners life they have witnessed. I thought of the neglected chair, that was bought for show and then turfed out when no longer fashionable or the worn out re-upholstered sofa that has given such comfort over the years. They all have such stories to tell and are such characters; an extension perhaps of the people who sit on them.

It’s part of the family

rebi — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 18:16:37 +0000

I have been taking photos of discarded furniture (specifically seating) for 5 years ish now and this has spread to my family. A week rarely goes by that my Mum or Dad don’t send me a photo of a piece of furniture they have spotted. Recieving these texts make me smile, as not only is there another one to see and add to the collection but they took the time to document it for me. It feels like a gift. I think about how they stopped the car, poised their phones and got home later as a result. It means a lot to me. Here they are:

Time to get organised!

rebi — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 10:40:00 +0000

My mission for this year is to categorise and get some order to my ever growing discarded furniture photo collection. It’s just a relief that I don’t collect the actual furniture itself, otherwise I would be surrounded! By the end of the year I want them to be mapped. This is going to be a lengthy administrative challenge, but I think the final result will be worth it. I need to stop looking at my feet and snap into action!

There are quite a few where I don’t know their specific location. I am going to have to think of a way to categorise these so they are still on the map. I am excited as I can imagine how it’s going to look and work. Better get to work!

A spotter, spotted!

rebi — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:39:25 +0000

Today, whilst I was photographing this garish pair, I was spotted by a friend who was about to text me to tell me about these delights. Imagine if when people saw discarded seating and thought of me in the same moment, that meant I was then transported to that location. What adventures I’d have.

However, it might be a bit inconvenient at times…

Birmingham treats!

rebi — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 15:55:50 +0000

I went to Birmingham for the weekend to visit my family and whilst there we went for a walk along the river cole. It is rare that I visit and we don’t visit the river, but this time we went even further than usual. One thing I was surprised to see was such a variety of birds. There were seagulls, pigeons, ducks, magpies, a robin…and those were only the ones I could identify with my poor knowledge and experience in bird spotting!

We got to a road and thought we better loop back. On this road there was a discarded sofa (which had the remains of snow on it) and an armchair. There was also a sign in a door window saying ‘No Broken picture frames’ which was the topic of conversation on our way homewards.

Later on me and my Brother went on a sunset seeking mission and on the way spotted a pink chair trapped behind a metal fence with lots of other stuff.