I'm a bit lost as to what to do for the visual/design component of my dissertation. This is a battery hen from a factory farm which I have given a human head. I was thinking about how the themes in Aristophanes' Birds and Orwell's Animal Farm are somewhat similar. I thought I could take these literary/allegorical examples of anthropomorphism and put them in a modern context, with modern factory farm animals as characters. You can't really set Birds or Animal Farm in a modern commercial farm, but I guess that would sort of be the point, that we value animals as symbols and enjoy them when we want them around, but when we don't, it's out of sight, out of mind. And the plots in both Animal Farm & Birds: Both are about (but then not really about) animals gaining agency and power despite humans. So it could be that the very ridiculous juxtaposition of such a story within a modern setting could be quite confronting. I don't know. That is just one idea. However my dissertaion also talks about awareness, and these sorts of references would not perhaps have the effect of making people very aware of anything. Although the point may come across anyway if the subject matter is largely factory farming, with a few subtle references to tie it into my main point about the animal-human relationship. There is also the issue of creating something which comes across as too cliche, too preachy, 'too animal rights', when my message is really not about politics so much as ideas about animals. That is a fine line to walk. I found some really interesting essays about such issues here: Antennae Magazine I used this as a reference in my written work but I've been going over it again now as I try to think of WHAT TO DO (??!?!?!) for the visual component. I need to decide quite soon, as the deadline is fast approaching and I don't have a lot of time or access to resources to work on it. This is really stressing me out!!

anthropomorphisms

by Tim Rollins & K.O.S.

just sticking this here

so i don't forget.

by Marlene Dumas

city farm

Today I visited Stepney City Farm to see about volunteering. It's such a colourful, friendly place to spend a summer afternoon. The animals were lovely of course!

I think I will be getting a lot of insight into the sustainable farming/locally sourced movement, which is relavant to my dissertation topic. For one, I learned a bit about beekeeping today. I didn't think it was possible to get this close to a bee's nest without any sort of protection. These are wild bees that were found at Stepney Green park. The volunteer who explained the beekeeping to me was a linguist. They are keeping them here at the farm without using any invasive beekeeping techniques, because that messes up the bee's communication about where to find pollen. I got to get up close and see them dancing, carrying pollen pouches, and also some young bees just hatching. One thing I didn't know was that they actually clean or groom each other. How sweet. The hive was really beautiful, perfectly shaped little compartments.

The Bee Sanctuary is appropriately nestled within these crumbling church walls.

Apparently the very cold, wet weather earlier this summer has had a pretty disastrous effect on the bee population. (I love that there is such a thing as the 'National Bee Unit').

These last three pictures make me laugh. I wonder what Derridawould think about this animal gaze. They look really inquisitive, don't they?

I took a lot more pictures, and will definitely post more on the farm as I go- I'm going to have my volunteering induction next Sunday, bright and early at 9am!

BANKSY ATTACKS LOCAL POUND SHOP

Walking home from Turnpike Lane Station, on the side of a pound shop, is Banksy's comment on... Jubilee Celebration Consumerism? I would laugh if he actually went into the shop, bought the bunting, only to nail it on the side of the building. The shops on this road were really devastated by the riots, I wonder if that's why he chose to come out here?

source.