Tuesday 9 June 2020

Lockdown: at home with Oxford Rope Bight

'I don't have safety shears at my parents' house.'

Don't take risks, then, but lockdown is about improvising. A hairbrush and a bottle cap are called into service for this online workshop. Everyone is in their individual live-stream rabbit hutch.

'I've got no solid flat space to tie on.'



I take out a few pens. Some of them need regular exercise but I haven't felt able to pick them up since the virus shitshow began. They work first time. Let's hear it for Japanese craftsmanship.

A non-participant has a nosebleed. This reminds me of a friend's friend who, checking himself for signs of plague, managed to stick the thermometer up his nose, and bled.

'I wish there were someone around I could hurt apart from myself.'

'In a few months I'll be free.' (Don't bank on it.)

'I might not be tying 'cos my family are about.'

I miss the energy of live performance but there is one advantage for me online: you can't tell if you're the one I'm drawing.

More pictures if you scroll down.