AN EVENING WITH YONDER COLLECTIVE

When I think about why I love Bristol it's not hard to come up with a pretty long list; the architecture, the harbour, cool cafes and pop up restaurant, galleries and art house cinemas, and more all a stones throw from the countryside and a short-ish train ride to London. Yep Bristol has got it going ON! But the best thing about Bristol is the people, the community of creatives who all get together to support, share and inspire and that for me is gold!

A GOOD BOOK // VIVIAN MAIER STREET PHOTOGRAPHER

One of the things I love about photography is seeing life through the eyes of someone else, moments perfectly captured in time that without a camera would fade into obscurity. So when I received this good book at I was excited to share it with you.

I first heard of Vivian Maier through a small poster glued to the side of a building, her striking image drew me in and I wanted to find out more. The poster showed the upcoming documentary being screened at The Cube, a cool independent cinema and arts centre in Bristol, and immediately I knew I needed to get tickets. On the night I headed down on my own to a packed out tiny art house cinema, where I sat with a rum and coke in hand as the lights dimmed.

I was totally mesmerised by the life of this unknown woman, a professional nanny who lived in New York amongst other places, who took over 100,000 photographs and showed no-one. Not a soul. These stunning collection of images shows Maier to been one of the most amazing street photographers of her generation and the negatives sat in boxes upon boxes until a few years ago, after her death, they were discovered by a local historian and the first negative was developed.

The book brings together her eye for detail, light and composition, her timing and her ability to never miss a moment, and lays it out for you to embrace and pour over. Maier's stunning photography invites you stare upon the faces of people from a forgotten time and brings you into their lives.

If you love photography or knows anyone who does then this is the perfect coffee table book and if you haven't see the documentary about this incredibly talented woman then now is the time to discover her work.

A GOOD BOOK // I Am An Artist

 
So many times I have followed F around, picking up his trail of destruction and not stopping to really ask why? Rather falling back on the no/don't/shouldn't/can't lines that so easily trip of most mamas tongues at one time or another. Then along came this good book and made me stop and question what exactly IS he trying to do?

I Am An Artist is a great story told from the viewpoint of a child. No they're not trying to purposefully drive you out of your mind by using the twenty seconds you've taken to go to the toilet, to get creative on the walls/doors/floors/themselves with a biro. They're just being expressive. Okay that might not be true, but the quirky and colourful illustrations tell a great tale of a child just wanting to explore his senses and use it to create magnificent art. I particularly found the ...perhaps I haven't given her more attention line funny, flipping the roles of mama and toddler on its head. F loved this read and giggled throughout, promptly taking himself off to draw on his blackboard wall – parents note this will save your walls from biro – where he busied himself with chalks.

December's Good Book posts are sponsored by Foyles Bookshop but all words and thoughts are my own. 


Linking in with the lovely Tigerlilly Quinn