Tuesday 24 December 2013

Stuart Simler & Tete de Alencar - Finale

As you might have guessed this is our last entry to the Cardboard City exhibition.
The Tate Modern, London
The final doors on our Social Advent calendar have been opened. It has been a long road and we fittingly pay tribute to the man behind this intervention and introduce another new face to the fray.

Tete de Alencar's door &
the Golden Hinde
 
First we open Tete de Alencar's submission beside the Golden Hinde, which was the galleon of Sir Francis Drake. Then we reveal our final Social Advent outside London's Cathedral of Modern Art. Housed in the old Bankside Power Station it is a great example of how to change a redundant space into a gallery. Here at CollectConnect we are adept at doing just this, finding and transforming public spaces, often I might add without millionaire backers.   
 
The Penultimate door

Tete de Alencar studied in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil before moving over to these fair shores. She studied in Wales (Coleg Menai), Liverpool (John Moore's University) and finally in London (Central St Martins). As a truly international artist she has exhibited worldwide and draws her inspiration from complex social issues embedded in contemporary society.

Tete de Alencar -
'OCD and the Silver Spoon dialogue!'
She is a perfect fit for the Cardboard City Exhibition with her playful ideas that experiment with what is revealed and in turn, what is concealed.

“What you see is never what you are going to get…the real work is usually hidden and sacred in a container - a disguise to protect the real art piece, transforming it into an enigma.  It’s an ancestral magic, an ancient tactic...they will have to be aware that breaking the spell and revealing what is inside, involves a kind of death of the piece and transforms it into ordinary gold…”


Stuart Simler
The final door belongs to Stuart Simler who has devised and organised this exhibition. All the artists we have spoken to over the past month would like pass on their thanks and Christmas wishes to him. He is a man who feels passionately about the themes behind the Cardboard City and the ethos that we at CollectConnect are so proud of. During the final planning stages the Southwark Police Force advised us against this exhibition but Stuart was undeterred and he wrote us,

Stuart Simler - ‘Outside Looking In’
"I do think though that this particular project theme encompasses many of the mission objectives of collect connect and instead of giving into these fears created by government democracy come propaganda we do what we set out to do, which is to highlight these fears and share them with everyone"

We were suitably galvanised.

Thank you for visiting these pages over the past month and being a part of the exhibition even if you have been unable to see the artwork in situ.

Now for a little break from blogging and exhibiting. We'll be open again for business in the New Year where we'll be revisiting our first ever street-art exhibition, the one and only FAB Fridge.

We have been awarded one of the coveted curatorial platforms at the Fringe Arts Bath Festival in May 2014. It will be an open submission with 500 spaces up for grabs so get involved -
FAB FRIDGE Call out

Have a wonderful Christmas from all of us at CollectConnect,
Bryan, Dean, Alban and Stuart.

AL.

Monday 23 December 2013

Carole Scott & Alban Low - We're Still Here Klee

We're close to culmination and with the beginning of the end in sight we make a U-turn on our more historic backdrop sites for our worthy artists and return to the highly esteemed institution of the 'Great
A step in the 'right' direction -
Carole Scott is Bankside
Tate' - Modern that is! And today's pairing is an interesting contrast in the sense of the oldest featuring artist, no offence Alban, is being
Please release me - Alban Low
in the Tate toilets
released alongside another new face to our growing ranks; Carole Scott. Again we have two very different styles of artwork and with individual ways of weaving in their Social Advent message in response to the Cardboard City callout. We've released Carole Scott righteously as part of the advertising for one of the local Southbank Galleries, pointing all visitors to observe her work ahead of anything else they might be expecting to see…While my co-curator and fellow artist has taken the liberty of installing his latest release in the very heart of any aspiring artists site of envy - the Tate Toilet. I was not privy to the details of this particular release and
Snow Flake in Klee Minor - by Carole Scott
it's not my place to ask - there are some things that still remain sacred, even amongst artists.

Carole Scott as I mentioned is a new artist to our collective but I have had the privilege to have known her for a few years now. With a diverse range of skills and experimentation Carole never ceases to offer new ways of merging media, be they from her earlier experiences as a water colourist to more
weighty undertakings with mixed media her inventiveness always shines through as she seeks for appropriate representation for her message to be conveyed. In this case the message was inspired in part by an acclaimed
Opening the door on Carole Scott
artist showing within the walls of the Tate currently; Paul Klee, taking his interpretations of colour subtleties and geometric form to answer our own brief and merge the ideals of a wintery white Christmas with clean hard lines of an
overarching cityscape. Carole's ideology here finds resonance with the perfect and unique way that snowflakes find a way to combine and merge despite their individualities - a parallel that could fit well as an answer to some of our more pressing social and cultural issues.
Clear-up mission - Alban stakes out one of Southbanks
finest as he pockets some of our releases for his own collection!

Alban Low needs no introduction - but you're going to get one anyway pal: the man behind the Fridge Magnet phenomena has exponentially fuelled a number of successful community interventions; Freezechester, Future Bound, Freedbook, Lite Bite and many, many more exhibitions have in turn made inclusive art a reality amongst many of todays proof ridden showcases by inviting artists from all over the word to take part in uniquely themed collaborations with very few constraints and often completely open interpretations of the callout brief - only stopping the press if basic moral or ethical rights are threatened. Albans final offering to our Social Advent is true to form with its lean towards narrative and comic strip reference - once again we are presented with a strong moral or life message but which one?
Still Here - by Alban Low
Half the enjoyment for me when introduced to one of Alban's new works is in the interpretation - anyone who knows the artist will be aware of his dry wit and herein lyes the challenge and potential threat of not quite reaching the tenacious artists depths of irony, like Chaucer, there are several layers to peel away before getting to the kernel…engagement in a nut shell!
'Still Here' is no exception the above and with a direct dialogue between two individuals and very different views on the connotations of their situation we are left to ponder the unwritten sub-
Open the toilet door on Alban Low
script but with the imposing image of a multi story building dividing perspectives you can bet he's kept his observations close to the cardboard city brief.

Join us tomorrow as the man himself writes up the last of our Cardboard City's Social Advents and our final walk down what has become a very familiar backdrop to our collaborative community exhibition.

Keep em' peeled!

SJS

Sunday 22 December 2013

Sara Lerota & Marija Petkovic - Artistic Pinnacle

 
The Shard and Sara Lerota's Door
We're getting close to the pinnacle of our journey here at the Cardboard City exhibition and today we welcome two artists from out-of-town. Take a walk from the ruins of Winchester Palace where we found yesterday's doors and you cannot avoid two of London's towering landmarks. Southwark Cathedral and The Shard are separated by just a few metres but the gulf between them is a Millennium's width.


Southwark Cathedral &
Marija Petkovic's door
Marija Petkovic's artwork is exhibited next to two of the city's greatest survivors, The London Plane and in sight of the Cathedral which has been a site of Christian worship for over 1000 years. While Sara Lerota's art lurks in the shadow of Europe's tallest building. The Shard is a recent addition to our skyline (completed in 2012), it divides opinion and has been recently described as Boris Johnson's Judas Cradle as well as being awarded the more tourist friendly 'Iconic' badge.

Marija Petkovic - 'Card Settlement'

Marija Petkovic is a new face on the London and CollectConnect streets. She is a photographer and artist who is flexing her artistic muscle on the vibrant Belgrade scene. Recently receiving an award with our very own Jovana Mitic.

Marija Petkovic - Zemun Settlement, Serbia
Her artwork for the Cardboard City exhibition is an apt one. Here she presents us with an aerial photograph of a Shanty Town in Zemun, which is one of the 17 municipalities of  Belgrade. These makeshift dwellings greet many a visitor as they arrive by train in the Serbia's capital city. There has been some controversy about the eviction of Roma residences and the destruction of their homes in Belgrade, an issue that will rumble on in these tight financial times.

Sara Lerota's door
In contrast Sara Lerota has been our tenacious correspondent from Mostar for over 3 years. She first fell into our street art laps for Nottingham's Lightbite exhibition in 2011. Since then I have addressed many a letter to Bosnia and Herzegovina with her name on it, with magnets and exhibition catalogues inside. When not working with us on films and PR she is embellishing an impressive CV and portfolio that has seen her exhibit in Sarajevo,, Barcelona, Majdanpek, Zagreb and Berlin amongst others.

Sara Lerota -
A sense of belonging-essence of home
For this exhibition Lerota has taken a surprise approach, normally she relies on her superior drawing technique to raise the tone of the work but here she has taken the conceptual and abstract path. 'A sense of belonging-essence of home' is a town plan of integration, with each faction or district represented in both the inner circle and on the outer fringes.
It also symbolises our very own exhibitions where the catalyst is sparked into life by an individual and the varied styles, nationalities and ethnicities gather around, adding their very own colour to proceedings.

AL.

Saturday 21 December 2013

April Felker & Lulu Allison - Are You Going to the Vagabond Palace…?

As we edge ever closer to the end of our journey of social discovery from the view points of many creative minds we find ourselves introducing two more new artists to our collective. Web creative and designer; April Felker and fine artist; Lulu Allison offer us perceptive and unique ways introducing thought and questions to our daily lives and the world around us.

April Felker sitting proud on the
runway of the Southbank
We find Aprils' answer to the cardboard city callout perched on one of the many slick lamp posts dotted along this part of the river leading up to Southwark Bridge - reuniting her with familiar territory having worked until recently as Head Creative to one of the local businesses. But April hasn't always been so closely connected to our Social Advent trail - another of our International contributors, April was born in Canada and at a young age relocated to New York, where she carved out a successful career, designing for some of the biggest names in business.
Her sense of design however isn't limited to these impressive
Opening the Door on April Felker
accolades - with an eye for design and as a keen photographer April keeps her 'eye in' on a daily basis and speaking from my own personal experiences her abilities to work with interior space and observe the world around her only adds credibility to her work outside the office.
This image of a clear question or statement, photographed on the streets of New York by April shows us the kind of questions that we ask ourselves on a daily basis before going about the usual routines…
Where are You Going? - by April Felker
But seeing it like this, for every passer by to observe or ignore brings this type of reality hurtling to the fore and perhaps it's our own response to it that finally cements the pending question in our head? One thing is clear, we are in a perfect position to be asking questions and if we don't get the answers first time - we find another way of asking…….

So from one diverse and creative question to another and as I mentioned another new name to add to our collective community interventions. Travelling to Southwark bridge and beyond we go underground, or at least ground level to find our next artist;
Ruins of Winchester Palace

Lulu Allison:
Walking through the maze of passages that run along this part of the redeveloped river walk as we stumble across the much forgotten Palace of the Bishops of Winchester, one of the largest and most important buildings in Medieval London. It is here that we release our latest offering to Cardboard City in the form of Lulu Allison.
From one Palace to another

Lulu is a visual artist working with many different mediums, often found describing her work as "feral", which can be seen as another interpretation of site-specific but for me it has undertones of earthiness and grit. The latter descriptor are certainly evident in Lulus' project creation; "Twice the Speed of Dark":'Twice the Speed of Dark is an attempt to grasp the reality of ended lives, delivered as bald numbers in a newscast, people who die by outrage, attack and war crime. The method of making them real is to invent. I know nothing of the people behind the numbers, the news doesn’t deliver that.  But by imagining them I hope to make their loss tangible to me, to us, the distant news consumers.  The dates and events are real.' 

Vagabond Palace 2 - by Lulu Allison

Lulus' recreation and references to her Vagabond Palace series explore our understanding of what palace means to us in terms of placing it in other contexts, such as; home, dreams, aspirations, mistakes and ideals? 'I am interested in the way built things hold traces of both human intent and natural entropy, eventually leading to decay and desolation'.
It is this desolation Lulu communicates so effectively through her choice of materials - here installations are skilfully created using less permanent materials like newsprint and bamboo.
Opening the Door on Lulu Allison
There's something about this image of contrasting beauty and sincere observational undertone, presenting something more purposeful, that resonates with me. Perhaps it's because of the temporary solution Lulu Allisons' Palaces bring with them that offers wonder with one hand and pending despair with the other - a profound juxtaposition indeed and one that reflects aptly our current social climate.

Until tomorrow, when advent 22 brings 2 more creative offerings to the brink.

SJS

Friday 20 December 2013

Melanie Ezra & Lesley Cartwright - Bridging the gap

Lesley Cartwright
Today the artworks from the Cardboard City exhibition are hidden away, the first from Lesley Cartwright (above) is under the arches of Cannon St Bridge, beside the legendary Clink Prison. Our second offering is snuggled down in a phone box atop Southwark Bridge where Swansea Superblogger, Melanie Ezra, is calling collect.

Calling Melanie Ezra
Although Ezra has been exhibiting with us for a relatively short time she has made a noticeable impact on our artistic landscape. Never one to let geography get in the way, she can often be found traversing from her home in Wales to the south east of England, all in the name of Art.

Melanie Ezra
Open
At heart she is a photo-artist and printmaker who works using collage by deconstructing her own original, previously unpublished, photographs. Her collages and prints challenge ideas on truth and memory, and ultimately question the veracity of the nature of the way we record Time.


Melanie Ezra - Blind Eye
Even though Ezra's work has been exhibited around the world in these few short years it is on her own doorstep where her enthusiasm is most keenly felt. We have seen the benefit recently with more and more Swansea artists participating in our exhibitions. She understands our ethos at CollectConnect, recently she responded to our exhibition brief with a piece on her blog,

"Art should not be elitist and exclusive. This exhibition is about restoring an imbalance and giving the right of inclusivity to anybody and everybody who wants it. These little artworks in their throwaway homes will be there for everybody regardless of the glittering chaos that takes place around them in the build up to Christmas."

Lesley Cartwright - Cardboard City
Lesley Cartwright is a new artist in our ranks but one I'm really happy to get acquainted with. She was born in Liverpool but later moved to Essex to run a Hostel for homeless teenagers. She made her name in the commercial graphic field and music photography until she developed MS and now paints portraits from her Billericay studio.

Cartwright has had first hand experience, unlike many of us, as she was homeless with a small child in her twenties. Her lifeline was a live-in job at the aforementioned hostel so she feels a resonance with the exhibition's theme of 'Together Alone'. Lets hope she will be a regular contributor to our exhibitions and that she'll never be cast adrift again, at least not artistically.

AL.

Thursday 19 December 2013

Julia Colquitt Roach & Larry Cwik - 'O' Homeless Town of…..

Awaiting the grand opening behind the Globe
 - Cardboard City's next artist
Leaving the creaking floorboards of the Globe Theatre and Albans Shakespearian quotes behind - we move into a new genre; The 'double header' - a trend that we will see us through the rest of our artists and their creative releases from here until the finale of Cardboard City's Social Advent.
Making our way towards Southwark Bridge we find ourselves less than 1 week away from the projects climax and today we open the door on the first of our artistic pairing; Julia Colquitt
Home Sweet Home by Julia Colquitt Roach
Roach. Julia specialises in paint and the drawn image - her work picking up on the biscuit tin qualities so prevalent in commercial advertising, ever present at this time of year and communicating her fascinations with present popular culture, which revel in the 'idioms' of our society. There's a naive allure to her piece; 'Home Sweet Home' as we first respond to its striking imagery and vivid colour ways but this soon gives way to a more poignant message as our eye travels downwards to the homeless people sleeping rough and in stark contrast to the backdrop of cosy homes.
Opening the door on Social Advent no.19


…And here we find ourselves at a natural connection between our two artists of the day because the following has a similar message to convey as his interpretation presents us with an ambiguous sense of realism…
With this in mind we walk briskly on as the weather turns against us - finding a suitable place to release the second artist of the day and welcoming a new name to our intrepid movement… Larry Cwik. As we move along to the Southwark Bridge we're offered a snug little place to release Social Advent no.20.

Social Advent no.20 finds residence on Southwark Bridge 
Larry Cwik: is a fine art photographer and our first cardboard city artist from the U.S, residing in Portland, Oregon where he has created a base from which to travel for his work. This includes notable international projects and collaborations such as his work on; 'The Visitor: 30 Years Photographing Mexico', for which Cwik spent a total of six months in Mexico, walking 900 miles through the streets of dozens of large Mexican cities. If this isn't committing to a cause I don't know what is? It certainly puts our gentle stroll along the Southbank into perspective doesn't Alban! You can find out more about Larry's project here: http://www.larrycwik.com/interviews.html as he converses with the poet; Walt Curtis.
Opening the door on Larry Cwik
This image of a tent on the streets brings all sorts of imagery to mind - though the title suggests its true origins and purpose I can't help sensing other possible interpretations here, perhaps of enthusiastic festival goers or desperate shoppers eager to get the bargains on the first day of the sales..? This honest representation by Larry gives us a reason to debate and question, why, what and who? 


Homeless Camp, Tent 3, Honolulu by Larry Cwik

Looking at Larry's work I can see that he gets inspired by many different subject matters - this might appear subjectless to many but reading through his website you realise that he's an instinctive creator responding to life as it happens around him: "letting his subconscious influence where and when he photographs".

An artist after my own heart. Welcome to London Larry.

We'll be back with Fridge Magnet guru, Alban Low tomorrow for another double release!

SJS

Wednesday 18 December 2013

Gerrard Lindley - Urban Cowboy

Gerrard Lindley's door on The Globe Theatre
With an ever increasing number of our artworks to cram in before Christmas Eve this will be our last solo entry. Tomorrow we will start releasing two a day but before then we are opening door number 18 on the wall of a national treasure. The Globe Theatre has already had two lives but our modern reconstruction was born in 1997 and as you might have guess showcases the work of one William Shakespeare.

Door 18 is opened
We have an all singing, all dancing artist in our midst today. Gerrard Lindley has been exhibiting with us since the Lightbite exhibition in 2011, and has been a regular over the years. Under his moniker the 'Cowboy of Soul' he roams the graphic design plains, plying his trade as a gun for hire. Gerrard is also an accomplished blues harmonica player, with countless gigs under his belt, and presently works with two Devonian rhythm and blues bands. He cites Sonny Terry, Little Walter, Hammie Nixon and Al Wilson as his main musical influences.

Gerrard Lindley
His work for the Cardboard City exhibition is a multi-layered creation. Found images and colourful textures fight with physical representations of Gerrard's beloved music. Between the smears there are a few scrawls and notes, is this an idle mind or the start of a protest? The 3 lines read...

Alf was here.
happiness isn't all its cracked up to be.
BIG SOCIETY MY ARSE.

I do not know the motivations behind Gerrard's work but there is unmistakeably a flavour of discontent. A passion from the artist that has got this artwork from his North Devon studio and out onto the streets of London.
I will leave the final word to a better writer than I..

"Who is a man that is not angry?"
William Shakespeare,
Timon of Athens (3.5.59), Alcibiades to the senators

AL.


Tuesday 17 December 2013

Alban Low - Community Minded

Alban Low -
a bridge too far…?
Here we are again and having had my first piece written up by artist and co-curator, Alban Low its time to repay the favour. That's right, the man himself is up and running, literally down the Southbank with his first offering to Cardboard City and Social Advent no. 17…….
It seems fitting that the creator of the whole Modern Miniature Magnet Artwork movement finds his first release with a backdrop of the great Tate - its huge tower magnificently emphasising the contrast in scale of 'exclusive' and 'inclusive' exhibitions. You're probably wondering which is which right now…but make no mistake the small but perfectly formed format of Alban Low's interventions are no accident. They reflect his idealism that art is for the people and should always be inclusive - a philosophy he shares with his fellow collect connect compadres.
Onedon - by Alban Low

With this in mind Alban shares with us his first offering: 'Onedon'. This is what he has to say about his distorted art piece:
"I am not one of Society's beautiful people. I often feel like an individual who has been cut adrift. Despite its creeping mass there are still survival pockets in England's capital for an artist but it has been the warm embrace from the wider creative community that gives me a sense of belonging."

Opening the Door on 'Onedon' and
artist Alban Low
It is Albans sense of community that has inspired him to create such imaginative collaborations throughout the country, like 'Freedbook' and 'Freezechester' and leading each initiative with a tenacious verve that has always impressed me he sets a benchmark that's certainly worth reaching for.
With so much to write about this wily artist curator it's a good job there's a second chance to wax on, wax off about our fridge magnet friend.

Until tomorrow's release - keep 'em peeled!

SJS


Monday 16 December 2013

Stuart Simler - The Storm Within

Door #16 with Bankside Pier and
Cannon St Station in background.
The whole Cardboard City project has been a wonderful opportunity to regularly get off my sofa and out into London's swirling masses. I've been able to get to know the current work of new artists and old friends alike. Today is a chance to take stock of the artist who has devised and executed this intervention. The idea has been gestating since our first official CollectConnect show in September 2012 but has really come to life in the past 3 months under the cavalier direction of Stuart Simler.
 
As well as being one of CollectConnect's long suffering guardians, Stuart is also a high profile Arts facilitator working on diverse projects for clients like The British Council and the Kew Botanical Gardens. Over a cup of coffee in the Royal Festival Hall he told me a little about what is behind door number 16,

The 16th Door - Cardboard City Exhibition

'Horizon' is a response to the maelstrom we often find ourselves living in - sure, there are the times when all feels peaceful but more and more it seems that someone is trying to push us into a corner of social conformity. Something that is quantifiable is more easy to manage and put a statistic behind when really everything is changing daily, the weather, the skyline, the economy and more importantly our perception of all the above and more. This ever shifting landscape can often seem daunting and offer little in the way of support or security.


Stuart Simler - Horizon
Stuart is one of only a handful of abstract artists who works on these type of projects with us. It is a brave choice when the public (and I admit to being one) expects information to be cut up into bite size pieces with an easily digestible message to bounce on the palate.

Who knows what is on the horizon for our society tomorrow but I would bet my life on an another Cardboard City door opening.

I was able to meet up with CollectConnect's Dean Reddick yesterday on the Southbank, who informed me that his Books of Nets will be coming out in March or April 2014 with contributions invited from artists. More information to follow here on the CollectConnect blog.

AL.



Saturday 14 December 2013

Alex Clarke - The Collector

Leaving our artists Wayne Sleeth and of course the inimitable Peter S Smith behind with the Bankside Gallery Alban and I make our way along the Southbank route - easy on the feet, easy on the eye, largely due to the innumerable number of familiar landmarks adorning our immediate backdrop.
Social Advent no.15 - sitting pretty on a lifebelt along the
Southbank
During today's stroll we find the perfect opportunity to introduce new artist, Alex Clarke, releasing his artwork; The Collector, with a well positioned lifebelt offering itself up as a community plinth!

Alex has already carved out a diverse career within the art world, travelling to California with his family at the age of 17 and discovering a talent for sculpture and product design. Upon his return to the UK he continued his training on the BA course at Buckingham College as a furniture designer and maker, putting these much desired skills to good use in some of London's bespoke and prodigious galleries as point man for exhibition installs.

The Collector by Alex Clarke
With so many skills and creative responses at his disposal Alex shares with us an image of a homeless man digging around in the trash - a photo taken in the subways of New York City. These tile based symbols have become instantly recognisable to New Yorkers and ironically seem to have become quite acceptable - is this type of acceptance 'acceptable'? Is it enough just to become aware of the issues that affect many homeless in our cities or are we just accepting of their existence in the same way that buildings pop up around us and we take them in briefly before they fade into familiarity?

Art certainly has a way of addressing some of these social debates and empowers us to make statements even if we haven't yet been asked our opinion!

Opening the Doors on Alex Clarke's offering
Today's artwork has been a welcomed response to Cardboard City from Alex Clarke, who, despite leading a busy lifestyle working around the world installing exhibitions has submitted a profound image for us to ponder and in the process collaborated with one of his oldest friends - welcome to the club Alex.

SJS                                                                                                           

The defiant Wayne Sleeth

Cardboard City #14
Whilst shoppers jockey themselves in and out of the retail outlets of London we're creating a little oasis of calm and reflection this morning. We are outside one of the Southbank's artistic nuggets, the Bankside Gallery. Not only do we have one of our artist's exhibiting in front of its doors but another who's made it inside too. Although Peter S Smith is a regular contributor to our street-art interventions he's taking a break from our high jinx to exhibit at the Bankside's Mini Picture Show until 26th January. This however isn't the artist we're focussing on today....

Wayne Sleeth and Brussels Sprouts
Wayne Sleeth is the Grimsby born artist who has travelled to France to pursue a life of raw beauty and abstract painting. Even with La Manche between us it hasn't dampened his enthusiasm for our books and exhibitions at CollectConnect and he remains a loyal and enthusiastic contributor. He explains a little about his practice

" ...the physical act of painting is a way of orientating myself, covering and recovering ‘ground’ until l arrive at a conclusion of senses. I never know exactly where a canvas will lead me (l rarely work from sketches or photographs) but there is a clear moment for me when the work is ’finished’...."

Wayne Sleeth - Recession No.3
For the Cardboard City exhibition Wayne Sleeth has contributed an image from his 'Recession' series. The Barcode is one of the First World's most iconic motifs and here we find Sleeth's punctuation mark slapped right in the middle. The shopping trolley which is cast adrift in canal or river has been both a blot on the landscape and a sign of defiance for as long as I can remember. Although our economy limps along like a trolley with a dodgy wheel it has been far worse on the Continent and I wouldn't blame the European youth for casting their metallic detritus in the rivers of Capitalism.

AL.