The Souvenir Series is really funk art. These objects were made for friends or as a visual joke you might share with friends. There is a long history of artists getting together and sharing funky visual jokes. 

I produced the ‘original’ Souvenir as a gift to Peter Lynch in recognition of our joint film project A Short Film About Falling.  In the film you see an individual saw through a plank  that is supporting him. In Say When the viewer has the opportunity to determine how much of the frame should be cut into. The size of the frame was dictated by the length  of the saw blade.

Having made several extra frames when I completed a project I was inclined to make a souvenir. In fabricating Waiting for the Tooth Fairy I found myself with a lot of broken twigs and just I started depositing them into one of these extra frames and so it went on. This piece is entitled Not to be L _st.

Overcome A Wall Piece came about after making the video Overcome, The gray balls were an integral part of the set. In the video the clapping hands are silenced by hands emerging through the gray balls. I needed something that appears to be stable but had some fluidity. Should you open the case the balls cascade down onto the floor and the sound produced is quite extraordinary.

Why Be Normal again was the residue from the Wax On Wax Off Series. In that series I take a copy of Jeanette Winterson’s book Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal and it catches on fire. (My apologies Jeanette, I think this is an amazing book and one I really value.) Again having a partial frame I mounted the book and over the years it has collected a lot of dust.  

Yet another Souvenir A Hook came about by context. Two of the souvenir series, Say When and Not to be L_st hang in the studio bathroom. There is a coat hook on the bathroom door. This hook was found so to speak and became a Souvenir by drawing a frame into the door skin.

This project is ongoing - though I am not sure what, how or when the next Souvenir might present itself.