Ring, Ring (3)

The final installment in the ‘Ring, Ring’ series features a machine that was used in mental health facilities in Victoria.  It is an early version of an electroconvulsive therapy machine. I can remember these machines being used at the Royal Park Hospital when I was training in psychiatry in the early 1980s.  The telephone dial on the machine determined how long the pulse of electric treatment would last.  The machine was affectionately known as the ‘dial a smile’ machine as electroconvulsive therapy (using much better technology today) is a very good, well-researched, safe and important treatment for Major Depression. Today’s post is about having fun at home and the only machine we need is a computer.

Monika Remenyi sent me a couple of links that might amuse guides.  The first is about art jigsaw puzzles which can be completed online.  The puzzles are small (approximately 60-70 pieces) and new ones are added on a regular basis.  See: https://www.jigsawplanet.com/BarnsleyMuseums/untitled

Or if you see yourself as a potential ‘Hard Quiz’ contestant – you might if you completed Margie Richardson’s ‘Caravaggio quiz’ – and want to test your art knowledge further – ‘The Great British Art Quiz’ can be found at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/apr/06/the-great-british-art-quiz-set-by-pallant-house-gallery-chichester?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Gmail

The answers to the Caravaggio quiz are:

There is also an artist activity pack available from Firstsite: https://firstsite.uk/download-artist-activity-pack/#. Firstsite is the East of England’s contemporary visual arts organisation and its mission is “to empower people, no matter their background, to be creative together and lead happier and healthier lives”.  The artists who have contributed to the activity pack include an impressive array of contemporary UK artists for example: Anthony Gormley, Ryan Gander, Gillian Wearing, Jeremy Deller and Patrick Brill. These activities are fun, stimulating and stretch our creativity.

Other examples of drawing tasks include: ‘How Blind Contour Drawing Can Help You Become a Better Artist’ with a discussion at: https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-blind-contour-drawing-help-better-artist?utm_medium=email&utm_source=19969565-newsletter-editorial-daily-04-08-20&utm_campaign=editorial&utm_content=st-V.

 

If these projects are too simplistic then you could consider ‘Piet Mondrian on How to be an Artist’: http://: https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-piet-mondrian-artist?utm_medium=email&utm_source=18593731-newsletter-editorial-daily-11-12-19&utm_campaign=editorial&utm_content=st-V, or ‘Understanding 11 Great Artists through the Instructions they left behind’ which includes ‘instructions’ from Lichtenstein, Judd and Rauschenberg among others: https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-understanding-11-great-artists-instructions-left?utm_medium=email&utm_source=16586155-newsletter-editorial-daily-04-15-19&utm_campaign=editorial&utm_content=st-V

And finally, Brian Martin reminded me of the musical parodies that have proliferated recently.  Some of the best can be found at: https://localspins.com/battling-covid-19-with-humor-the-top-10-coronavirus-song-parodies-local-spins/. Brian’s choice is another version of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’: https://youtu.be/lr_tEdQvFcc, my favourite is at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KYQeib_yew