MARGARET WOODS MOORE
interview with a vaulter
April 2020
On this bright Monday morning we have an Interview with a Vaulter with Margaret Woods Moore.
How’s it going?
Slowly.
What's your living situation?
I’m a full time carer for my mum who’s 91 and has vascular dementia, such a horrible disease, among other things and I do find this very challenging and difficult most of the time. I struggle with the energy I need to keep everything together. I moved into my mumhouse some time ago on a permanent basis so I’ve been condensing two houses into one, trying to accommodate both our needs, and that’s taken longer than I hoped but being isolated has also helped me get some more organising of that done as well. My mum, because of her dementia can shout all day and night and gets very distressed and working with her does zap so much of my energy and plays games with my head so that I don’t have the focus I need, or the time to give to extended pieces of work. I found working consistently and giving my work the attention it needs difficult before lockdown but the isolation has exacerbated all these problems. Recently I did an interview with the Chris Buckley on BBC Good Morning Ulster about living as a care in lockdown just a short interview here’s the link: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08c91t0
How has the pandemic affected your arts practice?
I sort of welcomed the solitude in a way and thought I’d get lots of plates done for printing, experiment with mark making, collate all my work, write a little etc etc great ideas but that hasn’t happened. At first when the lockdown happened so many creatives launched into all sorts of shares and projects there were things flying all over social media I was so blown away by the energy that was out there, but I had to shut down, I was overwhelmed by it all, I had to clear my mind and take stock of where I was. I’ve now become involved in some art exchanges and shares and that’s been good, but I’m not working the way I would like to be, my head is all over the place most of the time. I’m hoping to get started on a few home printmaking ideas and maybe get back into some painting. However I am still surprised at how difficult I’m finding it to get work done, my concentration is blown.
I’m managing to get commissions completed and I have some illustration work to do which is good although I’m slower than usual but I’ve now stopped worrying about it and take each day as it comes. There are a few threads of activity that I dip into but I’m more accepting of my restraints. I also know that I am very lucky that I don’t depend totally on my creative output to generate an income, my story would be totally different if that was the case. So really I have no right to complain.
How are you coping with the temporary closing of the Vault?
It's awful. I miss the energy and chats with like minded people and even though we have the online meetings and facebook group and it is great to see what everyone is doing I actually miss the vibes you get from just getting into the building itself. I feel separated and cut off.
What do you appreciate during the lockdown?
I do appreciate the opportunity for reflection; I’m well known for overthinking things so too much time to reflect may well be dangerous. It has given me the chance to think about what I want to do and what I want to focus on as an artist. I just need to get it into action. I was all geared up this year for meeting deadlines and submissions and was determined to move myself art wise in spite of the difficulties I had as a full time carer. The lockdown has now slowed me down. I've had to look at my own situation and what I could find within that to express how I was feeling. I’ve decided not to worry about any deadlines or submissions, concentrate on commissions and just reassess the situation when this is all over and I can take stock of where I am and how I want to move on. My mum has become a sitter for my drawings which she loves. I also draw or paint whatever attracts me at the moment. I'm using the time to get some drawings done in the garden and corners and spaces in the house that I find interesting, things I never usually do. I pause the TV and draw faces. I guess I’m taking the opportunity to hone my skills.
I’ve been a teacher for many many years and have only been working for myself for a relatively short time so I’m trying to focus on how to get my work out there and trying to become a bit more focussed and savvy with media opportunities. I am having some difficulty with motivation and putting pen to paper at the moment nor am I posting work or keeping up to date with social media, I'm trying one drawing every day of an object that has attracted my attention, no pressure, but I’ve also got my ‘TV drawings’ and the drawings of my mum that I’ll be posting soon. The drawings of my mum are quite personal. It may take me some time before I can eventually let these go. I’m also going to restart my blog in the near future; I’m trying to get ahead with posts while we’re on Lockdown so that I’m not playing catch-up. I know we’re more into vlogs at the moment but I did enjoy doing it in the past and I want to get some into some writing again. It’s also a good way of keeping an account of what you’re about, so that’s soon to be updated.
Outside of my artwork I’ve managed to get my garden sorted and tidied and some vegetables planted which is good and I’ve managed to start some other creative projects in stitch and knit trying to keep lots of interest and get some creative diversity in my life.
How do you imagine the future after lockdown?
I think our values will change. I think we’ll appreciate how important quality time with family and friends really is. I think unfortunately lots of people will be struggling big time financially for the foreseeable future and beyond and I think there’ll be an excessive amount of analysis of what has happened and why certain decisions were made for a long time to come.
I hope people will remember to be more appreciative of what they have; I hope we will all keep focussed on things that are important and when we get back to a new and changed ‘normal’ that we don’t forget... our memories can be short.
You can find me on
http://Instagram.com/margaretwoodsmoore
http://Instagram.com/margaretjwoods