Beauty is Truth

Beauty is Truth is a flash fiction piece written in response to the famous line from John Keates’ Ode on a Grecian Urn. Explicit content to be expected.

The Sister in Law

I look at her and I see no beauty. I see a woman haggard, prematurely aged and sinful in her ways. Fat encases her body as she discards waste through her vocal chords. She slumps her ass down, she flops her misshaped bosom and she lets her fat thighs swamp her fanny flaps. The chin is twinned with an ugly counterpart hanging low, her voice echoes the disparities of her warped soul. Plus size clothes bandage her whale-like form holding in folds of the dishevelled figure.

Then, sickness levels increase, she speaks, dominating the room as she takes over the discourse allowing no option for others to fully engage. A choice of low-level subjects are introduced, as she begins to preach at her appointed Flock, none of whom have selected to attend her dictated sermon. Then out-pours her self-prescribed sensibility juxtaposed by her new age vision of her vile self. Follow rants of thick level feminist, overtly simplistic re-takes of the Female Eunuch, a text she has never read. Then when questioned on a higher level, no answers she can give, discussion over. The dictator cannot be outspoken, she must be listened to, her direction followed not view with subjectivity.

Beauty is truth, ugly is reality, the fat dripping vision encasing the evils of the soul.

Ugly is Death

Alison Little

More information about Ode on a Grecian Urn

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P-T-S-D

P-T-S-D is the latest poem from Alison Little, it was entered into the National ‘A Poem to Remember’ call out to mark the centenary of World War One drawing to a close. The Defence and National Rehabilitation Centre (DNRC) is being built in the Midlands and looks to be one of the Worlds largest Rehabilitation Centres for our Armed Forces.

 

P-T-S-D

All around us, there is dust

The winds whip up

Grit in eyes, forward I thrust

Helmand, bombs erupt

 

We must regain the village

Taliban must be defeated

We have covered much mileage

Another squadron, retreated

 

Insurgents surround on both sides

Cloths cover faces

On direction, we must abide

Put through paces

 

I watch myself on the wall

But I am not in Afgan

On homeland, stand tall

In my mind, it re-ran

Greenspace, young kickball

Flashback, I am no fan

Help, I can fight this disorder

Trauma, taking over the border

I will work through re-enactment

Mind healthy outside battlement

Thoughts to discover a safe place

Dwell no more, on dessert space

 

Alison Little

A Poem to Remember

 

A-Z of Amazing Women

A-Z of Amazing Women is the new range of prints from Alison Little. The main print takes us through a range of iconic women alphabetically, these are combined with a range of prints of individual women with short statements. She Talks us through why she selected the women for the new range:

Anne Frank                                 The young girl whose diary gave us a real insight into the                                                      Holocaust.

Mary Berry                                  A national treasure, the cooking show host who                                                                      frequents our TV screens.

Cruella Devil                              The 101 Dalmatians leading lady that really kicked ass.

Diana, Princess                         She stole the heart of the nation, her legacy will live                                                               on for eternity.

Emmeline Pankhurst                Led the Suffrage Movement into women gaining the vote.

Florence Nightingale               The nurse who became a Victorian icon and through                                                             making her rounds became known as ‘The lady with the                                                       Lamp’

Ariana Grande                         The singing superstar who helped survivors after a suicide                                                     bomber detonated an explosion at the Manchester                                                               Arena during her performance.

Barbara Hepworth                   The sculptor who led the way for women to work with                                                             heavy materials such as bronze.

Laura Ingalls                              The pigtail parading young lady who inspired young girls                                                       during her appearances in ‘Little House on the Prairie’

Joan of Arc                               The 15^th Century female warrior who led the French to                                                           victory, when finally capture she was executed.

Kelly Holmes                              Double Olympic Gold winning runner who was awarded                                                       a Dame hood.

Sarah Lucas                              Leading feminist artist who represented Britain in the                                                               Venice Biennial in 2015.

My Mum                                   The ladies which raise, support and cherish us throughout                                                      our lives.

The Nolan’s                               The seventies all Irish sisters who sung there way into the                                                        limelight in the seventies.

Oprah Winfrey                         The all loving talk show host who became America’s first                                                        multi-billionaire Black person.

Pocahontas                             The native American who stared in the folk tale by saving                                                      the life of an English man held captive when her own                                                            father tried to execute him.

The Queen                               Simply, the Monarch.

Eleanor Rathbone                   The Liverpool member of the Suffrage movement who                                                          helped get women the vote.

Sylvia Plath                               The Pulitzer Prize-winning poet acclaimed for her                                                                    collections.

Tracey Emin                              Turner prize-winning artist famed for ‘My Bed’, the                                                                     installation which caused controversy.

Eunice Huthart                         The contestant that beat the Gladiators then went to                                                            Hollywood to become a stunt double.

Vera Lynn                                 ‘The Forces Sweetheart’ who entertained the troops during                                                    World War Two.

Amy Winehouse                       Legendary for hit such as ‘Back to Black’ and ‘Rehab’ her                                                       music will live on forever.

Beatrix Potter                            The writer and illustrator who brought us books such as                                                           Peter Rabbit.

Malala Yousafzai                     The once school girl who survived being shot by the                                                              Taliban for going to school.

Renee Zellweger                     The Texas-born artist who became Bridget Jones.

All prints are A4 in size and available from Arts Hub.

Arts Hub

 

 

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Rubbish Cards

Rubbish Cards are the latest greeting card range from Alison Little. The card range literally utilises ‘Rubbish’ for the purposes of celebration. Throw away wooden forks are used in full splendour for the collection. Birthdays are marked using butterfly’s, flowers and flags, the message of eating cake added. A traditional Graduation gown marks leaving home for Uni, the fork for eating pot noodle. It’s counterpart, graduation features a gold leaf variety for use when eating caviar. Rat packs are the suggested food choice for the camouflage leaving for the Army option. The delightfully painted Cat Fork is suggested for feeding the feline traditional tuna. Finishing off with a double fork card marking an engagement.

A delight and a pleasure.

£2.50 each, available from Arts Hub from early April.

Arts Hub

 

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I am the Superlambanana

I am the Superlambanana

I sit on the mantle-piece, brought in a drunken surge from the local bottle shop. Originally cast in China, a miniature of Liverpool finest public artworks. I stand on my plinth and I look around this room, I see the early morning starts, breakfasts followed by the waking of the dog and then the cleaning of the front room. Observing my raised peak tail I see it lacks the rub and polish it received at the factory in China, again when unpacked at the wholesalers, then an extra special rub over when placed by the spirits at the Off Licence. At the factory I was one in a million, on the cargo ship one in a thousand then finally a simple sidekick to the bells whiskey which too many drunks chose to ignore when they stagger into the shop. Here I am an individual, I am the Superlambanana not one of many. I should be kept shinier and more glam to twinkle in the sunlight, but I stand proud as an almighty One-off. Watching everything going on I am central to the house, the head of the main room. I am the focal point, I am the master, I am the controller. Watching them argue, listening to them make-up, seeing their tears and hearing their laughter. I understand their desires and their disdain and I watch when they collide. The pet dog gets a free rein of downstairs, but he is nothing on me, I am glossy and smooth, shapely, standing tall and proud. He is rough coated, shreds his fur and bounces in excitement. He scratches and brings home flea’s, I gleam clean, I am the supreme.

I am the Superlambana.

‘I am the Superlambanana’ is a work of Flash Fiction written by Alison Little in February of 2018, she has lived in Liverpool for fifteen years and witnessed the Superlambanana become a symbol of the city.

Launch Party: Project Nepomuk

Launch Party and Open Mic to taken place at Casa, Hope St on Saturday 24th March.

Project Nepomuk

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Suspended: Bold Place

The Female Suspension

The female suspension takes over 5 Bold Place until the 8^th of April. The lower bodies were hooked through the groin and suspended from chains earlier in the week. In the shadows of the Bombed Out Church, Bold Place lies directly beside St Luke’s Church, Liverpool City Centre.

The Female suspension is an installation which addresses a world of sexual violence. The lower bodies and limbs of numerous women who have been raped are suspended by chained, hooks penetrating their groins. Meat like, a waste product, violated then disposed of like an animal carcass meat still to be stripped from the bones.

This will be the fourth installation to take over at 5 Bold place as part of the art in windows project. Art in Windows is a small organisation that works with landlords and artists to commission and curate temporary and permanent artworks for display in empty windows in and around Liverpool.

The form is a female abdomen and legs extending down to the feet. Each represents a rape victim, The World Health Organization (WHO) estimate:

Global estimates published by WHO indicate that about 1 in 3 (35%) women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime.

(WHO, media centre, Violence against women, fact sheet, updated November 2016)

The charity Rape Crisis England and Wales respond to an average of 3,000 calls per month from women who have been raped. In November 2017 there were 422 recorded violent and sex offences recorded in Liverpool alone. It is estimated that only one in every ten incidents of rape are reported to the Police: the actual figure is projected to be much higher.

Polythene and shredded paper are used to create each of the sculptural works, red toned papers are used around the groin area to reflect the pain suffered from the attack. Wire wool is used to represent the pubic hair, this demonstrates resistance from the violation. The lack of upper body and stones in the feet show a woman who was unable to oppose the onslaught. The hook is driven through the groin area, this enables us to reflect upon the extreme violence used in sex attacks. We view the forms suspended in a commercial environment, infinite in number and we are given the impression that more will simply be added to the collection.

Alison Little, the artist behind the Female Suspension, she has been North -West based for the last decade and worked on commissions from the Superlambanana trail to the Penguins. Her most recent conceptual works are SV: Sex by Violence, a series of four animated sculptures which show the different stages of a sex attack. Alison helps Organise the Reclaim the Night March held in spring in Liverpool annually. The intentions behind the exhibition as a means of activism against sexual violence and to play its role in her campaign work.

The Female Suspension which will shock, inform, evoke debate and lead to social reform in direct regards to Rape crime.

Alison Little, the artist behind the Female Suspension will be talking to Ngunan Adama about the Installation to be broadcast on Radio Merseyside Sunday 11/03/18 from 8 till 10 pm.

Radio Merseyside

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