(no subject)

Blustery winds, grey skies with patches of glow; I sit amongst the ivy; A moth looking like an onion skin crawls along the pavement; A slightly deflated helium balloon, shiny and crinkled, is tethered to a fence; Everything faraway is becoming blurrier; Excited shouts and squeals of children can be heard from a nearby playground; I imagine rainbows amongst dark clouds; Seen through glasses, a seagull hops along a roof; I walk and a butterfly flutters right in front of my face for a moment or two.

Searching

Have you ever searched for something unusual in your town, that you really didn't expect to find, but then maybe did find, although found it wasn't exactly as you had imagined it would be?

For Michihiro Shimabuku, it was deer. He cycled through a town in Japan with a basket laden with flowers and another that resembled a forest, asking people where the deer were. Although it was not an area where deer were known to be, his search was in some ways successful.

In search of deer, is part of the Counter Photography: Japan's Artists Today exhibition that is currently on at the Millais Gallery. Shimabuku is going to be in Southampton in October to discuss his work. Previously, he has travelled by canal boat from London to Birmingham making pickles, bought a 165 metre rope to feel closer to a giant mermaid, and wanted an octopus to meet pigeons. I wonder if he will find any deer in Southampton..