People have often asked, do my arms ache, and actually they haven't ached at all ...but what I have experienced is a collection of cramps in some very unexpected places.
I cannot believe that today was day Seven at the mural and the mural is almost complete. I think this has been achieved through a combination of excellent team work, uncharacteristically good weather, and long hours. Each day we have arrived onsite at around 8:15. Where we have received a warm and cheerful welcome at the barrier before being buzzed into the car park. Each day there is fresh fruit-infused water available and a plethora of delicious complimentary teas and coffee. The team at Trafford House are fantastic, and the process of fulfilling this commission has a been a pleasure, and this experience as a whole has set the bar very high for my future mega mural projects.
Each day we have come down from the cradle at around 7pm to begin packing away and tidying up; the brushes are washed and sorted, empty spray cans are stacked, harnesses are repacked, and for me, comfy furry boots are changed into. The furry-glittery-sequins boot are essential and an addition to my kit that I made on day five. These cosy boots give my ankles and feet a welcome hug after hours of standing in the swinging cradle platform. In total I think we have spent around 63 hours in the cradle so far.
People have often asked, do my arms ache, and actually they haven't ached at all during this installation, or any other public art piece, to be fair, but what I have experienced is a collection of cramps in some unexpected places. On day Four I can remember spending at least an hour painting whilst standing one leg as I had the most uncomfortable cramp in my toes. I can only imagine that this is because, I was constantly and unknowingly flexing ankles and tensing my feet to compensate for the dynamic movement of the cradle; The other was around day Two when my hand cramped and this was no fun at all; It lasted ages and almost caused me to drop my roller and although my roller would not have gone far, owing to the fact that it was attached to my harness via a lanyard, dropping it and having it swing-about like-a-pendulum-sloshing-black-masonry-paint-all-over-the place would not have been desirable at all. So to combat this I started wearing my grip-gloves to keep my hands warm and avoid any cramps; It worked. Aside from those two experiences, this installation has not been bad physically but I am almost 100% certain that I once the process is complete and the mural is fully installed that I will sleep for at least two solid days.