My pal, Rachel Marsden, has just blogged about and brought my attention to two incredible sound art installations Sun Salutation and Sea Organ created by architect Nikola Bašić with the help of Professor Vladimir Andročec (sea hydraulics consultant from the Zagreb Civil Engineering University). Sea Organ has been described as an “orchestra of nature” – the pipes were made by Goran Ježina, Heferer (Zagreb) made 35 labiums for every pipe, and it was tuned by professor Ivica Stamać (Zagreb).

The artist describes the installations as a salute to the sun, and “An instrument with water as the musician, and no score.”

I adore that all-encompassing sensation of being consumed by nature… That reminder of one’s relative insignificance as part of the greater scale of things that can only be reached when truly submerged in a natural phenomenon. Having recently returned from a long-haul destination I spoke about this feeling to the mother-in-law before leaving. She’s not a fan of travel, but I love the reaffirming sensation of turbulence – the way that nature asserts it’s authority over man’s technological advances and tosses us about in the sky. Equally, I encountered this otherworldliness of our very real world whilst snorkelling on holiday, entering into entirely foreign territory thanks to a breathing aid… And again further excitement with the threat of a cyclone. I’m in no way glamourising nature’s potential for destruction, more marvelling at it’s wonder, and the way in which it chooses to remind us who’s boss… The mother-in-law wasn’t convinced!

Anyway, back to Zadar. Read more about this sensational installation on Rachel’s blog here and find a link to an awe-inspiring video of the multi-faceted installation in action on Rachel’s blog too.

Thanks, Rach! x x

Is it too early to be looking forward to the middle of 2014 already? Just had a quick look at www.glasgow2014.com and pretty excited by the prospect of the Glasgow

International visual-arts biennial

in April directed by former Frieze Foundation curator Sarah McCrory. The biennial will see McCrory punctuate spaces across the city with works by all kinds of fabulous artists – check out the link above.

The aforementioned cultural tourism extravaganza PLUS, Perch, an aerial cum street-theatre show will take place in Queen’s Park from 23 July, and screenings of a new film by Turner Prize nominee Phil Collins are being loosely linked into the fact that Glasgow’s to host the Commonwealth Games this forthcoming summer – I wonder how many battered Mars bars will go down come 4 August when all the athletes hang up their spikes!?

Who knows, who cares… I just have the feeling that between this and Hull winning the Capital of Culture bid it has never been less grim up north – fact! Nice one, North!

P.s. Break up the journey en route from the Deep South with a trip to Yorkshire Sculpture Park, The Hepworth, Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art, and the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art.

P.p.s. This isn’t a brag – just funny, I’m writing this from a beach in Mauritius and updating my husband as I type, he just commented with a comedy sigh, “You can take the girl out of Yorkshire…”

This man, Jonathan Watkins the Director of Ikon Gallery in Birmingham, gave me my first opportunity to (professionally speaking) cut my curatorial teeth in the contemporary art world. I think he’s amazing, and would challenge anyone that thought otherwise. If you’re able to, invest in his vision for everyone’s sake.

www.ikon-gallery.org

Apparently there’s a buzz building at the RA as they head towards the opening of Sensing Spaces: Architecture Reimagined at the end of January, which I am really looking forward to. The exhibition opens on 25 January and continues until 6 April 2014, and will see seven architectural practices from around the world transform all 23,000 square feet of the RA’s Main Galleries in a mission to challenge perceptions of space. Curator, Kate Goodwin, is writing a blog charting the creative process behind this mammoth undertaking, and according to the RA it makes for fascinating reading.

Sensing Spaces at the RA

Looking forwards to writing a feature about Elizabeth Price’s work in collaboration with the Ashmolean and Pitt Rivers museums in the new year.

Until then, there’s art in the UAE to explore. First stop is the grand mosque in Abu Dhabi. Then recommendations come in the shape of “rustic, old stuff” at the Majlis gallery in the bastakiya. And on to Al Serkal in Al Quoz, and DIFC for the modern, financial district cluster of galleries.