anna-louise gordon

I’m going to take my text directly from the kickstarter campaign which reached it’s amazing total late last week. The team had ploughed on to complete it in the sheer hope that everyone would come together and raise £5000.00. They passed that mark and people kept donating.

The words of the artists who have dreamed up this project are far better than anything I could possibly write, so I’ll leave it with you here and if you would like to find out more about the campaign, please click these words here. And if you would like to find out more about The treatment rooms and Carrie Reichardt, please click these words here! 

Welcome to the world of Extreme Craftivism. Ready to step in side?
Extreme Craftivism–meaning– A serious dose of specific and unfettered political medicine. The Art and Craft of Politics
The
Treatment Rooms Collective – The ethos – Many ugly things happen in the
world. We take some of the most uncomfortable parts of our world and
bring them to you in a way that not only entices you to come closer it
captures your sense of whats possible right there and then. There is
everything extreme about this sort of craftivism.


The Zulu Taxi will be dripping with Skulls and VooDoo magic. This
Classic London Taxi is the brainchild of Renegade potter and extreme
craftivist Carrie Reichardt. Her friendship with Kenny Zulu Whitmore is
the beginning of this story. It’s one of love, art and activism. Its
crafted from their seriously cool revolutionary spirits.


Earlier this year Carrie spent 2 months in Philadelphia at the Clay
Studios as the resident artist. This was a prestigious placement and
after getting over the huge honour. She got down to thinking about what
would be the best use of her time. This is where the Zulu Taxi idea came
into focus as an actual possibility. For the past 6 years it was always
a mater of when and how. But the next mosaicked car (if it could ever
happen again!) was going to be a Zulu car. A Zulu Liberation Taxi in
fact!


The engine has now started and this vehicle is going to turn a
silenced man into a beacon for truth and change. Kenny Zulu Whitmore is
no ordinary inmate. Political and long time Black Panther, still
fighting for justice. His incarceration is one of nearly 40 years of
silencing. His extreem treatment by the US penal system is cruel and
unusual. But a “Zulu Shade Never Fades” – Zulu tag line The Taxi is to
serve as a beacon. A bejewelled ball of Power in the face of injustice.
Its a messenger of Zulu’s story and of his resistance in the face of a
system which refuses to recognise his innocence.
A seductive
VooDoo Machine leading the way through the treacherous pit falls of
morality and solidarity. It is now with us! After hurtling out of that
dark juju and having been tucked in the recesses of The Treatment Rooms
Collective’s mind.

I have helped only a couple of times now with some mosaic spirals for the taxi and a little bit of assistant the people with real talents for mosaic and art! A small amount of labour, but one of love and many, many people have come together to work on different aspects of this project, it was revealed at Standon calling festival this weekend. It drove through London and up to a field where everyone could see it in all of it’s glory and meet the people who created it. It was amazing and everyone loved it.

Anyway, here are some photos of things I helped with at the workshop, and in the next day or two, I will post the Standon calling photos!

Spirals which you’ll see all over the taxi, you make them back to front and stick them with PVA to brown paper, then transfer them on. This was the first thing I learnt to do!

See the spirals now?

Below, mixing glue! The strong stuff, can’t have tiles falling off whilst driving!

You have to fill the back of the skulls before placing them on the car.

David making his first spiral above. He did ok for someone who thought he couldn’t!