8.15 pm. I caught up on my research admin before facing-down the wind and billowing grey clouds that have traversed the Irish sea. 9.30 am. Onto the studio floor. At this point in the final week, students and staff start to get the jitters when they see the still empty spaces where students have yet put set up their work. ‘All hands to the deck!’ Thus:

Of course, it always turns out well in the end. But not without prompting, goading, nagging, persistence, and assistance. The problems that one should be most concerned about are those that have not yet introduced themselves.

The cast of light across the interior of the studios throughout the day is unusually present this year. It’s produced by a combination of the strong sunshine, cloudless sky, and brittle cold air. The community of the School of Art is at its most evident and committed at this time in year. The virtues of patience, deference, imaginative practical support, and going the second mile are nurtured, exercised, and tested to the limit. For the third-year fine artists, this is the final stage of maturation in the broadest sense of that term.

2.15 pm. Following lunch, I chivvied and chided, prompted and guided. One forgets how new the experience of exhibiting is for most of them. Within a few hours only, the studios have filled out substantially.

Another harrying email to stir the troops into action:

6.20 pm. Practise session 1:

7.30 pm. I prepared for tomorrow’s Vocational Practice presentation assessments and for marking the Chapels in Wales submissions over the next few days. 8.00 pm. And so to mark. The first essay always takes the longest to complete. One has to acclimatise to the topic and to one’s critical strategy. 9.50 pm. Practise session 2.