6.40 am: First light:

8.15 am: During a period of meditation a mental image came to me involuntarily: in a darkened room, I saw a narrow, life-size painting representing a lighted candlestick; it was illuminated by a real candlestick, positioned directly before it. They were not identical; the picture was not a mirror. In time, the significance will be disclosed.

9.00 am: The annual walkaround and MA studio space assignment. We are now working at optimum capacity:

11.10 am: MA Vocational Practice kicked off. This is the largest class to date. We dealt with the elements of higher education and the concept of one-to-one tutorials:

The group is already beginning to gel. Larger groups tend to be better able an at, and swifter to do, this than smaller ones. In larger companies, individuals aren’t so conspicuous. So they behave more bravely.

I worked the lunch hour catching up on admin, locating students in their spaces, and pastoring. 2.00 pm: I gave an introductory talk to the MA painters, ensemble. Periodically, throughout the afternoon, I recorded sounds around the school: the ambience of the life room, the buzz of failing strip lights, the hum of electrical devices, footsteps on the staircase, and the sound of a screen-printing squeegee being pulled:

4.00 pm: One inquirer turned up for a personal tutorial. 4.20 pm. A PhD Fine Art tutorial with one of finalising students. 5.15 pm: Zonked!

7.30 pm: I furthered the CD website, while remixing tracks on my Sound site, while levelling my stack of emails, while arranging tomorrow’s affairs.

Some principles and observations derived from today’s engagements:

• Art, not your tutor, will change you … but only if you yield to it.
• The creative journey moves outwards and inwards, simultaneously.
• At the outset of study, where you are going is of less importance than what you’re taking on the journey.
• Creativity and timidity cannot coexist.
• The only pressure you need to be concerned about results from the hand of your supervisor on your back, pushing you forward.
• Success is not unproblematic either.