First up, for the viewers unfamiliar with Edinburgh, the Old Dick Vet Bone Library is a real place! It is a collection of bones in The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies which was founded by William Dick in 1823. The department is still going strong and is a world leader in veterinary studies and lives in a shiny new university building. However, the original premises, now called Summerhall, are home to an arts venue, studio space and some of Edinburgh’s best bars and coffee shops, but many of the spaces are still recognisable and have names such as The Dissection Room. It’s a cracking place to see a gig, launch a poetry collection or sample craft beers (www.summerhall.co.uk).
When writing this book, Jenni Fagan was the writer in residence in the Dick Vet Bone Library and in this collection she uses a broad brush approach to the examination of human life with themes of identity, of place, of love and the unloved. When buying my copy a member of staff in the ever-awesome Porty Books told me they felt ‘lucky to be alive at the same time as her’ and y’know what, so do I. She’s a bonafide genius I reckon and I highly recommend clicking through to Porty books and checking out more of her work.
And, because I had to google it, here is a definition of élan vital -
The life force. The term is used by French philosopher Henri Bergson to denote a mysterious force, unknown to natural science, that drives life.
Lastly, I picked this poem today because I am finding myself reaching for good art as comfort whilst it feels like the world is falling apart in HD in the palm of my hand. The best art speaks to something within us that is often beyond description, but when stripped back it is telling us a story (it’s all just stories) and maybe, if we listen, it’ll help us re-write the one we’re seeing play out. A plot twist is needed and resistance by way of creativity seems like a solid place to start.
Good Art by Jenni Fagan