Matchboox – rowlandwithaw

I’ve just been awarded this by Dolly over at Journal Addict. Thanks to Dolly.

So now I have to share 7 things about myself.

1. ITALY I live in Italy which I fell in love with in 1988 when I first went to Milan. I moved from Manchester to village of about 850 people, where I live in a cantina, which was built in 14th century ap.

2. MUSIC I began playing the guitar more than forty years ago and I still love it:.I have performed my ‘contaminated blues’ throughout Italy, playing at many major festivals such as Trasimeno Blues, Tropea Blues and Etna Blues. I have only done one gig in ‘English’ since 2006- and that was a private party in a bookshop in Paris. I recorded music for short that was featured at Cannes Short Film Festival in 2009 and wrote a song for documentary that was nominated for a BAFTA in 2010.

3. WALES – I was born in Gorseinon hospital just outside Swansea. My wife was born Lesley Jones, my mother was born Mary Jones, and Lesley’s mother is called Mary Jones. One of my great grandfathers John ap Caradoc Jones ran The Globe – a pub in Swansea, but also conducted classical music concerts somewhere in North America during the 1860’s(?) One of the other great grandfathers was called Moses.

4.JOURNALS I started to keep a journal in 2003, using it for ranting, writing and scribbling(see below). 2009 my work is featured monthly in the Maastricht based arts paper ‘Zuiderlucht’. 2010 Amsterdam based publisher www.Matchboox.com invites me to contribute a book to their collection. It is published in October 2010. Subsequently I am asked to produce illustrations for a book of Dutch poetry which is being launched in April 2011. I am also close to completing ‘My imaginary Lives’ described by my editor as ‘a graphic novel for the 21st century’ – a lot to live up to 🙂

5. DRAWING I always wanted to draw, but at school in the 50/60 you were classified as those who could and those who couldn’t I couldn’t. Leap forward to 2004 when Paul Nolan drags me kicking and screaming to a life-drawing class. I’m hooked and it becomes of regular routine together with keeping a journal.

6. PHOTOGRAPHY I started taking photographs when I was about 8 with a KODAK 44A which I still have in its original box! Self taught, I have taken photographs professionally mainly for audio-visual presentations, and finally in 2001 returned to university and was awarded a Masters degree in Photography.

7. CATS I love cats, and most of all Archie, my Bengal. He is beautiful, intelligent and funny. He is elegant like a wild animal, a ferocious hunter, but also loves company and accompanies us to the bar and the pizzeria where he will wait patiently outside while we eat!