Excerpts from letters describing gallery going in Toronto 2001

26 January 2002

From a letter to Ed Deary, (14 Sept 2000)

Finding inspirational treasures on the Radiohead website. This from there: this will take a long time to load up. think of it as walking through a gallery. imagine your glass of warm cheap wine. the sweat under your jumper. the hooray north oxford wife-swapping types with cash. the snidey critics. the billowing woman with the uncomfortably loud mundane monologue. your old tutor the one who told you couldn’t paint for shit. the pristine white walls. the young dot com couple worrying about whether it will clash with the carpet. the discreet cocktail drum and bass noise… thom.

From a letter to Nick Eley (14 May 2001)

I go to openings, introduce myself, shake hands, meet artists whose work I’ve seen around, and generally, I feel like I’m performing a piece called “Being Ingratiating”. I must admit to a certain fascination with my ability to win people over with a touch of flattery and “oh, I’ve seen your show!” I guess this is why I describe it as seeming like a performance, because I don’t really know how I do it. I guess hanging out with B—- all those years taught me something.

From an MSN Messenger chat, (11 October 2001)

Timothy says:christ, art is beginning to drive me crazy again
Timothy says:stupid crowds and stupid parties
Timothy says:it’s always the same
Timothy says:how many parties can you have in a year? gee
T-Co says:you’re art boy insanito
Timothy says:am I?
T-Co says:sure, why not
Timothy says:why not what? party or be an art boy
T-Co says:you said you were going to art parties all the time and it was making your *crazy*
Timothy says:oh yes. I’m not planning on going to the gladstone / that’s mostly why / but at the same time it’s crazy because…
Timothy says:…volunteering at Mercer and at C magazine, you get all of these invites in the mail, and it makes you realize just how much is out there, and it’s like top 40 radio….this stuff that people pour their passion into and it just gets lost between the selections. It’s depressing
T-Co says:i understand what you’re saying…
T-Co says:what’s that expression same shit, different smell.
Timothy says:yup. That’s it exactly
T-Co says:eventually you realize that you are going to these things outta habit/ or because you*should*/or because you kinda don’t wanna miss it – just in case its intriguing for a change
Timothy says:yes. That’s it, it’s mostly habit…don’t have anything else to do. I guess I’m just noticing how many of these things involve alcohol…and I like to drink, it’s just I dont like to drink every bloody week…it’s no fun if it’s regular…
Timothy says:It just seems tedious right now. There’s a glut of social activity. Come January I’ll be desperate for something social
T-Co says:plus there’s a level of pretension i could do without

Instant Coffee Saturday Edition

  1. Jan 2002: Appeared in Instant Coffee Saturday Edition Issue No° 4
  2. 2002-2015 Archived on my websites & blog
  3. Sept 2015: this version produced