Did Adam Buxton eat my Oreos? Also 'that' Robbie Williams exhibition at Moco Museum

Weekly Art Practice, issue 69 (ooh Matron!) | The Outsider Artist known as SLART.

NEW HERE? WHAT'S THIS WEEKLY ART PRACTICE ALL ABOUT?

Every Saturday, I share my art practice. I'm captivated by the process, not just the finished pieces but everything from influences to materials. It's like getting a behind-the-scenes peek at an artist's world.

[If this masterpiece is too long for email, you can read Cream of the Crop in Substack. Or download the Substack app.]

Well, on the third attempt, my Oreos got delivered. Adam, Edith, if you’re reading this, get in touch. IF you wonder what the flip I am talking about, I’m using biscuits as a cheaper alternative to flyers.

I’ve discovered a way for my biscuit-addled (No pun intended) mind to get things done without feeling overwhelmed. It’s my new system. Normally, I’d charge $1000 for an eight-hundred-page eBook, but for you, dear reader, it’s free – but for today only.
Of course, I’m joking.

I’ve had a bit of a shift in awareness lately. I caught myself feeling overwhelmed and started noticing what was causing it. It wasn’t something I did deliberately, I just noticed it and thought, “Oh, I do that to myself a lot”.

So, I was working on exhibition planning stuff and feeling stressed out. Then I realised I had loads on my mind, and even when I was completing tasks, it didn’t feel like it was good enough, and I wasn’t satisfied. It’s a little bit like bagging your head on the wall and blaming the wall, I think. It’s hard for me to pin point it, to articulate it fully, as it’s an understanding that you know immediately, like when you recognise someone you know, you don’t have to recall everything about you, it just happens.

I don’t like planning too much – it feels painful to me. Might sound silly, but if you’ve got something like ADD, you’ll get it.

I noticed was that when I get an idea in my head, I often want to act on it immediately. And when I’m working on something, I feel like I have to finish it. But often, the thing I’m obsessing over doesn’t actually need to be done right then. It always seems to happen right when I need to leave the house with my family, and suddenly this unfinished task pops into my head.

All of that mixed together just makes me feel rubbish. So, I set up a *gags* system that’s really simple and easy to follow.

Three tasks per day, and three bonus tasks if I feel like it.

Then, underneath those, I jot down anything that pops into my head to save for later – a kind of brain dump. At some point during the day, after I’ve ticked off the three tasks, I think about three more immediate ones for the next day. Now I’ve got a record of what I’ve done and what’s been floating around in my brain, all in one place. Like this…

Oh, the Global Zine Project, It could’ve died if it wasn’t for

Kevin Chung

and

Tess McCarthy

! Thank you so much for keeping it going. Here’s the the latest post by Tess:

Global Zine Project is in production! Woop, whoop!

Next up – I learned a lot this week about Robbie Williams’ art exhibition and art criticism in general, after reading a scathing review by Eddy Frankel in The Guardian. I found the review through Instagram stories, and at first I thought Eddy was praising the show – but it turned out to be classic British sarcasm. At the end, it linked to a one-star review with this heading:

Harsh or true?

Read the full review here if you wish: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/may/06/robbie-williams-radical-honesty-moco-london-art-exhibition-take-that

I felt a bit bad for Robbie. It seems like he’s been pretty vulnerable in sharing his art, putting his anxiety out there for the world to see. But the more important takeaway for me was what other people were saying about it. I read another five reviews, and they were all positive, even The bloody Daily Mail!

So it begs the question, was Eddy right, and the others just sucking up to the pop legend? Or was Eddy’s review unfair, and the others more accurate? I don’t know.

You’ve got one person calling the work tone deaf, and the next saying Robbie could be the next Banksy (although that was the owner of the Moco Museum, and of course, they want to big up their artists to sell work).

It got me thinking about what Basquiat said:

"I don't listen to what art critics say. I don't know anybody who needs a critic to find out what art is."

I haven’t reached the stage in my art career where I’ve been publicly criticised (in the form of professional art criticism), but I can imagine how it might feel – getting negative press. It has the power to shape or change someone’s work, if they let it. You could easily think, “They’re right, I’d better change it next time,” but is that really what should be done? Is the feedback useful? What do you think?

That kind of reflection also makes me think about how important support is, especially when you're still building something from the ground up. I’m incredibly grateful for the help I have received for Memento Vivere so far. One day, I hope to be in a position where I can pay people to support my self-organised events – but for now, I have to offer other kinds of perks.

Basically, I need at least two ‘staff’ members at the exhibition at all times during the show. My curator, Maria, has kindly been helping to find people, some art students. If you know anyone who’d love the experience of supporting an exhibition, please send them my way. (They need to be physically in London between the 6th and 18th of September 2025.)

Speaking of promoting Memento Vivere, I’ve been emailing local businesses and institutions near to the crypt gallery and inviting them to the exhibition. I got a kind reply from someone at The Place “A creative powerhouse for dance in the heart of London” (So a big shout out to you!!)

I sent kind Irene some flyers to share, hopefully it’ll catch someone’s eye and they’ll have a life-changing experience at my exhibition.

My brain then decides to continue on the thread for hours, inviting people and businesses in the area, including NHS trusts, and even the local fire service, art should be for all and not highbrow as a lot of it is!

Anyway, that’s all for now.

Take care,

Memento Vivere: Remember to Live.

Best wishes,

SLART.

P.S. One more thing, could you please leave a 4 or 5-star (Hopefully not 1,2 or 3) review on my SLART Google page? Just trying to level up my online game and get my art in front of more eyes, and this small, straightforward, and swift action would be immensely beneficial. Cheers!