Robin Small struggled to find what seemed so forever elusive – the answer .
Footnote: Robin seems to hold a flag for the sense of wonder and mystery that was more afforded in years gone by, than in our world today. Answers don’t always come easy, and sometimes there aren’t answers to everything. But Robin, although struggling, doesn’t seem (entirely) defeated by the struggle. Or the elusiveness of answers. He’s tentative? Undecided? Maybe ready to step or move? And those new paths often open up from not giving up when there seems no answer, but by having the determination to keeping seeking and exploring and examining what doesn’t make sense. Responding in your own way to whatever uncertainty arises and whatever struggle arises from it?
Clunk & Jam book (2019)
As choices lay before him, Robin whirled in the – well, well, well.
Footnote: Robin appears to be in a zone of great uncertainty – and cautiousness. He could be anticipating the next step? The ‘well, well, well’ could suggest he’s weary of the waiving finger of disapproval? Or maybe the ‘well, well, well’ relates to a discovery he has made?
Find Robin Small in Clunk & Jam book (2019)
Robin Small street art Piney Lakes (Perth, Western Australia).
Boots in Kadidjiny Park (Melville, Western Australia).
Part of the Melville Storylines Festival.
Thanks again to Planet Books for the wall space at the rear of the bookshop for Robin and Amelia.
Stories are at the center of everything. The most powerful and potentially debilitating being the ones inside our head. The stories we tell ourselves. The erosive stories we’ve been told. Stories formed from our experiences. That’s why it’s so vital we have access to and seek out alternative stories that give us strength and hope. Help us realise our full potential. Particularly our children and young people.
Not in a ‘Be wealthy and successful and famous’ way. But to be kind enough to ourselves that we can then go out into the world more securely and do good. Be a thriving, kind, compassionate and caring human being. But that starts from within.
The Army of Ink and all the characters are the carriers of stories full of strength, hope and possibility. They pitch an alternative to what we’re being told (and sold) through social media and popular culture.
They put a caring arm around our shoulder and keep us safe and strong. Encourage us to think and question what makes us who we are. Help us take back some control over our sense of self. Our lives. Our world. And our future …
Find The Army of Ink including Robin Small, Amelia Bloom and Rose and Boots and their stories across five parks in Melville. See Melville Storylines for information. Instagram @browneink.
Boots The Clown.
Robin Small.
Meaningful to have these characters on and around the buildings of Goolugatup/Heathcote (Perth, Western Australia) with its dark history as a ‘mental institution’ – on land taken from the Bibbulmun people (traditional owners). It has since been transformed into an art gallery, community park and concert space. Part of the Melville Storylines Festival.
