After coffee and tea (Coffee is Nikola's speciality, the alchemist at work in his kitchen!) Nikola gave me/man rabbit a tour of his museum, which is based in their kitchen, though not everything is out, only on open days.
(please see slide show of part of the museums collection)
Many objects have been collected over many years  

Biography from Nikola Dzafo web site:  http://www.dzafo.com/biography/biografija.html
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Rođen 1950. u Novom Sadu. Diplomirao slikarstvo na Fakultetu likovnih umetnosti u Beogradu 1978, magistrirao na istom fakultetu 1981. Član Udruženja likovnih umetnika Srbije i Vojvodine. Od 1990. pasivizira bavljenje slikarstvom i maksimalno je aktivan u borbi za društvene vrednosti i umetnički dignitet. Idejni tvorac i pokretač grupe LED ART (1993), s kojom kreira i realizuje više od trideset projekata. Suosnivač Centra za kulturnu dekontaminaciju u Beogradu (1995) i Multimedijalnog centra "Led art" u Novom Sadu (2000). Iste godine, u podrumu u ulici Grčkoškolska 5, pokreće Art kliniku, s utopijskom idejom da umetnost može da menja i leči svet. Živi i radi u Petrovaradinu.

English: 

Born in 1950 in Novi Sad. He graduated in painting at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Belgrade in 1978, and received his master's degree from the same faculty in 1981. He is a member of the Association of Fine Artists of Serbia and Vojvodina. Since 1990, he has been passive in painting and has been maximally active in the fight for social values ​​and artistic dignity. Conceptual creator and initiator of the LED ART group (1993), with which he creates and realizes more than thirty projects. Co-founder of the Center for Cultural Decontamination in Belgrade (1995) and the Multimedia Center "Led Art" in Novi Sad (2000). In the same year, in the basement at 5 Grčkoškolska Street, he started the Art Clinic, with the utopian idea that art can change and heal the world. He lives and works in Petrovaradin.

Below photographs of man rabbit with Nikola Dzafo in the garden at his home.
Thank your to the various people who photographed with my camera much appreciated
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As 2020 drew to an end, I was left reflecting on how to create work within the restrictions of the UK Government, saying what we can and cannot do.  It is difficulty to absorb the constant negative voices in the media, having to hear the word (Don't-Not allowed-be safe-do not mix with family or friends in other house holds.  This has a great mental affect on all of us, though we are told that the arts have really suffered, and it isn't easy, for me being in the arts has always had it lack of funding and support especially in conceptual performance art.  Music venues and Theatres are suffering, but in reality we are all suffering.

I wake up and ask myself what can I do as an artist, so came up with the idea of making my garden into an everchanging gallery and making installations.  The recent one that I invited the community to make a face for 2021 to come together through art, using art as a way forward, to make our mark, being somewhere physical.  My house is on a public pathway so it gets a fair share attention, its a small space but I managed to use it well.

I recently watched a film made behind the scenes, which was filmed around the area I grew up, its strange seeing the family house on film, and the streets I aimlessly wondered about as a youth.  Check it out. ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTrVLIVynyA

My aim was to try to keep myself motivated throughout  the first lock down in the March in the UK, but after months being confined to the home, it does affect ones own morale and way of seeing things, the reality hits when we realise that all the freedom we once had, is for an unknown specific time is restricted.  The internet has become the place to lose hours of time, regardless where it leads to or even if nothing happens.

In the media we constantly hear how difficult it is for the arts, but in reality, the arts have always struggled, this has only highlighted the issue and how it has really affected those who were in main stream arts such as theatre and music venues, but the other area of arts, such as artists and performance artists continue to struggle through the maze of applications if they are lucky to get one, or the maze of possible events to perform at, that are now cancelled, grants have been drying up for some time. Personally I do not rely on grants, but work, save and use my own funds to travel, but sadly like everyone else I have lost half my income, so this will restrict me even further. 

I am filled with appreciation of what I do have, and can happily survive, but not being a one to sit about, I have been looking at to apply for a ph.D to research Embodying the myth and the folklore of the rabbit.  But since Universities are also affected, my application seems to have got lost some where, and with lack of communication, this leaves me in silence, so I have no idea what to focus on now.

However I still manage to perform the rabbit every month and turn up at events for free, and till keep up this website and facebook etc. I walk around my home feeling lost, but I keep asking myself "What can I do as an artists?"  One thing I have been doing is creating installations in my front garden, as its right on a busy path, so I get lots of people passing, and can hear their comments through the window, this makes me smile.

We have had a second lock down, but now just before Christmas there are rumours of London going into a third Lock down!  However there is a vacine that has been rolled out, but we will not know how effective this is until the New Year.   Who knows what the future holds for me and my practice, and maybe its time to give it up and get an office job or packing shelves, who know, but since work has dried up and performances opportunities are scarce, then I feel flat at the prospects that lay ahead. 

A month later!  That was a long two days break from writing.

I forgot that first of the month was approaching so got distracted by the performance and all the things I have to do that surrounds it behind the scenes kind of stuff, including writing White rabbits wisdom, uploading photographs and editing films, then what do I go and do!!!  Fall of a f**ing ladder almost killing myself, so I have been in recovery since then, all because I was trying to save a Squirrel, that had been stuck in my chimney for two days, sending masses of rubble and soot down my chimney and into the bedroom, which means the whole room has to have an intense cleans, I had started, then more crap came down.  In my wisdom I got a ladder went on to my flat roof to climb on to the main roof (six foot up) but using inadequate tools, is a sure call for a disaster waiting to happen. 

I get up, realized it was slightly too small so decided to hold on to a hundred year old cast iron pipe that came away from the wall, then snapped and I went crashing on to the flat roof, hitting the skylight and the heavy cast iron pipe landed in my groin causing a lot of bruising and damage, I was unable to walk unaided, but have pushed through it, the strangest of experiences, was not being able to call an ambulance, as it is unclear during COVID19 what consists as an emergency, there was no broken bones, or internal damage as far as I know, but I did go into severe shock. 

All I can say is I am very thankful to be alive. xxx
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And now back to the blog!!

I got in my car and headed up the A1 playing my A1 song to Barnsley where I was going to stay with a friend who lives in Barnsley. Having arrived very early in the town before people were up and about.  I walked through a very quiet town without costume and explored the local area. The market stalls slowly setting up. 

I came across the Barnsley Chronicle and met a journalist there Oliver Dyson, We arranged that I will meet him after I had breakfast and will return as the rabbit, which I did in the meantime he did a bit of online research.  It was an unusual story, but I was pleased to get someone to write something at the beginning of the A1 tour, it was a bonkers thing to do, but my main drive was also to check out how the social media works, which was eating away at my credit, but still I kept an online live update on the travels. 

There were some wonderful and funny encounters as the rabbit, I was enjoying being in a different town, also seeing the reactions of people have never encountered white rabbit, of course lots of selfies and lots of laughing and "OMG did you see a fully sized rabbit?"  I love the chance encounters, the unexpected meetings, in a lift, in car park, in a shop, in a church, in a cafe, in a market, anywhere that I just so happened to wander in.  In general it was a lovely welcome to the tour.

Next Stop Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

What does seem to work is letting people have a selfie, its a must have.  

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Here is a link to a video of white rabbit and the snow woman dancing on Barnes High Street, this was Rebecca West first collaboration with the rabbit. Bless her cotton socks, she's a mover!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVkvcsGoBFU

 24.042020

To pick up from yesterday blog making headlines.  Artists like myself crave for public attention, it is part of the performance cultures otherwise I do not think we would ever want to perform or seek out public ways to express the presence of the self.  I am not alone as there are thousands upon thousands of people trying to make their mark on the world stage, to become a house hold name, become a known artist, to feel that what you do is appreciated other than yourself and the bathroom mirror.  Take the UK entertainment program X Factor and Britain's got talent is a controlled platform where if you are successful you will have your fifteen minutes in front of the camera.  

I have seen a couple of performers who describe themselves as performance artists on Britain's got talent but then they return back to the world they came from, as what they are presenting the main public is too strange for them, but there again not strange enough as it is tame enough to at least show their performance on BGT.  I have friends who have one way or another cracked it and managed to get the publicity that they need to continue in promoting the work they have created.   My friend Delilah Jay caught the attention of the world media when she entered the Trevi fountain in Italy and was the first person to be fined for entering the fountain, it was sensational and she sparked in the attention.  Delilah Jay is an extraordinary woman dealing with some personal issues with having her son taken from her and being thrown out of her house by her son's father, her work for me is amazing and there is a lot of it so here is a link to here site so you can look up for yourself the many adventures though some painful that Delilah Jay encounters. http://delilah-jay.com/  Some of the headlines from the media was spectacular, they found a thread and picked up on: "19/07/2016 · Identified as Delilah Jay, the woman is the author of a book  entitled "Mistress - The Italian Way", and a former model who posed topless for the German tabloid Bild at the age of 52."

I know Delilah was delighted with the world wide attention as I was when the press wrote about the white rabbit performance.  Its an interesting experience, suddenly there is the moment of feeling a sense of being acknowledged and recognized for the work you do.  For those few moments of people reading about your work, checking your social media sites, talking about it, if I am honest is a great feeling, I have been validated!  There was something nice going off to meet a journalist to talk about your work, then the anxious wait to see what they have written, can be a bit addictive, with the need of wanting more.  I was contacted by a student studying journalism at Kingston University and wanted to interview me, so we met up in Kingston and talked about the experience of becoming known as white rabbit. 

Meka Beresford wrote a much more detailed interview that was more original content than the mass media as most borrowed from each other, apart from Richmond and Twickenham Times and The Evening Standard who broke the original story.  Here is a link to Meka's original interview.  https://riveronline.co.uk/?p=15134 Today this remains my favorite article as it talks more about my wider work other than just white rabbit and also my background at Kingston University.  Also here is Meka's recent links as I think she is now a practicing journalist.  https://muckrack.com/meka-beresford 
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​​At the time a dear friend of mine was dying with cancer, so while all the media attention was going on, I spent every day with him and also in his last moments by his bedside.  It was a real anchor, it kept my feet firmly on the ground as its so easy to get swallowed up by the ego and distracted by something that is just a blip rather a long after life.  To be honest the whole attention thing lasted for two days, but pretty intense two days, once the world had swallowed up the story, its was gone, and I was left spinning, thinking, what was all that about.  Over time I have learnt the impact it had, I wasn't really aware of it, because it was more about the rabbit than it was about me. 

It does leave you with a sense of wanting more, its addictive, the need to read about yourself, the need to say to people, "see I am an artist".  I decided not to hang up the mask but carried on with first of the month and other larking about with the rabbit, attending rallies, demonstrations, fairs, or just cycling around on my green Japanese bike around the local area, which is quite a site. (I will come to a stop here but will talk more about making headlines tomorrow)