The kids and young teens have never had a problem with the gallery – they don’t find me or the idea at all scary or off putting (as the adults seem to) – they might not understand but they’re not afraid to knock on the door, ask questions, they love sitting in the cab, most of the time they don’t take much notice of the “art” not in an obvious way, sometimes they ask “why?” or “what is it meant to be?” – I try to reflect the question back to get them to talk about what they see or how they understand it – they seem to enjoy the difference, a different place to be, a different kind of interaction between themselves and an adult.

Since January I’ve had a regular visitor for every show – a man in his mid thirties? He obviously has learning difficulties but lives on his own nearby. He visits every show, noticing when a new one has started, always knocks on the door wanting a chat, like the children he rarely refers to the exhibition, mostly he likes to tell me where he’s going, what he had for his tea and about his family who live in Chatteris.

It’s impossible to guage the audience for Taxi Gallery since so many are passersby who I never meet or interact with …. exhibitions that don’t rely on being let into the taxi are in some ways the most successful on this level and its been important especially in the first year to have a number of such shows as it has enabled people to experience the gallery surreptitiously and at their own pace. Stanesfield Rd is on a busy bus route the C3 passes every ten minutes … I can see heads turn, particularly when Desmond Brett’s Roof Rack pieces were first installed …. jaws dropped! The area is also used for car parking whenever there’s a football match at the nearby football stadium, Police Cycle auctions are held quarterly at the Scout Hut next door …. So there’s a huge extended audience for Taxi Gallery beyond the immediate neighbours. My email database list continues to grow … currently standing at 200 and increasing with each show …. Through the website there is a growing national and international audience who experience the work/s through its online documentation. I've had so much positive feedback from local artists and people in the 'scene' from Cambridge, they enjoy the events and the chance to meet each other socially on a regular basis but that's only half of what I'm wanting to do here with Taxi Gallery - the community conversation is proving so much harder to get going ...

It's hard not to feel discouraged by the determined way that my neighbours seem to me to be ignoring Taxi Gallery - maybe they're sneaking a look when they can't see me around?. I hand deliver an invite to the opening event for every show to all the houses in the street and apart from Corne and his lodgers who live across the way noone else has ever come. I bumped into Anne and John who just live opposite the other day when I was delivering and they were very sweet and friendly and said thank you for keeping us in touch but it's not really for people like us - I found that so depressing and also felt slightly guilty that I've imposed something upon their lives that they find difficult and uncomfortable to deal with.

Making a link with the Scout Hut next door (Feb 03) has really expanded the possibilities of the kind of events that I can put on in association with Taxi Gallery exhibitions – in return for keeping an eye on the building, holding the keys and putting the bins out on Wednesdays – I can use the Hut and field occasionally for Taxi Gallery openings/events. The first event using the Scout Hut was for a closing event for Desmond Brett’s show – Desmond made a site-specific 8mm film loop installation in the main space and a lightbox installation in the small storeroom near the front door. The Scout Hut is slightly shabby and very quirky but people seem to really enjoy its atmosphere and having access to it has opened up so many more possibilities for events associated with the Taxi Gallery – talks, concerts, readings, meetings, workshops etc

I was in the Charity shop in the local parade and chatting to Paul who volunteers there regularly, I mentioned Taxi Gallery and without realising that I was involved with it Paul began authoritatively telling me where it is. This was about 6 months after I’d opened – I noted that the way he was talking about it was as a fixture or a landmark in the neighbourhood. I invited Paul to the forthcoming opening of Taxi Noir Slap Red and mentioned that the opening would include a DJ and possibly a poetry reading – Paul seized on the mention of Poetry and told me about an interesting book of typescript poems that he’d found in a box of stuff donated to the Chairty Shop. Next time I called in he’d brought the book to show me and said I could borrow it. I did some internet research and discovered that the typescripts were early works by Beat poet Ted Joans which was very exciting for Paul – he’s now put it up for auction and is hoping to make a bit of money – Paul now regularly attends Taxi Gallery openings bringing friends and family with him.

My son is convinced that when he gets a Taxi to go clubbing with his mates from the house that they get a discount fare because of Taxi Gallery. Inevitably whenever I get a Taxi - the conversation revolves around the gallery idea - I had one great journey where the cabbie regaled us with impressions of the various noises made by the FX4R london taxi which he used to drive himself until it drove him mad!

The council technical officer comes to visit about my Kitchen refurbishment and tells me that it was he who argued in support of the idea when I applied for permission – “give it a chance – what harm can it do? “ – just recently he’s asked to remain on the mailing list as he still feels responsible for the project.

Inevitably any caller to the house – to read the meter, sell me a new gas or electricity plan, delivering a package etc etc – there’s always a conversation about the current show and the idea of Taxi Gallery generally. I’m aware of being seen as this slightly mad woman, traditions of the british eccentric and the folly come to mind. I try and steer the conversation through my off the cuff assessment of the person I’m talking to… just recently a chap from the council visited while Laura was in the early stages of binding the Taxi – he was very bemused by her, by the whole thing, made a point of saying that he doesn’t understand why people are interested in art and in visiting art galleries …. But he was obviously intrigued and curious …. He said he’d make a point of coming this way again to see how the binding had developed.

Marge, next door, who had written a letter to the City Council, supporting the venture when I was applying for permission from the council, often tells me she doesn’t really understand what I’m doing …. It’s hard explaining site-specificity, my disillusionment with conventional gallery spaces, an interest in the everyday, notions of the commons, issues of public/community art to an 86 year old woman who has never visited an art gallery/museum in her life. She has still never come to a show, although for the first time she did want to talk about her response to Laura’s ‘Bound’ piece – “strangulation”, she said.

The guy next door but one who’s never acknowledged me or Taxi Gallery before, stopped me whilst I was hedge clipping today to ask if he could have some clippings for his compost. When he came round to collect a bag he found himself joking about needing a piece of string and commenting on ‘Bound’ (Laura Robinson's exhibition) that he’d have called it “binded” or “bale” – it’s a start ... His name is Tony, he’s 80 years old and chairperson of the local allotments. He drinks 3 pints of beer down the football social club every night of the week – he’s got 7 grandaughters and 2 great grandchildren.

A typical moment has just happened …. sitting here in my front room working at the computer, and I hear a boy’s voice shouting “Come here – look at this!” his head is just about visible through the mesh of 'Bound' around the Taxi – he’s calling to his family – “Come and see what’s happened to the Taxi!”

Received an email from the “Not4Hire” website family today describing their visit to Taxi Gallery whilst I was away …. The children liked the 'bound’ idea – he was disappointed to miss a more interactive piece – said they’ll call in again next year when they’re in Cambridge for the Folk Festival …..

The guy across the road tells me he decided to buy his house because of Taxi Gallery – he thought this is a funky street to live in! – he’s mad though – I found him digging a huge hole in his garden on one of the hottest days of this summer – he said that he’d woken at 6am and thought “I fancy digging a hole” – so he did. He’s going to plant his moss garden in it. I told this story to the estate agent who came to value my house – he said he thought that Taxi Gallery was raising the value of property on Stanesfield Rd. I think he might have been joking though.

Just received an email that I find ridiculously heartening – Leah and her Mum say that Taxi Gallery is part of the community !
Here’s the email>

Dear Sir/ Madam,
My daughter, Leah, attend the Abbey Meadows Community School, and as part of her summer holiday project she has to find out about her local community, as you are part of the community would it be possible if you could let me know how long you have been established in Stanesfield Road, this would be a great help for her project.
Thank-you very much for your time
Tracy
(parent)

Its nearly a year and they now see Taxi Gallery as part of the community and here long enough so that they can’t remember how long its been here!