For this issue, we asked residents to send in reviews of their favourite artists and writers working and living in Govanhill. Hopefully, you can find your next obsession.

Illustrations by Aled Haywood

Mrs. S by K Patrick

Neil Scott

This April, K Patrick was named one of Granta Magazine's 20 Best Young British Novelists, a whole two months before the publication of their debut Mrs S. Expectations were high, so it helped to have the launch amongst the friendly faces at Govanhill's local queer bookshop Category Is.

I am not the obvious audience for K Patrick's sultry debut novel. Set in an all-girls boarding school, it tells the story of a torrid lesbian love affair between the Matron and the Headmaster's wife. Indeed, the only straight male character is described as unbearably smug, "his whole life one elongated wink." But novels are the best way to inhabit the consciousness of another and in this sense the book is extraordinary.

Mrs S takes place inside the Matron's mind. Everything is written in short sentences in the first person and present tense. The dialogue is not closed in speech marks, it exists in the thoughts of the narrator. You have to work out who is speaking and what is happening, helping this distracted reader to slow down and appreciate the words. I was engrossed by its intimacies:

"I avoid my own reflection. I thought, for a long time, everyone did. I was wrong. Most other people study their reflections carefully. Instead I’ve spent a lifetime focusing on the interior, a place that happens without me, organs passing their intimate thoughts, the chase of blood, valves clenching and releasing. Stunning inevitabilities."

Grab yourself a copy of Mrs. S at Category Is on Allison Street

How Does it Feel on the Rooftop in this Concrete City? by Masaki Ishikawa

Peilin Shi

In August of this year, Govanhill-based artist Masaki Ishikawa displayed a piece tentatively named “Rooftop” he made as part of his four-week residency at the CCA.

This painting intricately weaves together abstract and metaphorical elements. Its colour scheme is a captivating interplay of sunset hues – blue, purple, grey, and red – blending the urban skyline with a thin, oceanic horizon. At the centre, a complex body emerges, composed of shapes and graphical blocks, while circular forms hint at a human head and elongated bars allude to limbs.

How does it feel to be a ‘living’ body in the ‘dead’ concrete forest? In Masaki’s artwork, the backdrop of concrete skyscrapers becomes a nostalgic childhood memory, akin to the environment he grew up in. It’s a blend of concrete and comfort, when a sense of alienation turns into naturality and normality, carrying the joy and simplicity of childhood innocence.

Masaki Ishikawa’s works reflect his exploration on the interplay between humans and their urban surroundings. Masaki’s current project draws inspiration from the oral history of former residents of multi-storey housing in Glasgow, providing a unique lens through which to view the city’s social history and the experiences of urban life.

Marcin’s Arts on Brilliant Bartering

Jude Hunter

I came across the art of Martin Blink (Marcin’s Arts) on the popular Brilliant Bartering Glasgow page on Facebook. If you don’t know this page, it’s a place where you can swap and trade any items you no longer want, the rule being that it’s not for money. There are thousands of barterers in the Southside, so it’s a good site for local bargains.

Martin lives in Govanhill with his partner and dog, and is a self-professed baker by day, artist by night. His work includes drawings, paintings and prints, but it’s his abstract landscapes that I love. Over the last couple of years, he has posted a clear out of paintings on the barter site at least three times, and on each I’ve been lucky enough to procure a painting for nothing more than some red wine.

They are all framed oil paintings, my favourite being one of the sea, an abstract of gently rippling waves. I love the intense blue colours and the peacefulness of it. My dream is to retire and live by the sea, with the dog I plan to have. When I am there, I will swim every day, but in the meantime, I have this painting on my bathroom wall. I like to lie in the bath and think about the future or imagine looking out of a window to a similar view. Of course, in Scotland it won’t always look that blue, but a woman can dream!

In case you’re wondering, I haven’t tried his cakes – but if they are anything like his paintings, they must be good.

Martin’s work can be found @marcinsarts on Instagram and Facebook