MARCH 2005
1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13 - 14 - 15 - 16 - 17 - 18 - 19 - 20 - 21 - 22 - 23 - 24 - 25 - 26 - 27 - 28 - 29 - 30 - 31
R goes to London to collect the octagonal horse painting; has coffee and a chat with Robert whilst he's there. ON his return calls in at Brian Sinfield's to collect the small international newspaper painting. I've been working on the yellow taxi painting but stop to repaint parts on the octagonal frame that has been rubbed or marked whilst R then goes to Birmingham to collect a smaller newspaper work. The problem with being fortunate enough to have so many large commissions is that I've not been able to produce other paintings which means we have to move around the few I have left from gallery to gallery and art consultants.
R drives to London with the three paintings for the art consultants.
Phone call from Marianne at Galerie Alain Blondel. The new gallery opens on the 22nd. They have just had a client in who enquired as to the availability of The Jazz Singer.
Start new canvas, number four of the Japanese or Japonica series. She is the legendary Shizuka from the Festival of Ages, famous through history for her beautiful singing and dancing. The geisha see her as their precursor.
Interesting item on the news about 16 year old Muslim schoolgirl who has just won the right in the the High Court to wear the jellaba to school rather than the trousers and tunic that had been devised for Muslim girls because she felt it was not modest enough. In France of course Muslim schoolgirls have been forbidden to wear a scarf, which having met young Muslim women I could see was very important to them. It seems rather sad that we try to even out the differences rather than embracing the richness of a variety of cultures especially in schools where children can learn from one another about these differences.
Continuing the new painting, covering most of the canvas in colour. The basic composition has fallen into place and am now working on the crowd at the other side of the cart that Shizuka and her companion (played by geisha) sit upon pushed by six young men who are played by some of the six thousand university students taking part. I now have to decide upon the subject for the final Japnaese canvas. There are so many images still in my mnd's eye. The Fire Festival was exceedingly exciting although perhaps the men, who were dressed rather like sumo wrestlers, would look a little too naked for Saudi Arabia. So am contemplating using the White Heron Festival that we saw in Asakusa.
The new canvas of Lady Shizuka looks very colourful. Work on turning the unbleached titanium area into barrels of saki; also put more figures into the crowd. Later decide to try and start the fifth and final piece in the commissioned Japonica series. After last night's contemplations it is based on the White Heron Festival. I have to juggle about with the composition as the figures were for the most part quite spread out but for richness and diversity of shape, colour and form, I want to include more of the characters than would in reality be seen in this span. I start with the man holding the huge parasol after which I add the 'white herons', the wings will be the most difficult part to fit and overlap into the composition. As with the Fesitival of the Ages in Kyoto I imagine the herons are played by geisha from the hanumachi in the Asakusa area. Work later than I'd intended but am pleased to have made this new beginning.
Henrietta and Kev arrive Saturday evening just after 7. I've managed to put in a couple of hours on the White Heron adding a band of red and yellow across the upper section and the beginning of the white paper lanterns against a turquoise sky.
We have a most enjoyable supper, being also a late celebration of Richard's birthday (which we had spent in Riyadh).
It's Mothers Day so my Mum comes round to join us for a big brunch. We exchange presents before Henrietta and Kev leave to go back to London early afternoon.
Slow to start but make progress on the White Herons which by the end of the night have almost caught up with Shizuka.
The two boxes of items purchased in the souks of Riyadh and Janaderiah arrive today although don't allow ourselves to open them until the evening, after I've worked further on the Toyota taxi painting and the White Heron Festival canvas. We lay them out on a big rug brought back with our hand luggage, in one of the rooms of my studio. Putting the old beaded Bedouin dress and a newer embroidered one on the dress makers dummies; the camel leather-backed veil or mask, its many beaded coins jangling, as I position it on a separate mannequin head covered in a black scarf. It looks convincingly authentic when I've added the jewellery that hangs over the head and down either side of the face, a separate piece across the forehead and the exquisite necklace suspended with three charm cases, below. I achieve a similar effect with the gutra on a hat stand. Then display the five ringed and belled hand jewellery (all in one) on a black gloved lay hand with the smaller rings and bracelets on another painted, lay hand. By the time we've suspended the tasselled camel bags and tent hangings over the walls and laid out the coffee pots, cups and baskets, it's beginning to look, feel and smell like one of the rooms in the Saudi museums or part of a souk transporting us back to the experiences we had when bargaining for these treasures.
Refining the Toyota taxi painting as want to send an image of it to Alistair.
Wednesday 9.3.05
Again it's the yellow taxi canvas, painting the tiled roofs which I'm also using to lighten and enliven the shadowed side of the painting. We move The Sweet Shop back into the main area of my studio as it had temporarily moved into the front room making way for the Arabian souk. R's in the process of carving me more sweet jars. About midnight I turn my efforts to the Manga painting, working into two of the comics and the central figure as R is going to paint some lettering on the covers.
Quite a lot of communication via e mail re. catalogue for my forthcoming exhibition at the Morohashi Museum. Day divided between the new manga canvas, sweet shop and the big yellow taxi.
R's gone to London to collect stretchers, paint etc. from Cornellisen's. Then on to see Nathan during the afternoon and to Kev in the evening who is helping him with some work for the Japanese catalogue.
I've been busy on the Manga canvas having now painted in several heads and comics; this work will also form part of my exhibition at the Morohashi Museum of Modern Art. I've now painted the jar carved out of jeluton full of coconut mushrooms, and more refining on the roof scape. Then paint white lacy covers rather like broiderie anglaise on the seats of the Toyota taxi [third Japanese canvas]. It's one of the things that we particularly noticed when in Japan ; all the taxi seats were covered in this way. We'd first seen them in the chauffeured car that had collected us from our hotel in Fukushima to take us to the Morohashi Museum in 2001. Call it a day at 3 am. R returns shortly afterwards.
Phone call from Robert Sandelson in Paris standing outside the Blondel's new gallery.
Seven Pillars of Wisdom arrives from Amazon. This is the original and full 1922 version of Lawrence's famous account of the struggles to unify the feuding tribes of Arabia, at exactly the same time as Abdul Assize was unifying what became Saudi Arabia.
I always find at this time of year when Spring is on the horizon that I become more prolific in the starting of new works, which today included a corrugated horse piece and a larger square newspaper canvas. I have become concerned that with two Museum shows opening next year and not being able to let my dealers have new works due to the many exciting commissions I am fortunate enough to be working on, there will not be enough work to go round.
Call from Professor Ken in Auckland. They have just bought an appartment there; he's enjoying his position of Professor of Global Strategy. He's ringing to see how we are; they will be back again in May for his terms teaching at the Said Business School in Oxford.
The weather's good and our builders are back on course. Really pleased they have finished the patterned brickwork along the front face of the building. We are hoping the gabled end with the old circular Mission Hall window will be up in the next couple of weeks.
Most progress on the new corrugated horses and manga canvas today but during the evening the Sweet Shop Construction and newspaper canvas absorb most of my efforts.
Read a chapter of Toyah's new book Diary of a Facelift which is also being serialised in the Telegraph (plus a big spread in today's Express as well). A compelling read both moving and well documented with photographs by Robert.
Cheltenham Festival starts today so it seems quite appropriate that I've got the new corrugated horse painting on the go as this time next year I will have an exhibition opening at Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum entitled Day at the Races. I had asked Rose (friend and neighbour) if she could collect papers for me for the new newspaper canvas and they are all also focusing on Cheltenham, three of them having the same black and white photographs of horses silhouetted in the early morning light. So this could also be a good one to prepare for that exhibition. Make more headway with this canvas and some more work on the Toy Shop construction.
Call from Rick Rumrell who's in London from St Augustine. Unfortunately time does not permit either for us to go up or for us to go down; but it's good catching up on the news.
A bowl of lollies now sits with the sugar mice and sherbet fountains on the bottom shelf of the Sweet Shop construction. Also start narrower newspaper work as I've decided the larger canvas should be devoted to the Cheltenham Festival coverage this week, particularly as they include some stunning photographs, with a view to using it in my Day at the Races exhibition at the Museum to coincide with next year's Festival.
Coincidentally there's a call mid evening from Edward Gillespie, MD of the Racecourse who amidst his hugely heavy schedule has very kindly stopped to invite us to Friday's Gold Cup where he hopes to introduce us to Victor Chandler, bookmaker to the Queen and biggest private one in the country. They had been talking this afternoon and Edward says that Victor probably has more of my works in his collection than I realise.
Have now managed to cover almost the whoe of the canvases of the two new newspaper works with the rough outlines of composition; also more on the Sweet Shop.
Beautiful sunny day for the Gold Cup.
One of my framers calls in the morning, John whom I haven't seen in a while. He's brought me photographs he's taken of triptych (at a monastery in Majorca where Chopin spent his last days) particularly looking at the way they are constructed; he made the huge triptych for me that sits beautifully primed in white still waiting for me to commence work. John's going to make me some more corrugated pieces.
As we set out on our way to the Races we see Eddy and Les our builders who have ben taking advantage of this good weather to make rapid progress.
Interesting to see parts of the Racecourse that edward had shown us round earlier in the year like the Centaur building, now full of bookies booths around its perimeter, punters sitting on the balcony as well as filling the arena, all, glass in hand and nervously smoking, watching the races on the enormous screen. in contrast to the slightly more elegant punters in the champagne seafood bar and other club enclosures. But the excitement's the same. Much arm waving and shouting of encouragement to the horse whether inside or out. Some very nice hats and outfits, more visible as people aren't swaddled against the often chill breezes - we were here in the snow one year! We only get one winner, Sir Rembrandt, who comes in third, Pizaro being our other choice in the Gold Cup. Later we make our way to the tented village, full of shops and galleries devoted to the horse. We do find a beautiful old set of Chad Valley jockeys and horses cast in lead, quite a lot of the original paint still in place. We make our way towards Victor Chandler's hospitality tent and are just discussing whether we should wait for Edward to ring to introduce us or do it ourselves when like a genii at the mention of his name he appears. Such an affable man with his broad smile and generosity of spirit. He has the ability to communicate with every level, be they worker or royalty, on the Course. He takes us in past the doorman and introduces introduces us to Victor, a charming man who says he will be happy to open my exhibition at the Art Gallery & Museum next year. I tell him how pleased I was when we happened upon a big article on him in The Independent's business section in which he mentioned his collection of art to include Picasso, Lucien Freud and PJ Crook. He was also photographed sitting beneath the newspaper painting that he owns. We chatted to his nephew too (a very nice young man) who also owns some of my work. It's always good to get to meet people who own the works.
Back to the studio where a profusion of new ideas keep bubbling to the surface.
I'd made a tentative start on the small triptych that Albert had made for me last night. Hardly a mark as I'd washed off most of the colour. I stat with the idea of painting the beaded mask that I'd brought back from Janaderiah but today I decide to take it in another direction. The beautiful black camel keeper I'd seen in the desert outside Riyadh. A small piece like this is probably a good intro into the larger works. I'd also started a small painting which I've had in mind called Desert Prayer, inspired by Mammdoh.
Weather still mild and Spring-like. Spend morning cutting back in the garden and later put lots of polyanthus into various urns and pots around the gardens.
Back in the studio I work further into the Desert Prayer and coincidentally an e mail arrives from Mammdoh in reply to our 'thank you'. Also paint jar of liquorice whirls for the Sweet Shop before returning to the triptych inspired by the camel keeper. Interestingly I'd noticed that he had some scarring that looked purposefully made on his cheek. Later when R's reading me an extract from With Lawrence in Arabia by Lowell Thomas that when he's talking about Mecca he mentions that "..since olden times those born there have been distinguished from other Arabians by three scars on the cheek.."
Work further into the horizontal newspaper - composition had been rather loose so strengthening both papers and heads, giving more form and depth to colour. Later I start work on another triptych (with three separate panels) reworking what was there: the figure now has a veil and is reading a newspaper.
More strengthening to horizontal newspaper, particularly top and sides. Start painting jelly babies on a newly carved jelutong jar. As with most of the other sweets, I work from memory, although Richard does turn up with a bag of them later in the evening and it's interesting to see that they have changed in format. I accused him of biting the legs off the first one that fell out of the bag as it was much shorter than they used to be. Most of the sweets and bars I remember from childhood, they seem to have shrunk! Is it a trick of memory that as a small child they seemed bigger in scale and taste or have the manufacturers increased the price and reduced the size, I'm not sure. But it's interesting to note that statisticians use Mars bars! as a unit of measurement when assessing the cost of living over the years.
Back to the camel-keeper triptych.
When we go for our walk we stop to look at the building. Our "aged" builders (over 100 years of experience between the two of them) have made good progress and the roof timbers on the lower section are now being put in place enabling us to envisage the scale and shape.
On our return there's a phone call from Lee in New York wanting to know how her commission is progressing!
More work on Sweet Shop but during evening repaint second triptych piece using the embroidered beaded Bedouin veil/mask as inspiration with patterns from the camel bags in the background. Studio getting fuller and fuller! R now trying to reorganise the upstairs as the rooms had become almost un-enterable being packed with materials and props!
Day concentrating on the new newspaper painting. Call from Tempest Radford re. newspaper paintings to show one of their clients.
During the evening put the two loose side panels either side of the larger one with the Bedouin mask/veil and continue the camel bag patterning.
It's a beautiful bright Spring day again, very good light in the studio. Work on both the horizontal newspaper which is being painted in time to be exhibited at robert Sandelson's gallery in the mixed show that opens next week. Also work further into the larger newspaper canvas.
Call from Barry Friedman Gallery re. newspaper painting.
Later I plant lots of purple and yellow violas which if I am lucky, will flower until next year. A pot that I did a couple of years ago has shed it's seeds into the crevices in the little courtyard behind the studio.
Late evening i keep the promise to myself by starting on this Good Friday, the huge triptych altar piece that will also form a part of my collaboration with Robert Fripp at Gloucester City Museum and other venues next year, before it hopefully finds it's way to the church.
Nathan arrives back with friend Cammie having been to the Wildlife Park in Burford en route. It was designed by Brian Sinfield. In the days before he opened the gallery he set up and ran zoos.
My Mum joins us for lunch and we exchange Easter eggs and presents.
After Nathan leaves, work further into the horizontal newspaper painting and touch up the Nightclub ready for Richard to deliver to Robert Sandelson's gallery in the morning. We work until 3.30am.
R delivers the two paintings to London's Cork Street in the hired van whilst I have big bash on the new square newspaper work. Also add camels to the background of the Camel Keeper triptych.
Richard gets back just before Henrietta and Kev arrive, also from London.
Intensive bash on the Manga, triptych and newspaper after brunch with Henrietta and Kev before they leave for Dorset.
Statement arrives from the Bridgeman Art Library. Quite a lot of newer paintings have been used as well as one work, The Tryst, that I painted in the early 80s. It also includes a payback payment from DACS which means that they've collected it where works have been reproduced without prior permission.
Missed call from Great Roberto inviting us to dinner in a couple of weeks time with Cressida and Charles. Call from Andy Curry of Pryory Gallery asking if I will donate a work to new alternative treatment cancer clinic auction in memory of a girl of twenty three also if I will let her have some work for an art fair in October.