MAY 2012
Tuesday 1.5.12
E mail from Helen Blow at Weekend Magazine asking me ring with more information on the forthcoming Gloucester Museum show.
R drives to Gloucestershire College in big van to collect GloCorama etc. from the College who are generously loaning it for the exhibition at Gloucester City Museum where he is assisted by two technicians and Nadia a student from GC who requested having some work experience. Then back with another load in the afternoon.
In the evening Andrew and Mike two of our friends and neighbours, help Richard move and lift the big white horse into the van.....
Wednesday 2.5.12
....which he delivers to the Museum early morning where he is assisted byfour Museum staff to get the beast upstairs!
Thursday 3.5.12
Wonderful audience at my interview last night by Michael Storm at Queen’s Hotel in aid of FCAG&M’s fund for the AG&M’s new development after which had supper with Wallace and Ronald at Cafe Rouge
Friday 4.5.12
E mail from Tom confirming the commission for Standard Chartered Bank who already have three of my paintings in different locations. This one will be going to new offices in Dubai
Saturday 5.5.12
Nathan rings; he’s working on a short film for Tescos celebrating the Jubilee, so looking for period items to include - enquires whether we still have the three china flying ducks that Eric Lister bought as a present for me at auction in the 80s because I often use them in my paintings of Henrietta and Nathan, symbolising their flight from the nest. Eric was one of the two partners (the other being Lionel Levy) who ran the Portal Gallery and was always particularly encouraging to me early on in my career.
Meanwhile Richard’s at Gloucester City Museum where today our friend composer and poet Martin Kiszko is helping him with the hanging of the exhibition Richard says its interesting as he brings a fresh view to it and they rearrange several of the paintings. Martin has travelled up from Bristol especially to do this.
Sunday 6.5.12
Working busily in studio on the small pieces for the Gloucester exhibition.
Monday 7.5.12
Have been repairing the smaller of three flying china ducks as it had been dropped some time ago so the head needed reattaching and the neck and beak rebuilding which I did with pieces of kebab skewer and Black Tac adding a Blue Tac beak; all of which to my surprise painted beautifully so if you get a fleeting glimpse of three china duck flying across your television screen you’ll know something about their history.
Tuesday 8.5.12
Working on the small paintings for Gloucester
Wednesday 9.5.12
ditto
Thursday 10.5.12
E mail from BBC Radio Gloucestershire seeing if I can pop in tomorrow to do an interview but as I explain I’ll have rather a lot to fit in arrange to do it on the telephone
Friday 11.5.12
Touched by this evenings huge turnout for Art & Soul opening at Glos City Museum. Juri Arrak & Ivi flew in from Estonia especially and were accompanied by Reet the Cultural Councillor from the Estonian Embassy and her husband. Juri’s speech endears him to everyone there was also an historic introduction by Richard Graham MP who’s step Grandfather was seconded from the RAF to train Estonian Pilots during the Great war of Independence; message from HE Dr Margus Laidre read by Robert Fripp; poetic opening of exhibition by Toyah.
Its wonderful to see so many friends and I am most particularly touched that Carol Bungard is there looking remarkably well for someone who’d been seriously injured when she was knocked over by a car. It's such a joy to see her and Pete who steadfastly sent us texts on Carol’s progress whilst she was in hospital and to meet their lovely son Tom who although doing his A levels has already gained his pilots license. Take Juri and party to dinner.
Saturday 12.5.12
To Gloucester 10 am to meet BBC Radio Glos Adam Pinder-Smith to record tour of exhibition with him.
PM home for interview with Tracey Allen, features editor, RAF News about my father who was in Coastal Command. My Mother's memory is on good form.
Sunday 13.5.12
We drive over to Fosse Gallery to see the Mick Rooney show - so taken with them we buy one.
Monday 14.5.12
Put in my diary the date for being speaker at the LINC Christmas Ladies lunch at Highnam Court. Gill, who was a co founder of LINC has worked tirelessly for it for very many years.
Tuesday 15.5.12
Meet art students from Gloscol to take on tour of the exhibition Art & Soul at Gloucester City Museum. Also talk to children from St Paul's.
Elated as Gloscol has just been awarded the Artsmark Gold Award by the Arts Council for which I wrote letter of support. Well done GC!
Wednesday 16.5.12
Today celebrates the 40th anniversary of the Bridgeman Art Library, now the biggest historic picture library in the world. Harriet Bridgeman has built it up so successfully that they now have offices in Paris, New York and Berlin. We were supposed to be going to their party in London but as seem to have a bit of a virus feel we ought to give it a miss.
Thursday 17.5.12
Just listened to Incubus Succubus featuring vocals by the fascinating @CandiaMcKormack intriguing and evocative of otherworldly mythologies
Friday 18.5.12
To Gloucester to do talk / tour of the exhibition with Craig Morris and James Alexander who were both students at the Star College before they commenced at Gloucestershire College two years ago.
Saturday 19.5.12
Working on Beverley’s painting and one for the Fosse
Sunday 20.5.12
Continue working on Beverley’s painting and one for the Fosse though find myself doing things in the garden while R is cutting the grass during this amazingly hot spell.
Monday 21.5.12
ditto
Tuesday 22.5.12
ditto
Wednesday 23.5.12
Our copy of Cotswold Life arrives and delighted to see that Candia the assistand editor has given generous coverage of the exhibition in the form of the ‘Five Minute Interview’ ( with me ), reproducing two of Juri’s paintings and my Scarcity of Miracles (as used on Robert Fripp’s CD and vinyl etc).
Thursday 24.5.12
Olympic torch bearers in region include two of the wonderful students from National Star College.
Friday 25.5.12
8.30 on the dot the carriers come to collect the horse for the Alderman Knight School. Its a bright sunny morning and I take a few photographs
Lovely e mail from Anne Strathie saying she’d had a really nice day in Gloucester seeing both the Olympic torch snd my exhibition.
Over to the Museum in Gloucester for 10.30 to meet the party form the Aderman Knight Special School who say they had seen the large truck arrive at the school but not thier horse, before leaving. Such a delightful group of youngsters who ask very many questions, with their briliant teacher Di, who has prepared them remarkably well as they know all sorts of facts about Estonia including when the north Baltic froze over in the thirteenth century, and army were able to march across it from Finland to Estonia. One boy called Tom particulalry relates to the corrugated horse painting because he has a small white horse rather like the white horse in the painting and the life sized sculpture. I’m amazed how hugely knowledgable they are about so many things - they really keep me on my toes.
Wow! stunning degree show @uniofglos opening on Hardwick & FCH sites. Fabulous work, a lot of new talent to look out for. Also nice to meet Kevin Heal who recognises me as he had visited my studio with a group from Gloucestershire College last year and tells me he enjoyed looking at GloCorama in the College and loves it here at the University having just completed his first year of Fine Art.
Saturday 26.5.12
Working on Beverley’s painting again and “The Vacation” for the Fosse.
Order a pre publication copy of Anne Strathie’s book Birdie Bowers - we bumped into her at the degree show last night and she had just received the proofs. Birdie Bowers was one of the four who died with Captain Scott in the Antarctic. Its the culmination of a lot of research on Anne’s part and should make a fascinating and very exciting read.
Sunday 27.5.12
ditto - also start another small work for the Fosse
Monday 28.5.12
ditto
Tuesday 29.5.12
R to London collecting paint and stretchers from Cornellisen and visiting the US Embassy which he says has formidable security to get me an exemption from paying USA tax as well as UK tax on American Copyright fees.
Wednesday 30.5.12
Still beavering away on the two paintings for the Fosse
Thursday 31.5.12
Stay up late finishing them enough to be photogrphed in the morning!
