APRIL 2025

Tuesday 1.4.25

The newspaper painting I recently purchased back from New York should have arrived yesterday, giving me time to touch it up before Ellie was due to come and collect it today but it hasn’t arrived still.

Wednesday 2.4.25

We both go for our Covid boosters today

Working on The Dual for the exhibition

Thursday 3.4.25

We arrive early at the Art Fair and spend the next hour talking to various friends and acquaintances who come, including Judie, chair of the trustees of the Friends of the Wilson and Helen from the Brian Sinfield Gallery. Paul & Viv Styles and Robert, the son of the principal of the art school when I was there.

Then it’s up to the National Star College for their evening of contemporary dance. The students are as always totally uplifting and inspirational; they are also dancing in collaboration with a group of dance students from the University. It is always such a privilege to be there where we also see our dear friends Ian and Maeve who have been so very generous to the College.

Friday 4.4.25

The newsaper painting from New York is eventually delivered by Fedex. I spend a few hours touching it up before we deliver it to the art fair

Saturday 5.4.25

Sue and Andy come for a glass of wine after they’ve been to the Art Fair. It’s always so very good to see them

Sunday 6.4.25

My sister Gill comes all the way from Blunham bringing a wonderful lunch of chowder and a plum crumble and a big box of strawberries and blood oranges.

Monday 7.4.25

Richard receives call from the hospital to arrange an appointment for an echocardiogram

Today’s the day we have to send photgraphs of all the works for the exhibition off to the Portland Gallery for the designer to start putting together the catalogue etc.

Tuesday 8.4.25

I’m still trying to work on things that I notice don’t quite look right in the photographs

Wednesday 9.4.25

Go back to the painting of the Leopard who’s changing his spots - I had done enough for Richard to take a photograph to show the catalogue designer so he could position it.

We were going to the Alderman Knight School buffet lunch but the pressure of having to get the paintings finished off and photographed does not permit.

Thursday 10.4.25

While sitting out in the garden in the glorious sunshine eating my belated brunch, Richard spots an e mail ping through from Fran the curator of Contemporary Conflict at the Imperial War Museum that the Collections The Development Committe have approved the acquisition of the large corrugated newspaper work After the Eleventh. Hurrah! Couldn’t have wanted a better home for it.

Florence sends copy of her press release and a Save the Date notice

Friday 11.4.25

Chirag and Gita were due to be coming to London and possibly meeting Ronan who is currently studying in Greece. Both being doctors their work schedules did not permit so they will try again later in the year.

Saturday 12.4.25

Still trying to refine The Leopard who is changing his spots and Harvest

Sunday

…and The Elephant in the Room

Monday 14.4.25

All the images for the catalogue for my forthcoming exhibition need to be with gallery today. However Richard’s been having a bit of trouble sending them but eventually manages to do so overnight.

Tuesday 15.4.25

Richard went to see his consultant today, in Gloucester. At the meeting of consultants last week they decided that as his lymphoma tumours have not increased very much and that as Richard is feeling well in himself, they will see him again in four month time, unless anything begins to hurt. For instance the mass (about the size of an apple) in his retroperetenium is close to his kidneys so could start to press on a nerve in which case they would begin sooner. They have actually got a clinical trial starting here in the next couple of months which they might like to put him on as it is designed specifically for patients who have relapsed after a few years which would certainly be much more convenient than going to Oxford or Birmingham.

Wednesday 16.4.25

R begins seven days of blood pressure readings.

I’m now working around the sides of the frames ..

Thursday 17.4.25

… and the tops…

Friday 18.4.25

… and bottoms

Saturday 19.4.25

Nathan rings to say that he’s having to wait for the AA to come and replace his tyre and so he wouldn’t get to us until about 9 in the evening. As he would have to go back on Sunday as he is collecting Jai and taking her to Margate where she is working on a collaboration with another artist. So he says he thinks it will be best to come next weekend when he will have slightly more time with us.

Henrietta, Kev and the boys arrive about 5 and it’s a lovely sunny evening. It’s so good to see them all. The boys as always look so tall and handsome especially when I glance back at the photographs of them as babies and children. They all look so well and it is such a joy to see them, though a little disapointed they won’t see Nathan this weekend but as they get to see him more often than we do they won’t have to wait too long. Richard cooks tuna and salsa though the boys and Kev have steaks portugese. After dinner we play cards at Samuel’s suggestion; he’s been palaying poker with his friends lately so does have a tendancy to win though he says they normally play for chips not coins.

Sunday 20.4.25 Easter Sunday

We have a rather special breakfast; Henrietta has made a simnel cake, it is delicious with marzipan through the centre and on top with the eleven marzipan apostles and one marzipan Jesus in the centre.

Kev and Henrietta go for a run  and then he takes the boys to the skate park. On their return Kev takes over much of the cooking of the Easter dinner, utilising not just the Aga here but the cooker in my studio too.

After dinner we exchange Easter eggs and then another round of cards.

Monday 21.4.25 Easter Monday

Across all the news notificationtoday the world hears that the Pope, Papa Francisco has sadly died from a stroke and heart atack. But amazingly he had managed to give the crowds in St Peter’s Square a blessing on Easter Sunday.

I toast some hot-cross buns for the boys and Kev before they leave for their journey home and we wave them off . Samuel starts back at school in the sixth form tomorrow and I think he has an economics exam on Wednesday.

Tuesday 22.4.25

Still refining A Delicate Art and The Leopard who changed his spots

Wednesday 23.4.25

R submits his blood pressure readings

In the afternoon goes into the Withington suite for his echocardiogram.

Thursday 24.4.25

R into the surgery for blood tests.

Meanwhile I’m still refining as the catalogue has to be signed off tomorrow.

R has a call from the pharmacist

Friday 25.4.25

Still working on adding more detail to Waiting - the passage of time before the catalogue has to be signed off at the end of the day

Saturday 26.4.25

Nathan arrives with Bea at about 5pm having driven down from London. It’s so good to see him, bearing gifts, belated birthday presents for Richard a beautiful black fish platter, a fish trivet and a beautiful pair of striped oven mitts. Whilst I have the most glorious scented roses and stocks and a exquisite ceramic jug all bought from a wonderful shop that specialises in studio ceramics in Ramsgte. It’s a lovely evening and Richard cooks tuna steaks marinated in lime juice, olive oil and garlic and his freshly made salsa. Followed by a fresh fruit sald and ice cream. Then to top it all I bring out the rest of Henrietta’s simnel cake. Nathan loves marzipan so with a little help from Richard and me, he soon makes short work of devouring it. It is so good to sit and chat with him. He’s off to Vilnius on a project onWednesday but has an interview for a film that he’s not quite sure whether is really him or not, on Tuesday late afternoon. It would be shot in America, France and Portugal.

Sunday 27.4.25

It’s a lovely sunny day and Nahan plays with Bea in the garden. She has discovered the foortball that Kev had put outside away from the boys who were playig with it upstairs indoors. He had left it on a bench at the back and Bea is delighted with her find  beating the poor ball up it is soon deflated, which makes it even more of a challenge as she shakes it from side to side in her mouth, taunting Nathan with it they have tug-of-wars before Nathan throws it for her. It’s such a delight to see them playing, particulalry as the garden looks very beautiful with the apple trees in bossom and the horse chestnut wearing it white candles. And it is so warm and sunny

He goes back over the road to my studio to read some of the script for the film before we have a lunch a scrambled eggs, avocados and gravalax. We sit and chat before another round of him tustling the ball with Bea in the garden to give her a lot of exercise before they set out back to Ramsgate at about 4pm.

Then I’m back to work in the studio painting around the edges of the canvas Waiting - The Passage Of Time.

Monday 28.4.25

I’m now going through the process of painting round the edges of all the canvases, Richard having taken them out of the frames for the purpose of continuing the paintings to the edge of the canvas in case with time they should move.

Tuesday 29.4.25

I continue to do this

Wednesday 30.4.25

Printed colour proofs come of the catalogue. t’s beautifully designed and presented and Stuart the designer had himself picked up that he thought some of the straight on front images didn’t look quite as bright as the angled side views and said it would be easy enough to lighten them. Sure enough when we take the proofs over to hold against the actual paintings in the studio they are rather too dark. We write post-its to put on the images that need lightening and Richard takes them down to send back Special Delivery. We’ve also sent the photogrpahs of the proofs next to the paintings to Florence who sends them onto Stuart.