Artist at Work

If I say it out loud will it be true?

We’ve been away for a few days – not too far away, just Canterbury but far enough to give a much needed change of scene. The daily pressures of taking Mum to various hospital appointments, selling her flat and dealing with her financial affairs etc doesn’t get any easier and it was starting to take its toll so we booked the dog into kennels (he loves it) and then looked at where we could go within a two hour radius from home. It didn’t quite go according to plan – there was a phone call from the care home within an hour of arriving and our journey home took us six and a half hours which was definitely not much fun at all. Sitting for four hours wedged between lorries on London’s famous orbital motorway whilst wanting to pee is not something I want to do again anytime soon, Never was I so relieved to see Thurrock services. At least the toilets were clean. But despite that it was still wonderful to have a change of scenery for a few days.

Lower VI school trip, Canterbury June 1974

We picked Canterbury as Stewart had never been before and he wanted to see the cathedral and the last time I was there was on a school trip, fifty years ago. I have very little memory of the trip back then or at least the Canterbury half of it as it was a day of two parts. A coach trip out from my North London school long before the days of a London orbital, to see Canterbury Cathedral in the morning followed by an afternoon at Dover, ostensibly to visit the castle but where two of us, not possessing of swimsuits or towels went into the sea for a swim in our knickers and tee shirts instead. It was worth getting into trouble.

Dover beach, June 1974, me centre post swim!

I remember the swim, but not the cathedral so one does have to question the value or purpose of school trips, but it was a long time ago and looking at the date, June 1974 I can only imagine it was a post exam treat. I doubt very much that teenagers today get taken to the seaside in the name of education.

But back to our more recent trip. On our first full day we were promised sunshine, so we decided to save Canterbury for the rain and headed up to the coast to Margate. Our first stop was to visit the Turner Contemporary, opened in 2011 and located by the harbour on the site of Mrs Booth’s boarding house where JMW Turner used to stay during his visits to the Kent coast, where he came to paint the skies and sea. Outside, the building is a striking contrast to the slightly faded surrounding architecture, standing stark and modern against the skyline, but inside it is magnificent. Filled with light it faces out towards the North Sea and is a celebration of all that inspired the artist about Margate.

Margate, 1826, JMW Turner

Joseph Mallord William Turner is undoubtedly one of our greatest British artists, although, and I know this sounds like heresy, I’m not his greatest fan. He first visited Margate in 1786 aged just 11, where he is known to have made several drawings. His father, a butcher, would display them in the window of his shop where they sold for a few shillings each. By age fourteen Turner was already a member of the Royal Academy and by the time he was twenty one he regularly visited Margate to paint and sketch, coming down most weekends and staying in Mrs Booth’s boarding house with its views over the sea looking out towards Margate’s big skies.

In 1833 Sophia Booth’s husband died and Turner moved in with her and they lived together in Chelsea. Although they never married he adopted the name Mr or sometimes Admiral Booth. Turner died of cholera when he was 76 and is buried in St Paul’s Cathedral.

I can recommend the Mike Leigh film ‘Mr Turner’ for a wonderful, fictionalised account of the last twenty five years of the life of this eccentric but prolific painter, known as the painter of light.

At the gallery we enjoyed an exhibition ‘Preserve’ by Scottish artist Anya Gallaccio, who explores the relationship between art and the environment, often using organic matter which naturally transforms and decays throughout an exhibition. In particular for this exhibition she used materials connected with the natural heritage of Kent. It wouldn’t have been work that I would naturally seek out to see but I enjoyed the exhibition nevertheless, especially the site specific curtain of apples that were in various stages of decay, an exhibit for all senses with its accompanying strong smell of cider.

Anya Gallaccio - Curtain of red apples strung on hop twine. At the end of the exhibition the seeds will be harvested, dried and planted.

After the exhibition we took a stroll along the beach in the autumn sunshine and couldn’t resist taking one of the bags on offer on the promenade under a sign that stated, ‘Keep our sea plastic free’. In one 45 minute walk, despite it being an apparently very clean sandy beach we filled our bag with mostly small items of plastic litter, which although satisfying also felt somewhat horrifying to think how much more must actually be out there in our oceans, our own effort at cleaning up being a mere drop. Litter deposited we then walked back along the prom past the old fashioned amusement arcades and faded facades of the old buildings. We liked Margate!

The following morning we were woken by rain, but we donned suitable clothing and headed into the city for breakfast followed by a couple of hours in the dry of the magnificent cathedral which was just as awesome and impressive as one might expect. I cannot even begin to comprehend how such a masterpiece of art and architecture can be brought into being, but a cathedral has stood on this site for over 1400 hundred years being founded by St. Augustine in 597 AD. Although as an aside, if you want to read a fantastic story about the building of a cathedral I can recommend ‘The Pillars of the Earth’ by Ken Follett, a richly told tale that brings the Middle Ages in Britain vividly to life.

Of course the one thing that I do remember back from my school trip fifty years ago is that Canterbury Cathedral is the site of the brutal murder in 1170 of the then archbishop Thomas Becket. Following Henry II’s demand “Who will rid me of this troublesome priest?” or words to that effect, four knights interpreting the king’s words as a royal command, rode out to Canterbury from London and set about the archbishop with swords, slaying him at the stairs to the crypt.

Cross Currents, Frances Carlile

Interestingly while we were there we saw work from another installation artist who works with natural materials and the landscape, in an exhibition throughout the cathedral called ‘Cross Currents: Life as a Journey’. The artist, Frances Carlile has created hundreds of delicate boats, hand crafted from materials found on the forest floor and coastline, ranging from leaves, bark, pinecones and twigs, to shells, driftwood, bones and seaweed.

“Like boats adrift on the sea, we navigate the unpredictable currents of life, seeking stability and purpose amidst the waves. The exhibition prompts us to reflect on our own journey through life… inviting us to consider the human cost of displacement and the importance of offering sanctuary”

Exhibition leaflet

The fragile, yet beautiful little boats placed within such a magnificent site of pilgrimage invite the viewer to contemplate the experience of those seeking refuge, to understand the courage it takes to leave behind the familiar in search of a better life and to empathise with those who have been displaced. The exhibition runs until mid-February.

On the final day of our weekend break we were feeling the side effects of storm Ashley with high winds and drizzle but determined not to let that stop us we ventured to Whitstable where there were several participants in East Kent Open Houses, an opportunity to see original art and meet the artists in their own homes and studios. Over the day we managed to visit eleven different studios and fifteen different artists all working in a variety of media ranging from clay, printmaking, pastels, oil paints, acrylics, watercolours and textiles. Virtually everything we saw was interesting or inspiring in one way or another. We both loved the work of Bruce Williams whose semi abstract landscapes and seascapes were totally captivating. I only wish I had both the wall space and the budget to come home with one of his large oil paintings but in the end we were both really happy to bring this print back to live on our walls.

Seasalter Dunes II, Bruce Williams

Although it is seven years old now this short video of Bruce talking about his inspiration and process is worth a watch. It was a delight to meet and talk to him.

And just as we were feeling weary and about to call it a day we popped into one last studio where I fell in love with another collage/print of a slightly wonky vessel in colours that just sang to me, by artist Samantha Hall which looks right at home on my colourful wall. I just need to shift things around a bit!

Vessel, by Samantha Hall (top right)

As always when I visit open studios I came away totally inspired with new ways of working, new ways to display art, and new ways to organise my own studio and absolutely desperate to get back into some serious art making. Although so far this week I have been dragged back down into what feels like an endless cycle of more hospital visits and haven’t managed to pick up a pencil or paintbrush all week. However this afternoon you will find me in my studio… although I hope you will excuse me when I say I’m not home for phone calls or visitors