The experience of invigilating my exhibition in Ilkley this week has been invaluable in several respects. One of the most thought-provoking parts of the experience has been the opportunity simply to stand and watch visitors going round an exhibition. I have noticed previously in a diverse range of galleries that the pattern appears to be … Read more
This battle to get to grips with painting in egg tempera is really turning out to be a testing experience. I am very grateful for the fact that today I have not been able to do anything artistic because of social and family commitments elsewhere. I can stand back and take stock …. and even … Read more
An interesting question came up in a discussion with friends this afternoon.* The point of origin of our conversation was whether as children we had had particular ambitions about what we would do when we grew up. From that emerged the problem of whether to have ambition is, or is not, a good thing. We … Read more
My wife and I were sitting enjoying an after-dinner cup of coffee this evening, and she was glancing through the latest edition of the Radio Times.* Suddenly she drew my attention to a new series, in which there will be a weekly life-drawing class on the TV. As regular readers will know, I attend such … Read more
Several things over the last few days have set me thinking about the ways in which the life-drawing class is misperceived and misunderstood. In the next post I will say something about models and their experience, but on this occasion I want to concentrate on the situation of the artist/participant. I suppose that the most … Read more
I’ve just finished re-reading Iris Murdoch’s novel The Bell. As I usually do on such occasions, having read the novel itself I turned to the introduction. It’s a kind of principle, I suppose, that I don’t want to be told what to think before I’ve read the book. It was an instructive experience that has … Read more
Over a meal yesterday we were listening to the radio, and I remarked to my wife that almost none of the bands about which there was discussion were at all familiar to me. “I think I must have skipped a generation,” I said to her. “Well …. two actually!” was her response. Oh dear! She … Read more