reunions, rudeness and a real star....

.......or look at the picture not the frame!

"Winter Falls" Original watercolour by Glenn Marshall

Last week was a 'funny old week' as they say. I finished two paintings including the one above as part of a trio for the Cellar gallery in Whitby which is run by some  friends of mine. On Sunday we met up with some old friends from the past while attending 'Bligny Day' at the Leeds Minster - more on that later. But it was Monday morning that set off this train of thought. We'd enjoyed a lovely walk on the beach with Bonnie and were recuperating with our friend Patricia at the top of the steps (well over 100) after the hard climb. Now I have never met Patricia but her family have donated a bench in her memory at a very strategic point at the top of the steps. We, and I suspect many others, are very grateful to rest awhile with her memory until we get our breath back. We were gazing out to sea admiring the view when one of our neighbours joined us. He asked me some good questions about the view - "how would I set about painting it?", "where would I start?" etc and finally we touched on what makes an artist so different from everybody else. I always get a bit embarrassed when the conversation strays into this sort of territory. Artists have always been held in some reverence but to us who practise the art of painting it seems nothing special - it's just something we do. Therein may lie the answer to the question - we just do it! Once you've got the bug everything in front of your eyes is transformed into a potential subject. Instinctively you are making the best composition, noting the effects of  light,contrasts, shapes and breaking things down to background, middle distance and foreground. But it did set me thinking and I came to the conclusion that of all the qualities you need, the most important is the ability to focus on the scene and put everything else completely out of your mind. Hence we can sit there totally transfixed, painting in the mind, but outwardly daydreaming...takes a bit of time for a non painting partner to accept how vital this process is! Let's have a look at a couple of examples: 

The first image is a painting in progress (click if you want to see finished painting) but can you see it, or are you distracted by  the board? What about the second one? Do you like it? But will your perception of it be altered with a bit more information:

Yes it's big - 60" x 44" and even bigger in the frame of course...but does it make it a better painting? Of course not - it's still the painting that matters- not the frame.
Anyway - back to Bligny Day. Many moons ago I worked in the Ministry of Defence as a chief clerk with the Yorkshire Volunteers. Bligny Day is an annual ceremony to remember the Regiment's past  held at Leeds Minster. This was a great opportunity to meet up with old friends and their families after a gap of thirty three years. I never even knew that Leeds had a minster but off we went to meet up with our friends there. Like me, you would probably have expected a warm Christian welcome when we got there - wrong - in fact I met some of the rudest people I have had the misfortune to encounter in my whole life. In context and location their 'welcome' was so bizarre to make it laughable! Not unreasonably after a long drive from Bridlington, Merice needed the loo. A very imposing lady told her in no uncertain terms that she was not allowed as the toilets had been requisitioned for the use of the soldiers taking part in the parade and were occupied. When Merice dared to investigate for herself another harridan descended on her. She repeated the 'mantra' about the soldiers. When being told politely that the soldiers would not be occupying the cubicles forever and that Merice had come a long way that morning, the woman replied "Mmmph, does she expect me to get her a bucket!". Incredible isn't it...and no wonder the churches are losing customers. She carried on in the same vein - "I'm talking to you", she asserted angrily at one point. A sergeant-major couldn't have done it better! She was so fierce we escaped to the pub next door for a coffee, lovely bacon sandwich and a proper welcome. We managed to laugh about the whole thing but I was amazed at her rudeness though it did not spoil what turned out to be a wonderful day. Finally to round things off and a practical application of looking at the picture not the frame, I come to my star of the week. One of the friends that we met after a thirty year gap has had a lot of serious illness and operations resulting in changes to her appearance. To her immense credit she has overcome all this with  courage and humour..... her 'frame' may have slightly altered but her'picture' is still very beautiful!