Where words are not enough

tripping the light

Even as christmas approaches the light is changing, the air becoming clearer and crisper as the frost draws in the nights.

before this however, at least at the moment of this, the latest paint work for the exhibition, the light was absolutely breathtaking, a rare occasion for one such as I, quick as a flash, the image was, literally burned into my brain, a little like looking at the sun for more than a millisecond and being left with a foggy blindness in the middle of your vision.

Contrary to trying to blind yourself in a vain bid to 'see the planet Sun through the glare' (has anyone else tried that or am I the only artist in the world to risk his sight in such a futile and reckless act!)

On this occasion this is that which remained, my back yard, the miserable sight that I wake to each morning, it is typical of so many of the places in Kendal that, in some strange associated way, remind me of the Berlin Wall of old except the wall that stands before me is the pathway to somewhere rather than the end of the path.

The shadows that are cast by the darkening sky are quite deep due to the steepness of the hill and Kendals amazing architects that seemed to cram as much as possible into the smallest available space though to still afford the residents a piece of valuable personal space, like a jigsaw, they all fit together nicely.

I have just written to a chap called arthur nicholls who writes the most amazing columns in the local community newspaper and by far the better person to tell you of this amazing place than I, hopefully I will be able to bring you his words and eagerly await reply.

The secret places

Does anyone ever really look at the town they live in, how much of a town does someone look at when they choose to visit, questions, rhetoric, no one could ever give a difinitive answer however my guess is that in general those who live in a town are so overworked, overstressed, over involved in lifes issues that all but the necessary is overlooked.

Equally so as a tourist, while signs and bill boards, restrictive and coersive instructions guide and direct people, in accordance either with traffic flow maintenance or by sending people to find, places to eat, drink to sit and rest, there are places of interest where people are signposted, the main tourists areas, but what of the areas that are overlooked or deemed unimportant, this town is full of them and eagerly await my artistic exploration, it is these places that capture my heart rather than the main drag.

Of these places there are many, the image of Castle How( above), erected to commemorate a great battle that once existed in times long past, equally as 'unimportant' are the areas around the site of the canal head, the very heart of the import and export of goods and materials. I have to admit that even the finding of this latter location was by no means a quick and easy task coming a full 3 years into my occupancy of the town; what other secrets lie ahead for me to uncover, only time will tell.

YARD 5

Acrylic on Canvas

BELLEVUE PLACE

Acrylic on Canvas

Light and life

venturing forth into the town I just managed to catch the most perfect light, standing on one of the park benches along the high-street allowed me the perfect view right to the end of the street above the heads of the hustle and bustle of life as people went about their business.

This is my first large piece for the Doodle Bar Exhibition next september and is in distinct contrast to the ginnel pics created earlier in the year, measuring 120 x 60 cm.

There was no initial sketching as is usually the case for me and my concentration was on the colours of the sky and the absence of distinct shadowed areas, it is not the best picture but I guess that is why I am a painter and not a photographer! Canvas is my support of choice, there is something a bit special about painting on canvas, I dont know what words can best describe it as it is more of an affinity with the material more than anything else.

As I stood there looking over the heads the streets were busier than normal, it had nothing to do with the christmas rush as there is little in evidence to suggest the time of year however I could not but help to feel a little, anger, frustration, sadness even that, with promises of an International food market and music, it takes little to drag people from their homes, sadness that so many remained tucked away during the recent Remembrance Day Parade and anger that the simple thought of food was the driving force behind the people attendance in the town when a third of the world is experiencing starvation, a point brought home all the more as I watched one of the local homeless people rushing to wherever he was going.

autumn arrival

No Kendal Images for you this week so heres a couple of recent acrylic works.

Autumn is here, the trees are bare and the lost souls, viz a viz abandoned gloves are starting to appear perched on fences and walls, alas the other catologue of fotos if these lost souls have been destroyed courtesy of a virus piggy backing a legitimate programme, what can you do other than to resign yourself to accepting things that are totally beyond your control and, of course, start to photograph them all over again.

In an optimistic aire that would do justice to Buddah himself, the conservative estimate of around 4 thousand images covering the past three years has been completely disregarded, the alternative is depression incarnate; in addition to these image files I also lost a lot of admin and written work so I am pretty well setting off from scratch now.

The Town, well into the autumnal changes borne of light, filtered almost, forcing everything to be just that little bit more defined than during the summer, colours are flatter and graphical design of general shapes and objects crisper and more pronounced, but back to the block.

It has been a week of functions for me, Rememberance Sunday, The United Nations Association Peace Group, The 'end the War' campaign group, a session with the Kendal Branch of MIND where I look after the Art therapy group until someone qualified comes along, a few hours in the of the John Bateson * the Towns Mayor and fellow councellors while they discussed and perused the planned changes for Kendal, I am for sure not the only resident of Kendal who knows of these town enhancements but I am the only one who has shared in the passion of those responsible for that change, the end of the week was rounded of by attendance at a preview nite for one of the local and gifted artists(More details on this in the BLOG, Art, philosophy and a Spiritual Journey) one meeting was missed, Tim Farron, the local Lib Dem Leader speaking in a local hall.

Back to kendal, what changes are happening around here, hundreds and hundreds of thousands of pounds for redevelopment, my personal opinion is that it is not enough and could, if goaded become quite political in my discourse however will endeavour to remain on track; all this redevelopment, houses, homes, reopening of the canal, whole areas within the town seeing a future of open land for recreation and, I was happy to hear, a unification of all that does not balance up.

There is a fund available now for shop fronts to do up the facade that is the tourist bait, money for developement schemes and many other projects such as public art, in that regard I have a networking meeting in December and look forward to reporting back.

work has been steady though from the imagery for this BLOGS purpose, that being the town, there has been little progress still with only a hand full of images completed with all others sitting in the wings. the one part of the Doodle Room exhibition will be the photographic works and they are growing nicely.

* Johns Role as Mayor ends in May of this year,, with his recent and successful interest in local research I am hoping that he would be able to come aboard in the last few weeks leading up to the exhibition to help me tie in a few loose ends that will most definitely be there.

Primary references

While the Town remains my primary source of inspiration the available information is limited to the green civic society plaques that adorn the walls of the town and the invaluable contemporary historical and first hand knowledge of the locals, I have to smile while I write this, as is the case with every town of historical significance there is a much loved and revered reference to Folklore.

I have so far collected the following books which have brought much to me in the way of both knowledge and an inspiration to move forward to where I am now

The first is A Cumbrian Trilogy by Melvynn Bragg, a romantic though absolutely wonderful story following a family from historic times through the generations to modern times, I have to admit that it was the well research that captivated my sense of history and prevented my finishing the book once contemporary issues were reached.

The second, Lakeland Towns by Jom Watson, a beautifully illustrated book by Cicerone Press that concentrates on the main Towns of Cumbria.

Thirdly, an Historic Photographic record of Kenda, part of the Britain in Old Photographs series Kendal by Margaret and Percy Duff. Wonderful photographs that must have taken so long to acquire as to make it quite invaluable to me, my own collection not even reaching ten as yet, the day is young.

Finally I have a pamphlet type book published by the Kendal Civic Society entitled, A walk around Kendal, this takes in a a descriptive walk through a very tiny part of the Town, and provides good historic information.

Having just returned from a spiritual retreat it will take me a few days to get back into the swing of life at which time I actively start my own journey through the town, with camera and sketchbook there is much to document and discover and will, I am sure, be no quick task, fortunately the exhibition is not until next September, however, now allready October so time will pass quickly.

First steps

Despite many photographs and locals, sketches of buildings and points of interest and a varied assortment of paintings, there is still much to encompass to capture the fullness of a vibrant and growing town, particularly if I am going to gain an absolute cross section of life.

For starters there is the Civic society whose role takes in both the historic and contemporary aspects of town planning, listed buildings and the erection of the many 'green plaques' that adorn the walls of many of the towns buildings, plaques that list the general history, characters and original usage, many of which were the founding places of trades that no longer exist, the wool, cooperage, livestock, dignitaries and historical persons of some renown such as Sir Alfred Wainright et al.

There are also a multitude of groups, clubs, sporting and charitable organisations, many of which are probably unknown to the many such as the Philosophical and literary meetings of which I was not even aware until a recent bout of research uncovered them, as I visit each location I will, where applicable provide both internet links and names of those involved in the general running and membership for your information.

Where books that will help in the research are concerned I am already getting directions from interested persons, books I am sure that will, not only unravel many of the towns mysteries and folklore but also help and inspire me in my work.

The fan page on face book is beginning to grow now and, following my forthcoming trip to sussex, be launched.

succumb to a passion

It has finally happened, the town, Kendal, that I have been bleating on about, my musings growing steadily over the past year, have finally taken hold, unable to continue piecemeal to record its buildings and folk I am now forced to commit a dedicated time to this pastime.

With it now being October the nights are drawing in and the ambient temperature already forcing me out of my sandals, what a stupid time to make a decision that forces me out into the weather but hey, such is life.

I am not sure as yet how this study will take place, I already have many fotographs of the townsfolk and sketches of buildings, I even have a couple of books, donated by Andrew, a Kendalian born and bred, which provide many photographs of ‘Old Kendal’, despite its sometimes desperate history it nonetheless continues to be a place of great romance for me.

I have set up a dedicated facebook page that will act as a fan base and have started to mailshot many local people who might have an interest, either in following an artistic study of their town or wish to follow my research as a part of their own learning curve, research! The thing I had most difficulty comprehending in college only now makes sense in as much as I have an open time scale to do it properly, one hopes.

This will not be a blog of historical facts laid out in the form of a chronological story though it will be impossible to avoid the historical facts, these will however materialise and form in the most organic way as I complete my wanderings around the town and will lead, ultimately to the Doodle Room Exhibition arranged for September 2010, more details on this nearer the day.