Dubai fell out of my book

The other day I pulled a book from the shelf, one I must have been reading last November.

Out tumbled a boarding pass from a one day trip to Dubai for BBC work with a lovely sales team out there. The memories came flooding back.

Secret Regent's Park

Discovered only day's ago, a secret garden in The Regent's Park and the entrance to which most of us will miss! Such colour! Colours of high Summer.

With a hey , and a ho and a hey-nonny-no

Shakespeare - As You Like It -

Act 5, Scene 3

ith a hey, and a ho, and a hey-nonny-no

Leslie Charles Driscoll - 20 December 1937 - 6 February 2011

The last time I saw Leslie Driscoll he had a big smile on his face, was making jokes and at the same time, complaining about the service.

Leslie was perhaps one of the greatest influences on my life.

He touched the hearts of so many people with his wit, charm and congenital desire to introduce kindred spirits to one another.

He passed away in the beginning of this year after a long battle with illness.

We, those kindred spirits, had a farewell and thanksgiving service on on 22 February and later that day repaired to the The Pig's Ear in Old Church Street in Chelsea, as moment away from where he lived. We celebrated, on that grey February day, a life well lived and renewed friendships, one with another!

Last weekend a smaller number of the party journeyed to Sancreed. Sancreed is a small village 10 minutes from from Penzance. We went to pour his ashes in the area close to Sancreed Well, a holy place, a place that Driscoll loved so much. This grey July weekend was suddenly lit with bright afternoon sunshine across Cornish fields and hedgerows. Then we celebrated, again, in a magnificent party hosted by Michael Truscott the lifetime partner of artist John Miller of whom Leslie was also so very, very fond.

Dear Driscoll, God bless you and make his face to shine upon you and give you peace.

More on Maylandsea (back at the Presse de Lock)

Well the trip to Maylandsea yielded a whole bunch of ideas that distilled down to three strong images that were, yesterday, taken to the studio of Christine Lock Print maker and by me, through great artifice and some skill translated into mono prints.

Here are the baseline drawings.

The prints themselves are still drying, pressed under a great weights. They will be photographed and shared soon.

The good news is that one can visit a place, collect some material and ferment ideas over a seven day period and then turn all this into moderately wonderful work. To be proven of course. Trust.

I have actually filmed the 16 stages of printmaking yesterday and hope to stitch these sequences together to explain how it all works (for me).

A good printmaking day yesterday. Lunch hitherto and a continued feature was home-made chowder and garlic bread for lunch, with a modest (there's that word again) dessert of home-made apple crumble and (single) cream.

We are back and working towards the Autumn show.

Recognition at last

This deceptively annodyne piece of communication landed with a whisper on the door mat the other morning. I would assure readers that I was not personally responsible for the consumption that obviously prompted this fine Pizza company to award the house the appellation of 'Valued Customer'

Bless.

Last wild places in Essex

Continuing my series the Last Lonely Places in Essex, and in search of material for my print making I visited Maylandsea. Another edge-of-world village, on the coast on the Dengie peninsula; just south of Maldon and only 25 miles north of Southend on Sea.

An estuary village of bungalows, one Indian restaurant called Posh Spice a ship yard and dry dock and marina. One road in and the same way out, Maylandsea also features a pub named, with typical Essex candour, the Horny Toad (free parking).

I left with some wonderful images of barges and boat yard paraphernalia. x

Charlotte's Shop

Essex has many famous people and places, John Constable, Southend Pier, and setting for the hit TV show The Only Way is Essex. I will add in Charlotte Campbell's small but perfectly formed food emporium DELI @ 56 in the village of Kelvedon, just of the A12.

Called in there the other day for wonderful ham from local Priors Hall Farm, a portion of lovely cheese and hand-crafted lemon fairy cakes hand crafted Fair cakes. All of which I selflessly presented to my Father.

Wonderful and worth a visit if you find yourself in the famous county.