ArtISSUE 12 A SOUTH EAST LONDON MAGAZINE

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What's that all

about then?

PISSARROIN THE PALACE

JIM BOB

PLUS! BOOKS: FOOD: DRINK

A-Zof local artists

We paint the girls red!

SPLASH!

Pop star turns author

A Veritable

ArtTrail

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4

WELCOMEEditorAndy Pontin

Editorial TeamJonathan MainHannah McEwen Annette Prosser

RegularsJustine CrowMichael EyreHoward MaleNadia SawalhaSue Williams

Guest ContributorsJanette ScottReesa Amadeo WolfOlivia Nairn

Printing The Marstan Press Ltd

Contacteditor@thetransmitter.co.uk020 8771 5543

The Transmitter is published byTransmission Publications LtdRegistered in England 6594132PO Box 53556, London SE19 2TL

To the art issue

CoverFelicity gets painted

PhotographyAndy Pontin

Which way up does this one go?

In the 1970s there was a popular TV series called Shabby Tiger based on the book by the popular novelist Howard Spring. It was about a rich boy who turns his back on his family in order to pursue his dreams of being an artist. It's a long time ago but from what we remember there was a lot of walking through sunlit cornfields and painting ladies with their clothes off. This, of course, is the bohemian life of the artist. Or maybe not.

The sheer range and diversity of the artists and their work profiled in this issue is testament to the creative energy that Crystal Palace has to offer even without the cornfields, none more so than with the opening of the new big Bigger Picture Gallery and we look forward to their first summer exhibition on 5 June (see page 26). There will also be work from local artists displayed in various shops, cafés and restaurants around the area as part of the Transmitter Art Trail. It should elicit a lively exchange of views if a recent conversation I had in a local café is anything to go by:While attending my cappuccino, the lady behind the counter noticed me gawping at an exhibit by a local artist.'She came in last week..' she said, obviously referring to the local artist in question,'complained that I had hung that one the wrong way up...''Oh' I said.'Young girl she was. I told her, how am I supposed to know which way up they go?''Oh' I said.'If you ask me, any six year old could do that,' she said. 'Do you want chocolate onyour cappuccino?''Yes please' I said.

Train a coming

And in other news we say welcome to our friends from the east. Hoxton and Shoreditch that is. The first time you visit us you may get a nosebleed (from the altitude, see, not the tattooed chav with the pitbull) but you will get used to it. You will also notice that we like to party. We like a festival. So much so that sometimes it seems as if we hold one every other week, and sometimes several at a time. But you will get used to it. That's Crystal Palace for you, and damn proud of it we are too.

Train a coming. Bring it on.

5

LES ARTISTES

FEATURES

CONTENTS

The good the bad and the ugly - a Transmitter guide to local artists

REGULARS

WINE: MICHAEL'S GRAND TOUR

MUSIC: THERE'S A WORLD OUT THERE

BOOKS: THE BOOKSELLER

WHAT'S ON

THE ART LINE26A group of local artists are forging links along the new train line

PROFILE: CARLOS CORTESCarlos seems crazy but actually he is very clever and nice

STORAGE STORIESJonathan Main talks to author and medium ranking pop star Jim Bob

20

40

45

48

50

52

Michael Eyre goes off on a grand tour to celebrate our art issue

.Howard Male tells us about the other thing they produce in Colombia

Jonathan Main has found some very British reads

A doomed attempt to inform you of stuff that gets you out of the house

16

GARDENING: PALACE PATCH44Sue has something snaking up her clematis

COOKING: ANOTHER SUCKER ON THE VINE46Nadia Sawalha's secret recipe for stuffed vine leaves

20PISSARROYes, he actually lived here for a bit...Howard Male investigates

14

40

FASHION: PAINT A PRETTY PICTURE31We asked young Hugo to help us throw paint at models - and he agreed!

31

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NEWS AND EVENTSLOCAL NEWS, EVENTS OR STORIES? EMAIL COMMUNITY@THETRANSMITTER.CO.UK

Picture Palace Campaign, in association with The Transmitter Magazine presents...A fundraising cinema-themed tea party!

This fantabulously brilliant event will be taking place on Saturday 10 July from High Noon (midday 'til 3.30pm) at The Grape & Grain Saloon. Come along and treat yourself to a range of delicious home-baked cakes from some of our wonderful local independent cake makers:

• Angel cakes• Blue Mountain Café• C for Cake• Gobble Gobble

The Grape & Grain will be serving a selection of cinema-themed cocktails (Fancy a Some Like it Hot or maybe a 'ave an Avatar?) along with their usual selection of fine ales and soft drinks. There will also be live music from local 'Extraordinarium' band The Peryls.

HAVE YOUR CAKE AND EAT IT

CRYSTAL PALACE FESTIVAL FORTNIGHT

The Crystal Palace Festival Fortnight is taking place as we go to print - from Saturday 29 May to Sunday 13 June. During the two week period there are art events, music, entertainment and stalls around the Triangle – all for free!

Kicking off on Saturday 29 with the oveground festival celebrating the new overground train line with markets and live music in the pubs, the fun continues with a series of arts related events on Saturday 5 and ends on Sunday 13 with a celebratory Picnic in the Palace.

June 10 is the anniversary of the opening of the Crystal Palace in South London and throughout the week, John Greatrex will be telling the fascinating story of Paxton’s creation in a series of talks, culminating at the library on Thursday the 10th when John will be joined by fellow historians Jerry Green, Alastair Cameron and Stephen West for the Crystal Palace Symposium.

The Grape and Grain hosts the Grand Finale on Sunday June 13 when local actress Fiona-Jane Weston presents 20th Century Woman – the Compact Cabaret.

For more details see What's On page 54.

On Saturday 24 July Christ Church Gipsy Hill Goodliffe Hall development project will be hosting a fund raising spectacular 'one off' guitar recital by two of the world's finest classical guitarists, the Grigoryan Brothers. For full details see What's On page 52.

GIG OF THE MONTH

the Grigoryan Brothers. The Peryls

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THE TRANSMITTER ART TRAIL

HORNIMAN ART EXHIBITION

SOUTH NORWOOD ARTS FESTIVAL

The South Norwood arts festival is set to take place 12–18 July. There will be events all over South Norwood including flower arranging, bands, guided walks, dancing, and many more, with a finale fair in the lovely surroundings of Woodside Green.

If you would like more information, or are interested in getting involved, please contact People for Portland Road on contact@peopleforportlandroad.org.uk;www.peopleforportlandroad.org.uk.

The annual exhibition of The Friends of the Horniman will be taking place in the Conservatory on Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 July. Admission is free and you will be able to view paintings, prints and sculptures from South London’s artist community. On the day you will also be able to buy framed and unframed works, cards and postcards.

For those of you who haven’t made the trip to the Horniman Museum, its Conservatory sits in a beautiful spot south of the river. For more information go to www.horniman.ac.uk.

ART NEWS

Art lovers coming up to the Palace on Saturday 5 June will find that there is plenty to feast their eyes on. Alongside the Bigger Picture Summer Exhibition, many local artists are also exhibiting their work in the shops and cafés around the Crystal Palace Triangle.

Many of the artists featured in this issue of The Transmitter will have work on show up to the end of the festival period on Sunday 13 June So, take a stroll around to see what you can see. It's kind of a discovery trail thing....(i.e we aren't completely sure who is exhibiting where as we go to print!)Participating venues include: Smash Bang Wallop; Domali: Mediterranea: La Bruschetta; Streets Ahead; Gurkha Cottage; Little Palace Café, MyJumbie; and many more - go find!

The Bigger Picture Summer Exhibition opens Saturday 5 June and runs to 30 June. The exhibition will play host to a wide variety of work by established and emerging local artists in painting, printmaking, photography and sculpture, and works will be on display and for sale. Whether you are in the market for something new, or just fancy a leisurely browse, then it’ll be worth a look.

See feature article on page 26The Bigger Picture Gallery, 2a Anerley Hill, SE19 2AA. www.biggerpicturegallery.co.uk

BIGGER PICTURE SUMMER EXHIBITION

Untitled by Jennifer WardSee profile on Page 18

OPEN STUDIO

The Overspill in Coopers Yard will be flinging open its doors for visitors to pop in for a glass of wine or Pimms and a chance to view jewellery, paintings and graphics and fabulous frocks. Taking place on Friday 18 June (6pm-9pm), Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 June (11am-5pm). Allbone and Trimit, The Overspill, 4 Coopers Yard, London SE19 1TN www.allboneandtrimit.co.uk

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You will have the chance to explore five beautiful Dulwich gardens (not normally open to the public) on Sunday 27 June, from 2pm and finishing at 6pm.

Tickets and maps are available on the day from Bell House, 27 College Road, Dulwich SE21: Adults £5; children under-16, free; sorry no dogs.

The safari includes a 200-year-old walled garden, a wildflower meadow, a small orchard, a bog garden, an intriguing variety of trees, rose gardens, herbaceous borders, and a natural swimming pond complete with bridge. All proceeds from the event will go to the Dulwich Helpline, a small local charity providing support for isolated older people living in Dulwich and neighbouring areas. Daytime volunteers and help with fundraising are always needed – to find out more contact Caroline Dunmall on 020 8299 2623; caroline@dulwich-helpline.org.uk

KAYAKING FOR SCOUTS

This July leaders from the 1st Crystal Palace Scouts will attempt to kayak the 165 miles along the Thames to raise much needed funds to pay for their HQ refurbishment. Group treasurer Nick, his daughter Susie, Cub Leader Liam and ex-Chairman George will be aiming to complete the trip in a challenging five days. They’ll need to put in a lot of effort to complete their trip, as George explains, ‘We're paddling touring kayaks which although very stable, are actually quite slow. We'll be canoeing for about 8 hours for each of the 5 days, and burning about 5,000 calories per day.’ However, strong support will keep them motivated, as George says, ‘we're expecting a decent crowd when we finish at Greenwich on Sunday 11 July. Hopefully we'll raise over £2,500 and motivate some of the youngsters to try new and exciting activities in future.’ If you know a young girl or boy who may be interested in Scouting, contact Club Leader, Liam Campbell, on 07904 734115.

PAXTON PRIMARY SCHOOL

In March the West End came to Gipsy Hill as Paxton Primary School staged a performance of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Anna Lempriere, mum to Izzy, explained her excitement about the occasion, ‘for a few years now I hoped the school might provide more opportunities to get involved in drama. Izzy loves showing off and says she wants to be an actor. Although I love this idea, I was an actor for more than ten years and it’s tough.’ When Paxton School joined The Gipsy Hill Federation of Kingswood and Elm Wood primary schools, Anna was encouraged to engage The Freedom Academy Drama School to put together a show. Children auditioned and were cast, rehearsals, set design and costume-making followed. All the children worked really hard, and came together for an exciting performance. The show was something that Anna was proud to be part of, ‘it was beautiful and the children gained so much confidence from being part of it. An A+ to all the children involved!’

DULWICH GARDEN SAFARI

The Elm Wood Summer Carnival will be held on Saturday 10 July, 12.30-4pm.The fun-packed day will include face painting, badge making, a bouncy castle, prizes to be won and and stalls to visit. There will be street dance and African drumming performances, including free art activities for children.

And to keep those energy levels up, there will be carnival themed food, including jerk chicken, rice and peas and corn on the cob. A licensed bar will be operating so adults can treat themselves to a rum punch.

Elm Wood Primary School, Carnac Street (off Clive Road), West Norwood. Adults £1; children free. For more info contact Edurne Bengoa 07815 964270

ELM WOOD PRIMARY SCHOOL CARNIVAL

Cypress School invites you to its summer fair, on Saturday 17 July from 12 noon. This year the Summer Fair will be a celebration of the coming together of Cypress Infants and Juniors, to form a singular Cypress school, so please go along and take part in an important moment in their history. There will be a variety of fun events and stalls including Face Painting, a Bric a Brac Sale, a Raffle, Arts and Crafts and Biscuit Making. For more information contact Cypress PTFA: Ron 07931 508631, Freya 07939 232177 or Jennie 07962 276894.

CYPRESS SCHOOL SUMMER FAIR

UP, UP ON THE ROOF

The National Gardens Scheme has several local Open Gardens that you can visit during the coming months, including a charming urban roof terrace 'with Mary Poppins views' at 21 Waldergrave Road SE19. You can visit this 'calm oasis in the sky' on Sunday 27 June between 2-6pm when admission costs £2.50 including light refreshments. For information on this one contact suzie@flowerpowerpictures.com and for other London gardens to visit and be inspired by go to www.ngs.org.uk.

Friends of Westow Park continue to meet for gardening sessions on the last Sunday of each month at 11am. So help restore their faith in humanity, and support them if you can. On 18 July they will be holding a Big Lunch as part of the national event, from 12 noon to 2pm.

For more information, including future plans for park improvement, go to http://friendsofwestowpark.ning.com/events

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Painstakingly polished paintwork and brasswork met good old English weather on Sunday 2 May in Crystal Palace Park, as local early worms watched rain soaked enthusiasts of old vans and lorries do their best to look cheerful as the start of the Historic Commercial Vehicle Society's 48th annual run to Brighton kicked off (mainly in plumes of smoke and steam).

There were some fabulous looking vehicles chundering about and you should get along there next year if you missed it this time (and you like that kind of thing, obviously).

For more information: www.hvcs.co.uk

GET THE (OLD) FIRE BRIGADE

FRIENDS OF WESTOW PARK

We are very sorry to have to report that the hard-working folk who give up their free time to improve Westow Park for the benefit of local residents had their new plants stolen earlier in the year. Even the most cynical South Londoner cannot fail to feel a little pang of sadness that the newly planted beds, which had been designed by local landscape architect, Sepideh Black, were ransacked within hours of being planted. However, the group remain determined that the setback would not stop them from improving the green space, and they drew a big crowd to their Spring Day in the Park with the help of the Crystal Palace Brass Band. And while the band played, adults and children spent time planting wild flowers, pansies and fruit trees, and enjoying wheelbarrow races.

CLASSICAL IN SYDENHAM

The Sydenham International Music Festival, one of London's major classical events, will be taking place during May and June. On Sunday 30 May Russian violinist Sergey Dogadin will be giving a recital with pianist Martin Roscoe. And on Sunday 13 June, soprano Susan Bullock will be welcomed for a rare London appearance. The St. Bartholomew Festival Orchestra will bring together prestigious players from London‘s internationally recognised orchestras. For details of events, and tickets: www.sydenhammusic.org.uk

NETWORKING MUMS

On 15 June, the South East London Mumpreneur Network will team up with Sell It Mama to launch a network for local mums in business. Guest speaker Emma Jones, founder of Enterprise Nation and author of Spare Room Start Up, will provide advice on how to start up a business, with tips on how to make working at home that little bit easier..

To register for the lunch email clare@motherslife.co.uk or for more information visit www.selondonmumpreneurs.blogspot.com

LIBRARY BIRTHDAY CELEBRATIONS

The Upper Norwood Joint Library will be celebrating 11 decades of serving the local community with a weekend extravaganza on Saturday 3 and Sunday 4 July 12 (high) noon to 5pm.Saturday kicks off with Victorian music and magic, a traditional Punch and Judy show, a Mad Hatter tea leaf reading, death-defying escapology, face-painting, and a genuine Victorian flea circus.Sunday will have a Western theme, with a whip-cracking workshop, a saloon-bar quick-draw challenge, can-can dancers, a Wild West craft session, and fancy dress competition. For the most up-to-date list of what's on, check the library's website for details www.uppernorwoodlibrary.org; The Upper Norwood Joint Library, 39-41 Westow Hill, London SE19 1TJ.

Yah-Hoo!

10

We caught Mick 'the sign' (www.signs-plus.co.uk 0208766 6463)

on Westow Street sanding down the outgoing Cafe Sole sign to help the new guys get started with their fab looking new Venezuelan eaterie, Café Latino.

Rosa and her Che Guevara themed Cafe Sole will be sorely missed by everyone here at The Transmitter - we particulary warmed to her for being the only person in the Palace to officially declare her joint a Mark Steel free zone. We wish her all the best.

But onwards and upwards. We spoke to lovely new owners Frank J Coll and Mary Calvo who, after falling out with Camden Council, upped sticks from trendy Camden Market to come to even trendier Crystal Palace. They are offering a selection of mouth watering latin dishes alongside your more traditional english caff fodder. The café's full title is actually Mi Cocina es Tuya - Café Latino. We love this name - not least because our own Cocinas es very Tuya too. Here's a bit of free advice for Frank, play some Venezuelan music and it will be a siren call to 'Hungry' Howard Male, our world music correspondent with a big appetite. He'll keep your kitchen busy.

What with the Braziliana Café on Westow Hill up and running at full steam again we are getting some real latin flavours around the triangle, yum.

Spies tell us that there's a new cafe/deli opened at 79 Church Road, we haven't tried it yet but the word is that it's worth dropping by, and so we will.

TRADING PLACES

The local area has a wealth of vintage clothing just waiting for proud

new owners, but until now we feel this is slightly weighted towards ladies’ garments. But now there is a new shop for men looking for something unique to wear. Crazy Man Crazy has opened at 18a Church Road, Crystal Palace, offering men's vintage clothing and accessories from the 40s and 50s. So whether you always like to step out in something vintage, or are looking for something a bit different for a special occasion, take a look.

Crystal Palace Triangle is buzzing with commerical activity right now so at our last editorial meeting in the White Hart we decided that we should thoroughly research all the comings and goings of new businesses and building works and planning

permissions and everything and prepare a comprehensive report for you. A couple of glasses of Merlot later all that research didn't seem like such a great idea after all, so we thought we'd just print a lot of wild speculation and rumour instead.

WHAT'S ALL THIS SHOUTING ABOUT? WE'LL HAVE NO TROUBLE HERE. THESE ARE LOCAL SHOPS FOR LOCAL PEOPLE, FULL OF PRECIOUS THINGS.

Café SocietyIf you like to browse around interesting

and eclectic pre-loved things then Fabrice Tuesta's new venture Et Pourquoi Moi? will be right up your street ( Westow Street actually). Originally from the sunny south of France, Fabrice recently upgraded his retail locale from Haynes Lane Market, and has filled his shop with some very nice clothing and jewellery for women and men (guys, more things for you to browse!), some art in the gallery at the rear and a bit of bric-a-brac to browse.

All a bit hush hush at the mo but the corner of Westow St (opposite Willie Smarts) is coming alive soon with the launch of Do South. We couldn't find out too much despite grilling the new owner over wine at the Bigger Picture Gallery launch (see page 26). Expect 'Conranesque' with coffee, we are told.

New Shops!

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Hey Efisio, set ours on MAX!

There's loose talk of a vietnamese restaurant taking over where the

old chippy used to be on Westow Street opposite Blackbird Bakery

For all you lovers of authentic Italian pizza, there's some good news. Efisio, the owner of Mediterranea on Westow Street, SE19, has a brand spanking new pizza oven, making authentic stone-baked pizzas. So if you fancy a bit of Italy's best-loved fast food, get yourself down there and sample a little piece of sunny Italy on your own doorstep. We have tried them (purely for research purposes you understand) and they are delicious....plus it's got a really cool temperature control knob.

The builders are going at it in earnest next to the post office on

Westow Street. The parking bays have been suspended, the concrete mixers are churning away. But what are they building exactly? Well, it looks like shop units with flats and some workshops and maybe some residential. To be honest....we couldn't be bothered to check Croydon Planning website.

A little less dull however...what do you think about a brand spanking new 'boutiqe' Hotel with an open rooftop restaurant and right next door - a covered market and, wait for it, a cinema!

Well at least that's one vision of the future for Crystal Palace Triangle and we have to say, it doesn't sound half bad to us on the face of it. A cinema? A place to put your mates up for the weekend? A covered market? What's not to like?

The chaps behind this scheme have already started to win over the hearts and minds of suspicious locals with a series of cleverly calculated PR moves.

• Filling the place with 2ndhand cars• Chopping down heritage railings• Leaping out of black cars in shades

looking like agents from The Matrix

As we said, what's not to like?Westowrants

The Developers

Also in the news, longstanding local brand Blue Mountain Café

have recently re-opened their branch on Gipsy Hill to the joy of local coffee lovers. They are tempting you in with commuter loyalty cards, offers and discounts as well as a really great idea of opening Sundays as a Sunday-Roast venue with live jazz out in their lovely back garden - perfect for lazy, hazy summer Sunday afternoons...launching on Sunday June 13. Pop in to the café book a table, or email nat_pinklady@yahoo.co.uk.

Their branches in Sydenham and East Dulwich have also had a makeover and the East Dulwich Café is now open in the evenings as Blue Mountain Wine Bar, which stirred up interest in The Transmitter office. They are looking into using the upstairs space as a social venue and are open to possibilities including clubs and social events, so if you live in the area and have any ideas please get in touch by visiting the café.

Blue Mountain are also taking part in our Transmitter Art Trail - acrylic paintings from local artist Natalia will be on display in the Gypsy Hill branch over the festival period. They also make their own delicious home-made cakes and will be having a stall at the cool-to-be-at-defo-don't-miss Have Your Cake And Eat It event on Saturday July10 at the Grape and Grain, Anerley Hill SE19

(YO)U NIT(S)

On Wednesday 12 May 2010 Annabel Sidney (Picture Palace

Campaign & Crystal Palace Triangle Planning Group) and Amanda Sciberras (CPTPG) were elected as new chair and vice chair of the Upper Norwood Improvement Team, UNIT. 'UNIT is a non-political organisation that was set up in the 1980s for the purpose of re-vitalising Crystal Palace and surrounding areas by working to improve the quality of property and business and at the same time developing amenity for cultural and leisure pursuit to benefit the whole community.' says Annabel (whew! run that by me again Annabel, I think I missed a bit! - Ed) UNIT is made up of local community groups, business organisations that contribute to the objectives of UNIT, Ward Councillors from the 5 adjoining boroughs, local MPs and the UNIT committee. Annabel says that she is looking forward to raising local awareness of UNIT and breathing new life back into what used to be a thriving, productive and exciting community body that was one of the legacies of the late Lord Bernard Weatherill MP. To get in touch, email your comments and queries to: se19unit@hotmail.com

A kind of Blue

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FOR A

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TREATMENTS

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LETTERSWe want your letters! Please send them to editor@thetransmitter.co.uk or to The Editor, The Transmitter, PO Box 53556, London SE19 2TL.

Dear Editor

Now the election is over, the people have decided, and the economy is stabilised, it's time once more to turn our faces to local issues. It's all very well asking for a cinema, or calling for the rebuilding of the Palace, but none of that's going to bring tourist dollars into the area.

That's why I want you and your magazine to join the growing movement to finally make good use of Crystal Palace Park, and convert it for use as a game reserve.

Concrete reptiles? Guy the Gorilla? Who wants brass monkeys and dinosaurs when you can get the real thing – and shoot at them?

The City Boys like shooting guns at animals and such, I should think. Bromley Council could charge top dollar for the privilege and use the money to turn the transmitter into a giant bungee.

I have a Facebook group on my computer filled with 32 members that agree. Join it, or simply write, as I have, to Bromley Council asking why they haven't turned Crystal Palace Park into a game reserve.

Keith Frenzy, SE19

We have, up to now, had a strict policy at The Transmitter of not commenting on controversial plans for the Park - but your letter has moved us to break our two year silence. Brilliant!

But we would like to hear from our other readers – what do you think out there? –Ed.

STREETWISE

Old Cople LaneWe are kicking off a new regular item about local street names and for this issue we would like to thank The Crystal Palace Foundation, from whose website we stole lots of information without asking. If you would like to pinch something from them, go to www.crystalpalacefoundation.org.uk.

Winding beneath the Crystal Palace Transmitter, at the junction of Crystal Palace Parade and Westwood Hill, next to the camping site (if you didn't already know that there was a campsite in Crystal Palace, you do now) is Old Cople Lane. If you follow it down, past the newly installed barrier-to-stop-making-it-easy-for-photographers-with-heavy-equipment-to-park-near-the-sphynxes-and-set-up-cover-shots-for-their-magazines, you will find the remains of Crystal Palace aquarium. In 2003,The Crystal Palace Foundation, Crystal Palace Museum the Caravan Harbour, Castle Communications and Thames Water co-operated to name the previously unnamed lane. Bromley Council agreed to name the road 'Old Cople Lane', the early eighteenth century name by which the lane was known before the Crystal Palace arrived in 1854. Which seems a bit of a no brainer to us in retrospect. Apparently, 'cople' is an old French word meaning 'couple'. So it either got its name because old couples used to hang out there or, we prefer, because it was an old lane where lots of 'Copling' was going on after the pubs chucked out. We don't know why the French were involved.Do you know any more about this lane?Do you have any suggestions for interesting local street name histories? Maybe you could even send us a piece about the story behind a local street name that we can use in the magazine without paying you anything (but we will say who sent it to us!).

14

pissarro

Crystal Palace isn’t exactly festooned with blue plaques, so one can’t help but do a

double take when passing Pedder Estate Agents on Westow Hill. For there up on the wall is one of these unmistakeable Doulton Ware discs proclaiming that the painter Camille Pissarro (1830-1903) lived there between 1870 and 1871. As I consider many of the great modern painters to be almost mythical figures, it’s thrilling to think that this extravagantly bearded Impressionist, who was considered by both Monet and Cezanne as the most accomplished and innovative artist of his generation, once walked this same stretch of Westow Hill that I’m now heading along on the way to Sainsbury’s. This man hung out with Van Gogh, for goodness sake! In fact he once summed up that most mythic of all painters with Twitter-like incisiveness: ‘I always said Van Gogh would either go mad, or he would surpass as all; but I never realised he would do both!’

So what was the great Jewish, Portuguese, Parisian painter doing in deepest Norwood in the first place? Well, along with Monet, he was fleeing the Prussian army who, following the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian war, were advancing on Paris. Before I began researching this piece I was aware of a few of the works he produced in South London during the six months he was here, but I’m in dept to Nicholas Reed’s small but comprehensive book Camille Pissarro at Crystal Palace (unfortunately out of print) for the knowledge that there are in fact thirteen finished paintings plus further watercolours and

PISSARRO DIDN’T PAINT THE TOWN RED, HE PREFERRED A MUCH SUBTLER PALETTE, WRITES HOWARD MALE

sketches dating from this period. If you can get hold of a copy, Reed also gives you directions for walks which take in all the spots from which the paintings were made (although you’ll sometimes find Pissarro’s viewpoint is now obscured by buildings or trees).

But while details in the landscape may have changed, what’s moving about these paintings is how the light, the dishwater skies, the lacy ambience, makes them so unmistakeably English in subject matter. Only All Saints’ Church, Beulah Hill is missing this oh so familiar aspect in which the weather can’t make up its mind what to do and the light is equally non-committal. This is probably because the work was completed in the studio, it being too cold to work on the spot (as was the Impressionist’s usual custom.) So this yellow-skied snow scene ended up looking artificially picturesque in a way that must have guaranteed its subsequent appearance on countless Christmas cards.

But other works are refreshingly free of any such generic prettifications. South Norwood under Snow boldly rejects the common device of traditional landscape painting – where some kind of road or path leads the eye into a scene of sublime beauty – and instead presents a fairly stark snow-covered vista in which a few scraggily denuded trees, some isolated clumps of dun-coloured hedgerow, and a huddle of small buildings in the middle distance, all quietly represent the artist’s desire to – in contemporary parlance – ‘keep it real’. It’s a particular day, at a

particular time, in a particular season. No photograph could put the chill in your bones, while conveying the futile efforts of an impossibly distant sun to penetrate the thick gloom of a leaden sky, like this modest work does.

But my favourite of all the Crystal Palace paintings is The Crystal Palace, Sydenham. Rather perversely, as we might see it, Pissarro doesn’t put this spectacular glass and steel monument to Victorian industrial ingenuity centre stage, quite the contrary. It’s almost an afterthought, a hazy blue presence in the distance, dwarfed by a vast expanse of cloud-filled sky that takes up half the canvas. It’s as if Pissarro somehow knew that despite its apparent immutability this structure would one day be destroyed overnight by a fire: but that’s just my fanciful take on things. The real reason he makes light of this great feat of engineering is that he wants to make light out of it. This was what the Impressionists did. Subject matter, however grand, always took second place to capturing the ephemeral nature of the moment dissolving in light. This magnificent, historic structure becomes of no more significance than the dressed-up families promenading along Crystal Palace Parade in the foreground.

Perhaps if it had been Monet or Van Gogh who had happened to touch down in what Pissarro called ‘a charming suburb’ all those years ago (rather than their places of residence, the Savoy and Brixton, respectively), we’d have coach loads of tourists arriving at Crystal Palace bus station every day. But my

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theory as to why Pissarro isn’t as well known as some of his contemporaries is that he didn’t have any hit singles, shall we say. For example Monet had his water lilies, Renoir his buxom bathers, and Van Gogh… well, Van Gogh was the master of the iconically memorable hit; sunflowers, self portraits, starry nights, that chair of his – he churned them out. But our Pissarro, the purist of all the

Impressionists, showing little interest in pushing his style in new directions (apart from indulging in a spot of pointillism in the 1890s), simply painted what he saw without embellishment or unnecessary stylistic flourishes.

But finally, talking of VG, I was fascinated to learn from a remarkable website devoted to his letters, that the man

certainly had plans to pay us a visit up here on the hill. In a letter to his brother Theo he wrote, ‘I haven’t yet been to the Crystal Palace and the Tower; nor to Tussaud’s. I’m not in a hurry to go and see everything.’ Who knows if he ever did do the tourist trail, but I don’t imagine he’d have handled the queues very well.

Howard Male

Fox Hill, Upper Norwood, Camille Pissaro 1870, Oil on canvas. ( National Gallery Picture Library)

LES ARTISTESArtist profiles by Hannah McEwen, Justine Crow, Janette Scott Olivia Nairn & Reesa Amadeo Wolf

BY JANETTE SCOTTDave Miller has many inspirations: the financial crisis, the Chinese cockle pickers tragedy, the Michael Barrymore swimming pool incident, Ken Livingstone and Tony Blair, to name a few. He combines topical, social and political issues with his own observations in works spanning media art, political cartoons, prints, booklets and performance.

Miller's past career as a web designer and programmer in the banking industry feeds his satirical take on the financial crisis in his project Bankers Bonuses. Inspired by a need to explain the complex issues involved in bonuses and bailouts, Miller produced a series of interactive hyperlinked narratives that combine colourful multi-layered photographs, drawings, graphics and incisive text. ‘If people understand this subject they are more likely to do something about it,’ he says. Other projects use internet data to create ever-changing works like Buddy Rivers Live, a computer network generated comedian.

Miller has Masters degrees in Networked Media and Graphic Design and has exhibited internationally as well in South London Artists Showcase and at the Science Museum in London.

www.davemiller.org

Dave Miller

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Jennifer Ward

Art is important to Crystal Palace artist, Jennifer Ward, ‘I love art that makes me feel something, even if I am not sure

what I am feeling or if I don't like what I'm feeling. I love images that stay in your head, you might see a piece of work and you wake up thinking about it. Art is who we are, it makes you ask questions, you have to use your brain and your heart, it doesn't get much better than that.’ Jennifer is inspired by a diverse range of people, objects and human nature, ‘glitter, art shops, graffiti, people, music, things people leave outside their houses, the smell of paint, pens, words, looking at allotments, photographs, boldness, honesty, Marlene Dumas, Anish Kapoor, stationary, seaside towns, bits of blue tac, drawings of birds, antlers, small acts of rebellion, my family.’ Jennifer works with oil paint on paper, wax, collage and words cut out of books, and would describe her art as abstract but with something to hold on to. She works most days, from home or at her studio, and always has a sketchbook to jot down ideas. When working she tries not to think about anything, and allows things to happen, ‘I will have some ideas beforehand, for example which colours I want to use for a set of prints but whilst working I banish that inner critic who usually has a very loud voice. Ideas will usually flow whilst I am working.' She also enjoys the local area, ‘it is a truly unique place. Crystal Palace has a warm heartbeat.’ You can see Jennifer's work at www.jenward.carbonmade.com and also as part of the Crystal Palace Transmitter Art Trail.

Melissa Budasz

Memories & WhispersAcrylic Paint, Iridescent Medium and Aluminium Leaf on stretched canvas200cm x 100cm2009 by Melissa Budasz

Early religious Icon painting and American abstract colour field painting from the 1950s onwards have

always been a major influence in Melissa Budasz's work. The materials used in early Icon painting - gold leaf, rich pigments, gesso on wood - are all methods that she employs in her work.

Hardly ever using brushes, she use her hands, sponges or sprays to work over the canvas or wood with a variety of old techniques and contemporary materials - gesso, acrylic paint, glitter, raw pigment and gold leaf. Layer upon layer of paint, pigment or glitter glide the surface until she arrives at a point of conclusion. This can take several months as often she works and re-works the paintings until she feels satisfied that they have reached the right pitch. She says that her paintings have to 'sing' to her.

Melissa trained in Fine Art (Painting) at Camberwell College of Art and Norwich University College of the Arts, graduating in 1997. Her studio is her home in West Dulwich. Melissa's Dulwich life is centered around the family 'It's a good quality life, always vibrant with a good mix of professionals and creatives. There is always lots going on to feed a creative mind - Dulwich Picture Gallery talks, art shows (Dulwich Festival) and only 8 minutes by train to the Saatchi Gallery!' She says that she never feels isolated even though she works from home and is not part of an artists studio. 'It can limit connections and group shows, but it works for me. Sometimes I paint continuously for days on end and then sometimes I don't for several weeks. It's this kind of space and time that lets the paintings grow and gives me time to reach conclusion.'You can see Melissa's work at www.melissabudasz.co.uk and as part of the Transmitter Art Trail.

Untitled by Jennifer Ward

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jodi jones

Jodi Jones is a creative polymath: a successful painter, a muralist, interior

decorator, teacher of art projects and producer of performance events.

Jones’s abstract paintings are inspired by rural and urban landscapes, informed by her passion for post-war British artists such as Barbara Hepworth, Ben Nicholson and Paul Nash. Using earthy materials such as pumice and plaster, Jones builds up the surface of her paintings then overwashes with oils and acrylics in natural tones. She then carves into or scrapes away from the dense layers, sometimes embedding concrete resin, wax, wood and metal. After a year away from painting she has moved into a new studio in Crystal Palace to make work that is ‘a lot looser, allowing myself to show paintings half-way though, unfinished’.

Jones studied at Reigate and Bath colleges and has exhibited in London, Dublin and Cumbria. She enjoys the sense of community of South London: ‘You can go out and always bump into lots of creative people. There are always things happening.’ You can see more of Jodi's work at www.starkgallery.com and as part of the Transmitter Art Trail.

By Janette Scott

‘TV has helped in my art’ says Adam Hemuss who combines

being a television producer with making paintings and screen prints derived from his everyday observations of tube commuters and London street life. Working on reality TV shows such as Big Brother, Gladiators and Pop Idol has helped him create the narratives and framing devices used in his artwork Hemuss says that ‘Everyone's got a story, a life, an identity’ and this comes through in the tattoos, shoes, watches, rings, bags, badges and jewellery that he sketches, prints and paints. His work 42 Coats, a large-scale screen print and spray paint work, clearly communicates the need to be different whilst looking the same. An acrylic and enamel work, Study of Compton Street, depicts two men having an argument, surrounded by an anonymous crowd, who manifest in various guises in other monochromatic pieces.

Hemuss has shown across London in galleries, pubs, clubs and shops including The East Gallery, The Railway, Roktic Pop Up Shop, and Art Show and Peacock Theory. You can see more of Adam's work at www.hemussart.com and as part of the Transmitter Art Trail.

By Janette Scott

Adam HemussPETER FORDER

The natural world means everything to Sydenham-based artist, Peter

Forder. Born in 1957, Forder is a self-taught painter largely concerned with the representational portrayal of life, but with a specific interest in divulging the beauty of the green spaces tucked away in our urban environment. ‘The allotments here are just overflowing with life and colour,’ says Forder of the local area, ‘and the earth is almost giving up its goodness, its fullness; this is what I try to relay through my painting’. Citing the work of French post-impressionist Pierre Bonnard and contemporary expressionist artist Gillian Ayres as influential and inspirational examples, Forder too is highly concerned with the nature and texture of colour. It is his quest to render the picture ‘an object’ that leads him to most regularly paint in oil, as it effectively provides him with a platform to explore this interest and texturally, to go beyond creating just another image of life on a canvas.

Forder will next be showing and selling a variety of his paintings at the Friends of the Horniman 19th Annual Art Exhibition on 10-11 July 2010, in the gardens of the Horniman Museum, 100 London Rd, SE23.

By Olivia Nairn

Many of the artists featured in this issue are on the

TRANSMITTER ART TRAIL

SATURDAY/SUNDAY JUNE 5/6 - CRYSTAL PALACE TRIANGLE

REFLECTIONS WITH CARLOS CORTESINSTALLATION ARTIST, PAINTER, DESIGNER, PERFORMANCE ARTIST

The Quest for Unconscious Connections

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in a local pub, I sit mesmerised by Carlos Cortes as he makes an attempt to do just that: to somehow express how it is that one person has managed to capture such talent and inspiration in so many different artistic disciplines. Where did it start? How did it develop? Where is it leading to next? I don’t know what I expect him to say, but I find myself utterly enchanted listening to this man’s journey into his own unconsciousness, where he too, is often surprised by what he finds. With no formal training as a painter, in his early twenties Cortes devised a unique method of capturing his inner vision by using his left hand rather than his right for all first sketches (though he is right-handed and paints as such). The technique is loose and flows from the wrist. It requires open, sweeping movements and fails if the process is restricted or controlled in any way. Light, wispy strokes appear on a page and join into simple forms and templates that are later transferred on to canvas and into stunning paintings. From these moments in a quiet place, Cortes fearlessly unlocks his inner child and unconscious ideas. He allows himself to be surprised at what may appear on the page before him as

Words and Photography by Reesa Amadeo Wolf

I struggle to define myself

he discovers his next project. In fact, this method and fascination with the unconscious lies within and spans across all of Cortes’s work. It is the very thing perhaps, which ties them together. As a performance artist and choreographer, Cortes has ventured into the realm of exploring collective unconsciousness in movement pieces where large audiences come together to create a piece. ‘People experience something together that wouldn’t be possible alone. People inhabiting space generate something unique to

that space that grows organically. It becomes something new as we create a part of its history and become a part of its history.’ At the end of a performance piece, a space has been transformed by the people working together and tapping into a collective unconscious. The performances represent journeys together. Perhaps no self-definition for Cortes is required. Maybe we can simply enjoy the magic, embark on a journey to our own individual and collective unconsciousness – and enjoy the surprise of what we find there.

Cortes exhibits his work extensively in the UK and across Europe and is in several private collections around the world. His next solo exhibition will be at the GX GALLERY 25 September - 7 October (www.gxgallery.com ) His upcoming performance pieces will be at Lauderdale House in North London 4 July, and DANCING LANDSCAPES: 11 July in Crystal Palace Park. Both are in collaboration with local people and professional performers and are open to everyone to join in, no experience required as long as you are creative and you enjoy dance, music, meeting other people and being outdoors. For more information: www.carloscortes.co.uk

Over a cup of tea

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Mike COnrad

Mike Conrad is a local artist with a keen interest in conservation

of the built environment. Mike started drawing houses in Upper Norwood in the 1970s when a significant number of Victorian villas in the area were being demolished. The first building Mike drew was St. Valery which then had a fine glass canopy from the front door to the street. The canopy is long gone, but fortunately St. Valery still stands. As well as pencil and pen and ink studies Mike paints in water colour, but has found working outside that pastels are more user friendly.Below is Mike's The Rising Sun pub Spa Hill. 'Now boarded up' he laments, 'and soon to be converted to flats. Another piece of Norwood history about to disappear'.

John Merritt

Strong creativity and a grassroots community spirit characterises

SE20, a Penge-based artists group formed in 2006 by two local artists Chris McShane and Peter Blundell. Eleven practitioners from SE20, ranging from professionally-trained artists to hobbyists, create paintings, drawings, photography and installation-based works. Sometimes inspired by themes, SE20 artists more often depict local landmarks and observations and exhibit annually at Kenilworth Hall in Penge. Having also already shown their work in the Blue Belle Café on Maple Road, the group are currently exploring possibilities in other local retail spaces.Blundell stresses the informality, organic and diverse nature of SE20 whilst aiming for higher creative standards and hoping to sell their work. Email se20art@hotmail.co.uk if you're interested in getting involved with SE20 or visiting this year's exhibitionBY JANETTE SCOTT

SE20 GROUP

AUDREY HAMMOND

If you shut your eyes and imagine an artistic depiction of the Upper

Norwood area, the chances are you will have thought of an image by this well respected chronicler of our surroundings. A South London lass, educated and working locally, her style is instantly recognisable – deft, fresh, fond but never sentimental. Prolifically creative, a writer, photographer, printmaker and potter, it is her love of painting that filters through her representations like a healthy breeze. She says she has a desire to record and indeed, she is as happy with brick as with foliage, a sentinel tower sometimes vying for attention in the distance, which gives her work a breadth of context. Unafraid to tell it how it is, Audrey has become a vital local historian and is a keen activist when it comes to the preservation of the best of our neighbourhood architecture and green,

open spaces. Her portrayals of our lost landscapes also form a valuable archive from which we continue to learn; her cards and book continue to inspire.By Justine Crow

What is most striking about local artist John Merritt is how his style has changed over the years, and how open he is to using different techniques. John has been painting and drawing since he was a child, and he attended Camberwell College of Arts as a young man. His early work reflects his employment as an artist for a design studio in Soho where he didn't have the space to work with paints, but was able to work in pen and ink. Illustrative in style and surreal in composition, these early pieces are clearly influenced by some of his early experiences, including being a young child during the Blitz with a father who was serving in the RAF.Nowadays, his works are abstract, surreal and realist in equal measure, and John works with collage, acrylic and pen and ink. In his home he still has many different works from across the years, ‘in the early days I didn't like the idea of selling originals, although I don't feel like that anymore.’And living with his work over time allows John to give it the chance to evolve, ‘I will come back to paintings after some time, even after many years, and see things that I would like to change and bring up-to-date before I am happy to exhibit.’John is able to devote more time to his art now, but it hasn't always been like that, ‘like most artists you have to have a job, especially when you have a wife and young children to support.’ Now he is able to work when the mood takes him, and his family enjoy having his work around them, as John explains ‘I usually get an interesting response to my work, and friends and family enjoy living with

my art.’ John's work can be seen at the Horniman art exhibition in July, at a local venue in Crystal Palace as part of the Transmitter Art Trail, and at his home.By Hannah McEwen

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Kate Pritchard

Maverick, iconoclast, enfant terrible, yes we’ve heard it before but

these are the things that make Kate Pritchard feel there is a point to being an artist these days. The passion which drives her is divided between the technique and ability to betray meaningful images, coupled with the desire to stir the viewer with the narrative behind what is depicted. Straddling both contemporary painting with Renaissance sensibilities, and ceramic interventions on buildings and in the environment, she is using the language of art to reach out to all who spy her. Kate finds South London to be an accommodating place to work, in part due to its seclusion and generous inhabitants. 'When one is doing something intricate and disciplined one needs time to develop unnoticed before an unveiling to an appreciating art loving audience!', Which, she believes, is exactly what this area supplies. Her latest work explores the issue of surface and our obsession with image, entitled Skin Deep she challenges the viewer to engage with a portrait of blown up proportions, the figure is central to the work and endeavours to stop anyone in their tracks with her gaze – and it seems to work. Kate's work can be viewed at Urban Art in Brixton on 17 & 18 July, at the Portico Gallery in West Norwood and is also taking part in the Transmitter Art Trail.By Hannah McEwen

Skin Deep, 2010oil & varnish on canvas, 121 x 92cm

Mandy williamsMany of the artists in this issue have mentioned the local area, and this is something that Mandy echoes, ‘I've always liked South London, but this area is good for its proximity to central London and the amount of green space and woodland. There's a good artistic community in Crystal Palace which is friendly and supportive.’

lene bladbjerg

Toiling from The (appropriately named) Overspill at Coopers Yard,

Bladbjerg combines curiosity about the textures of nature in her quite moving close photography of flora – who’d love a dandelion? Clearly Lene does! – with a fascination for everyday objects in big and bold mixed media. Items used include playing cards, raffle tickets, razor blades – Butterfly depicts a glinting swarm of sharp wings – and jigsaw parts, in Flowerbed a scattering of lost puzzle pieces bloom municipally. She also delights in wordplay with titles such as But Life is Not Black & White, and vocal statements like I Am Bloody Happy that flash off the canvas. Her abstract work draws in all these elements, sometimes forming patterns like a vortex of sardines, others seem like planetscapes as captured by passing satellite. And she makes witty greetings cards too. A true European, born in Denmark, brought up in Brussels, travel makes her tick. Info@lenebladbjerg.com www.lenebladbjerg.comBy Justine Crow

For Mandy, the preparatory process is the important first stage in producing a piece of art, ‘I like researching and developing a project and exploring ways to visually express a particular idea. The start of a project is very immersive, and I am always thinking about ways to develop the workfurther. I usually work in bursts throughout a project but like to have down-time where I can step back and assess if something is working or not.’Mandy works mainly with photography, but also with video and sound on projects that are theme-based and conceptual, ‘my work is influenced by real-life situations and contemporary culture. I'm interested in how our personal identities are affected by our environment and how our lives interconnect. I'm often inspired by books - sometimes just a line in a book can suggest a new project. News stories have been a rich source of inspiration, too.’Mandy explains that her work has often been called compelling and intense, but was pleased when a reviewer for a magazine in Canada, where she was exhibiting at the time, described her show as containing ‘moments and places of tension because the characters in her work take risks to get there.’You can see Mandy's work online at www.mandywilliams.com. In September she will be exhibiting at the Viewfinder Gallery, Greenwich, as part of a group exhibition called Home.By Hannah McEwen

July, 2009 - Fujiflex digital print Edition: 5 From Re-Collect, series of 14 photographs.

Brenda Henneh

Science and maths might not be the first things that spring to mind when

you think about art, but for 17-year-old Brenda Henneh they are her inspiration, ‘from a very young age, my head has been immersed in mathematics and science textbooks and I used to read encyclopaedias for leisure. I decided to use what I’ve learnt in these books and make it aesthetically pleasing. Most of my work is very mathematical and scientific. I use a lot of numbers and patterns in my work and spherical and triangular shapes as well. I like to sew and stick three-dimensional objects on the canvases.’ That's not the only surprising thing about this young artist from Croydon. She is inspired by Chinese artists, has a passion for fashion - especially shoe design - and she fits her art in around taking A-levels in art, maths, chemistry and biology. ‘Things can get a little hectic, but I find time to do art. It’s usually whenever I feel like it because I have to be in the mood to paint. It’s spontaneous thing.’ Brenda gets ideas from her Ghanaian background, as well as other cultures, ‘I love Japanese prints, traditional Ghanaian prints, Nigerian coral beads, all sorts of things from all over the world.’ Brenda works mainly from her imagination for expressive pieces, and from photos for more complex imagery. She has recently started painting portraits for clients, as she explains, ‘I have taken my cartoonist style but I’ve matured it for the portraits, so they are fun, exciting, colourful, yet grown-up.’ And Brenda is very determined, ‘I get praise about my work and it’s encouraging. But I have to remember that they are a lot of other young artists who are really good, so get on with what I’m doing and head for the top. I am a young woman and I may have the odds against me, but I want to inspire other young people who are talented. Whenever I’m facing the harsh realities of life, I look at my work or the work of others that I love and it inspires me to do better. If I can paint, I can do anything!’ You can see Brenda's work at Myjumbie, 83 Church Road, SE19 2TA, or she can be contacted at beignet@hotmail.co.uk.

For Fabien Rosso, the urge to paint is something that

he finds hard to resist, 'there is a key moment. I don't know if it may seem weird, but there is a moment of insight. The idea or feeling might vanish in a minute, so when it's time I must paint.' Fabien has been painting from the age of 14, and today texture is key to his work, 'people tend to say that my figurative works are dark or torturous, but for me it's the texture which gives the most satisfaction. Most of the time the acrylic medium will be my basis, but I like to add other things. It could be sand, earth, varnish, spray paint. I have no limits.'

Originally from Paris, how does Fabien find life in south London? 'Crystal Palace has been a big surprise - it's a village inside a metropolis. I like being near to everything, without being in the craziness of central London. Zola and Pissarro didn't choose the place for no reason!'

You can see Fabien's work on the Transmitter Art Trail at Myjumbie, 83 Church Road, SE19 2TA, and at the Horniman art exhibition in July.

By Hannah McEwen

Fabien Rosso

Enchanted forests, rocking horses, magical landscapes and night skies

all made an appearance at the launch of new online children’s art gallery The Little Picture Company, dedicated to producing artwork for kids.In her search for inspiring images for her daughters nursery, founder Anita Singh realised that what children are exposed to these days seemed more to do with the latest marketing trend than ideas that would truly stimulate their senses and creativity. So, with the help of friend and painter Danuta Mayer, Anita started a search for other local artists to share her vision of bringing children magical stories through art.Danuta's paintings for children are rooted in her childhood memories, drawing on the magic of storytelling and a love of the natural world, Victoria Scott’s bold, colourful work has a nostalgic quality with a fun, modern twist and she draws her inspiration from the natural world, fashion, the 1920s, 1960s psychedelic posters and fairytales.Jennifer Newport’s designs draw on nature and cherished childhood memories for their inspiration. Alison Coe's hand-woven pieces are created on an 8-shaft loom using very fine threads and dip dyed, sewing cottons.

Their work can be seen as part of the Transmitter Art Trail in Domali Café, 38 Westow Street SE19 and online at www.thelittlepicturecompany.org.

Limited Edition by Brenda Henneh The Witch and The Rainbow Cat by The Little Picture Company

THE LITTLE PICTURE COMPANY

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To meet local artist Tine Bech is to be instantly drawn into a completely different world

of experiencing art first-hand. Many people think of art as something to ‘view’. We go to an ‘Art’ space (gallery), pick up a leaflet about the current exhibition, or maybe we have a hi-tech listening device telling us about what we are looking at. We walk a circuit carefully devised by qualified curators, we purchase a postcard at the book shop to remind us of what we saw. We are quiet (sh!), polite and apologise if our shoes squeak on clean floors. Unlike more traditional gallery experiences, Tine Bech’s work is exciting, loud and very public. It begs to be touched and requires audience interaction to be complete. It connects us to our environment and with one another as we are encouraged to participate fully in her work and exhibitions. One favourite example is

Echidna, an interactive sound sculpture. Made of tangled, black wire hooked up to electronics which are cleverly hidden within the white plinth it sits on, touching Echidna disturbs the electromagnetic field around it, and a unique sound emerges. Bech is travelling to Los Angeles this September with a new version of Echidna to take part in the renowned Siggraph Conference connected with her PhD studies.Bech displays her work in unconventional settings and, wherever possible, includes the public in the work itself. Bech believes that ‘Art is for everyone’and seeks to create art for both art and ‘non-art’ audiences. One such work, called Tracing Light, is a permanent interactive light installation set in Surrey over a pedestrian bridge where ripples of colour are activated by the people passing the bridge. She will be embarking on two similar projects:

in Bristol at the Watershed (dates tbc), and in Swansea, where Bech is creating a temporary public artwork on show from 8 October 2010. The form of the project will develop through consultation and workshops with the community, exploring local history and memories of the area. Bech’s upcoming installation, The Big Swim, invites us to jump into a pool of colour! Celebrating the upcoming 2012 Olympics, this project is ‘... a unique, live event, in which participants interact with their wider community and experience swimming in a cloud of light and colour, based on the five Olympic colours.’ It aims to connect sport and art while promoting local interest in swimming prior to the upcoming Games in London. Dates and venues tbc.

go to www.tinebech.com for up-to-date information.

WITH TINE BECH Experiencing Art in Unexpected PlacesWords and Photography by Reesa Amadeo Wolf

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FAST TRAIN TO HOXTONA GROUP OF ARTISTS ARE DRAWING A NEW LINEBy Paul Makk

As a writer of quirky fiction I’m always looking out for the unusual, the bizarre and the just plain weird. So when I caught local artists Roy Peterson, Angelique Hartigan and Joanna Maitland-Hudson parading their paintings in Crystal Palace Park I knew I was onto something. Roy was sheltering from the spring sunshine behind his latest abstract, a whitewashed canvas with a blood red orb looking like it had replaced his head. Angelique shouted, ‘Take our Picture,’ from behind her recent painting of Streatham Common which, when held up against the bubbling clouds, looked like the open window of an advent calendar letting us peek behind the sky.

Joanna came running up to join them holding her stunningly realistic painting of a stallion rearing up in majestic splendour. ‘I prefer painting horses to people,’ she told me. ‘It’s tough painting human flesh tones.’ I wondered how easy painting fur could be.

As I had them pose with the Crystal Palace Tower in the background I felt I was in some kind of nether world because along came two more people carrying paintings. ‘Wait for us,’ shouted local artist, Guy Beggs and photographer Lynn Hilton.

When I asked what was going on I learned that this was an impromptu photoshoot by the team from Bigger Picture Gallery who have moved to a new space across from the park at the top of Anerley Hill. They wanted new pictures to update their website (www.biggerpicturegallery.co.uk) with an article about what they call The Art Line – the new East London Underground line opening this month.

Roy, who moved to Crystal Palace from California nine years ago, explained their thinking as he invited me to take a look at their gallery. It turns out that Bigger Picture has grown in less than a year from a simple idea to showcase local artists work in disused shop windows to what can only be described as a magnificent gallery, the likes of which would be the envy of many more established galleries. He said, ‘The new East London line has stations like Hoxton and Whitechapel just twenty minutes away. A few years ago nobody would have thought those areas would become the focus of so much of this country’s artistic talent. What we want to do is encourage local galleries, artists and art lovers to help make Crystal Palace a similar art destination. That’s why we want to call the new Underground line The Art Line!’

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I looked round the stunning exhibition of works by Guy Beggs who this past week welcomed some 400 visitors to the opening of his show at their new gallery - formerly a Mercedes car dealership that had been sitting empty for seven years. I then asked the team how they all know each other. ‘Dogs,’ explained Angelique, ‘we all walk our dogs in Crystal Palace Park and it’s amazing who you meet and make friends with there. So many artists live around the area. We know painters, sculptors, photographers, and ceramicists. You mention you’re an artist and soon you’re networking with a whole host of other creative people.

‘Same with writers,’ I added. ‘Soon after I told a neighbour that I’m an author I met three others living in my street – all of us just a stone’s throw from the Triangle.’

Angelique explained the story behind her painting called Fox Hill, which she painted last winter after taking photos at the height of the snow. She reminded me that the French impressionist painter, Camille Pissarro chose to

live and paint in Upper Norwood when he moved to London for two years from 1870. His painting of Fox Hill hangs at the National Gallery. ‘Pissarro’s piece is from the bottom of Fox Hill looking up and I think you can actually spot the house I painted in the snow. It’s still easy to see how the unique beauty of the area with its hills and its architecture, its open space and fresh air inspired even one of the great French impressionists. So much of what drew Victorian painters to Crystal Palace still remains today.’ Angelique explained how she has long rented a space in a local artists’ studio where she paints in the company of a number of other creatives. Although she loves the area because it has so much to offer she felt there was always something missing. ‘My website (www.angelique-hartigan-artist.co.uk) helps me reach out to collectors worldwide but we’ve always lacked space locally to exhibit our work.’ I sympathised. As I writer I know full well how difficult it can be to get your work out there as publishing houses and bookstores consolidate, taking on only what they consider to be safe commercial bets.

Joanna brought her horse painting back indoors which looked stunning under the gallery lights, revealing delicate brushwork I hadn’t appreciated outside. She explained that unlike writers, artists arguably have more choice than ever to exhibit. ‘There are some really inventive people out there who see empty buildings and shops as opportunities and who are prepared to take a risk, moving into unloved premises and providing a break to all kinds of artists like us. Consider the transformation around the East End’s Brick Lane. Now it’s happening here too. Look at what’s going on now on Church Road, with all the fun new shops.’

Since moving to Crystal Palace three years ago and renting a studio alongside Angelique Joanna now paints full time. She no longer feels the isolation of painting from home. ‘By working around other artists who all have different styles, I get to enjoy their feedback and have a chance to discuss the challenges I face dealing with various techniques. I honestly feel I’ve improved more by being here than possibly three years at art school.’

28

Roy Peterson, who works full time for charity Stonewall told me how painting is his passion. ‘I started out though working in ceramics. I loved experimenting with shapes and unusual form and I realise now that a lot of my work on canvas reflects that same fascination of colour and structure.’ His studio is a spare bedroom and his garden. ‘I work from home and am quite private about my work, having several canvasses on the go at any one time. I work in layers, covering up the parts I no longer want and exposing the elements that I find appealing and exciting.’ Roy had sold his work regularly in the US but his first exhibition in the UK was a one-man show here at Domalis cafe. ‘It was almost a sell-out and it was that show which

made me realise that not only are there artists around the area, but we also have collectors and people who want to support local art.’

‘What inspired you to begin Bigger Picture,’ I asked.

‘When the recession hit it was a bit of no-brainer for me that owners of empty business premises should lend their shop windows for artists to display their work. Now we have this huge new space we can provide an amazing platform for all sorts of locals – not just artists, but performers and musicians too.’

‘Maybe writers’ workshops?’ I suggested.

‘Absolutely. Over to you,’ said Roy, ‘That kind of thing would work well during our upcoming summer exhibition. The walls will be packed with the works of local artists and it might prove a very inspirational setting for you writers.’ He added, ‘Don’t forget...just like the Underground’s new Art Line, we’re open and serving Crystal Palace.’

Just then a young woman with a chocolate Lab entered the gallery asking how to submit her work into the gallery’s summer exhibition. ‘I was just talking to one of your artist friends in the park and he told me the show’s open to everyone.’

Angelique, Roy and Joanna all reached to hand their visitor an application. ‘Are you an artist too?’ she asked me.

‘No, I’m an author.’

She smiled and said, ‘My husband writes children’s books.’

See what can happen when walking in Crystal Palace Park?

(Bigger Picture’s Summer Exhibition runs from June 5th through August 31st.) Guy Beggs

Roy Peterson

Angelique Hartigan

Art crowd turns up for the Guy Beggs opening at BPG

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39

The list of novels written by pop stars is not a very long one and the list of good novels written by pop stars very much shorter. For every Nick Cave or Willy Vlautin (Richmond Fontaine) I give you Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden with his rubbish sub-Tom Sharp romps, or even Bob Dylan, with, um, Tarantula, possibly one of the best selling un-read novels of all time. So it is a pleasure to be able to say that Storage Stories the novel written by Jim Bob, lead singer and songwriter with former 1990s pop chart stalwarts (and it has to be said,

South London’s

finest) Carter The

Unstoppable Sex

Machine –- 14 top 40

singles, 7 albums,

including a number

1 and 800 live gigs

in a memorable

career that Jim

has described with

modesty, as less

of a rollercoaster

and more of a 1980’s

sporty hatchback -

comfortably makes

it on to the later

list, being as it is,

very good indeed.

I meet him as he

walks towards me

past the stout gaze

of Joseph Paxton

and we make our way

towards the Crystal

Palace National

Sports Centre. It is

the early morning

of the May Day Bank

Holiday, it is, we

agree, bloody cold.

We have decided at

my suggestion to go

swimming.

storiesStorageJim Bob

InterviewJonathan MainPhotographAndy Pontin

It is one of those ideas-an interview in a swimming pool - that appears to be a stroke of blinding genius when you first think of it and then, when later you are walking down the cold steps to the entrance of the pool, with a man who, in a time before Skype, once flew to the States on Concorde to be interviewed, to be borderline madness. Possibly it helps that we are both in a benign mood due to Crystal Palace Football Club drawing with Sheffield Wednesday the previous afternoon and therefore surviving relegation to Division 1. Whatever,

Jim had mentioned that he liked to go swimming; I like to go swimming too. Jim hadn’t been to the Palace pool for years, not since he was a lad, and so I had decided that he needed to be re-introduced to the old rocker in the park, admittedly more Pink Floyd than Terrorvision, but now finally getting the refurbishment that it fully deserves –- a comeback tour, if you will - and undoubtedly one of the very best ways to start your day in the whole of London. I can never pay a visit to the pool without thinking how lucky we are to have this building

so close at hand and am nothing less than bewildered that there are people who would willingly sign up to see it raised to the ground. More room to exercise the dog, I suppose. Although, admittedly, Jim Bob does liken the circuitous route we take to the pool and the handing over of the ticket to the lifeguard, as somewhat akin to Eastern Europe in the 1980s, or else, that we are extras in a Mafia movie. Storage Stories is, as Jim describes it, a fictional autobiographical novel (but

then aren’t they all?) that naturally features a once-successful pop star, who, in need of a job, takes one at a small, independently owned storage facility called 2001 a Storage Space Odyssey. Jim Bob, I hardly need to add, has never had to work in a storage facility, small and independent, or otherwise.The book opens with our once-successful pop star being interviewed over the telephone by a music magazine, the journalist promising that this will not be another of those piss-taking where are they now pieces, but a serious look at life after fame. Of

course when the article is published 12 weeks later, the piss-take is exactly what it is. Jim smiles ruefully when I ask him if, by any chance, this is one of the autobiographical bits?Leaving the changing rooms post-swim – both of us, I suspect, still mildly distracted by thoughts of Darren Ambrose’s 63rd minute cracker for the Eagles at Hillsborough –- Jim tells me about the last time that this happened to him. It was Q magazine, and it was the third such ‘interview’ in the last year. His last three solo albums have been exemplary examples

of British story-pop –- think Ray Davies (who come to think of it also had a stab at writing fiction); concept albums that sing about their own little universe, be it a town in the grip of crime, suffering drunken lazy superheroes, Goffam (stand out track The Man Behind The Counter of The Science Fiction Superstore), or a school attempting to climb the Ofsted league table with the help of its orchestra in School (stand out track the glorious Mrs F******g MacMurphy -she teaches Food

Technology). In addition, another album A Humpty Dumpty Thing comes with a 12000 word mini-novel about a man in the future charged with having to write an 80,000 word novel or face a jail term.It is a short hop, then, to his book Storage Stories populated by characters such as Gunter and Anne, proprietors of the most Miserable Sweet Shop in the World, Gary The Bubblewrap Boy, and Carl and his (read behind the sofa through your fingers) interest in self-surgery, each related with the trademark wit and wordplay familiar from old

Carter hits.We walk back up the hill from the pool to the Triangle briefly discussing the royalties a musician might expect from online downloading and the popular Spotify service. I mention Lady Gaga’s £187 from over a million plays of Pokerface, and Jim laughs, exactly, he says, it’s a very long list with a very tiny number at the bottom. He Twittered recently that on receiving his last statement he couldn’t decide whether to buy a yacht or a racehorse. I ask him if he has enjoyed his swim and he tells me that it was good to get back in

the water. I don’t think he was humouring me. We shake hands and he wanders off down Gipsy Hill towards the railway station and an afternoon interview on 6 Music, briefly musing as to whether the interviewer, Andrew Collins, will object to the smell of chlorine.

Jim Bob will be reading from Storage Stories, signing copies and singing a song or two at the Bookseller Crow on Friday 4 June at 7pm.

42

DOMALI

I have wanted to put a word or two down about this landmark café ever since The Transmitter sparked up but other dinners kept getting in

the way. Finally, art is my excuse. Protagonists of the local revival, arriving in the days when the sex shop sold sensible knickers and when our beloved suburb boasted a fishmonger, greengrocers, two pet shops, a toy shop, a luggage shop and a wool shop, Dominic and Alison have always supported the visual art scene, giving valuable wall space to painters, photographers and printmakers whilst beneath the frames punters tuck into wholesome dishes hot and cold at scrubbed, unpretentious tables, or from deep in the crevice of a sofa.

You’ll be pleased to know the bookseller was my date but first there was the question of disguise. Should it be frothy, long pre-Raphaelite red wig, creamy bosom and consumptive cough? And what would I wear?

Eventually, after trying various moustaches, stove-pipe hats and frock coats and having excavated all the sartorial possibilities of threadbare creativity, we decided to go as ourselves. Thereby absolutely guaranteeing no special treatment. No change there then. So, senses finely tuned, pencils sharpened for metaphorical sketching, the first thing we noticed is despite the relatively spartan furnishing, the atmosphere is warm and the chatter factor high. People feel

very comfortable here and there is no haughty anticipation. As the bookseller pointed out, there is uninhibited conversation about ideas, there is laughter, there are friends embracing, there is a babe warbling; the candles flicker, the Beatles flicker, the laptops flicker, my appetite thrashes.

Eyes upward then to what is arguably the best piece of art on display – no offence intended to Roland Kemp whose large, cheerful colour photographic prints of faces and places currently divert absorbingly, without ever disturbing – the blackboard. This is the supper I need: no brash meat, no culinary swagger, no pretext of poshness. Instead, this evening the specials bring a reassuringly broad-minded world flavour to fish and vegetables, including bruschetta of chargrilled halloumi, vegetable tagine with butternut squash, celeriac and fennel on sultana cous-cous, pan-fried trout with ginger, chargrilled kingfish, linguine with walnut and spinach. Of course, there is always the regular menu generously offering breakfasts, a clutch of classic egg dishes, sandwiches, soups and salads.

We order a houmous and warm pitta platter to share with some olives and inevitably the subject of our eldest’s art GCSE, spread over two days, the first half of which proceeded that very day, bobs uneasily to the surface. Crikey, the ruddy thing appears to have taken over our lives with preparatory

pictures and glue all over the house, and enough red in the stress levels to give Munch something to scream about.‘In my day,’ I begin, sounding just like the person I promised I would never turn into, ‘my art O level consisted of me, an easel, a pot of poster paints and a stopwatch.’ I am pretty sure I was marked on my ability to produce a feasible picture on the spot. I got a B. Not bad going, really. You try rustling up a still life that an exam board won’t laugh at uncontrollably, in just seven hours.

The bookseller’s comp was much more progressive. His art CSE submission consisted of a balsa wood forearm and fist on a bed of sand with a broken alarm clock set

JUTINE CROW REVIEWS A LOCAL VEGGIE EATERIE

43

in plastic resin. A certain Bowie lyric involving time, hands and falling to the floor springs to mind. ‘I bet my mum’s still got it,’ he says.‘I bet she hasn’t,’ I reply, imagining her no nonsense Leicestershire accent giving Brian Sewell a run for his critical money as it went off to the car boot sale.Food arrives in the nick of er, time. My laksa, pan-fried pangasius in a coconut broth, with spinach, baby corn and noodles is spiced and juicy, running down my chin in picturesque fashion as I can’t get enough of the slurp and creamy heat. Neither can the bookseller and he begs yet another spoonful off me. Soon my bowl has nothing left but a tide-mark of herbs, like the bath in Dr Seuss. Meanwhile, accompanied by salad and tartar

sauce, his smoked haddock and spring onion fishcakes are fluffy inside, the right side of crispy outside and, as the last scrap goes down, apparently very tasty.‘Hey, I didn’t get to try yours’, I protest.‘Tough Titian titty,’ he answers wolfishly. The last of our bottle of fruity organic fairtrade sauvignon helped wash down the dense chocolate and raspberry fudge tart that we split between us. But if booze ain’t your bag, they have an extensive selection of both healthy and indulgent non alcoholic drinks, also available as part of their happy hour deal, alongside various other desserts and child-size portions. The bill is pleasantly minimalist too. Between you and I, the previous

week we had a shameful meal on the triangle that could only be described as cynical reproduction tat. And it cost a fortune. Domali restored our faith. With events catering available and a popular, pretty little garden for warmer days, you don’t need an excuse to go this essential neighbourhood hub other than a desire for a lack of arrogance and a full belly. It doesn’t take an artist to deliver that. Just someone - or some two - that knows exactly what they are doing. Right, I feel inspired to do a still life. Orange or banana? Aw, just peel me a grape – I don’t have any room left after all..

Domali38 Westow Street, SE19 3AH020 8768 0096

Justine Crow

44

Monet and the Art of a Summer Wildernessby Sue Williams

Go forth and create your own Monet masterpiece

It’s a lovely thought – midsummer in the garden doing a spot of watercolour or resting over a book while contemplating the beauty of

your herbaceous border. It rarely comes to anything as there are always things to be dealt with – a bit of bindweed snaking up your clematis perhaps or ground elder thuggishly invading your periwinkle. However in this Fine Art issue of The Transmitter – and in the spirit of the cultural aesthetic – the Patch will attempt to suggest some plants to recreate Monet’s garden at Argenteuil.

The idea of a controlled wilderness is not just a French theme but the essence of the English Cottage garden. snaking up your clematis perhaps or ground elder thuggishly invading your periwinkle. A jumble of shrubs, annuals and perennials densely packed together may look randomly created but in fact requires a bit of thought. I’m a great believer in planting the herbaceous border as fully as possible – bare earth equals weeds in my book.

The mainstay of Monet’s garden is the rose. There are literally thousands of varieties of rose – climbing, rambling, bush, patio, tea – but to recreate Argenteuil the Old Garden Rose is perfect. Most of these are hybrids raised from ancient roses in the

nineteenth century. They vary widely in habitat – from airy bushes to arching shrubs of 7 or 8ft. Most of the Old Garden Roses are sweetly fragrant with rougher, less glossy foliage than more modern varieties. They also produce mostly double flowers – densely packed with petals which repeat flower from mid-summer onwards.

For the taller roses at the back of Monet’s garden rose “Madame Hardy” is ideal. Growing up to 6ft tall this plant has erect branches with plentiful foliage. The double blooms are pure white which open out from pale pink buds and the petals are centred around a green eye. Rose “Charles de Mills” is shorter and fuller at 4ft by 3ft. This wonderful plant is free flowering with full double quartered blooms of beetroot purple – a real old fashioned beauty. At the front of the border rose “Camaieux” would work well with its loosely formed crimson and lilac blooms and low-arching stems.

Roses are a great shrub, cultivated for more than 4,000 years, and inspirational for poet, lover and gardener alike. They thrive on rich soil with plenty of organic matter and don’t forget to ask your worst enemy to prune your roses (as they humorously say up North) as without serious pruning they tend towards legginess.

That sorts out the nuts and bolts of the bed. Perennials inter-planted among the roses will help create the abundance of Renoir’s planting. Gypsophilia paniculata (known as Baby’s breath) is a robust herbaceous performer which flowers from mid-summer to early autumn. A bridal favourite, gyp throws up large airy sprigs of small white flowers on 3ft branched stems.

Helenium is another tall striking perennial which flowers a little later in the summer. Known as Sneezeweed, it was originally used by the early American colonists to make snuff – hence the nickname – and now has several fantastic different varieties. Helenium “Bruno” is 4ft tall and produces crimson flowers, “Coppelia” has flowers of orange and copper whilst “The Bishop” has clear yellow ones. These plants like a fertile soil and immediate removal of the stem tips after flowering will produce a second show.

If you don’t have a rickety rustic fence behind which to plant your summer wilderness a box hedge provides a great border for this type of planting. Go forth and create your own Monet masterpiece.Happy Gardening.

Renoir, Pierre-AugusteMonet painting in his garden at Argenteuil1873Oil on canvasWadsworth Atheneum, Hartford

Sue Williams

45

Michael

Michael’s Mini Grand TourFan, big fan of art.

Got the phone call, ‘Michael, can you?’ I poured myself a stiff Manhattan and said.......OK. There were a few people I had to go and see and this was the time to go and see them, starting right there in France.This guy was known to be a bit ‘different’ (wandering around, seemed a bit down - so much so that he had even cut off his ear and sent it to a friend - did a bit of painting, that sort of thing). It transpired that he was missing his favourite tipple. Rightly so, as it was a truly devastating vin de table called Le Grand Blanc by Henri Milan (£19.00. 14%vol).As you look at it in the crystalline luminescent light of Provence you can feel the golden sheen enveloping you like a fleece. The nose offers up a ‘maderised’ scent that, after some time out of the chiller, disappears, revealing soft notes of creamy fresh poached pears with a slightly salty/sweet edge to it, almost caramelised. This wine is huge, there is a right old cornucopia of grape varieties in here and it works like a charm. The finish is long and fabulous. Stunning.

Foodstuffs? Would probably do light meats, possibly charcuterie or foie gras, or maybe a fat tarte tatin (if it had the oomph needed).

Had to go. Places, people, you know how it is. Wound up in some burgh called Rufina not too far from Firenze. Here I found some young fellow having a right old time dancing about in a wooded area with a bevy of tip top looking frails. Clearly too much fun was being had, but all was made clear as I was handed a goblet of Selvapiana Chianti Rufina 2008 (£12.90. 13.5%vol). Even in the somewhat subdued light of said forest I could see the sun glinting on the ruby red rim of this succulent piece of work. As it passed my nose, in order for me to drink, there were dusty, peppery aromas of cherries and strawberry jam that delved into a palate of leather and dark berry fruits rolling on to a superbly long and concentrated finish. Hmm, no fooling. I’ll be down this way again.With food. Things from Italy, I guess.

Swiftly moving on, my somewhat erratic journey took me to the city of Malaga whereupon I heard cries of ‘call that art? My two year old son could do that’ and the like. On turning a corner I found a mildly dejected looking man of diminutive proportion and immediately suggest that we had a little ‘pick me up’. The very thing for this was a glass, or two, of the

rather fabulous Lustau East India Solera Sherry (£16.25. 20%vol). A blend of aged dry Olorosso and sweet Pedro Ximenez guaranteed to get those blood sugar levels back up to where they should be. With a colour of slow black wood and a nose of caramelised toffee and dried fruits one could already feel one’s energy cells being revitalised. The palate was the next step, a mouthful of chocolate, date, coffee and apricot flavours buoyed up by a vibrant level of acidity dispensing with any cloying stickiness, which fell effortlessly into a deep, long, sunny afternoon finish. I’m with you Pablo, let’s do lunch.This could do sweet, sticky puds or conversely a series of rich, unctuous tapas. Oh yes.

All of these little gems come from Green & Blue Lordship Lane, East Dulwichwww.greenandbluewines.com

As and when.

46

The Stuffed Vine Leaves....That Saved My Life!

Every family has its own version of vine leaves: some add spices and herbs; some add more

rice than meat; some roll the leaves so tightly you might need a saw to cut through them. The version below is known only to the Sawalha family, London branch, and can be tolerated only by those strong enough to withstand their very unfashionable fat content. All Arabs should look away now: you will not like what you see!

If you don’t have a vine in your garden – yes, they do grow in England (my mum has one) – use vine leaves from a packet or a jar.Two packets or one jar will yield more than eighty, but a lot will have to be discarded because they’re simply too big and tough.

Serves 4 as a main dish.

• 80 medium (about 10cm/4in across) fresh vine leaves, or vine leaves preserved in brine

• 1 large breast lamb, or 2 smaller ones (try to buy breast with the flap of meat at the end of the ribs still attached – this will be used to make mince for the stuffing. If it has already been cut away, use about 350g/12oz shoulder of lamb. Ask the butcher to chop through the ribs.)

• 150g (5½oz) rice (equal parts long-grain and risotto rice) salt, if necessary

• few squeezes lemon juice, if using fresh vine leaves

• natural yogurt to serve (optional)

If you’re using fresh leaves, blanch in boiling water for a few seconds until they turn from bright green to a brownish green.

If using preserved leaves, separate them and put them in a bowl, cover with boiling water and leave for 10 minutes. Rinse them a few times with cold water to remove some of the brine, then drain. Keep tasting – you don’t want them to get too bland.

Cut off the flap from the breast of lamb. If you have a blender, it’s yourlucky day, because you only have to cut the meat into very small bite-sized pieces and then blend until minced. Without a blender, poor soul, you might need a couple of aunties lurking in the kitchen to help you cut the meat into very small pieces – I’ll allow you petits pois-size pieces. It’s much easier to cut the meat if it is very well chilled or even just off frozen. You’ll need a roughly equal quantity of meat and rice, so if there isn’t enough, you can pare some more meat and fat from the ribs. Don’t be squeamish about using the fat: it’s important for keeping the rice and leaves juicy.

Wash the rice in hot water first, then rinse it again and again in cold water until the water runs clear. Mix the minced meat and rice together. If you’re using preserved leaves you won’t need salt, as there’s enough in the leaves themselves. If you’re using fresh ones, salt the rice/meat mixture to taste and add a big pinch to the cooking water.

Lay a vine leaf in front of you, with the raised veiny side up and the stalk end towards you. (If it has a stalk, cut it off.) Take some rice and meat in one hand and squeeze and roll it (not too tightly) into a 1cm (½in) thick, pencilshaped roll to fit on to the vine leaf with about 1cm (½in) each side to spare when you place it horizontally three-quarters of the way down from the top of the leaf.

Take the piece of leaf nearest to you and fold it over the meat mixture, then fold over the two sides, and roll away from you, as firmly as you can, tucking in the edges as you go to make a neat roll. It’s not necessary for the leaves to be exactly the same size, but if you start with one about 10cm (4in) across and use the same amount of stuffing for each one, then the overall result will be that they will all look the same size – in sha’allah (hopefully)!

Although we like this to be a fatty dish, there is usually a little too much fat on the rib pieces, so just cut off the large chunks that run along the top end of the bones. Lay two or three bones in the bottom of a pressure cooker or medium-sized heavy saucepan, then layer the rolled leaves, tightly packed together, with two or three bones between each layer, finishing with a layer of bones. If you’re using fresh vine leaves, squeeze a little lemon juice over each layer of leaves.

If using a pressure cooker, add 425ml (¾ pint) cold water and bring up to pressure. Simmer for 25 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave, unopened, for half an hour. Drain and turn out on to a large plate to serve.

INGREDIENTS

METHOD

The Stuffed Vine Leaves....That Saved My Life!

If using an ordinary saucepan, add 600ml (1 pint) cold water, put a weighted plate on top of the vine leaves, bring to the boil and simmer for 50–60 minutes, or until the rice is cooked and the meat tender. Leave covered for 15 minutes before draining and serving. Natural yogurt is a very good accompaniment.

48

THERE’S A WORLD OUT THERE!OR RATHER, THIS TIME AROUND, THERE’S A CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC IN NORTH-WESTERN SOUTH AMERICAN, OUT THERE - AS HOWARD MALE TRIES TO PREDICT THE NEXT TREND IN WORLD MUSIC

The world of World Music tends to focus its attention on different

corners of the globe at different times. A decade or so ago it was Cuba, more recently there’s been a glut of stuff from Eastern Europe (catchily labelled Balkan beats) and West Africa. So where will the PR people and DJs look next? Well, all I know is that I’ve had quite a few CDs drop through the letterbox recently from Colombia, having previously only received the odd Cumbia compilation to review. For those who don’t know, Cumbia was the kind of parallel musical dance form to ska in Jamaica. It was just as contagiously catchy and timeless, and now a few contemporary bands have picked up on its loping seesawing beat and are reinventing it. Perhaps the most well-known of these is South London outfit Ska Cubano (featuring Peckham’s own Natty Bo.) As their name suggests this globally successful live band also throw ska and Cuban music into the mix too, and their third album Mambo Ska (Cajino Sounds) is as good as anything they’ve previously done. The title track alone would make a great summer hit in the unlikely event that our narrow-minded national radio stations were to play it.

But if you want to have a listen to the kind of music that inspired Ska Cubano there are two very different but equally fascinating compilations out this month. Afro Sound of Colombia Volume 1 (Vampi Soul) concentrates on the 1960s and 70s and to match its so-dreadful-it’s-good sleeve it’s a delightfully kitsch collection which embraces James Brown-style funk workouts, some thrillingly cheesy space-age keyboard sounds, and that great bass-led groove of Cumbia, as well as plenty of other Latin grooves. Indispensable for anyone who likes their party music to reflect their ironic take on the wonderful world of pop music – or wonderful pop of world music!

Less ironic and even more compelling is Palenque Palengue! (Soundway Records) which is subtitled Champeta Criolla & Afro Roots in Colombia 1975-91. It also happens to neatly follow on from the period represented by the previous CD, but represents a move back to a rootsier style. It’s not for everyone, as the music is repetitive in the extreme. But if you surrender to its circling call and response vocals, scratchy guitar riffs and relentless and complex percussion, you may end up as much of a fan as I

am. There’s something about almost every track’s fluid momentum and sheer exuberance that makes it so different from the rigidity of any contemporary mind-numbing programmed dance track. Somehow despite the apparently endless repetition, my ears and brain find something interesting to engage with, and my feet are perfectly happy too.

But for a more forward-looking take on the Colombian music scene you could do a lot worse than check out the new trio Choc Quib Town whose Latin Grammy-nominated debut Oro (World Connection) is a chunky slice of Jamaican dancehall-influenced hip-hop which never stoops to merely imitating the ubiquitous American sound which has clearly inspired it. Instead the focus is on melody as much as those earth-shaking break beats and compulsory rapping. They are happy to acknowledge their folk tradition (despite labelling it ‘grandma’s music’) by making use of traditional instruments such as the marimba (a wooden xylophone) to add extra colour and texture. Should you wish to catch them live they’re at Glastonbury on 24 June and the Lovebox Festival on 17 July.

So I have realised that the most fun schooling you can have is to go to ‘Rock School’ and hang out with the rock stars!I heard these were happening in the area so rocked up to do some research for a radio show in my capacity as a Rock Chick Presenter! Wurzel, the legendary guitarist from Motorhead, was offering advice and guidance to the students who all seemed very star struck to have him in attendance. I last saw Wurzel backstage at Motorhead’s final UK date at Hammersmith Apollo in November, where he joined his old band for the final numbers and the crowd went wild. For those of you who are not familiar with the rock scene then let me enlighten you; Wurzel was lead guitarist in Motorhead for twelve years and had a massive following, which he still retains to this day. He penned many of their hits including, ‘Killed by Death’ and ‘Snaggletooth’. He is a whirlwind of energy and fun who manifests enthusiasm for his music and he is a very genuine and comical guy. He offered his support and expertise to the students with a selfless and humble manner and they all just loved him! He now plays in a rock band with ‘Leader of Down.’ Check them out on myspace and the Summer Rock Festival circuit. Lemmy sings a track on their new album which is due for release later this year. Back to the ‘Rock School’; it was fantastic! Wurzel performed his wizard lead breaks and demonstrated how to create the different sounds through his amp. He also talked frankly about being in the music business – good times and bad. The students then had a chance to gain his expertise in guitar technique. The whole day culminated in live performances from the students, showcasing what they had learned during their training. Other industry professionals also make guest appearances. Recent ‘Rock Schools’ have had demon drummer Steve Clarke from ‘Fastway’. I like to describe his playing as ‘road runner in a Concorde’! It was fascinating to witness his roadie set up his impressive drum kit, which included a double bass drum. Mr Clarke then proceeded to give one of the most impressive drum demonstrations I have heard! Technically, he listened to a click track in an ear piece to achieve the beats with fast and furious military precision. That inspired a few rhythm makers I am sure! I had a chat to

many of the ‘rock stars in the making’ to see what they had gotten from the experience and the feedback was all positive. They embraced the chance to express themselves creatively whilst under the expert direction of musicians in the business, who prepare you for the highs as well as the possible pitfalls. What it gave them was an opportunity to gain a realistic insight as to the qualities you need to succeed in an extremely competitive and nocturnal industry! Wurzel has helped and inspired so many young people in his connections to the Rock Schools. I have spoken to parents of the students and they are forever indebted to his kindness. In some cases he has brought the students, who were struggling to fit into society and succeed in the ‘mainstream’, the optimism to pursue their ambition in life. The Rock Schools are held in various locations across England but the local one for Transmitter readers is the Air Cadets Centre on the Penge borders, although some are planned for later in the year in Crystal Palace. The sessions give a chance for people of all ages to be involved. You don’t need to be the best musician in the world to attend and you don’t need to be in a band but what you

do need is a passion for music and the willingness to learn and meet others who want the same! If you would

like to find out more then further details will be in a later edition. Personally, I had a blast and

I can’t wait to go back to ‘Rock School’ again. I can feel some more research for my radio show coming on…

Clare FletCher

Clare FletcherroCk ChiCk Presenter

Photo by Kevin Scullion

50

The BooksellerJONATHAN MAIN ON READING, ROBOTS, CAMPING AND WIFE CARRYING

Not too long ago Yann Martel, sometime visitor to Crystal Palace and author of the 2002

Booker Prize-winning Life of Pi sent a letter to the Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper along with a copy of Alan Bennett’s The Uncommon Reader (that I helped to choose) and a photograph of himself and yours truly standing together outside the Bookseller Crow. He didn’t get a reply. But I don’t think that he expected one: it was the 43rd such book and letter that he had sent to Stephen Harper (but the only one with my smiling fizzog as a bonus in the package) as part of a lonely book club borne out of frustration at his Prime Minister’s lack of acknowledgement for the arts. You can read more about this extraordinary project at the blog What is Stephen Harper Reading? Or in the book of the same name (Vintage Canada £12.99.)Martel’s long-awaited new novel, Beatrice and Virgil (Canongate £15.99) is published in early May, it features a donkey and a howler monkey who are characters in a play written by an octogenarian taxidermist. Other notable new fiction titles this month include A Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell author of Cloud Atlas (Sceptre £18.99). I haven’t read it yet, but I do have a pristine signed and numbered limited edition proof that I have stashed in the family vault for the day in early October, if as the early reviews suggest, it wins this year’s Booker Prize. Jonathan Coe, author of the very popular The Rotters Club and What a Carve Up! also has new novel, The Terrible Privacy of Maxwell Sim (Penguin £18.99) that the author promises is a 21st-century homage to

his favourite novel, Tom Jones, by Henry Fielding. I once went to a party were Jonathan Coe wore a suit with white cotton gloves and stood in the corner drinking wine as though it were the most natural thing in the world. Fact.

Last week I was asked to explain to a couple of American booksellers on Twitter (http://twitter.com/booksellercrow)

what the Proms (2010 program £6.00) were. By the time I had finished my 140 character explanation, ‘And then we wave Union Jack flags and sing Rule Britannia!’ I quickly realised just how remarkably different we must appear to them across the pond. As evidence I offer up a copy of A Brit Different: A Guide to the Eccentric Events and Curious Contests of Britain by Emma Wood and Keith Didcock (Punk Publishing £14.95). It’s all here, from Shin Kicking Contests to Wife Carrying Races to Cheese Rolling. Never mind the UK Citizenship tests, they should simply ask prospective candidates: how are you at Mud Racing? what are your Carrying Flaming Tar Barrel skills like?

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'Top tip: take a

Frisbee...'

Between ash clouds and a weak pound I think a lot of us may be holidaying at home, and possibly exploring

some of these pastimes, again this year. A good job then that the plethora of trendy camping guides, pioneered by the above Punk Publishing, continues apace. Alongside their now established Cool Camping series, new editions of which have recently been published, is a new title Tiny Campsites by Dixie Wills (Punk Publishing £10.95) which boasts a selection of 75 of the very best campsites across Britain, each of them an acre or smaller. Top tip: take a Frisbee, entertainment and a plate rolled into one (although I’d be careful to actually finish your egg and beans before you let fly).Joining the fray this year (and it has to be said, in a suspiciously, me-too manner, right down to the paper it is printed on) is the Rough Guide to Camping in Britain (Rough Guides £16.99), which advertises over 300 of Britain’s best campsites and certainly feels comprehensive. Just keep an eye out for flying hash browns. For children, shop and Transmitter

favourite Alex Milway author of the popular Mousehunter trilogy has the first of a new

series featuring the mythical 9th division: a group of yetis who work for the British Armed Forces fearlessly defending the world against the forces of evil. In Operation Robot Storm (Walker Books £5.99) something strange is happening in the Welsh mountains: there are ice storms in the middle of summer and only Albrecht, Timonen and Saar can save us all. Each chapter begins with a four-page Manga-style comic and should prove very popular. Look out too, for the second adventure coming in December.

Elsewhere in this issue of The Transmitter we celebrate the return of motor racing to Crystal Palace, but did you

know that, as claimed in Motor Racing at Crystal Palace – London’s own circuit (Veloce Publishing £12.99), it could well lay claim to being the oldest motorsport venue in Britain? I’ve mentioned this book before, but any petrolhead will never cease to be fascinated by pictures of Jochen Rindt, Emerson Fittipaldi and Graham Hill, to say nothing of the (cough) ‘Pit Popsies’ – a common sight, especially during the period when hotpants were in fashion. See, this is in-depth social history we are talking about here.Speaking of which, there is very little about the Crystal Palace available for school children, which is a shame. One book that is available however, is The Great Exhibition by Jane Shuter in a series called How do we know about…? which is very good at giving a background historical context to what was once at the end of the road. We have copies of the hardback edition (Heinemann Library for £4.99) which is less than half its original price and two quid cheaper than the paperback. Books, we got ‘em.

On Saturday July 24 the Christ Church Gipsy Hill Goodliffe Hall development project will be hosting a fund raising spectacular 'one off' guitar recital by two of the world's finest classical guitarists, the Grigoryan brothers. Multi Australian 'BRIT' (ARIA) award winners Slava and Leonard Grigoryan have astounded audiences worldwide with their virtuosity, combining stunning interpretations of their instrument's classical repertoire with boundary stretching journeys into other genres, such as latin, jazz and world folk. The list of musicians and orchestras they have collaborated with speaks for itself; Paco de Lucia, Sting, KD Lang, The London, Viennese and Melbourne Philharmonic to name but a few. Slava and Leonard have enjoyed calling Crystal Palace their home away from home when visiting London for many years. Slava spent five years living here earlier on in his career. It was during his stay that he composed a piece of music entitled 'Gypsy Hill' , which went on to feature on his No1 selling album 'Another Night In London'. It's going to be a night of truly sensational music. Tickets are £10, which includes a free interval drink and an opportunity to meet the artists after the performance. For ticket information please email simonstrevens@hotmail.com. For more Grigoryan Brothers information and videos visit www.grigoryanbrothers.com

52

MUSICDulwich Picture GalleryDulwich Picture GalleryGallery Road, Dulwich SE21 7AD020 8299 8750Tickets available from the Gallery or call 020 8299 8750 e-mail friendsticketing@dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk for further info

Friday 9 JulyGrand Opera Evening -Handel at the Gallery

6.30 pm Champagne Reception in the Garden7.15 pm Performance in the GalleryLong interval in the middle for picnics. Wet weather arrangements will be in place!£40, Friends £35

Thursday 8 July Supper with music

Dulwich Picture Gallery CafeDine to the music of the Django Rienhard quartet.A delicious two course French meal available for £14.75 or three courses for £16.95

The Grape & GrainAnerley Hill, Crystal PalaceLondon SE19 2AATel: 0208 778 8211info@thegrapeandgrainse19.co.uk

Sundays

Free Live Jazz2pm - 4pm

MondaysBig Beer Band - 17 piece swing band 8.30pm

Tuesdays Adam Sage

singer/guitarist 8.30pm

The Gipsy Hill TavernGypsy Hill Tavern79 Gipsy Hill, SE19 1QHwww.gipsyhilltavern.co.uk

Friday 18 JuneThe Effras (with Ben Williams Band)

10pm

The HOB Musicsee comedy for venue details

FridaysLive Music from 10pm bar til 2

The White Hart96 Church Road, SE19 2EZwww.thewhitehartse19.co.uk

Sunday 27 JuneThe Effras

8pm

WHAt's ON

COMEDYGipsy Hill ComedyBlack Sheep Bar23 Westow Hill, SE19 1TQ07758 521 378www.gipsyhillcomedy.co.uk

Friday 2 AprilDoors 8.30pmTickets £7adv/£8 on door

ANDY ZALTZMAN “The best political comedian in the business. Breathtakingly good” Time Out. EDWARD ACZEL “Britain’s greatest entertainer…the future of comedy” Time Out. TERRY SAUNDERS

The HOB Comedyopposite Forest Hill station7 Devonshire RoadForest Hill, SE23 3HE020 8855 0496 www.edcomedy.com

Thursday 3 JuneCelebrity Pub Quiz

Comedian Gordon Southern as quizmaster. Cash prizes and drinks to be won 9pm £2

Saturday 5 JuneStand Up Comedy

Kate Smurthwaite mc, Pete Jonas, Rob Coleman, Nick Revell 9pm £9/£6concs Late bar

Grigoryan Brothers

53

Send your listings information to: listings@thetransmitter.co.uk

WHAt's ONSunday 6 JuneEdinburgh Festival Previews

A double bill with Michael Fabbri and Paul Sinha £8/£6concs

Thursday 10 JuneCelebrity Pub Quiz

Comedian Windsor as your. Cash prizes and free drinks to be won 9pm £2

Saturday 12 JuneStand Up Comedy

Chris Neill mc, Inder Manocha, Mitch Benn and Special Guest9pm £9/£6concs Late bar

Sunday 13 JuneEdinburgh Festival Previews

A double bill £8/£6concs

Thursday 17 JuneCelebrity Pub Quiz

Comedian Michael Legge as guest quizmaster. Cash prizes and free drinks to be won9pm £2

Saturday 19 JuneStand Up Comedy

Sanderson Jones, Sol Bernstein, Hal Cruttenden an guest mc 9pm £9/£6concs Late bar

Sunday 20 JuneEdinburgh Festival Previews

A double bill With Addy van der Borgh And one show TBC £8/£6concs

Wednesday 23 JuneSo You Think You’re Funny?London Heats.

Established since 1988 SYTYF is the most prestigious of all the Edinburgh Festival Fringe stand-up comedy competition8pm £5

Thursday 24 June Celebrity Pub Quiz

Cash prizes and free drinks to be won 9pm £2

Saturday 26 JuneStand Up Comedy

Guest mc, Alan Francis, Ginger & Black and Keith Farnan9pm £9/£6concs Late bar

Sunday 27 JuneEdinburgh Festival Previews

A double bill With Josh Howie And one show TBC £8/£6concs

Live Music every Friday, 10pm bar til 2amPurple Zeppelin (4th), We ghosts (11th), Talking Strawberries plus Rock Choir at 9.30pm (18th), 5th Element (25th)Upstairs bar available for private parties please contact pp@edcomedy.com

FILMThe Hob Film Clubsee comedy for venue details

Come and watch a film with us on the last Wednesday of every month.

Wednesday 30th June Film Club night

8pm £4Screamers Club at 1pm, £2 membershipFilms exclusively for parents with babies under one year oldFull details are on our Film Club webpage.

GalleryfilmDulwich Picture GalleryGallery Road, Dulwich SE21 7AD

All films begin 7.45pmBar from 7.15pm £8, £6 FriendsAll tickets available from the Friends Desk or phone 020 8299 8750. For information call 020 8299 8750 or e-mail friendsticketing@dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk

Monday 21 JuneThis is Spinal Tap ( 1984)

Cert 15/82 mins. Directed by Rob Reiner, staring Christopher Guest, Michael McKean & Harry Shearer. A mockumentary, about the world's loudest band, Spinal Tap, a hilarious satire of the rock and roll scene. • Includes free wine and American snacks kindly donated by Gourmet Burger Kitchen, East Dulwich• Free raffle prize - DVD of ‘Anvil: the Story of Anvil’ (a docu about a real life Spinal Tap)

Monday 19 JulyDays of Heaven (1978)

Cert PG/95 minutesDirected by Terrence Malick, starring Richard Gere, Brooke AdamsSet in the early 20th century it is the story of lovers Abby and Bill and his little sister Linda, transient labourers who harvest crops in Texas on the farm of a dying farmer. The naturally lit, sweeping scents were strongly inspired by Andrew Wyeth’s paintings. Some of these can be seen in the forthcoming exhibition at Dulwich Picture Gallery ‘The Wyeth Family’.Includes wine and American snacks kindly donated by Blackbird Bakery Free raffle prize

ODEON BeckenhamHigh Street BeckenhamBR3 1DYSenior screen listings

Sign up to the new odeon loyalty scheme for just £1.99. Y ou will be rewarded with 40 points for every visit to a senior screening. Collect points for free cinema ticketsAsk at box office for more details

Tuesday 1 JuneHachi: a dog’s tale (u)

1h 33m

Tuesday 8 JuneThe boys are back (12a)

1h 40m

Tuesday 15 JuneThe blind side (12a)

2h 09m

Tuesday 22 JuneThe lovely bones (12a)

2h 16m

Tuesday 29 JuneExtraordinary measures (pg)

1h 46m Films will start at 11am. Box Office Opens 10:30 All films and times are subject to change.

EXHIBITIONSDulwich Picture GalleryDulwich Picture GalleryGallery Road, Dulwich SE21 7ADwww.dulwichpicturegallery.org.ukTelephone 020 8693 5254

Open Tuesdays to Fridays 10am – 5pmSaturdays, Sundays & Bank Holiday Mondays 11 am – 5 pmClosed Mondays except Bank Holidays. Open on Good Friday.

9 June – 22 August 2010The Wyeths: Three Generations of American ArtOn loan from the Bank of America Collection

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54

Mon 7 JuneFIVE DAYS IN JUNE: DAY ONE

Joseph Paxton’s first visit to Hyde Park (1850)(LEWISHAM in the Children’s Crystal Palace)

Tue 8 JuneFIVE DAYS IN JUNE: DAY TWO

Joseph Paxton died at Rockhills (1865) (LAMBETH in the Children’s Crystal Palace)

Wed 9 JuneFIVE DAYS IN JUNE: DAY THREE

7pm Grape and Grain: CRYSTAL PALACE BAND(CROYDON in the Children’s Crystal Palace)

Thu 10 JuneFIVE DAYS IN JUNE: DAY FOUR

Opening of the South London Crystal Palace (1854)(SOUTHWARK in the Children’s Crystal Palace) 7pm LIBRARY: CRYSTAL PALACE HERITAGE EVENING ‘‘How The Crystal Palace Was Built’ (John Greatrex)The Crystal Palace Film Studio’ (Jerry Green)‘Crystal Palace and the Railways’ (Stephen West) ‘Darwin and the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs’ (Alastair Cameron) ‘The Crystal Palace Corner’ (John Greatrex)

Fri 11 JuneFIVE DAYS IN JUNE: DAY FIVE

Joseph Paxton doodles the Crystal Palace (1850) (BROMLEY in the Children’s Crystal Palace)

Sat 12 June CRYSTAL PALACE PARK WEEKENDDINOSAUR DAY

Crystal Palace Park Information Centre Penge Entrance2.30pm DINOSAUR GUIDED TOUR WITH THE PARK RANGERSLimited space: book now on 020 8778 9496

Sun 13 June 3pm PICNIC IN THE PALACE

At Paxton’s Crystal Palace Corner on The Old Crystal Palace Site including:

• FACEJACKER• FLAGMAN (Peter Stanley)• CRYSTAL PALACE FLOWER SHOW,• ROYAL FRIDGE MAGNET EXHIBITION,• THE POET-TREE with the PALACE POETS,• THE CRYSTAL PALACE LITTLE & LARGE SHOWCREEPS

(THE CRYSTAL PALACE RE-ENACTMENT SOCIETY)• READING THE FESTIVAL PLAY: JOSEPH AND HIS

AMAZING CRYSTAL PALACE 7pm Grape & Grain END OF FESTIVAL CABARET

20th CENTURY WOMAN with Fiona-Jane Weston

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Two - Day Quarterly Select AuctionTuesday 8th & Wednesday 9th June 2010 @ 11am

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Morning of Auctions Days 9:30am to 10:45am

Enquiries: Tel: 020 8761 2522 Fax: 020 8761 2524 Email: auctions@roseberys.co.uk

Catalogues: £10 (£12 by post)Fully illustrated catalogue online at: www.roseberys.co.uk

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NICE SHAPE (Putney Station)

Pilates at Training Points

Buy a Pukka Herbal Tea for £2.10 and get a FREE Pilates session on

Tuesday 1 June at 6.30 pm.

All levels are Welcome

Training Points Studio85 Church RoadCrystal Palace, SE19 2TA www.trainingpoints.co.uk

Tuesdays: 1.15 pm, 6.30pmThursdays: 8pmSundays: 9.30am

Jennifer Knowles also holds Aerobic Conditioning Classes on Fridays at 6pm

It’s fun, energetic and gets you toned and fit quickly.

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END of TRANsmission

Art used to be nice and simple. There were painters who painted stuff that looked like stuff and there were sculptors who sculpted stuff that looked like stuff. Painters went about painting nice pictures of

trees and fields and people in boats and lots of naked people. We can see these paintings in the National Gallery and tell ourselves that we understand what they are about. Of course we don’t really understand what they are about - we are merely shielded from our ignorance because we think that the stuff that’s painted looks like the stuff that was painted.

Yes, art used to be easy. And then it all went wrong around the turn of the 20th century. In 1907 Picasso painted Les Demoiselles d’Avignon and in so doing threw down a pretty heavy gauntlet to other artists in Europe. He was saying 'I'm not painting stuff that looks like stuff any more, what are you going to paint like, eh?' Then of course there was the first world war. Some European artists seemed to feel that the mechanised slaughter of a large percentage of the male population was somehow a reason to change their ‘style’. It was as if the sight of boys being blown apart and the thought of all those mothers and wives and girlfriends and daughters whose lives were being torn to shreds by all the pointless carnage warranted some kind of an ‘artistic response’. It was as if, somehow, painting trees and flowers that looked like trees and flowers was no longer enough. It was as if the modern world had irreversibly turned a corner and that art had to respond to this new world. Or some such excuse.

In 1917 Marcel Duchamp exhibited something that was literally designed to take the piss - A Urinal. Ever since then these so called artists have been continuing in this vein. Things got steadily worse in the 50s when 'Pillock' and others just threw paint around and then went from worse to even worser in the 60s when Andy Warhol started flogging us Elvis prints. Since then everything and nothing has been offered up to us as 'art' by an unending series of poncey art school graduates. When ordinary folk like me pop along to the Tate 'Modern', we don’t have a clue what all this stuff is meant to be about.

And yet, in the midst of all this, some people actually carry on quietly painting. It is hard not to have a form of sad affection for these latter day painters - working away as they are in an almost completely defunct medium, seemingly oblivious to the seismic waves of technological and social change around them. It’s nearly, but not always, a complete waste of time - Gerhard Richter is probably the only person who has painted anything worth looking at in decades. But still, there they are, and there it is and it brings a little joy into the world. Which can't be bad.

PAINTING

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