This morning the washing line reminded me of Dylan Thomas:
The force that through the green fuse dri(v)es the flower…
A Line Of Dylan Thomas
A Wonderful Web
There’s a spider at the window in the centre of its web waiting for aphids. It has constructed the web in the perfect place, stretched like a cloche to protect the lettuce growing on the kitchen windowsill. Maybe it thinks it’s Webbs Wonderful. In fact it’s actually Red Dazzle from a Psychedelic Salad Kit. Those are Rainbow Radish growing alongside. Continue reading “A Wonderful Web”
The Corr Cat Collective
We just received a fantastic collection of colourful cats from Christopher Corr. If they were all lions they’d be a pride; tigers would be an ambush; leopards a leap. But this is a mixed wild bunch, a clan, a clowder? I reckon it’s a corr of cats. Continue reading “The Corr Cat Collective”
The Touré-Raichel Collective
This is a lovely story of a chance meeting that led to the creation of some beautiful music. Vieux Farka Touré and Idan Raichel explore their common ground between Mali and Israel. I’ve been playing The Tel Aviv Session non-stop in my workshop; a gorgeous, improvised soundtrack to our recent heatwave. It’s almost as good as the magnificent Talking Timbuktu, the 1994 collaboration between Vieux’s father, Ali Farka Touré and Ry Cooder. There’s also a new album by Vieux Farka Touré, Mon Pays, and I’m looking forward to seeing him perform live at this weekend’s Open East Festival.
Gnawa Studies
The 16th Gnawa Festival in Essaouira on Morocco’s Atlantic coast is a largely free four-day celebration of the music of the Gnawa, what is perhaps the oldest trance music in the world, the root note of inner transportation and sufi trance that attracts hundreds of thousands of Moroccans and intrepid international visitors to Essaouira each June, over the weekend of the full moon. Continue reading “Gnawa Studies”
Jerusalem, Topography & Typography
Last Christmas I was given two books that I found inspirational in different ways: Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi’s Jerusalem and Simon Sebag Montefiore’s Jerusalem the Biography.
To summarise briefly, the first book has become my cooking bible, and is a testament to inspirational cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians, and the second book reveals the city’s complex history and the sources of controversy that have plagued her continuously. Continue reading “Jerusalem, Topography & Typography”
Should You Be Passing…
Maggi Hambling At Kensington Place
We are very proud to announce that The Art Wall at Kensington Place is now showing March Wave Breaking by the distinguished contemporary artist Maggi Hambling. This is one of her celebrated and continuing series of North Sea paintings, last seen in the exhibition The Wave at The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge in 2010. It’s a huge and overwhelming painting and poised to engulf anyone who dares to sit beneath it! Continue reading “Maggi Hambling At Kensington Place”
Half Way
Half Way – Port Meadow project with David Attwooll.
Fog. Snow. Flood. Wind. Rain. We have been through all. It makes outside work difficult if not impossible. Pen clogs with ice. Watercolour freezes and gets spattered with rain. Continue reading “Half Way”
The Wayfarer
This is a short film by Sarah Thomas. It was made in Iceland, the music improvised in an empty fish oil tank at an abandoned herring factory. It is the winner of the Penguin Books Wayfarer competition. As a result, Sarah will spend the next two months travelling around Britain, recording her experiences for A Journey On Foot. She has also written Journeys In Between, both blogs worth a look, both distinguished by captivating photos and enthralling stories.