Artists Book for Charity - Emily Prosser fund

If anyone is interested in contributing a piece of art to an auction to be held on 31 January 2010 at Monkey Cafe Swansea from 4pm onwards please contact me on rhysjones@ntlworld.com

The charity auction is part of a fundraising event with musicians and performers organised by Swansea singer-songwriter Niki Stitch www.myspace.com/nikistitch. The monies will be raised for the Emily Prosser Therapy fund so that Emily can receive regular alternative cerebral palsy treatment at an advanced clinic - join the group on Facebook if you'd like to.

I am also pulling together an artists book to be sold around this event to raise additional funds. If you are interested to have your work included please send me a 300 dpi jpeg to the same email address.

Friday 13th

I am not particularly superstitious but I'm looking through the catalogue of the film-maker Alfred Hitchcock. A lot has been written about his work and signs that are contained within. He has left behind some interesting film of his own thoughts on his work and that coupled with watching and forming our own opinions is possibly the best way of forming our own views. I'm way behind with updates to my visual diary partly because my time has been occupied with other things that have taken priority. I'll be participating in a joint exhibition of art work in Swansea in January which is exciting plus I'm hoping to go on an art trip to Berlin with our MA group also in January which will give a lot of inspiration to my art practice. I've never been to Berlin before and now is a good time to be there with the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall very much in our minds and all that symbolises to the world and especially to the people of Berlin where families were split apart when the wall went up in 1961. I guess it's easy to build our own personal walls and cut ourselves off from people but sometimes we need to be on our own and if we don't like our own company it is going to be difficult to enjoy the company of other people.

When I go off on my own it is usually to take photographs which I am planning for this week-end.

2009 Flower Show Match

The Flower Show Match 2009
Matfield Village CC v George Sherston's XI

Played at Matfield on July 22nd 2009

The fourth annual cricket match between Matfield Village and George Sherston’s XI took place in the idyllic setting of Matfield Village Green in the Kent countryside near Tonbridge. The match is played each year in memory of Siegfried Sassoon. The match was once again honoured by the attendance of Dennis Silk, Vice-President of the SSF and former President of the MCC.

The 1906 Flower Show Match is described by Sassoon in ‘Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man’ as being “the match of the year” and to play in it for the first time “was an outstanding event: words were inadequate.” In 2009, those same words still apply as this match is considered one of the highlights of the sporting year by the players of both teams.

As usual the teams gathered before the match for a pre-match lunch in ‘The Wheelwrights Arms’ – some of those in attendance had also played in the golf match the day before. Both events are the brain-child of Bob Miller who has again been the driving force of pulling the team together.

The weather in 2009 was a somewhat unsettled affair – periods of sunshine in the opening period were interspersed with period of cloud, which eventually gave way to some light drizzle during the Sherston innings. Whatever the conditions, both teams adapted well and resolutely continued until close of play at 7pm. Matfield went into bat first as in the 2008 match. A spirited display by the opening bowling pair of Jones and Bull and some fine fielding by the Sherston XI saw the first two wickets fall for just 35 runs. The good form shown by the Sherston team continued despite resistance to the bowling attack from Mills and Danby in the Matfield batting line up. The players thought an early tea might be on the cards when the ninth Matfield wicket fell for 98 but the last wicket partnership by Wilkin and Cooper had other ideas and admirably contributed a further 57 to the Matfield run total, finally ending on 155 when Wilkin was lbw to Southwell for 23 leaving Cooper unbeaten on 34.

Tea is always a highlight of a village cricket match and the spread provided by Matfield was no exception and much appreciated by both players, match officials and spectators. The 2009 match tea of delicious sandwiches, light snacks and a vast array of cakes with an accompanying cup of tea was taken in the pavillion on the edge of the green. In 1906 a Luncheon tent was provided and Sassoon describes the somewhat different and slightly humorous food preparation of lunch that day : “the brawny barman……sharpened the carving-knife on a steel prong with a rasping sound that set one’s teeth on edge while predicting satisfactory slices of lamb and beef, to say nothing of veal and ham pie and a nice bit of gammon and bacon.” A grace was said by the Rector of Rotherden who was known for “the strident and obstreperous bellow to which he gave vent when he was trying to bluff a village umpire into giving a batsman out “caught behind”.

In the 2009 match, fortified by the splendid tea, Matfield took to the field to try and outwit the Sherston batting line-up. During the Sherston innings, the weather took a turn for the worse but the team stuck to their task and the runs started to appear on the scoreboard at a good scoring rate. Barford and Lawson put on 45 for the first wicket. Lawson was bowled by Knott for 20 and Barford was eventually out for 65 bowled by Cooper. There was good support from the rest of the Sherston batting line-up, with notable contributions from Southwell and Heard who contributed 17 runs each. A late burst of sunshine after the rain not only saw a rainbow appear in the darkened sky over the village green but also a final flourish from the Sherston team and they scored the winning runs for the loss of 5 wickets.

The final presentation ceremony was very honoured by a visit from Derek Underwood fresh from his duties at Lords in his role of MCC President where he hosted The Queen for lunch during the 2nd Ashes test England v Australia. The winning captain Julian Hill was presented with the commemorative plate by Dennis Silk followed by the presentation to Matfield of a photograph of the teams who played in the 2008 match : a gift from the Siegfried Sassoon Foundation. Dennis Silk read ‘Everyone Sang’ and recounted how he first met Siegfried at a match between Cambridge University and Worcestershire in 1954 and said how much his friend would have relished the match played in 2009 on Matfield Village green. Derek Underwood wound up a memorable day with a short address and everyone dispersed with a promise to convene again next year. The match series now stands at 2-2 so there is everything to play for next year to take the lead in the series!

Return from Edinburgh

We had a fantastic time - the Edinburgh Fringe is a great place to see some very talented performers and exhibitors. The lesson for an artist is to book ahead a year in advance and ensure that the location is an official fringe venue - marketing is essential because there is competition from hundreds of other performers. Going to have a think about next year! Thanks to those who came to our exhibition!

Food Imagination

I try and avoid motorway service areas but just lately I've had to use them because of time constraints and it gives me such annoyance that the public are being short-changed in every way and are votong with their feet and staying away. Last night most of the menu was unavailable and what was on offer was a totally unappetising dried up pie and a fish and chips that looked like it had been cooked in a tub of batter about a week ago. Coffee is priced at almost £3 a cup - breakfast leaves almost no change from £10 if you have a drink with it - the nutritional value of food is not really considered. It's time we had a change! Why not hand over the running of one of these places to catering colleges. Swansea catering students run the restaurant in Singleton Park and do a great value for money job and produce interesting and appetising food with nutrition considered. If you go to France, the food is cooked to order and appears appetising and pretty good value for money. I'm sure the public will return if they feel that they are not being ripped off! healthy food in our bodies will make us all feel better and will in the long run mean that less people are spending time at the doctor and in hospital! rant over! 

Swansea and Photography

January 2010 marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of one of the pioneers of photography, John Dillwyn Llewelyn. We were talking last night at the opening of 'Facing the Future' Open Photography exhibition that it would be fitting to have the anniversary celebrated in some way in Swansea.

Photography was only available to those prominent families who had the wealth to pursue this medium, but it has now developed into an activity in which everyone can participate for a modest outlay on a simple digital or even film camera.

For a period of over 15 years in the Victorian age, Swansea could rightly claim to be in the forefront of some of the pioneering activities to progress photographic techniques and knowledge and it is something well worth a celebration 200 years later!

Forgotten Camera : Remembered Moment

Crowded summer train

Party mood despite some rain

A large group of revellers

Drink-induced animation maybe

Sprawled in standard class posing

Planning their clubbing

No, and why not ?

 

It all changed in a second

Modern communication

Vodafone, Orange, T-Mobile – who knows ?

Hand-held phone to one ear,

Stella Artois in the other

‘Michael Jackson’s dead’

Hell, man - you're kidding!

Pinhole in a shoe-box

A rip in the canvas

The moment was frozen

Camera obscura

Punctum maybe

The train just went on though

And talk talk returned

 

All change at Swansea, end of the line

And sadly as it turned out : it was

Don’t leave any baggage behind

Take valuables along

Memories of a hundred parties past

And a hundred more now to come.