Arsenal vs Birmingham City

Match

Watching this game at the Emirates on Saturday, October 16^th I was completely dumbfounded when Birmingham City scored the first goal at the 33 min mark. Looking at the mounted clock I actually began to wonder is this going to turn into another loss? The feeling in the pit of ones stomach to see the away supporters goad us made me stand up in my chair and like everyone else tell them to get stuffed – although not in such a polite manner. But at the 41^st minute Scott Dann who without a shadow of a doubt whilst on the ground stuck his leg out and fouled Chamakh. That was most probably the only saving grace about the referee – Martin Atkinson – who was making the strangest decisions that day. Anyway, Nasri took the penalty and just before half time we had levelled. The most spectacular goal of the month has to be the interplay between Wilshire and Chamakh. Wilshire trapped the ball upon his chest before dropping it to his feet and deftly passing into the firing line Chamakh. Because if Chamakh’s angle of attack and the two defenders coming at him he tapped ball and what can only be described as Dennis Bergkamp-esq, performed a 180 turn to tap the ball with his left foot into the goal. I believe it has to seen to truly admire this goal. Not exactly an easy day in the office especially as Wilshire as given a Red card – studs up challenge – for his sloppy tackle against Zigic. No doubt in my mind he deserved to be sent off for that.

Observational Research

Due to the London Underground engineering works taking place that day, I decided to take a circumferent walk which would take my favourite coffee house ‘Café Nero’. Whilst waiting in line to order my hot chocolate I noticed a child who was adept at ordering a coffee to her specific liking. As I observed her – I reckon she was about 11 maybe 12 (ideal age for my character in my story ‘Aahna’) who had a large soft faux-leather handbag (which looked rather big), neatly combed hair which a large fat pink paperclip like hairclip. I noticed on her right hand was a faded drawing of a heart with some writing. I began to think about my character Aahna who is still raw after the death of her mother. Seeing the hairclip and the faded drawing on this girl’s hand I realised that having the story take place 6 months after the mother’s death was too long. I really liked the idea of Aahna retaining the drawing on her right hand because that is the last fun thing she did with her mum before she died. By taking care not to wash that hand she was trying to preserve her mother. Going back to the girl at Café Nero, what was visually ironic – dressed in skinny jeans + skirt, ugg-like boots, smart jacket, straight combed hair, hair clip, large handbag and a scribble on her right hand. That scribble on her hand is her link to her youth and innocence. In a world that is constantly evolving and children are said to be growing up far more quickly than in previous generations, it’s quite refreshing to see a kid who still acts like a kid. Why is the important? In my story, Aahna is a mould of her loving mother – like most daughters are. Aahna has been imprinted with a certain look / style that incorporate her mother as well as Aahna’s own style. Now that her mother is gone, all she has are the basic tools left to her by her mother. So for Aahna, this ritual of combing her hair for example is not just so she can look nice in the mirror, but it’s actually her way of remembering her mother and the act of combing her hair – like her mother used to – is her way of remembering her.

Outside Emirates

When I got to Emirates the rain had died down. The whole area outside of the stadium entrance had a shine to the place which was reflecting the bright sun off all the wet surfaces including the concrete ground. It was a lovely crisp day but I wished I had worn more suitably warm clothing as sitting for 2 hours you do start to notice the chill and the breeze.

What is quite startling about these photos I took was how blue the sky was that day. All of us hate the rain and there is nothing worse than to be stuck in doors when the heavens open. But to be outside on a crisp day once the rain has ceased and you’re presented with an azure blue sky as rather uplifting.

Now, I can’t and won’t dictate the weather in my screenplay but I’d like to take the emotion I feel observing this weather and place that in the realm of the arena or use that emotion for the character.

Clockend

For the last few games I’ve been extremely lucky to get tickets in the Clockend (South). There are three reasons why I love being here:

1. Above you is the large replica clock that used to be situated in the Clockend at Highbury.
2. The banter at the Clockend is awesome. You can feel, taste and hear the anger & joy of the crowd. It sometimes feels that the heartbeat of the fans starts at the clockend.
3. We are within shouting and pointing distance at the away supporters which always gives rise to some violent verbal remonstrations between the two. I use the term ‘violent’ to depict the emotional response that both teams give to their teams and not ‘violence’ as is in a throwback to the 80’s face of football.

In this photograph (to my immediate right) you can see the quadrant with the away supporters on the lower tier. In this case the away supporters are in blue. So you can see that we are in viewing distance of each other. It was pretty awful to see these clowns go mad after Birmingham scored the first goal. They went absolutely nuts. I just sat in my seat looking in disbelief. It was at this moment that two women Arsenal supporters (20’s) stood up and begun waving two fingers at Birmingham City fans. Whilst I found this quite amusing what I noticed on one of the girls wearing a thin red hairband with an Arsenal motif. I never knew such a thing existed (maybe because I’m not a girl!) and immediately I thought that would be perfect for Aahna as she gets ready for the game, perfect!

This was an emotionally charged game and I must admit for some Arsenal fans the goading going on between the two was a little terrifying but in an exciting way. In front of me were 4 guys who during the second half of the match would not sit down. They were chanting, dancing and swearing till they’re blue in the face towards the Birmingham City fans. It transpired that they were absolutely drunk. My Sherlock deductions led me to the base of their feet where many small mini-bar bottles of Jack Daniels were laid wasted. Now I know why the guys were slurping so much cola. In my story, if the relationship between Frank and Aahna is already strained, and the only way the two really can communicate is when they’re at the football ground what would happen if this sanctity was broken with these four idiots disturbing their view? Something I need to think about.

Frank and Aahna

After the game I decided to hang around and walk around the grounds. I wanted to find a perfect picture of Frank and Aahna. Something that I could refer back to during the writing of my screenplay. I am always intrigued about the distance between two people and nothing is more perfect than these two pictures listed here. These photographs are taken before the game and after the game by ‘The Spirit of Highbury’. This large monument depicts the entire Arsenal squad starting from its inception in 1886 right through to present.

The first photograph was taken around 2pm just after the rain died. The blue is such dominant colour which is reflecting off all the wet surfaces. You feel relaxed and calm. It has those soft colours associated with being on holiday or somewhere relaxing.

The next photograph (the child’s face has been digitally altered to preserve identity) is what I believe are my characters Frank and Aahna. She is looking directly at the camera avoiding Frank who stands appearing to eat something. He stands like a towering guardian over Aahna but the two never share a single word. This is such a great photograph as you can read as much as your creative mind will allow about their relationship.

Emotional Depth

These three photographs kind of depict the emotions that I want to portray in my story.

The first photograph: The dark clouds vibrate with a haze of blue and the stream of sun that partially lights the ground. Those clouds have robbed the daylight and to me I feel a sense of loss in this photograph. Something that we take for granted has now been taken away and no matter how difficult it maybe we need to continue. I feel for Aahna in this photograph as she has lost her mother. She doesn’t know what else to do but to carry on…but to what extent can she carry on if she doesn’t have anyone to guide her properly – i.e. Frank, her Dad. At some point Frank must stop being the 100% man and try to take the place of his wife to support and nurture Aahna otherwise their relationship will be broke beyond repair and Aahna’s childhood irrevocably ruined.

The second photograph: Looking at these clouds which sit independently of each other lit up by the Sun, I get a sense of isolation. How hard is it for Frank to maintain a place to live yet work so many hours to keep hold of it? For me, Frank feels even more isolated when they lose their family house which was the tipping point for Purveen’s suicide (Aahna’s mother). They now live in a 2 bedroom flat in an unsavoury area. Not only are they isolated financially, but from their neighbourly friends and more important they are isolated from each other.

The third photograph: A sense of longing. The warmth of that Sun is what all we humans crave for. To be blanketed in warmth to give us protection from the outside world. No matter how difficult this journey is for Frank and Aahna, by the end they will be together. Through Frank’s transformational change and coming to terms with Purveen’s suicide he will forge a greater emotional link with Aahna.

Tate Britain – The Turner Paintings

On Sunday 26th September I decided to visit Tate Britain. My MA tutor, on discovering my leanings towards Impressionistic painters, advised that I take a look at works by Joseph Mallord Willam Turner (JMW Turner).  Born in 1775 until 1851, Turner is considered as one of the most important Impressionistic painters this country has ever produced. I, personally, am not an art historian but I am interested to find an intersection between visual art and the written word. Turner is fascinating as he illustrated the words from Virgil, Homer to his favourite Byron onto the canvas. Visiting the Tate I was taken aback by the sheer volume of his work and below are a few paintings which for me were beautiful to look at. I can tell you that many of these paintings I describe held me rooted to the spot for sometime, held by some imaginary force as I stood and attempted to delve into each painting.

Buttermere Lake, with Part of Cromackwater, Cumberland, a Shower (exhibited 1798)

This is a breathtaking painting made during the early Turner years. It’s moody, powerful, dark portrayal of Cumberland depicts an arc of white light that scratches the darkened heavens as it strikes a mountainous region behind a small village. The light appears it is gaining intensity as gravity pulls the arc down with such ferocity that it illuminates the surrounding area – much like a comet – before it strikes. In the foreground two people are seen in a rowing boat moving towards us. When I came across this painting I was dumbstruck in its sheer beauty in the use of dark but subtle shades. It is one of those paintings that you after a few minutes you begin to notice other things – very much like being in the dark after turning the late off and waiting for your pupils to dilate and adjust to the dark. Incredible detail to the eye.

The Battle of Trafalgar, as Seen from the Mizen Starboard Shrouds of the Victory (1806-8)

Turner trained as an architectural draughtsman and topographical copyist which when viewing this painting you begin to ask yourself are we witnessing a past event, or are we marvelling at the beautiful construct of man’s creation in the form of the ship’s sails and rigging? This may sound very odd but the way this picture hangs in the Tate (its approx 2m x 3m) the first thing that you notice is not what’s happening on deck (bearing in mind that the battle of Trafalgar marked the very pinnacle of British naval warfare administered by Horatio Nelson) but that Turner is almost showing off his architectural prowess. I am 6′ 3″ tall and what visually hits you is the intricacy of the sails and its rigging of the cluster of boats. You can tell that Turner spent a considerable amount of time drawing the rigging with such care and integrity that as a technical drawing it’s almost faultless. Examine the painting up close, you get the feeling the whole piece is about the technical nature of painting. To me this felt like an artist who was coming to grips with not the artistic side of painting but more structuring a painting in terms of its position to the audience. In screenwriting terms, it felt like a writer getting to grips with structure and composing a piece from that. To me, whilst the painting is glorious to look at there is nothing very emotive about it.

Interior of a Prison, Lecture – Diagram 65 (circa 1810)

Drawn in pencil and watercolours on paper Turner really captured the light and shadows in this piece. The fact that he was able to achieve the luminosity and shadows from pencil and watercolours is a testament to his skill as an artist as looking at the piece I actually thought it was oil based. Even though this is drawn on paper I am astounded at the level of detail in it. Therefore, art is not about size. It’s about what you render with absolute precision that makes it artistic. As a writer I always struggle whether I can depict a scene with imaginative detail but within the confines of a few action lines?

The Field of Waterloo (exhibited 1818)

The aftermath after the battle of Waterloo. What is quite shocking in this painting are the hundreds if not thousands of dead bodies that are strewn across the battle field. The eye is drawn to individuals who are either looking for their lost relatives, or are they merely picking the riches from the dead? The lighting is terrific as the eye is drawn to the naked flame blowing in the wind. As we look up we see a hazy moon beaming down. The more I look at it, I wonder whether the moon is acting as a conduit taking the lost souls onto their next journey?

Brighton from the Sea (circa 1829)

This is quite a departure from traditional Turner paintings as he begins to employ radiant yellow hues into his works. I love the yellow melting into the brackish waters of the Thames and the casting of shadows to the left and the right. Looking at the sky, Turner really captures the pigments of light across the sky.

The Thames above Waterloo Bridge (circa 1830-5)

I don’t particularly like this painting because it feels rushed. You can see sometime has been spent rendering the foreground but then as we move towards Waterloo bridge the smog is smudged showing a hint of the bridge’s arches and distilled sunlight shining through.

The Temple of Poseidon at Sunium (Cape Colonna) (circa 1834)

A glorious painting. Look at the remains of the columns as they edge themselves out to the edge angled against the faltering Sun. The shadows that are cast across the outcrop of land and a section illuminated in the front which reveals a couple of animals looking out to the see. If you then cast your eyes to the left, there is a breathtaking vista of the crashing seas rolling into the shore.

The Parting of Hero and Leander (exhibited 1837)

Leander would swim across the Hellespont (a narrow strait in Northern Turkey which connects the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara) to be with Hero who resided in the tower of Sestos. Hero would light her lamp to guide Leander who would swim across the Hellespont each night to be with her. Unfortunately, as Greek tragedies go, Leander drowned one night and Hero flung herself into the Sea.

Sun Setting over a Lake (circa 1840)

Whilst I don’t particularly like the The Thames above Waterloo Bridge, I do like this piece. Some of the art pundits say that Turner actually produced his best pieces in his latter years. Even though his construction was never a literal depiction of the subjects he painted he would use sunlight to great effect. His brushing would be irregular sometimes circular, smudging, up and down strokes all used to create impressionistic vistas. This painting is all about light and judging by the spot of sun which occupies a small portion of the painting its rays disperse and intermingle with the surroundings.

The Sun of Venice Going to Sea (exhibited 1843)

I remember reading that Turner had spent some years travelling and this is evident in the maturity of his works.  I love the ships sails in which the lettering is clearly evident when viewed up close (computer images do no justice). However its surroundings are smudged and hazed forcing the viewer to stay staring ahead. The waves of the water amplitude heavily to the right leaving a calm stretch of water bringing the mighty ship to the viewers’ eye.

St Benedetto, Looking towards Fusina (exhibited 1843)

What’s quite majestic about this painting is the depiction of the Sun as its light stretched across the river almost creating a barrier between the two gondolas. The clouds plume and plumped amplify the Sun. The cloud looks as if it is swelling due to the intensity of the Sun and allowing the colour to slowly dissipate from its central core out to the its fringes.

`Hurrah! for the Whaler Erebus! Another Fish!’ (exhibited 1846)

What I love about this painting is that the beam of sunlight energizing down from the heavens is indistinguishable from its source – the almighty Sun itself! I love how Turner creates a central hurricane of sunlight exploding outwards like a supernova and down to the waters edge bleeding into the sea as it stretches its fingers across to the viewer.

The Visit to the Tomb (exhibited 1850)

Only Turner can make the Sun turn into vortex of swirling light that extends from the heavens into a tightly focusses central core that strikes the ground and creates a magnificent haze that supernovas outwards. I could stare for hours looking at this painting and get truly lost in its brilliance.

Whilst these paintings are not the complete works of Turner, I felt that this selection which spanned over 52 years of his life was showing me a form of structure that I had not noticed. Turner had spent his early years practising his art form painting diverse subjects. Looking at these paintings you can see how it arcs from dark (early years) to sublime beauty of light. The subjects in his early years were also of historical and allegorical content which itself suffered from dark themes but as we move into his latter years, Turner threw down the shackles of storytelling and opted for nirvanic enlightenment. Some would ponder at his paintings trying to discern the subject in the context of framing against paintings of its time. But for Turner, you have to leave your worldly possessions behind including your frame of mind and the place which roots you to normalcy. You have to let yourself go and feed the light that is so dominant in all his paintings. Over the years, light has transformed from a lantern, to the moon shifting from the right of the painting to the left before settling for the domineering central position. But painting a Sun as a round hazy circle as most painters would opt for, Turner shunned. For he took the glorious Sun and exploded it onto the canvas as it streaked, circled and merged with its surroundings.

For me, Turner in these pieces was simply breathtaking. All I need to now do is take all this artistic emotion and feed it into my screenplay.

Arsenal vs WBA

I don’t believe any Arsenal fan would’ve predicted this outcome: 3 -2 to West Bromwich Albion. To watch this game unfold before my eyes only brought more anger and spittle being ejected from me. What on earth happened to us today I have no idea. We lost a perfect opportunity to close the gap between us and Chelsea as they had lost to Manchester City : 1 -0. The fans were at fever pitch and we knew the WBA game was an easy bag for us. In fact, on the train journey down from Putney I bumped into a Fulham fan (who was off to see Fulham vs Everton) and when he realised we were playing WBA his last infamous words were – an easy three points. I’m no BBC Sports pundit, but even having our midfield consist of Song, Diaby and Eboue was certainly disconcerting. We simply didn’t have an attacking midfield option and especially these players as they don’t have the accuracy that Fabregas, Nasri and Wiltshire posses. But the biggest let-down has to be our keeper. For the love of God, why does this buffoon always leave his goal area. It was this stupid move that allowed Odemwingie (WBA) to slot home a win. Reeling from that goal it must have been less than a minute and half before they scored again. The third WBA goal was made when Alumunia came rushing out to the right of the box which made a perfect opportunity for WBA to square it to one their players before netting their third. It was at this point that some Arsenal fans had given up hope and began to leave as it was already 73 mins into the game. Nasri pulled off a miracle by netting 2 goals in the 75th min and one in extra time. But we could not equalize in the time given to us and so it ended. We lost. 3 -2. It was my first Arsenal loss in the Clock End. How did I feel? …… Inconsolable.

Observational Research

Coming out from the Station I was visually assaulted by the mass of red and white that lined the street. You also can’t avoid the number of Police Officers which eye all the tube passengers as they disembark the station. I had to pull over to one side and take this photograph – Gillespie Road – which shows the mass on a typical match day. I also took some audio as we entered the Arsenal football grounds via the Gillespie Road entrance – click here to listen. On listening to this I was surprised to hear the hullaballoo of the noise change drastic tempo as we walked up the steps and on to the walkway to the stadium. This is the calm before the storm. Two things are happening at this point in relation to the sound: The noise of the street is being dampened as we move up and away, and secondly the sight of the majestic stadium stuns people who for some they immediately begin to pull out their cameras and fire off rounds of shots. I decided not to hang around outside as it was quite cold so I entered through the turnstiles.

As I walked in I made my way to buy some water and then stood near one of the overhanging flat screen Sony tv’s to watch Manchester City vs Chelsea in High Definition. It was only 2pm and there was an another hour to kick-off I wanted to see Man City kick Chelsea’s butt (which they did – Yeah!).

As I watched the game, I noticed a tall man with his son. The father was a pencil like figure wearing a yellow Arsenal away top over a light weight blue hoodie top. He had mid-length dark brown. His jeans were kind of interesting as on his left rear pocket (it’s Obs Res okay!) was emblazoned an English flag with the number 66 – referring to when England won the World Cup. His son was rather androgynous looking. He must have been around 6 or 7 years of age and wore an adult size Arsenal home shirt which hung just above his knees. Like his Dad, he wore his shirt over a lightweight blue hoodie top and he sported a fancy pair of Nike football trainers. As I observed the two I noticed the father was having a pint and his son drinking a bottle of Pepsi. They both stood in front of me watching the game overhead. But there was no contact between father and son. The father was such an imposing figure that he casted a protective shadow over his son. Now an again, the father would briefly look down at his son who was transfixed at the screen. I was thinking about how the father and the daughter in my story would act in my story. It’s so amazing to see a father and his progeny spend this quality time yet there is nothing to be said between them. It’s a lovely image that I want wring the essence and place in my story.

Taking my seat in the Clock-End (to the right of the goal and 20 rows from the pitch) it was nice to be a little higher than previous. 25m to the right was where the WBA fans were fenced in. During the game there was the usual tirade of amusing abuse being thrown from the clock-enders to the WBA fans and back. Our chants are singing were completely drowning them out. Being in the clock end, you get to learn some new chants and one of them was ‘Shut-up, sit-down….shut-up, sit down’  to the tune of Big Ben’s chime.  But this all changed when they scored their first goal. They went mental. But when WBA scored their second goal their fans went ballistic with joy. It was like watching a circus act of derange caged animals. This infuriated the Arsenal fans and many of us got up to stick two-fingers and various other hand gestures – but let’s face facts they were in the lead. One of the WBA fans, who was an extremely large fellow with man-boobs took off his shirt – for some unknown reason – and started to rub is belly and his man boobs. This caught the clock-enders who began chanting ‘You fat b***ard’.

But football is about passion. And the passion’s mercury was at boiling point when Nasri scored our first goal on the 73rd minute. With the second being netted in the 92nd minute we all just exploded. I was screaming for them to at least net a third. Please let’s equalize and not lose to this team. I was shouting, screaming, swearing, spittle being ejected as I chomped down harder on my chewing gum. The Arsenal fans were standing. One woman to the right of me was so alarmed at the game that she covered her face. The intensity of the game. The shear hope that we can get one more goal in. The team fighting for possession. The clock counting down. The Arsenal screams of ‘Come-On’ and ”Get it into the Box’ and ‘Shoot’ was our braveheart moment.  But it was all in vain as the referee blew his whistle and I stood there shaking in the realisation that I had witnessed a defeat and it felt so utterly bad. I came into the game positive and enthused but I came out low, angry and I was bloody cold.

In my story, the father and daughter make a series of visits to the stadium. It’s the one area that they have anything in common. The rest of their relationship is very toxic as it’s been 10 months since the mother took her own life. As they visit the stadium, we’ll see their relationship change especially as they are both reacting to their loss in different ways. Watching us lose this game today I began to think what would happen if I was angry, or I was with someone in which our communication was fairly limited.

Imagine what that relationship would be like post-game? Somebody would inevitably say the wrong thing to the other, or something may be misinterpreted and construed in an ill manner which would affect the relationship. In my story the daughter who is around 8 years old refuses to talk to her dad. The only discussions we see / hear are the ones that take place at the stadium and they are all football related but have a subtext quality that infers the state of their relationship. Also, I want to tie the losing and winning of the games into their relationship to give it an emotional punch for the audience. I’m really angry that we lost,  however I’ve been able to salvage how I felt and hopefully can press that into my story.

Walking out of the stadium and making around to the exit back to Arsenal tube station I took this photograph.

When I got home I looked at the photos I took. In my haste to take photos while walking hurriedly you’ll notice in the above photograph the man in the green hoodie in the foreground. The next photograph, below, has this interesting shot:

Maybe a possible ending shot of the story. The father reconciled with his daughter at the last match and they both walk off together. The life now starting anew. Maybe?

Arsenal vs SC Braga

The last Champions League game I attended at Emirates was back in March when we played FC Porto at home.  That will go down in history as a terrible game for the FC Porto team and their supporters as the score ended 5 -0.

I had pictures that SC Braga were going to give us a very difficult time. This Portuguese team is noted for its large number of Brazilians who play in this team. And let’s face facts, Brazilians are noted for bringing two great things to the western world: The famous ‘Brazilian’ wax, and obviously footballing greats. I was expecting them to give Arsenal a very hard time and my expected goal result was 2-1 to Arsenal. However, I was stunned to see that not only did we win the game, we completely clobbered them with a final score of 6 – 0!

It all started so badly for Braga in the 8th minute when our striker, Chamakh, was felled in the penalty area. Fabregas took the penalty and we were 1 -0 up. On the half hour mark Arshavin netted a second.  Chamakh made an awesome goal at 34 minutes, and half time had not even blown. In the second Fabregas scored and later  Vela came on for Arshavin where Vela scored 2 goals. Incredible game. I was ecstatic about the score and had to be restrained from singing loudly in joyous praise of my team. It will be interesting when Arsenal visit SC Braga as they have one of the most beautiful stadiums which is hewn into a rock face! A little tit-bit of information, SC Braga’s coach in the 1920’s was so impressed of Arsenal and its Highbury stadium that on his return he ordered the team to adopt the new red and white so they could assert their new identity. They were also known as ‘Arsenal do Minho’.

This was a strange atmosphere for me as first of all I was up in the rafters watching this game. It was brilliant to watch the game at a good birds eye viewing but the atmosphere was a bit a dead. Unlike the atmosphere down at the Clock End during the Bolton Wanderers game, there was so much singing, hurling fun abuse, and good banter. I was really missing a lot of that football spirit up so high. At this level there also appeared to be a lot of non-regular supporters i.e. those that happened by chance to buy a ticket during the public sale. It’s good that Arsenal can offer tickets to the public (after priority given to its members) but the atmosphere was lacking.

It got me thinking about my 30min Obs Res (yes, you were most probably wondering when I was going to discuss writing!) and whether I should also look at the location within an arena to create the best atmosphere. Even though the atmosphere down on the lower terraces is phenomenal, if you’re located at the North Bank or Clock End, then your viewing will be restricted because of the parallax phenomenon. Anything happening at the other end is impossible to discern – however there are some people who are ordained with such great eyesight that they’ve been able to bypass parallax and give us a running commentary!

Imagine spending money to realise that the view is good but the atmosphere is lacking? For the first-timer they would never notice the difference. But for the connoisseur footie fan they would most probably be livid. But suppose the atmosphere is actually linked into the participants that are attending? A Saturday 3pm match is going to have a very different feel to a Champions League match at 7.45pm in which the general public can buy tickets, and because the match takes place late evening it’s also cold! That was the weird thing that I noticed the cold. I was layered up but still cold. One of the main reasons is the undulating shape of the stadium is very prominent at that height (to let air into the stadium) so you really feel the cold air seeping into your bones.

Maybe that’s something I should think about in my story – the location of where the father and daughter sit to watch the game.

Simon Beaufoy

I attented the Bafta / BFI Screenwriters’ Lecture held at the BFI Southbank in which Simon Beaufoy gave a Q&A lecture on his Screenwriting.

Excerpt from pamphlet ‘Screenwriters. On Screenwriting’ as part of the season of The Bafta  and BFI Screenwriters’ Lectures 2010.

Whether a feel-good comedy or political drama, Beaufoy’s diverse range of work is always insightful and full of compassion for his characters.

His debut feature-length script, ‘The Full Monty’ (1997), enjoyed huge critical success. The comedy followed six unemployed men who turn to stripping as a money-earner, and gave Beaufoy his first BAFTA and Oscar nominations.

Scripts followed for ‘Among Giants’ (1998), a triangular love story about pylon painters in Yorkshire, and ‘The Darkest Light’ (1999). Beaufoy co-directed the latter with occasional collaborator Bille Eltringham – who also directed his script for ‘This is Not A Love Song’ (2002) in which a criminal duo are stalked across the Scottish moors.

He then wrote two very contrasting stories set in his hometown of Keighley. ‘Blow Dry’ (2001) brought the British Hairdressing Championship to town, whilst ‘Yasmin’ (2004) saw a British Muslim women caught in a post-9/11 nightmare when her Pakistani-born husband is falsely imprisoned as a terror suspect. Beaufoy’s television work includes the mini-series ‘Burn Up’ (2008), a political thriller that dealt with climate change.

Most recently, he enjoyed international success with his adaption of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ (2008). The rags to riches tale earned Beaufoy his first BAFTA, Golden Globes and Oscar wins, among countless others. The film itself won seven BAFTA’s and eight Oscars, including Best Film at both.

Beaufoy’s next film is a second collaboration with Danny Boyle, ‘127 Hours’ (2010), a real-life drama starring James Franco.

To download the  audio file click this link and ignore the virus scan warning (as the file is approx 40mb)

Arsenal vs Bolton Wanderers

In my mind this was it. This had to be the day. I had a lot riding on this match and it wasn’t just the fact I wanted us to beat Bolton and come away with the desired three points. It was in fact a great game and Arsenal beat Bolton 4-1! The unfortunate thing was we picked up two yellow cards whilst their man, Cahill, was given Red and sent off. We should have scored more goals but in the end I was happy we got our three points. This time I was seated in the ‘Clock End’ (South Side) slightly to the left of goal. It’s a terrific vantage point as you get to see the goals being scored at such close range plus any corners awarded. The atmosphere in this part of the stadium is utterly different to that experienced in the upper wing of the West Stand – where I was seated during the Blackpool game.

To the left of my seating area was the Family Enclosure where kids can watch the game with their parents. Although they have a great view it doesn’t protect them from the hurling verbal abuse that is poured in vein at some of the players – including ours. Foul language and vitriolic hurls of abuse are simply a rite of passage.  You never hear the kids use foul language but you do hear them throwing in their own thoughts about a player which is quite entertaining. Some of you who maybe reading this maybe disappointed, or for those that are prudish may even feel disgusted that in the modern 21st century such shananigans sill exist, but to me this is what we football fans crave for. For all that money spent on watching your team play you want them to do well. It’s your hard earned money that has allowed you to enter through the turnstiles. It’s your time spent away from whatever you want to do. It’s your committment to the team. Of course you should vent your spleen when your team are playing rubbish. It’s your right. But for others they take the ownership point a little too far and begin to scream advice. Like for example in the second half, our poor keeper Almunia – who was once highly regarded but has now decended in the ranks of its fans’ support – was being howled at by some idiot behind me who kept throwing advice such as ‘ Almunia, talk to your players. ‘You need to f***ing talk to your players. Taklk to them and let them what you’re doing.’ There was an incident in which Almunia did not clearly communicate to his centre back which could have resulted in a goal. It was quite disappointing to see, but to have this chap behind me thinking he was Arsene Wenger sceaming advice it seemed to have done the trick.Over the last few weeks, since the Blackpool game, and I have been on a downward spiral of thought processes about areas that were lacking in my observationa research. I had noted that there was very little in the way of actual observation of the characters who come here and that had to be my focus today. I needed something credible to directly show that my story was not simply going to be a shoehorned idea.

On my way to the game, I had come across a man and his son who had just crossed over the pedestrian crossing to my side. As I was walking towards them I noticed the man gently taping his young son over the head with some instrument. The boy, who must’ve have been around four, was looking up at his tall father but he appeared to be squinting as the Sun was brightly shining into the little boys’ eyes. As I got nearer, I realised the father was actually trying to aid his son with his glasses. The father had a bag of shopping in one and with the other he was trying to glide the glasses onto his son’s ears but kept missing as the little boy was being blinded by the sun each time he looked up. The glasses eventually went on and the little boy was so pleased that with his new found vision he began to run along the pavement while maintaining a safe not-to-far distance from his father. I found this scene quite touching and wanted to remember this for the Obs Res screenplay.

Before the game I spent some time walking around the perimeter taking voice notes and paying more attention to the people around me.  Just by the Clock End entrance overlooking the Armoury – Arsenal Merchandise Store – I noticed a dishevelled man by himself was anxious and appeared to be waiting for someone.

In this photograph he sits in a very agitated state. Defensively postured with his arms crossed he’s looking out to his left in anticipation the person he’s waiting for will arrive. Even with an hour to go something is causing him concern

Here, he tries to relax and lean forward but his gaze is fixed still to the left. During this whole time he’s not looked around and it’s been several minutes of me surreptiously observing him.

This is my raison d’être for being here. This photograph in all its simplicity can tell a whole story in itself. It was not long after this photo was taken that the man got up, he was rather unsteady on his feet and unshaved, that we walked off. There was something about these pictures that began sparking my synapses about the story of the father and his son and how attending the games is a vital component in their bonding. I was thinking that suppose he had promised to meet his son around this time, but due to him prioritising a night’s boozing session he missed the opportunity to spend a day with his son who might be in care, or his ex-wife has custody. I have a good friend of many years, that when his son was much younger this friend of mine never spent time with his son during his early years. It was around ’94, and I remember my friend looking in newspapers at private car registration plates. He was determined to find the perfect number plate so when his son turned 16 he could give his son this great present. I was only 24 at the time and I diplomatically mentioned that when he turns 16 the last thing he’ll want is a father who abandoned him and then turns up with a private car number plate.  He’ll be livid and he’ll not want to talk to his father. I asked him what was his fondest memory of his father. He didn’t have one. I then asked if his father gave him any great advise for life.  He looked at me and said: “My father’s only advise was never buy a second hand car from a man wearing a sheep skin coat.” He went on to tell me that unlike my family which was all about education and ooking out for each other, he had an awful time with his Mum and Dad and was still very bitter. My only solace to him was that I hope he found a way to put aside his difference with his ex-wife and make more of an effort to be a dad to his son, as I’m sure his son is desperate for that. The upside of that story is that my friend has a great relationship with his son and even though I’ve not kept in touch that much I asked him recently and he’d just attended his sons university graduation and was thinking about buying him a car, in which I joked about the number plate scenario all those years ago….

During the game I noticed something kind of odd about the stewards (wearing Orange jackets) that monitor the game. When you first enter the grounds there are stewards standing with their backs to the pitch facing the crowd. For those of you that don’t know, it’s a criminal offense in the UK to enter the pitch during play.

Then he’s still standing just before the game commences.

And then during the game itself you can see him standing. Usually he will sit down with his back against the billboard facing the crowd. I think at this point he stood up as the half-time whistle went. I was so intrigued about this because suppose you’re a huge fan and all you ever wanted to do was to work at your local football club. And suppose you did, but the job you got was in fact this! There was something quite traumatic to think about regarding my story about the father and son. In my story I have him trying to make a perfect life for him and his son which revolves around football, but then something terrible happens and he loses contact with him and just the point he gets this job. And the end scene of him facing the camera, but as the camera pulls away we see that he has his back to the action.

This got me thinking about the character and sounds. I was thinking that the start of the film should have the sound coming from behind us. This character never faces up to his responsibility and as such everthing is happening behind him. Only when he does face up to his responsibility he’ll never see a game and is forced to watch the crowd and keep them safe, when instead he should have been trying to keep his son safe. There is something very symbolic and powerful about this ending scene which sums up this man’s character.

I managed to record some sounds to get a sense of Emirates and its internal and external surroundings.

1. This was recorded walking around the Armoury outside. Many people like to sit around outside the merchandise store and read the engraved supporter plates, meet people and general milling around. Click here

2. Inside the Emirates just as you pass the electronic turnstiles. Here you can buy your food, catch up on the latest games being broadcast in HD and nearby was a betting shop. Click here

3. The Video & PA System blurting out about Junior Gunners (kids membership) “The future of this great club”. Click here

4. The gladiatorial video exploding through the PA system announcing all the great wins of previous Arsenal games of yesteryear to get the blood pumping of the upcoming match. Click here

5. The crowd during the game. Click here

BFI – Christopher Hampton

Earlier this evening I attented the Bafta / BFI Screenwriters’ Lecture held at the BFI Southbank in which Christopher Hampton gave a lecture on Screenwriting.

Excerpt from pamphlet ‘Screenwriters. On Screenwriting’ as part of the season of The Bafta  and BFI Screenwriters’ Lectures 2010.

Hampton’s career enjoyed an auspicious start when his debut play, ‘When Did You Last See Your Mother?’ (1966), made him the youngest playwright ever to have a play in the West End, a record which still stands.

His television work includes adaptations of his own plays ‘The Philanthropist’ (1975), Savages (1975), and other works including Hotel du Lac (1986), and The Ginger Tree (1989). He also wrote Able’s Will (1977), which marked his first screen collaboration with Stephen Frears.

After early film screenplays including A Doll’s House (1973) and The Honorary Consul (1983), Hampton reunited with Frears for perhaps his best-known work to date: Dangerous Liaisons (1988).  The tale of bored aristocrats indulging in games of passion and betrayal brought both BAFTA and Oscar success to Hampton, who enjoyed two further collaborations with Frears on Mary Reilly (1996) and Cheri (2009).

His second BAFTA nomination came for Carrington (1995), a script which he both wrote and directed. The biographical drama about the relationship between painter Dora Carrington and author Lytton Strachey earned Hampton a BAFTA nomination for British Film and won the Special Jury Prize at Cannes.

Hampton’s masterly adaptation of Ian McEwan’s novel Atonement (2007), in which a young girl’s lie has life-changing effects, brought two more BAFTA nominations for Adapted Screenplay and British Film, and his second Oscar nomination.

His latest script, A Dangerous Method (2011), is being filmed by David Cronenberg, and stars Michael Fassbender and Viggo Mortensen.

Christopher Hampton appeared a little shell-shocked by the swell of attendance but this did not damper his enthusiasm to quote Hitchcock and make comparisons to his own movies.

Enjoy

Click here to listen to Christopher Hampton’s lecture

BFI – Sir David Hare – How to write a Screenplay Lecture

Earlier this evening I attented the Bafta / BFI Screenwriters’ Lecture held at the BFI Southbank in which Sir David Hare gave a lecture on Screenwriting. It was thoroughly entertaining and I hope you enjoy the recording.

Excerpt from pamphlet ‘Screenwriters. On Screenwriting’ as part of the season of The Bafta  and BFI Screenwriters’ Lectures 2010.

David Hare has a reputation for elegant and highly intelligent screenplays which inspire extraordinary performances from actors.

He first came to prominence as a playwright in the 70’s after his debut play ‘Slag’ (1970) won the Evening Standard Award for Most Promising Playwright. Since then, his work has enjoyed sell-out runs at the National Theatre, and many of his plays have been presented on Broadway.

Among Hare’s television work is the acclaimed teleplay ‘Licking Hitler’ (1978), a companion piece to his stage play ‘Plenty’ (1978), both of which explore the effects of the Second World War on the lives of women who’d served in the conflict. The drama, which Hare also directed, won the BAFTA for Best Single Play.

Moving into feature film, Hare wrote and directed ‘Wetherby’ (1985), an award-winning drama about the mysterious death of an enigmatic young man. He also wrote and directed ‘Paris By Night’ (1988), in which a politician makes a deadly choice when threatened with a scandal, and adapted Joesphine Hart’s novel ‘Damage’ (1992), about an MP’s passionate affair with his son’s fiancee.

His most recent work includes two adaptations for Stephen Daldry. ‘The Hours’ (2002) explored the effect of Virginia Woolf’s ‘Mrs Dalloway’ on three generations of women, whilst ‘The Reader’ (2008) saw a law student in post WWII Germany re-encountering his former lover as she defends herself in a war-crime trial. Hare was BAFTA and Oscar nominated for both screenplays.

Hare has written a new film, ‘Page Eight’, which he will direct next year.

To get the best out of the recording I suggest that you listen to it via headphones.

Click here to listen to Sir David Hare’s Lecture.

Dandelion Park and Arsenal Museum

On Sunday 5th September,  I decided to make a visit to Emirates – Arsenal Football Club.  I’m still scratching my head about the story and I felt I needed to make a visit on a Sunday. I was thinking this could be a good prelude considering the following Saturday I will be there to watch Arsenal play Bolton Wanderers.

I mentioned in an earlier post that I never really noticed the existence of Gilespie Park as on match days it’s closed. There is a main entrance to the right of the Drayton Park ticket office and it’s here that I decided to enter and walk up into the park area. My primary rationale for visiting was to see the home of Dandelions. It’s now 4 weeks into the Premier League, Autumn is upon us and I was hoping to see the state of the Dandelions and to get some inspiration.

Walking into the main nature reserve / park I walked past a large wind turbine that has been erected by the council as part of its green initiative.  The large blades propelling, slicing the air faster and faster as gusts of wind threw themselves against this stalky beast. I walked on further and entered the meadow and was pleased to see that there were many Dandelions still seated into their stems.

It’s quite an astounding sight to see this many Dandelions and it makes you think that at this point in time will they simply remain rooted to their stems and fade away, or will they pluck the courage and let themselves go on the next gust of wind to be taken away to far place? Are the Dandelions symbolic in some way to the character journeys that are yet to be planned for the story of the father and is son?

It was very peaceful sitting in the park. All I could hear was the gentle breeze of the wind and the brushing of shrubs against each other. I was thinking whether this should actually be the start of the film. The sounds of a kicking football, the cheers of the crowd and the Dandelion makes its lift-off from the park. I also had this crazy idea that the Dandelion maybe moves and comes into contact with the different people who will appear in the story, but it’s not until later that you realise that those scenes are yet to come – i.e. the dandelions is telling its own story through the initial 3-4 minute scene but the people it comes into contact with will have their stories told in greater detail during the 30min short.

I was getting a pit peckish so I sat on the ‘Circle Seating’ and opened a bag of crisps. Finishing the crisps I just sat in silence. To experience tranquility in London is a very surreal experience. No one was around but me.

As I sat I looked across and could see the old Highbury Stadium with one of its Art Deco stands  eclipsed by the rows of trees.

And to my right I could see the new Arsenal football club. It must be one of the very few clubs – or the only club – in which the old grounds and the new grounds are only a few minutes walk apart. All around me I surrounded by shrubbery, grass, peacefulness and then the sound of a train….

I got up and walked over into another meadow and to my right was a bank of houses whose rears backed onto the park. On the right was a high scaled fence separating the railway lines from the park. And in the middle was the meadow. It’s strange as it reminds about the layout of the Musee D’Orsay with its left and right flanks followed by a central aisle.

Looking at the Dandelions it was difficult to discern if the flowering part was still alive or whether they were truly in the throes of death. It really made me think whether in some cases plants / living creatures who are not ready for change will do whatever they stop the inertial change. Whether we like it or not, life is constantly evolving and changing but there will come a point when this will cease to happen. I was also thinking that as these Dandelions are close to the railway track maybe the force of the speeding train my influence the lift-off trajectory of some of these Dandelions towards Emirates stadium??

I also recorded some interesting sounds of my feet walking at a normal pace against the gravel ground. The sounds of breeze rustling against the plants. I also recorded a train coming to a standstill. Listening to this now (as I write this blog) is so strange because it’s the sound you expect to hear at a railway station and not near a natural park. There is something quite dramatic about this sound and the others I recorded that I’d like to use them in the script to play against people’s expectations maybe.

I walked past a father and his son who must’ve been around 3-4 years of age. The young lad was walking at a slow pace and was pulling back against his father’s arm. He looked like he was getting bored and wanted to be picked up. But the father was very gentle with his son, egging him on to continue walking a little bit further. I wondered how lonely it would be if life was just the son and father? Maybe, they had lost their mother, or maybe it was always the two of them and they had moved into the area and making new friends is always tough so for the time being it’s just father and son taking a stroll through Gilespie park. The bond between father and son is generally very strong and let’s face it our fathers always like to live vicariously through their progeny.

I made my down into the Stadium and I decided to visit the Arsenal Museum, again.

The Museum is not that big but it’s broken into two halves – like a football match! The first half concentrates on the history of the club and the great players of the time. The second half focusses on the club’s achievements and the greatest games it has played.

One of the areas I’m drawn to is the concept of passing the mantle between father and son. This concept was hammered home further when I read this piece about the rites of passages for young boys that graduated from the schoolboy enclosures (we call them Family Enclosures today) to the terraces which is described as a ‘wall-of-noise’.

So why was I here? What kind of Obs Res was I hoping to achieve? I’ve discussed a plethora of feelings about football including some abstract thinking. But, for some reason I’ve missed one very important feature – the fans. Despite the spiralling costs of attending football games, it is the fans who make the club. It is the fans who pay to see their club. It is the fans who will pass on the bastion of honours unto their own children to ensure the mantle is carried on through the generations of support. I wanted to be at the Museum to really understand and feel the passion of the supporters. My rationale that by understanding more about the history of the club I can try to relate more to the supporters – who will be in their tens of thousands at next Saturday’s game.

As I walked around the museum taking in all of our heroes that have graced an Arsenal shirt since the inception of the club back in 1886, there is a great sense of awe about how this club came to prominence. It’s no denying that had it not been for Herbert Chapman’s great eye for finding talented footballers from all walks of life and a good financial eye we would not be seeing an Arsenal today. You walk around and there is a great sense of pride at what this club has achieved. And, if you look at the great players who have donned an Arsenal shirt there is a great sense of pride. At a very basic level, this is tribalism. These are all the totems of this tribe. The great battles adorned on the walls. To inspire support, trust, faith and to remind every one of the past. Again, looking at the father and son relationship I ask myself what would happen if the father is using Arsenal as a way to get closer to his son. His son my be disinterested at first, but perhaps after a while the son begins to understand his dad and through this understanding begins to have an attachment to the club. This could be used as the anchor in which the mantle is passed between father and son, perhaps?

I spent the last 30 minutes strolling around the stadium and two things caught my eye. As I arced from the North End to the Clock End of the stadium, I could see the edge of the national park that actually encroached one segment of the stadium outer area. I could see tall thick green shrubbery covering the train tracks. It was surprising to see how close the train is to Emirates and the national park. I looked out Dandelions but could not see any. I felt relieved about this as I have this interesting idea for the opening of the film to see a Dandelion moving across from the park, interacting with characters before falling into the Emirates at the start of a game. The second strange thing I saw was the images of demolition. It seems the area around Emirates is in massive redevelopment phase. It’s quite an ugly sight and when you think about the clean lines of the stadium in the middle of a building site it’s quite a disturbing juxtaposition of images for the brain to handle. I’ve never noticed this building work and can only assumed that within the last few weeks this work has accelerated most probably to clear the way to build more modern flats in the vicinity. Looking at the demolition site you can see it used to be former houses and a small industrial estate.

I need to focus on the supporters at the next game. I think this is the area that will help me build the rounded story that I’m looking for…or maybe will it will cause me greater confusion……?

Musée d’Orsay – C’est Magnifique!

On Thursday 2nd September whilst on a business trip to Paris, I made the effort to visit Musée d’Orsay which is open late until 9pm on a Thursday. IEver since my wife dug out that little book of Impressionistic painters – in which the majority of the works listed in the book are housed at the Musée d’Orsay – I was getting very excited about seeing these works up close. Opened to the public in 1986, Musée d’Orsay displays the great diversity of Western artistic creation between 1848 to 1914. Upon arriving I checked with the information desk that I could use my dictaphone and with a pleasing ‘Yes’ I entered the Museum.

On first entering the Grand Hall of the Museum you are spellbound by the sheer size. It’s high vaulted curved ceilings are adorned with intricate patterned tiles which repeated throughout, and dangling down from the ceiling on a steel artistically created lanyard are attached beautiful spherical chandeliers. The Museum is split by a wide central aisle which houses Romanesque sculptures and seating areas for the general public. The left and right flanks are themselves split into upper and lower levels. On each level are rooms which house the different paintings based on their periods of creation / artistic theme. Before I ventured into any of the rooms I took time to drink in my surroundings and was pleasantly surprised to see a large clock situated high at the far back. If any of you have seen St. Pancras station with its magnificent curved ceiling and the large ‘Gent’ clock perched high above the sculpture of the couple in an intimate embrace you can clearly see that it’s an imitation of the architectural design of Musée d’Orsay.

The first painting that grabbed my attention was by William Degouve de Nuncques – “Nocturne au parc royal de brussels” (1897).  I’ve never seen a painting that illuminates beautifully in a dimly lit room – the Internet via this picture does it no justice at all. The painting is of the Royal Parks in Brussels which simply depicts a criss-cross of paths amongst the green lawn. The illumination by the lit balls just captivated me and I found myself staring at this painting for some time. William convincingly created a great painting by which he knew the audience would be drawn from afar like moths to a flame. This painter had taken an ordinary subject and turned it into an extraordinary feast. It got me thinking about the Obs Res piece and how the choice of arena – no matter how devoid the subject matter is to people – could in fact be turned into something that will draw the audience in. All be carefully selecting an element in that piece to draw the audience in. So, I really need to pay attention as to what exactly I’m going to write about for my Arsenal script.

Paintings by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec really opened my eyes to the speed at which he was able to render the subject using pastels. He used the paints thinned with turpentine to create the essence of his characters in a few rapid strokes. His subjects were predominantly Parisian women performers from bars, nightclubs and music halls. Paintings of women sleeping or resting. One woman is shown putting on her stockings while standing in semi-naked pose.  In these paintings we don’t need to see the detail. We simply need to get a taste of the subject and action. The blanks can be filled by our minds. It very revolutionary to see these paintings being made in the late 19th century and moreso as I stood looking at how by using a few carefully chosen succinct sentences with brevity I hope to create a sense of scenic importance in my own writing.

George Seurat is a master. Where on earth did this painter get the idea to paint not by using brush-strokes but by delicate spot painting. Only when you step back you can see the spots forming to create an object. One of his paintings at the National depict office workers sitting by the river on a hot day – painted on a huge canvas. This painting shown here is called ‘Cirque’ and the complexity of the multitude of characters tells me it must have taken some time to render this. Unlike Henri T-L who would make rapid paintings, Seurat must have  slaved over his works to create this.

Paul Cezanne’s paintings of ‘Apples and Oranges’ and ‘The Card Players’ were situated next to each other. Apple and Oranges is a lovely painting because the soft hues of colour are striking to the eye. The draped white linen cloth is has instances of black, grey, green and pink that illustrate the creases in the cloth prominently as opposed to the fruit. I must admit that I had no emotion looking at the Card Players and this was most likely because the colour structure between the two were similar and the card players felt like a smaller painting and to me was drowned by the apples and oranges painting.

Claude Monet’s painting in 1886 (I can’t understand my dictation of the French title!) shows violent wave crashing into outcropping rocks. There is little sky and the waves are quite high indicating the ferocity of the crashing waves. The different thicknesses of oil together with the wisps and curls of water springing away from the rocks is rendered using fine rapid wisp-like brush strokes.

This painting is approx 52″ x 69″ and titled “Le Moulin de la Galette” and the first thing that struck me was the similar feelings I had when I saw his paintings of ‘The Umbrellas’ at the National. Although this is a good painting it does seem as if it’s slightly out of focussed. Renoir, it seems has decided to soften the outlines of characters and merge them into one another giving a very soft visual feel. Unlike umbrellas which has a central woman character beckoning the audience to her in a trance-like state, this painting is one that you almost should be drinking a glass of wine and simply savouring the atmosphere.

This painting by Leon Bally depicts bedouin pilgrims on their way to Mecca. On the desert floor there are bone remains and high above circling the pilgrims are most probably vultures. The central character is a confident chieftain who sits in an irregular posture and behind him follow the tribe. As the pilgrims are painted in an arc and we follow the crowd the focus becomes softer and softer until we are unable to make out face yet we can still determine that they are individuals following. I was drawn to this painting because of the arching of pilgrims and the softening effect which is more photographic like in nature than in paintings.

There is something very erotic of the female form and nothing so perfectly painted as in Edgar Degas “Woman Drying her Neck” painted in 1895. I can honestly tell you that the book / internet cannot do this painting any justice. It must be seen in the flesh – I know I’ve said this before but trust me. Apparently, Edgar drew this in his sixties and was almost blind. As I stood staring at this pastel work, I was mesmerised by the beauty of this woman whose bottom is perched perfectly on the bath tub. The way the thigh hangs over the bath rim and the gentle shades of the muscle in action to support the weight. The shadow cast along the woman’s back and her pert left breast standing to attention as she dries the back of her neck – a drying action you would rarely see anyone perform today in the quick towel drying, get changed and out the door rapid culture of today. It’s sensuous, sexy, erotic in emotion yet it is drawn with such beauty that its startling to realise this is a pastel only drawing. For 1895 this would’ve been considered obscene. In 2010 it is sheer beauty.

Van Gogh painted this whilst he was at the Saint-Remy asylum. Like his Sunflower paintings, the yellows give off a sense of tranquility. What is also evident are the vigorous brushwork. Again, there are thick layers of paint which have been carved by the brush which could indicate the speed at which this painting was made.

As I looked around at the different paintings I began to see a parallel with writing. Some painters like to paint naked women, the backs of women, plants, people, low-class people and scenic action. These are illustrated on small, medium, large and colossal canvases. Much like painting, the writer is also an artist. They need to carefully select the subject (i.e. story), decide the scale onto which the subject will be depicted (i.e. short, film, tv etc) and ensure the subject / story is large enough to fit onto the canvas. The choice of the subject / story is important but also bear in mind that not everyone maybe interested. I lost count the number of bare-breasted women, naked women and one close up painting of a female hirsute genitalia – that after a while becomes rather boring to view. I’m still processing all the paintings that I viewed but regardless whether I can intellectualise what I’ve seen, I know that all the artists have had the confidence to paint what they believed in. That is something that I will take away from my trip to Musée d’Orsay which has uplifted my artistic education.