My last entry was eight days ago, last Wednesday: perhaps a chronology of the last week might be a brief diversion.
On the day called Thursday (anybody who has read the Ant and Bee books – in particular Kind Dog’s Birthday – will understand the subtle cultural cross reference in that phrase) I tootled off to Lechlade to interview Hal Moggridge for Gardens Illustrated. Mr Moggridge is an incredibly distinguished landscape architect who was partner to the late Brenda Colvin. He has worked in innumerable places including the Albert Hall and Jersey Zoo. Based on the brief I was given to include lots of plant references I was expecting a pretty Cotswold garden – instead it was very sculptural, very simple, lots of hedges and some very clever sightlines. All of this on a peninsula between two rushing mill streams. December is not an easy month to appreciate the glories of a garden but this was considerably easier than trying to identify the contents of an herbaceous border from a collection of decaying foliage.
On Friday I have absolutely no recollection at all of what I did. I have to presume that I must have done something useful and productive but I have no idea in which particular area my industry was directed. Saturday and Sunday we were in London to see the very fine Velasquez exhibition at the National Gallery. There was one particular painting – of Prince Felipe Prospero – which was extraordinarily captivating.
Felipe was the Crown Prince of Spain – born in 1657 – and this painting shows an obviously sickly child looking appealingly towards the viewer as if he knew that he was not long for the world (in which surmise he was spot on the money). There is an equally mournful looking dog resting its nose on the arm of the chair behind Felipe.
Ah.
This is becoming rather long suddenly and I fear that the concentration of all but the most assiduous readers (and I am still not convinced that there are many inattentive readers let alone the assiduous) may have lapsed. I will stop there and start again in another entry.
I am listening to Boys love Girls by Kano. The picture is a demonstration of the effect of inadvertently moving the camera while taking pictures of fountains in the dark.