Art & Culture

ARTIST AT WORK

No.47: Carolyn Lefley, Sea of Clouds #2

Archival giclee print, 27.5cm x 37cm, limited edition of 20, £100

For the past three years I’ve been photographing the full moon and learning about the folklore behind the monthly names for the moon, such as Wolf, Storm, Harvest, Worm and Snow Moon. This is part of a larger body of work called ‘Tide’ which explores the rhythm and wonder of the tide. This work draws a link between tidal power, the ebb and flow of the waves and the moon and stars. I’ve been making images above and below the water, revisiting the visible and revealing the hidden world beneath the surface of the waves. Over long periods during the pandemic I was unable to visit the coast, so I became more interested in the moon, learning about its terrain and its own ‘seas’. Restricted geographically I enjoyed garden astronomy and reworking my archive of photographs of the sea with double exposures of the moon. I take photographs on a variety of equipment including a digital SLR, analogue and digital underwater cameras, a medium format film camera and my phone. I also enjoy working with traditional photographic processes such as cyanotype and solargraphy. To create this layered image I combined two digital photographs in Adobe Photoshop, adjusting the properties of several layers to reveal and enhance different aspects of the image.

Recently, I’ve begun to work on a new project related to my work around the moon and tides. Commissioned by Somerset Art Works, ‘Ancient Sea’ re-imagines the countryside surrounding Ham Hill as the sea. Millions of years ago, the local limestone, known as hamstone, was formed under water. Fossil remains of ammonites can be found in the fields around Ham Hill. Using photographic layering techniques this time with moving image, land and fossil remains are merged with the sea. Local community groups were invited to participate in the project development, including a fossil walk with a geologist. The final work is installed at St Mary’s Church, Stoke-sub-Hamdon, as part of Somerset Art Weeks.

carolynlefley.co.uk

___________________________________________ 24th September - 9th October Somerset Art Weeks Carolyn Lefley - Ancient Sea Venue 4, St. Mary’s Church, Church Lane, Stoke-sub-Hamdon TA14 6UF. Open Fridays and Saturdays somersetartworks.org.uk

ON FILM

Andy Hastie, Yeovil Cinematheque

Ali and Ava (2021)

We’ve hardly had time to blink since the end of our last season of films at Cinematheque, and here we are, starting up again this month with our 41st season. And not just starting up, but opening with a bang. We have three films on offer in October, all excellent. I have touched on each of them over the past couple of months in this column, but will mention them again as dates for your diary.

On 5th October we open with Ali and Ava (2021), Clio Barnard’s love letter to the city of Bradford, and its radical cinematic history. She is quoted as saying, ‘I really wanted to make something that celebrated Bradford, and showed you how beautiful it is.’ Like the 1950s/60s Room at the Top and Billy Liar, to her own The Arbor (2010) and The Selfish Giant (2013) (previously shown at Cinematheque), Clio Barnard channels social realism in her film-making. Ali and Ava’s unlikely, tentative middle-aged romance between British-Asian landlord and British teaching assistant quickly blossoms through their shared love of music. Her film is an intelligent and subtle depiction of 21st century Britain, addressing race and class issues, also mental health, and is acknowledged as a conscious response to post-Brexit divisions. It is a warm and thoughtful celebration of cross-cultural love between everyday characters who could easily be neighbours or friends.

19th October brings Finnish Compartment No. 6 (2021). Set in the 1990s, Laura is an archaeology student travelling by train across Northern Russia to see some prehistoric rock carvings. She ends up reluctantly having to share a compartment with a hard-drinking Russian miner, Lyokha, returning to work. He is gruff, chain smokes and often drunk, while she is aloof and regards him with horror. Slowly, remarkably, an unlikely friendship begins to develop. This Cannes Grand Prix winner, with beautifully believable performances from both actors, is a rich, emotional yet unsentimental journey, with a central theme of finding common ground across cultural and geographical borders.

The third film this month on 26th October is Drive my Car (2021) from Japanese director Ryusuke Hamaguchi. It is a serene yet riveting drama. Nearly three hours long and laden with awards this developing connection between a widowed theatre director and his female chauffeur is unpredictable while revelations slowly emerge, as enforced close proximity within the car creates a sense of uneasy intimacy. As the title infers, most of the film takes place inside the car, but it is the sheer quality of the immaculate script and acting that holds the film’s tension, slowly peeling back the layers, revealing an engrossing and satisfying conclusion.

Three completely disparate stories then, but all have the universal theme of relationships developing against the odds within intelligent, enjoyable films.

Do think about becoming a part of Cinematheque film society. A full membership works out at only £3 per film, or £5 if you come as a guest. We would be delighted to meet you. As usual, all information is on the website below, or do contact us if you need more information.

cinematheque.org.uk swan-theatre.co.uk

___________________________________________ Wednesday 5th October 7.30pm Ali and Ava (2021) 15

Wednesday 19th October 7.30pm Compartment No. 6 (2021) 15

Wednesday 26th October 7.30pm Drive my Car (2021) 15

Cinematheque, Swan Theatre, 138 Park St, Yeovil BA20 1QT Members £1, guests £5

RICHARD PIKESLEY

7th – 26th October, 2022

APULIA, BEACH SHADOW OIL

AXE, EVENING OIL

www.jerramgallery.com

THE JERRAM GALLERY Half Moon Street, Sherborne, 01935 815261 Dorset DT9 3LN info@jerramgallery.com Tuesday – Saturday

Come from Away

CONFESSIONS OF A THEATRE ADDICT

Rosie Cunningham

Come from Away, at the Phoenix theatre in London, is a musical based on the true-life story of 7,000 passengers who unexpectedly landed, and were stranded, in the small town of

Gander in Newfoundland, diverted there in the wake of the 9/11 catastrophe. This is a celebration of the townspeople who opened their hearts and homes to travellers who were clearly traumatised by events unfolding in America, their narrow escape from tragedy and the desperate need for news about loved ones who may have been caught up. The choreography of a small cast of twelve actors, taking on dual roles of townspeople and passengers, was slick and masterful, and the stage design, where the simple movement of chair configuration clarified the scene location, worked brilliantly. The theatre was full of a significant number of tourists, many from America, and we all paid homage to this heart-warming true story with laughter, tears, and applause. Transferred from Broadway, winner of four Olivier Awards, this is a wonderful production with songs such as Welcome to the Rock. Alice Fearn, who played the first female captain for American Airlines, Captain Beverly Bass, had an outstanding and compelling voice. She has an album, which she recorded during lockdown, out on iTunes called Where I’ve Been, Where I’m Going, which I love. Running time is 100 minutes without interval, which speeds by, and no children under 10. On until 7th January 2023.

Frinton Summer Theatre is the longest-running professional Summer Repertory Theatre in the United Kingdom, established in 1934, and launched the careers of many famous names including Vanessa Redgrave and Jane Asher, their current patron. Jesus Christ Superstar was their end-of-summer finale, set in a big circus top on the Greensward, directly above Frinton’s beautiful sandy beach. This was a mighty big production with an impressive choir, made up of locals, an immersive, centralised, scaffolding circus-inspired stage, and a swaggering, acrobatic cast, who, whilst at the beginning of their theatrical careers, will undoubtedly go on to big West End roles. Jad Habchi as Caiphas and Joseph Riley as Simon both caught the imagination of the audience, judging by the upturn in applause when they stepped forward at the end.

Lucy Parham & Dame Harriet Walter

Image: Matt Crockett

As the cost of living worsens towards winter, it will seem like Covid times again when we stayed indoors rather than going out. Don’t forget that there are many ways to enjoy theatrical performances rather than making the physical journey. National Theatre Live has a host of filmed live theatre performances which can be viewed at the local cinema, such as Jack Absolute Flies again on 6th October and The Seagull on 3rd November. Both of which are excellent. The British Library also holds events, which can be viewed online as well as in person, for example, a talk by Robert Harris and An Evening with Miss Marple. Fane hosts live events, talks and interviews which you can pay to view. Fi Glover and Jane Garvey are always worth listening to and Stanley Tucci and Graham Norton are bound to amuse.

thephoenixtheatre.co.uk frintonsummertheatre.org ntlive.com bl.uk/events fane.co.uk Sunday 16 October 3pm Gransden Hall, Sherborne Girls School Composer Clara Schumann’s extraordinary life story, told through her own words and music, spoken by award-winning actor Dame Harriet Walter; interspersed with live performances by Lucy Parham £24 / £22 Members and concessions

Box Office: 01305 266926 Mon-Fri 10-4 dorchesterarts.org.uk

Dorchesterarts

AN ARTIST’S VIEW

Laurence Belbin

Since preparing this copy, summer has turned into autumn. I have managed to visit a few places out of the county of Dorsetshire and one such place was Devonshire. I had been commissioned to produce a painting looking across the River Dart. Once I had all the information I needed from being on location I headed homeward. Stopping off at Brixham I had a wander. I do like to call into that busy fishing port whenever I am near because I spent many happy times there as a child. My grandfather was born in the top room of the three-story house in the centre of the drawing shown here.

I love the tangle of fishing boats. There is always so much going on and all accompanied by the sound of gulls overhead. The tide was out and chaps were working on their vessels checking and repairing before it got too deep. Some were hosing off the bottoms, whilst the fellow in the drawing was doing something to the prop. As it was the boat that caught my interest as usual that is where I started. Straight in with pen, concentration is absolute with something as complex as this scene. I don’t mind ‘wrong’ lines, if there is such a thing, but I like to be reasonably true to the subject. The main point for me is to get the essence of the place. Detail is sort of there but so much is hinted at. If I were to do everything the result would be so confusing it wouldn’t hold together or be pleasing to look at. Here, I feel, I’ve captured busy Brixham. On leaving I bought a box of fresh fish, some of which was our tea when I got home.

My next outing was much closer, The Quad, Sherborne School. The event was the vintage car and motorbike rally. What a collection of shiny metal! Very busy with many interesting machines. I even saw a tidy example of a bike I used to ride some 43 years ago. Whilst there were the classic vintage cars with the big mudguards and headlights I was taken by this 1931 BSA Three Wheeler – owned and restored locally. From the back, or should I say the stern, as it resembles the lines of a boat, it looks very unstable but I’m sure it’s not. I drew both front and back as I couldn’t decide which view was best. The spread of the front two wheels is probably why it doesn’t fall over. I don’t know anything about engine size, top speed or mpg but it was great to see them and draw these two views.

COUNTER CULTURE

Paul Maskell, The Beat and Track

No.14 Punk DIY: Dischord and Dissonance

Punk by simple definition is the art of self-expression with no hidden agenda or ambition for financial reward. Nowadays it doesn’t so much define a genre, but more a movement that envelopes all genres produced in a certain way for a certain reason. One of the best examples of the punk ethic in its infancy would be the creation of Dischord Records in Washington D.C.

This record label was formed out of necessity above all other things. The hardcore scene in D.C. was huge but purely local. The bands had no way of getting their music heard elsewhere with no record industry within the state and no punk or new wave radio stations to help with promotion.

It all started when the hardcore band from Washington D.C. The Teen Idles decided to release an EP. They were actually in the process of splitting and the only thing left to decide was what to do with the money in the band fund. They decided to finish their short-lived career by releasing a record. Being members of the underground punk/hardcore scene it was a near impossible task to get signed and receive any exposure outside of D.C. itself. Even more so if your band had just ceased to exist. They pulled together all of the band’s resources, $600, and decided to put out the EP themselves. Ian MacKaye, Jeff Nelson, Nathan Strejcek and Geordie Grindle (all in their teens at the time) set about getting the vinyl pressed and cutting and glueing the covers by hand. In December of 1980, an eight-song 7” EP by Teen Idles, was released as Dischord Record #1. As the hardcore scene grew, news of the EP circulated and Mackaye and the other members of the Dischord label decided to see if they could manage this feat again. It was decided that if they managed to make back the initial $600 outlay by

selling the Teen Idles EP they would release Dischord record #2 No Policy by S.O.A.

Henry Rollins, founding member of S.O.A. was so eager to release a record that he fronted the money for the manufacture himself and Dischord managed the release. Both Dischord Records were in high demand and using the money coming in the label managed to release singles by Minor Threat, Government Issue and Youth Brigade. Popularity of the scene and the output of the label encouraged the label to expand and they began to rent a bungalow dubbed ‘Dischord House’. The building was used to house the guys working for the label, provide working space to package and post releases and also provide a rehearsal space for bands. Dischord House became a hub for the hardcore scene and anyone just hanging out there would often find themselves putting sleeves together or folding photocopied lyric sheets.

This pattern continued throughout the early to mid-eighties with numerous 7” releases and a compilation album entitled Flex your Head – 32 songs by eleven D.C. hardcore bands. A slight lull in output during the late eighties was re-ignited in 1991 with the explosion of Nirvana’s album Nevermind onto the scene. This sparked interest in independent music again and in particular the music of Dischord band Fugazi. Fugazi were fronted by Ian MacKaye after the dissolving of Minor Threat and the termination of short-lived follow-up band, Embrace. Still staying true to their punk rock roots they also introduced elements of reggae into their style. Six studio albums to their name, the band became easily the biggest thing to happen to Dischord. In the run-up to the release of their second album, the label received over 160,000 pre-orders! Fugazi were offered the opportunity to sign to a major label in 1992 but staying true to their punk ethics and to Dischord’s whole DIY ethos the band refused. At this point, major labels then attempted to purchase Dischord outright in order to get the bands they wanted. Again, staying true to their roots the Dischord gang declined a big payout in favour of maintaining creative control for themselves and the bands on their roster.

The label is still operating, out of the same ‘Dischord House’, over forty years later. They haven’t fallen prey to the pursuit of profit. In fact, Dischord are steadily making every live recording that Fugazi have produced, over 800 in total, available to fans on a name-your-price basis. They haven’t had to amend their ethics to fit in with anybody else’s ideals. This steadfast approach has made the label synonymous with producing great music by great bands. Music with feeling, passion and no compromise. Just the way everything should be.

(In memory of Hugh. RIP)

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