... the 9.34 from Marylebone ...

First day of the weekend:

I have always been curious about the high profile UK gathering of creative people at Art in Action UK. It is held each year at Waterperry House, Waterperry, near Wheatley, Oxford.  As I was in London at the time the event was on I juggled my diary a little and worked out the walk/bus/train/bus/courtesy car route.  I left the Ridgemount at 8.30 am, walked to the bustop and took the #18 bus along Euston Road to Marylebone (pronounced Marleybone) Station and took the 9.34am to Haddenham (pronounced Had'nam) Thame Park, then taking the #280 Arriva bus to the Kings Arms (as you do) near Wheatley and waited for the courtesy car. It came in due course arriving at Art in Action approximately 11am. No bad. Costing for the day:

Return train ticket:                                23.60 GBP
Return bus ticket:                                   5.70
Entrance to Art in Action                     17.00
Lunch, slice of quiche & salad             10.75
Bus from home to station                       5.00

62.05 GB pounds = $131.28 one day for an art/craft fair? For an artist, I struggled a little especially converting to AUD.  Travel is expensive here and so too is food. It cost me 18.00 British Pounds entry into St Paul's the other day just to see the carvings and yet other places free entry with donation is acceptable. So I climbed the Dome to make up for it.

I am glad I went to satisfy my curiosity.  I was delighted to see and support the calligraphers, the print-makers, the textile art, the sculptures, the beautiful gardens but the joy for me was a little family chapel where I saw and touched the carvings. Touching was to feel the depth of the incision.

Here are some of my photos from today, do enjoy them:

I do love trains!

I find this a little odd and also a little discriminatory; if you haven't demonstrated before you are placed in the newcomers tent.  Of course I was expecting all the calligraphers to be together. Anyway I found them all!

How wonderful to see a big sign Calligraphy & Illustration, marvellous!

Helen Scholes. It was so lovely to meet Helen in person. We have emailed for so long it was just like meeting an old school friend. We had a lovely lunch and talked so much I almost made her late getting back to work.  Helen is one of the convenors for the CLAS Festival of Calligraphy for which I am teaching in Malvern UK next month. Brava Helen!

 There were at least a half dozen script artists at work.

Simon Sonsino.

I also met Simon for the first time as well even though we have been in contact for a while.  I had written a forward to his new publication Textual Art.

 

I was so taken with this work; the artist prepared the ground and invited the public to make their mark by writing something of their choosing. I would have liked to have stayed longer to see how the painting evolved but I couldn't. I may yet find out.

The Peace Obelisk in the gardens of Waterperry House

carved by Simon Buchanan

Waterperry House is owned by the School of Economic Science and Art in Action was conceived by some of it's students.

Scattered around the gardens were Life Journey banners. I particularly like these two.

The little parish church that lured me in ... I must say I am attracted to doorways.  

"When you walk through a doorway, watch out, for a new world may appear"

This sculpture and it's inscription moved me so much.

 The long "s"

A carved plaque high up on the church wall. This one confused me as I didn't know the quote, but I do now.

It is from Chauser's Canterbury Tales

The Parson 

"But Christ's own law, and His apostles' twelve

He taught but first he followed it himselve."

It is worth looking it up and reading the whole thing.

That was my Art in Action Day!

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