in the manner of Lowry, Bacon, Hockney, Van Gogh, as well as some abstract still-life drawings, and sketches of London in the 1960’s… It took longer than reckoned, but always interesting to look into and do things I might not otherwise have done; like looking carefully at L.S. Lowry’s work which was so much richer than I had considered it to be from the superficial look i’d given his painting before.
Only one thing left to do for the play now – a Yves Klein-type painting, which I’ll call “Pressing Business” as the actor has to paint and then print herself in bright red onto a canvas. We’ll try to make a good impression.
….And then there’s the editing of the film…, the one Dryden, Gilles, Julien and myself are teaming up to do.
It’s a four-fold film, weaving as many narratives; one, is a behind-the-camera look at the crew making the documentary; another, is the artist going around drawing everywhere; then, the portrait of the city itself, its geography and character, which the film has to bring to life; and also, not to forget my bit, the surrealist painting on the film, digging into the culture, its psychology etc.
Two french film-makers (Gilles and Julien, with their translator and side-kick, Deniz) going around videoing me going round drawing. With Istanbul, all the while, in the frame (it’s a nothing-much-happens but absorbing to look at kind of film!).
It’s footage we shot three or four years ago, and which we’ve been working on intermittently ever since – you can see the first few-minute episode “Dreaming Istanbul” on another one of these posts – we wanted to get it finished. finally, and so i’ve been going over, a week at a time, to work on it with Gilles. Well, actually he works (all day ‘n’ half the night) and I sit next to him, he does all the editing and the only thing I do is make the odd comment. Most of my attention is on the pages of my sketchbook, had a plan to to fill it with drawings ‘n’ watercolours of the garden and interior of the manoir, La Folie H…, Meung sur Loire, which is where we’re working. The procedure, while it falls most heavily on Gilles’ shoulders, keeps us happy, as each short episode, or chapter, is completed, it gets sent to Julien, in another part of France, who gets back with an analysis and suggestions for changes; then it’s for Dryden to watch over ‘n’ over and begin to wield his splicer, razor & synth for the sound “commentary”. It’s working well this way, and we’re nearly there. Only a title to come up with now!
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