The Shard & The Savoy – Byrne Bros Project

Last autumn I began a collaboration with Michelle Tilley, Health and Safety Executive of The Byrne Group to produce a body of work based on two of their current projects – one being the state of the art Shard at London Bridge and by way of contrast – the refurbishment of the much loved old Savoy Hotel on The Strand. This project is almost completed now so time to reflect and share some of the artwork produced exclusively for their head office in Teddington.  Due to the nature of the on going work it was impossible to do more on both sites other than take photos and make notes, but as with most of my work a degree of imagination becomes an enormous asset in these circumstances.

The Savoy

Working from photos taken during site visits I produced oil on paper sketches and charcoal studies of each of the sites.

'Ballroom' Savoy study Lee Campbell

'Serpent' study Savoy - Lee Campbell

I was fortunate to be able to visit The Savoy just before the furniture was installed and to see the completed interior beautifully lit and this formed the basis for the completed 4′ x 4′ oil painting that resulted. Using details from the interior and gold figure who stands majestically above The Strand entrance, I designed a composition which I hoped would capture the sense of history and the unique mood created by the presence of so many notorious guests and staff. The variety of different styles proved a challenge – how to incorporate the elaborate decoration of the ballroom with the stylish deco chrome pillars and leopard skin patterned carpet with gothic glamour. I have, of course also included the mysterious ‘white lady’ who has been seen disappearing into walls as recently as last year by the security men.

Study for Savoy - Lee Campbell

I also included Kaspar the shiny black cat in the lower right hand corner  – the story goes that in 1898 a South African diamond magnate by the name of Woolf Joel was visiting London and held a banquet at the famous Savoy before returning home. At the last minute one of his guests had to cancel, leaving thirteen to sit at table, which one guest said was unlucky. After a successful dinner, Joel said his goodbyes and rose to leave; the same guest then said that the first person to leave would also be unlucky and would be the first to die. Joel was not superstitious and thought this remark very amusing — but a few weeks later he was shot dead in his Johannesburg office.

Kaspar

For some years after those events, anxious not to have a similar incident that could damage their reputation, the Savoy provided a member of the hotel staff to sit at tables of thirteen, to avoid the unlucky number, but that idea proved unpopular with guests wanting to talk about personal or private matters; so in 1926 a new solution was found. A British architect and sculptor called Basil Ionides was commissioned to design and carve a three-foot-high model of a black cat, which he produced from a single piece of London plane.

Kaspar in his display case at the Savoy Kaspar awaits a party of diners Named Kaspar, the cat now resides in his own display case in the entrance hall at the hotel, but whenever a party of thirteen requires an extra guest he is brought out to sit at table. He has a napkin tied around his neck and is served every course, just like any other guest. Winston Churchill became very fond of Kaspar, to the extent that he insisted the cat should be present at every meeting of The Other Club, a political dining club he had founded in 1911, and so Kaspar has been at all the fortnightly meetings — always held at the Savoy — since 1927.

During World War 2 Kaspar was catnapped by some mischievous Royal Air Force personnel and flown to Singapore, only to have Churchill himself demand its immediate return!

There are two theories as to the origin of the number thirteen being unlucky. One derives from Norse mythology, in which twelve Gods sat down to a banquet in Valhalla. The evil spirit Loki gate crashed the party as thirteenth member of the party and killed the Gods’ favourite, Balder. Thirteen also has significance to Christians, as there were thirteen people at the Last Supper, and the traitor Judas Iscariot was the thirteenth and last to arrive. As to why a cat — the animals have held an important role in mythology and superstition over the centuries, and black cats in particular are considered by many cultures to be lucky.

The refurbishment began in 2007 and over 1000 craftsmen, artists and builders had been involved in the £100 million re-fit. The whole neo-renaissance limestone facade had to be moved forward by hydraulics 0.75cm – a very complex feat of engineering. The original Edwardian style had previously been updated in the 1930s and these current sumptuous theatrical interior designs are by Pierre Yves Rochon. I was shown the sealed room No 878 where a murder had once been committed and told of the many famous guests who had graced this hotel with their presence; Monet and Whistler (a huge hero of mine) had both painted the splendid view of Thames from the hotels windows, Winston Churchill, The Beatles, Marylin Munro and Richard Harris. I was very gratful to my delightful guide Stuart Harvey, The  Project Manager, who explained that the company enforced strict rules about good behaviour and to facillitate this ran an education programme for the 800 strong workforce. A very impressive opperation.

The completed large oil painting took many months and had many transitions before reaching the final composition:

First study - Savoy - Lee Campbell

Second study -Savoy - Lee Campbell

The Savoy - oil on canvas 48" x 48" - Lee Campbell 2011

For additional information see:

Gilt trip: Refurbishing the Savoy hotel 8.10. 2010 – Thomas Lane

The refurbished Savoy hotel looks a million dollars – which is just as well because it cost more than £200m to do up. Happily nobody was to blame for the cost and time overruns – except possibly the owner’s insatiably lavish tastes- see images:
www.building.co.uk/buildings/gilt-trip-refurbishing-the-savoy-hotel/5006858.article

For a comprehensive history of the Savoy: Wikipedia:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savoy_Hotel

The Shard

Renzo Piano, the building’s architect, worked together with architectural firm Broadway Malyan during the planning stage of the project. Funder by Qatar the tower will stand 1,017 ft (310 m) tall and have 72 floors, plus 15 further radiator floors in the roof. The building has been designed with an irregular triangular shape from the base to the top. It will be clad entirely in glass. The viewing gallery and open-air observation deck will be on the top (72nd) floor.

Keiren Long of the Evening Standard  has written a piece examining the impact that the Shard will have on the area: http://the-shard.com/shard

Andy Bowden – crane operator has also written a piece about the experience of being at the top of his game://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/architecture/8314250/The-Shard-of-Glass-view-from-atop-the-tallest-skyscraper-in-Europe.html

When I first visited the site last year I wrote a blog about the experience of going up the side of the building to a considerable height in a wire cage and The Shard is now almost finished. In fact it is clearly visible from Richmond Park, the Thames at Hammersmith and probably from most of London. It is already truly magnificent! So what a challenge to complete a painting of an incomplete building. It seemed right to show the exposed core while simultaneously showing how the glass membrane will look. when completed on one side. Because the painting is being commissioned by the people building it, I also decided to use the main construction materials to represent the two Byrne brothers – one who specialises in steel and the other in concrete.

The textures that occur on the pillars of concrete are truly lovely and it seemed such a shame to render then with a smooth concrete over layer. The patterns on the raw steel are equally fascinating golden textures which occur as the metal oxidises.

Charcoal studies - The Shard - Lee Campbell

Oil study - Shard - Lee Campbell

Top Floor - oil study Shard - Lee CampbellGround Floor - Shard -Lee Campbell

Below - Shard oil study - Lee Campbell

The Shard oil on canvas 48" x 48" - Lee Campbell 2011

Finding a good image of the Shard would have been impossible without the help of the photographer Mike ODwyer who was kind enough to allow me use his images taken from a helicopter to get a good perspective on the rapidly changing cityscape from London Bridge.

To summarise – the project has been hugely interesting and absorbing and I have learnt a great deal about both the process of refurbishment and the constructions of a new build. The contrast between the old and the new could not have been more pronounced  but I have attempted to make the work fit into the modern offices of the Byrne Group and am looking forward to seeing it in situ. 

A special thanks for the idea and support to the prize winning architect Cathy Stewart.

Other News

Summer Exhibition – Portland Gallery 2011

A selection of new work is now on display at the Portland Gallery on Hillrise Richmond

Petersham Hotel - oil on canvas - Lee Campbell 2011

The above paintings  show how I paint around the edges of the block canvas I use. They do not need a frame but can easily be set into a floating or suspended frame with a gap to expose the painted sides.

Eel Pie Sunrise - oil on canvas - Lee Campbell

Sailed up the Thames from Eel Pie Island to Chelsea on L’Estrelle – a big houseboat converted from a Dutch barge – she had been having maintenance done in the boatyard on Eel Pie Is. and was due to return to her moorings Cadaogan Pier. Lovely adventure! Thanks John and Harry.

Web Site Updates

The video of my moment of fame of telle – ‘House Gift’ can now be seen on my site: http://www.leecampbell.co.uk/Video

There is also a new Gallery entitled ‘ Commissions’ with examples of past projects and private commissions.

Christchurch Earthquakes- Aftershocks Continue

Update 20th Feb ’12–  9,988 and counting

Bev tells me that they are  ‘still having earthquakes …we are up to 9,988 now and that was a couple of weeks ago so be more than that now. Just when you think they are slowing down to go away then we get another around 4.3 -4.5 just to let us know that mother nature hasn’t finished with us yet
I feel that we will still get another bit one around the 7 mark yet before it is finished …forever hope not but it is in the back of my mind all the time.’

 23 August ’11 Heritage Buildings no longer insured

High-profile Christchurch heritage buildings damaged in the earthquakes are no longer insured. Insurance cover has been cancelled for the Arts Centre and the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament after major claims lodged following the February quake. The claims already lodged will be honoured, but the buildings will not be covered for any damage from a future quake.

Arts Centre director Ken Franklin said he was “extremely concerned about the risk future earthquakes pose for the Arts Centre”.

Cathedral leaders were less concerned, saying further damage from any future quakes would not dramatically increase the repair costs they have already claimed for.

The Arts Centre was badly damaged in the February quake, with nearly every building in need of extensive repair, while most of the Catholic cathedral in Barbadoes St will have to be deconstructed.

20th May

News from Bev working for The Star in a porta cabin in Hagley Park:

‘we get around 6- 8 (aftershocks) each day and have just had a good one 5.3, which they are calling another one for claims as it did quite a bit of damage. Just yesterday we got a 4.7 which lasted for 4 minutes … the buggers are still here!’

The Kiwi spirit is alive and kickin’ as this new thread of blogs shows:

Pictures from The Red Zone City Centre – 30th March

Colombo St looking south to Tuam

Provincial Chambers

Cashel St Mall Area

Colombo St (between Lichfield & Tuam)

Grand Chancellor 1 Cashel St.

Manchester-Gloucester -SW corner

Manchester St - Lichfield St NW cnr

Montreal St - Old Girls High

Montreal St-Kilmore St old Normal School

Old Metro Cinema - Worcester St

Stonehurst - Gloucester St

Kenton Chambers - Hereford St

In Ruins

Christchurch Memorial Service Westminster Abbey 27th March

Not being a church goer it was truly memorable experience to find oneself in such a historic building with 2000 people, mostly ex pats like myself. Hearing the Maori language, hymns, prayers, singing the NZ national anthem – seeing Prince Charles laying a wreath, and when Haley Westenra – the young opera singer broke down while trying to read her thoughtful testimony – it was all many of us could do not to collapse in floods of tears. The complex organisation and security arrangements went like clockwork and were no doubt a good rehearsal for the royal wedding to be held there next month.

It will take quite some time to process the variety of emotions that the experience left me with. On the train home we shared the carriage with many NZers on their way to Twickenham to the rugby game with a Sth African team which had been due to be played in Christchurch but was re located here.

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

Update from Christchurch 6th March

From Bev who is very happy to be alive:

‘Go to www.starnews.co.nz and you can see our building as well as the
papers we are putting out …

I am back at work and we are in a porta shed on the side of the road. It never lets up really as still having big after shocks and a lot are around 4.6 -4.8ish so makes you wonder if it is going to be another big one – they reckon we are going to get a big one – around 5 at least, every month for around 6-7 months and also in that time another 6 so guess just have to ride it out.’

This link is from the 2nd March here in London  at Westminster Cathedral:

http://www.nznewsuk.co.uk/news/?id=16448&story=Kia-Kaha–A-Christchurch-remembrance-in-London

For aftershock updates see:

http://www.geonet.org.nz/earthquake/quakes/recent_quakes.html

I’ve never felt so proud to be from there, what amazing people! In the midst of all the Middle East upheavals the tiny city of Christchurch lies in ruins with over 300 people confirmed dead or missing and the NZ’ers living here  organised  this beautiful tribute.

Intact

PHOTO UPDATE – 19th MARCH

Arts Center Christchurch

Christchurch was the hub of our community – the very core of our heritage and although it is many years since I lived there, my most poignant younger memories centre around  Christchurch Cathedral – running up the spire with my father as a tiny child, my first hamburger from the bar beside it and picnics on the river Avon’s grassy banks and the wonders of the museum. Poring over the cabinets of butterflies and bugs, gazing in wonder at the huge dinosaur skeleton and being enchanted by the Victorian shops and coaches.

My grandparents (William and Maud Turnbull) lived in Sydenham and my mother had won a  scholarship to attend the Christchurch School of Art – now the Arts Centre, and also badly damaged in the earthquake – until she was forced to go out to work by the depression. She spoke of watching the soldiers march in silence through the Bridge of Remembrance on their way to war as women threw flowers. Her father had fought in the Middle East in  a cavalry unit in WW1. She also witnessed the horrific fire at Ballentines from the window of Beaths opposite, where she worked as a tailor.

My father’s family, the Armstrongs, were among the first settlers in Christchurch moving there from Newport Pagnall with a family of 10, in the 1800′s – my grandmother being the only one to be born in NZ. They owned property called Willow Nook on the banks of the Avon.

The Yardbirds

As a teen my friends and I would pile into Bruce’s old Humber and drive the 50 miles up from Ashburton to a sweaty, smoky underground disco dive to hear Hendrix played with strobe lights flashing – so decadent it seemed to us in the 60′s. Eating at the Coffee Pot on New Regent St was the height of luxury and toasted sandwiches and hot chocolate at the Albatross Coffee Bar – all within sight of the lovely old Cathedral. We also saw live bands such as The Yardbirds, The Beach Boys, The Animals and Roy Orbison who also  played in Christchurch helping to ease the isolation and bring us closer to swinging London.

Weaving by Vivienne Mountfort

Vivienne Mountfort

On a visit back ‘home’ in the 1980′s proudly seeing my cousin Vivienne Mountfort’s exhibition at the Art Gallery in the Botanical Gardens – a tiny 80 year old fibre artist  who did huge weavings including one of the Edmonds ‘Sure to Rise’ baking powder factory, with famous women ‘s faces in each window.

Could this be taken as an inspiration for the future of Christchurch?

Will they re-build? It seems that a third of the buildings in the city center will have to be demolished as they are so badly damaged and apparently the liquifaction oozing up from the ground and doing so much damage is due to the water table being close to the surface – Christchurch was build on a drained swamp. My dear friend Bev, who works for the Christchurch Star sheltered under her office desk and survived but was badly shaken and had to wade through this muddy ooze to get to her car. Her daughter Carmen was bruised by bricks falling on  her and still the aftershocks continue. How are people managing to sleep I wonder? After the first quake people had begun rebuilding but I fear that many will not have the heart to rebuild again.

So what does it all mean to the community? Christchurch had never had an earthquake before although most of us would remember the Inangahua earthquake in 1968 which we felt even though the epicentre was on the West Coast. My uncle Arthur Turnbull,  was the notorious owner of the pub there which took a bit of a battering but everyone survived that one.

Lunch time in The Square

Did Christchurch’s official Wizard survive? Yes, but apparently he plans to return to Australia where he will no doubt be unwelcome by those who remember him as Ian Brackenbury Channell, a right wing activist who fled from 1970′s Melbourne after death threats from the lefties and reinvented himself as a wizard entertaining the lunch time crowds with his pro royalist rants.

Wizard?

This has also been the week in which I celebrated my 60th birthday and saw myself on ITV’s House Gift (see video link below)  – so its been a real roller coaster of emotions.

FAME

Twickenham Rowing Club - Lee Campbell Prints from Par Ici

Last summer an ITV film crew shot some footage in my studio and around Eel Pie Island and it finally made it onto the telle this week- 22nd Feb.

See video on my site www.leecampbell.co.uk – Video

All good fun and Gillian said some very nice things.

Eel Pie Dawn - oil on canvas - Lee Campbell

Eel Pie Bridge - Oil on canvas -Lee Campbell

Music, Mischief and Battersea Peace Monk

 

Charcoal study ‘The Savoy’ – Lee Campbell

Drawing – I love it and charcoal is such a fantastic medium to explore ideas and solve problems, so forgiving and suggestive. This is a ‘collage’ of images of the Savoy from photos taken during the refit last year in preparation for a large oil painting. So many ghosts seemed to be lurking in the lovely old building – so many stories of excess and larger than life characters.

 

Kaspar the Cat

It was in the 1920s that the hotel’s most famous resident checked in and never left. Kaspar the Cat, a 3-foot-high wood sculpture of a regal feline, was expressly created to ward off any superstitions of guests dining at the hotel’s Savoy Grill. Apparently, to dine with only thirteen guests is ominous, and the first to rise from the table will soon meet with tragedy. Kaspar’s role is to be the official fourteenth guest, served with every course as normal, should anyone unknowingly hit upon the unlucky number of diners.

Good to be back in the studio again too now the weather is warmer – it gets so cold in there that ice forms on the inside of the skylights.

Studio in snow - Lee Campbell

Old boat winch

Would like to pretend we had ‘two feet’ of snow but it was only about 6 inches – however this is what my feet felt like working in there until I treated my self to some seriously solid and waterproof Ugg boots. Fabulous!

Two Feet of Snow

Lost in Music

Xmas was a delightfully cosy and musical affair with champagne and a CD of Dylans’ radio show choices – ‘Theme Time Radio Hour’ – an excellent selection of early American music. This was enhanced by reading ‘White Bicycles’ by Joe Boyd which provides an overview of the birth of Rock n’ Roll. I also accompanied Steve to the radio station where he helps out with mikes for the live recordings – Radio  Wey (named after the river Wey) where Martin Clarke runs a blues show on Friday nights (9 – 11pm). The live act that night was Marcus Bonfanti – who writes his own songs and sings them with the conviction  and experience of someone many years older -

I also revisited an old favourite of mine John Prine and watched this video of him – what a lovely person he is with a rare mixture of humour and compassion in his song writing. Was lucky enough to see him in the 80′s here in London.  Also revisited a favourite from the 80′s – great lyrics about ‘dealing with the hazards’ by King Trigger it was the soundtrack of my migration back to London from Melbourne in 1983.

Other favourites from this period were ‘Modern Love’ by Bowie, Joe Jackson’s ‘Stepping Out’ and ‘London Calling’ the Clash.

All this and Huey Morgan on BBC Radio 6 current on 6 times a week!

Peace Pagoda – Battersea Park

Last weekend we were visited by Reverend Nagase the Buddhist Monk who is the guardian of the Peace Pagoda in Battersea Park. I first met him when he visited my shop on Ebury Bridge Road in 1998 and despite not speaking English very well his delight in art was obvious and we have been friends since then. Sadly, he is being ‘terrorised’ at the moment by a particularly tenacious vandal and is particularly vulnerable due to cut back in park staff. He lives alone and needs support more than ever so please help if you can – he welcomes visitors and can be contacted on 0207 2289620.

The Rev. Nagase spends his day in Buddhist meditation, ‘other works’ and in maintaining the pagoda, a job not made easy by the fact that people climb up it and make a mess on the second floor, an area forbidden to the public. He relies on donations to live and is grateful to the bread he gets from a local Caribbean bakery and vegetables from a Chinese vegetable shop. Any help is welcome, not least with his heartfelt pleas for assistance in cleaning the pagoda.

The idea of Battersea Park being home to one of Japan’s foremost Buddhist sects may strike the casual visitor as incongruous – to say the least. But to early morning joggers and dog-walkers it will not be a surprise. A saffron-robe clad Buddhist monk, gently beating a drum as he does a daily perambulation at sunrise from his temple to the Peace Pagoda, is a familiar sight.

The Reverend Gyoro Nagase first arrived in England in 1978 from Aichi prefecture, near Nagoya, in Japan, to assist in the construction of the first Peace Pagoda in the UK in Milton Keynes. In 1984 he moved to London, as part of a team of 50 volunteers and Buddhist monks and nuns of the Nipponzan Myohoji Buddhist Order, to construct the Peace Pagoda in the park, which was completed the following year. They were living in what is now the Children’s Zoo but, as the site was expanded, the Buddhist order was offered a storeroom, in the trees near the Old English Garden, by Wandsworth Council, on the understanding they carried out all renovations and the conversion into a temple. Gratefully the offer was accepted, the work was carried out by volunteers and today, with just one remaining monk, that temple has developed into a successful centre for the sect, attracting Buddhist followers from not just London and Japan, but also people from China, Sri Lanka, India, Burma and Taiwan who are now living in the UK.

The Peace Pagoda stands about 33.5m high, and is made of concrete and wood. It has four large gilded statues of the Buddha, one facing North, one facing South, one facing East and one facing West. A small temple has also been built nearby, with just one monk of the Nipponzan Myohoji order as permanent resident. The monk currently occupying this position is Rev Gyoro Nagase, who came to England in 1978 from Aichi prefecture in Japan. Each morning at sunrise Rev Nagase makes the short journey from the temple to the pagoda, beating his drum and chanting the Daimoku. He spends his day in Buddhist meditation and maintaining the pagoda, among other tasks. Rev Nagase is a regular participant in the annual London Peace Pilgrimage, organised by Westminster Interfaith, under the auspices of the Catholic Church.

 

Gathering Battersea Park

Each year in June a ceremony for peace is held at the Peace Pagoda. Monks and nuns of the Nipponzan Myohoji sangha are joined by monks and nuns from other Buddhist traditions, in chanting and offering prayers in front of a temporary shrine set up in the environs of the pagoda. Representatives of other faiths and of secular peaceseeking organisations also offer prayers for peace. The ceremony finishes with traditional dances from India and Sri Lanka, and music of various kinds.

 

Peace Pagoda, Battersea Park

Nasty Scam – Artists Beware

This scam is currently targeting artists and people selling goods on line and from web sites.

It was quite a convoluted scam that took place over 5 weeks from the initial contact from a chap in Denmark asking about the artwork on my web site. This is quite normal  I get a lot of genuine enquiries, and after many e mails he finally selected paintings to the value of £6,000 and said he was also buying some furniture from Manchester and asked if the paintings could be transported there.

He then sent a cheque despite being asked to use Pay Pal or BACs transfer but alarm bells rang when I saw it was a UK company cheque – with someone else’s name.
Then he requested that I send him £2000 to cover transport – by Western Union – and this is where he came unstuck as I’d not agreed to pay for that.
I notified the bank and despite the cheque clearing initially it proved eventually to be stolen.   Easy come  – easy go!   It seems that this scam is being used worldwide and they are particularly targeting artists at the moment.  Such a waste of time but good lesson.

Points to look out for:

The amount offered not same as price of goods

Offer to send cheque only – they are stolen and will bounce

Poor English that becomes increasingly worse

Requests for money

Please pass this on

Shocking News from New Zealand

Update December 2010

More earthquakes! Poor old Christchurch has had nearly 4,000 aftershocks since the big one. Another big one 2 days ago.

Poor old Christchurch is still being rocked by aftershocks and according to my friend Bev, who lives there, they have had over 150 of them- follow this link to see them recorded as they happen.

http://www.geonet.org.nz/earthquake/quakes/recent_quakes.html

So much damage and apparently there was a terrific roaring sound as it was happening – what a horror -  however the true NZ spirit – thriving on adversity is illustrated well below:

On a happier note  – fabulous weather last week and off to Brighton to deliver a painting to a customer – lovely excuse for an outing to the seaside – fish n’ chips on the beach and the countryside looking lush in the last bloom of summer. Coincidentally, within the last few weeks I’ve been contacted by 2 customers from the Claremont Gallery in Brighton which was run by the lovely Pat Dodd until 2001 and who I’ve sadly lost touch with. It’s so good to hear from people who have my paintings particularly people who had bought them many years ago. Although they’re sold they still continue to be an integral part of my creative evolution and it’s been an excellent reminder.

Holly at the beach

Another delightful piece of news: ‘Rosie’ The Patriotic Piano finally has a new home – she was purchased by a father for his daughter and is now residing in North Yorkshire having raised money for the charity in the process. What a lovely end to her long journey. A very big ‘Thank you’ to all who helped to make that happen and you can hear her being played beautifully by her new owner

Went to a reunion on Frid night held at my old art college in (KIAD as it was then) Canterbury and the only people I saw there that I knew were my old art tutor Tony Mott, who taught me to draw at The Heatherley School of Art in Chelsea long before I went to Canterbury, and a fellow student from the year below me, Sue Fisher, who didn’t even know it was happening but had popped in to see the MA show which was also on. Lovely to see her though and made it all worthwhile. Good also to see Ted Harrison’s MA paintings, very thoughtful spiritual work. So weird though seeing my old studio space all empty and bare – I felt like a ghost – an invisible memory echoing down distant hallways. After all it has been 20 years since I graduated and I would really like to contact Sarah Dodman who graduated with me in 1991. Sarah are you out there?

Finally finished this painting I’ve been working on all summer, it’s part of a series of river paintings like this one

'Submerged' oil on canvas - Lee Campbell

More young talent in the form of Danica who is 16 years old and has auditioned for the famous Berwick St Studio in Soho in London and she has just got a recording deal with a record company
Check our this link – you’ll be amazed

What a sensational voice!

SAVOY RE-FIT NEWS

Also last week, a visit to the Savoy to gather more images for the project I’m working on for The Byrne Group – overwhelming, sumptuous, hyper-decorative, fantastic – like a series of film sets – especially so as there was no furniture in place yet – waiting for all the actors to appear. A real privilege to have a  preview as it doesn’t open till 10/10/10 – very auspicious I’m sure.

The blue feet are to protect the newly laid flooring – some carpets still had covers on.

Shrubs with Attitude – Clanfield to Chester

At last – a holiday! Short but very sweet. Started with a visit to my cousins who run Silver Pear Weddings at historic Friars Court, Clanfield.  Seriously old building:

The first recording of buildings on the site of Friars Court dates back to 1142 and the establishment of the first ‘Hospitaller’ in Oxfordshire by the charitable, religious order of the Knights Templar Order of St. John of Jerusalem. An ‘Hospitaller’ was a place of rest for travellers and from it are believed to derive the words ‘hospital’ and ‘hostel’.

In a chronicle of 1338, Friars Court is mentioned as being “… a small house with gardens, dovecote and adjacent crofts worth 30s a year”. This accommodated the preceptor (the only serving brother), a chaplain, a steward, two servants and three pensioners.  A few years later after the building of a bridge over the River Thames at nearby Radcot (now the oldest surviving crossing to remain standing), the increase in passing traffic must have had a strong influence in making Friars Court a more important stopping point.

By the middle of the 15th century the “small house” had become a stone-built hall with a ‘great chamber’; a separate kitchen, with an adjoining building; latrines to the east; a bake-house and a stone-built chapel with a walled garden to the north.

The house remained under auspices of the Order of St John until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 1530s after which it became a private residence. From 1558 until the turn of the 19th century Friars Court had a varied succession of owners, often joint owners, most of whom let the house and land to tenants. During this period the most significant change to the house, before the alterations of the 19th century, was the addition of an attic storey and the remodelling of the façade in the 1650s.

We stayed in the sumptuous ‘Brides Room’ which is apparently haunted and overlooks the water meadow where I joined a family of  coots for a spot of morning yoga beside their water lily pond.

Later, a lovely summers evening walk along the upper reaches of the Thames to Radcot Lock as the sun was setting – took loads of reference photos including these amazing ‘hedge faces’ – perfect reflections of the hazy Oxfordshire sunset with swans, reeds and wildflowers as we made our way past the cows and wheat fields to the local pub.

On to Symonds Yat (Yat means gate in Welsh I think) on the Wye where we visited the red stone Goodrich Castle that we could see from our hotel window. Later with rain threatening we climbed up to the lookout for spectacular views down the valley and made it down to the pub just as the heavens opened.

Next day we took the tiny roads across beautiful Herefordshire countryside to Hay on Wye, up to Ludlow for lunch (renown as being a town to delight gourmets) then Shropshire and on to Meole Brace Hall in Shrewsbury – a historic house full of exquisite antiques and artwork tucked away next to a church. I’d never been to this part of England before and was delighted to discover what an interesting town Shrewsbury was. Our host was the charming Charles Hathaway who directed us to a hidden walking route into the town and made us an excellent breakfast next morning. Just wonderful!

Then on to the Cheshire border to visit Welsh relatives Alan and  Joy Parry who took us on a grand tour of Chester, up the Moelfamau Hill,  then to The Wirrel for ice creams on the edge of a sea of grass, complete with gulls and holiday makers at Parkgate where water had once been.

Alan spent his working life at Shotton steelworks on Deeside.  The plant opened gradually in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and was huge concern employing thousands by the time of World War One.  Nationalised in 1967, by 1979 the plant and the whole industry was struggling under the pressure of foreign competition and industrial unrest. In 1980, British Steel took the decision to close the furnaces at the plant, making 6,500 workers redundant and leaving only the finishing operations such as rolling and plating.  However, Alan worked down the line from the furnaces in logistics where he pioneered the use of computer systems to track the loads of metal travelling through the plant.  Shotton was ahead of the times in this way, having first installed a computer system in 1976.  Alan retired in the 1990s and Shotton is now a much smaller private concern owned by Corus.

Home on Monday and a production team from ITV arrived in my studio to film someone buying one of my paintings for a programme with Lawrence Llewlyn Bowen – House Gift. Sadly she only had a limited budget but it will be great to see the studio on tv.

'Pulse' oil on panel -Lee Campbell

That evening was also the Bridgeman Art Library’s annual summer garden party at the Chelsea Art Club – very exclusive, no mobile phones allowed and just great to meet all the people who help sell the rights to my images which are held in the library.  Always a thrill to see a long lost painting appear on a book or CD cover. Lots of well know artists there and I also spotted Antonio Carluccio – whom I usually associate with networking breakfasts.

 

Pearls & Bubbles - Lee Campbell

Above is the large 6′ x 4′ commission that I’ve completed for Joseph’s Hairdressing Salon in St Margarets. So many bubbles! I did get a bit carried away but they were such fun to do. Pearls and bubbles a theme in keeping with the previous ‘Orb’ series and the bubble paintings that I did at the NPL last year.

A very big THANK YOU to all who braved a hot sticky night at the Portland Gallery on Richmond Hill last night- the show continues till 26th August – contact gallery for opening times Tel: 0208332 1200

Great event in St Margarets yesterday – food, live music and happy people! Looking forward to our very own Queens Rd street party next Sunday.

 

 

Blasted slag and Dr Feelgood at London Bridge

Q. What grows at 3m per day and has roots 50m deep?
A. The Shard – destined to be 72 floors high it will be the tallest building in Europe when completed in 2012.

This magnificent building designed by the Italian architect Renzo Piano had already climbed to 21 storeys high when I was invited on a site visit with the architect Cathy Stewart by Michelle Tilley of Byrne Bros who has commissioned me to design and produce artwork for the foyer of the Byrne Group who are the concrete sub contractors who are building the core structure.

What an amazing experience it proved to be – after penetrating the tight security we were kitted up with glasses, gloves, boots and high vis. jackets by Rob Moore who gave us an in-depth tour of the site. Rob shared my love of rock music and had been the tour manager of Dr. Feelgood when they had played Melbourne where – by coincidence – I had seen them play in the 1970’s – people have such multi-faceted interesting lives these days. Quite bizarre to be discussing this in a wire cage as we were pulled the side of the building, past the crane driver reading his paper, to the 21st floor with London sprawling  below on a glorious sunny spring day.

With the 2 Robs

The tour started with the 3 levels of basements we clambered down the narrow stairs into a noisy hive of activity and witnessed the rendering of the huge pillars of concrete textured with spirals and ridges (like ancient Romanesque) by the earth and clay walls of the bore holes that the concrete was forced into.

The scene was reminiscent of a Piranesi drawing – with activity deep below and high above, glimpses of glowing welding sparks, gigantic metal tubes, sheets of metal – some steely grey others golden with corrosion. It is the sheer scale of everything reminiscent of the lair of one of James Bond’s villains and the noise of all the activity – felt quite  relieved when it was time to return to ground level and ascend.

There had been an enormous ‘pour’ the previous week which had been organised along the lines of an army manoeuvre: over a gruelling 36-hour operation, 700 truckloads of concrete were deposited at the London Bridge site. The 5,500m3 single concrete pour ranks among the largest ever undertaken on a building in the capital, with trucks arriving on site at 2 min intervals from Battersea and Greenwich it marked the first major milestone in the construction.

This culmination of the building’s groundworks package has created the huge raft foundation that will support the tower. The build is a ‘top-down’ construction which involves casting the ground floor slab and excavating the ground below while work on the superstructure above continues.  Fascinating process with concerns for safety due to the busy location and the heat generated as concrete cures. A ‘secret formula’ was used and described by Don Houston (the snr. project manager of Byrne Bros, ground granulated blast furnace slag to replace 75% of the cement. Plasticisers and retardants are also added to increase the flow.    At last  – the language of artists! Which reminds me why I am there… my brief is to complete 2 pieces – one about the Shard and the other based on the Savoy Hotel re-fit which Byrne Bros. are also working on. I am off to visit the Savoy next week and can’t wait to see how things are looking there – what a contrast to a spanking new build where, as Renzo Piano so beautifully put it – one is ‘taking from the city – the air – but you give back the land.  He is referring to the angle of the design which allows the sky to continually reflected down to the street.

Following the visit Cathy and I crossed Borough High St to the café in Southwark Cathedral where I was astounded how similar the oldest part of the walls were to the most recent parts of the Shard. I have so many images, sounds and ideas buzzing around in my head, can’t wait to begin.

Who says concrete ain’t sexy!