Above: Procktor in St. Tropez, 1968
"Oh, By The Way" is my digital scrap book of things I like, things I would share with a close friend and say: “Oh, by the way, do you know of this artist/ clothing or interior designer/ model/ singer/ actor/ gorgeous man… or, have you seen this video/ photo/ film... or heard (or do you remember) this song/ band... or, read this book/ poem/ inspiring quote... or, visited this place/ museum/ restaurant/ famous building... or, have you heard of this amazing new scientific discovery?”
I am dedicated to posting the positive, the fascinating, the beautiful, the interesting, the moving, and the inspiring and uplifting. Sometimes I post cultural as well as personal observations, milestones, and remembrances. And just like life, all of these things may often have a bit of melancholy or even sadness in them, which is what makes our time here so lovely and bittersweet and precious.
Some of the photos, art, poetry, and prose are my own original work, credited with my initials, JEF. When it isn't, I always try to post links to the original source material, but often I find photos on the web that are not linked or other material that is not sourced. In these instances, I post them without malice since it is assumed that such things, by being globally posted on something as uncontrollable as the internet to begin with, are in the public domain. If you identify the source of an image that is not linked, please politely let me know (without accusing me of theft) and I will be happy to provide a link. If you are the owner of an image and would prefer it be removed, I am happy to do that as well.
I hope to inspire and entertain my readers with things that inspire and entertain me. There is a startling amount of beauty and creativity in the world and it enriches us all to participate in it.
15 comments:
Good to see your interest in Patrick Procktor. Hope you might also read my recently published book on Procktor, 'Patrick Procktor: Art and Life', published by Unicorn Press. It is based on interviews with many of Procktor's friends and contemporaries (Hockney, Celia Birtwell, Lord Snowdon, etc, etc) and on archival material, including private correspondence. It is profusely illustrated with examples of the artist's work and with documentary photographs.
Best wishes
Ian Massey
Do you know where the original of "The Guardian Readers" is located?, who owns it?, is it in a gallery?
Thanks for any info you can share.
Dear Anonymous,
Unfortunately i have no information about the location of "The Guardian Readers" but I bet the author of the Patrick Procktor book, Ian Massey would know. Google his name and "Huddersfield" to get his email address. Good luck!
Hello there - I think the work may be in the private collection of Elton John, who has a number of works by Procktor in his collection.
Best wishes
Ian Massey
Mr. Massey,
Good to hear from you! Thank you for the information. It only makes sense that Sir Elton would own it, not only because of the album cover, but also because I am aware that he is a very active art collector.
Thanks again!
Hello Geoff
Good to hear from you too! I'm not 100% sure that EJ has the painting, but do know it's in a private collection. So if your correspondent was hoping to see it in a gallery or museum I'm afraid he won't be able to. I'm currently working on a long text for a book on the artist Keith Vaughan by the way, which I hope will be published next year.
Thanks for including me on your wonderfully rich and diverse blog - it's an education!
Best wishes
Ian
Hello again Geoff - an update on Patrick Procktor. I recently visited a collector in the UK who has a watercolour from the same series of works as that of the painting on the cover of Elton John's 'Blue Moves' album. It's a lovely watercolour, and the owner has agreed to loan it for an exhibition of Procktor's work I am curating for Huddersfield Art Gallery, due 25 August to 25 November 2012.
I will update you again nearer the time.
Hope all is well, and all the best
Ian
I met Patrick in 1983. I was a young art student from Melbourne. I had written a fan letter to him and he was gracious enough to invite me to his house in Manchester Street. It was summer and he fanned himself with an enormous decorated fan and poured endless cups of tea. He was a charming man and will be greatly missed.
Steve Cox
Steve,
What a charming story! And how special that you got to spend some time with him. Thank you so much for sharing.
Best,
JEF
Yes, thanks for sharing this memory Steve.
I never met Patrick, but know from interviewing many people who did during my researches for my book about him that he was often immensely generous and charming. That said, he could also be quite cutting when the mood took him!
An undervalued artist still I think.
Best wishes
Ian Massey
I think it is fascinating that this post about Patrick Procktor has generated more comments than any other post on my blog!
Thanks Ian, for the updates. And do let me know when your Keith Vaughan book is coming. I am planning on doing a post about his work sometime soon.
Hello Jeff
Thanks. The Vaughan book is due in the Spring. Will certainly update you on that front. Next year is his centenary year (born 1912), and there will be a number of exhibitions in the UK.
All the best
Ian
Hello again Jeff - I'm back!
You may know already about the new biography of Hockney by Christopher Simon Sykes. Patrick Procktor features quite a lot in it, and in fact there are 3 quotes from my book on PP within it. The biography goes up to 1975, with a second volume to follow apparently.
Here it is on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Hockney-Chistopher-Sykes/dp/1846057094/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1322302387&sr=8-2
All the best
Ian
Hello again Jeff
Hope all is well.
My book on Keith Vaughan is due in September. It's a collaboration with the art dealer and Vaughan expert Anthony Hepworth. My contribution is long essay on Vaughan entitled 'Walled Gardens'. You can see the book on this link: http://sansomandcompany.co.uk/shopping/keith-vaughan-the-mature-oils-1946-1977/
OUT magazine are to print a feature on Vaughan in their September issue.
All the best - Ian
Hello again Jeff
Hope all is well. An update on Patrick Procktor - the show at Huddersfield Art Gallery, Yorkshire, is getting good feedback and good reviews. It's been extended from its original closing date of 10 November to 1 December 2012. There's also a film about the show on this link - http://art.yorkshire.com/artists/patrick-procktor
All best wishes
Ian
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