“A kind of glorious measles”; Gilbert Spencer – from cod to the white rabbit
The ground that carries these three images is a catalogue essay written for the Montgarrett exhibition “Navigating Tensions: fraught fiction and fragile facts” 2012.
Gilbert Spencer writing of his time at the Slade School said;
“At this time colour was largely something you caught; you caught it unconsciously through the drawing – a kind of glorious measles.[1]
The essay considers the role and nature of drawing from realistic representation, the ability to see and interpret. It further argues that drawing can no longer be considered simply as a two dimensional representation of a three dimensional world. The “heart of drawing” being a language that conveys meaning and ideas, the establishment of a visual language allowing for safe passage, the removal of potentially dangerous and damaging situations and the creation of a means for dialogue where no dialogue was possible.
This trilogy attempts to further the drawing debate by establishing a visual journey: beginning with the fine line realist drawing of the fish to a more fragmented viewpoint of what could be :“ From cod to white rabbit” and the reverse journey from a fragmented collection of signs and symbols to an answer that is apparent and immediate.
[1] Gilbert Spencer(1961) Stanley Spencer by his brother Gilbert. Victor Gollancz Ltd., London. p105
reasonsuspended 
A very nice progression of ideas.
Thank you Anna
The way that you have delicately interfused the entanglement of the written dialogue with the intricate detail of your visual drawings, really seems to capture the analogy of your trilogy title “a glorious kind of measles”! ….And yet “a glorious kind of harmony” seems to coexist within the utter chaos! Lovely work!
Jacqui you write better than I draw – ever think of taking it up seriously? Once again I am encouraged by your insightful interpretations of the work. Many thanks
Thankyou David for your very generous appreciation of my writing skills, but I don’t really feel that I am suitably accomplished or talented enough to aspire to taking it up on a more serious level! ….There are already millions of writers out there, who can express their thoughts and tell a story far better than I ever could! ….But without doubt, I do really appreciate your kind words just the same ….and it is nice to know that you are somewhat encouraged by my amateur interpretations of your art! Not that you need any encouragement ….as you always do beautiful work!!!
You may never know unless you take the giant step into the unknown; can you imagine a world without Shakespeare if he had said I cannot rival the works of Chaucer and gone off to sea instead or the Bronte sisters (pick your own favourite authors) if they had simply kowtowed to the expected norms of the period? Yes there are millions of writers just as there are millions of visual artists but each and everyone of us believe in what we are sensing to achieve in our work; it is our voice,our song, our anthem.
A perfect example that not everything can be expressed or captured by words alone.
You are quite right in your astute observation- I was sensing to achieve a rich blend of the word and the image- it may have a modicum of success but is along way from perfect- when I achieve perfection that will be the day that I stop working- what is there after perfection?
Boredom…wasn’t that the lesson of “Utopia”?
I think you are right – when perfection is achieved then there is nothing to strive for or to seek.