Comparisons

Some years ago - certainly before we opened in Burnham - I remember having a phone call from another gallery along the coast just checking that no calamity had overtaken the wider world, they having not seen any visitors over the previous few days.  All was well, but it served to highlight the unpredictability of these things, particularly at this time of year.

November this year has for us been much busier than last. Some of this can be attributed to Norfolk having thus far escaped some of the more extreme weather of the last couple of weeks (I'm sure our turn will come) but it has been Gerard Stamp's exhibition which has attracted so many. Despite the often off-putting conditions for those travelling far, we have seen visitors from across the country and the comments in the visitor's book suggest they have been more than pleased with what they have seen.

Autumn is fairly clearly now giving way to winter here.  The brief burst of autumn colour was somewhat brusquely blown away early on Sunday morning and is now just a memory.

Just to confirm things, Burnham's Christmas lights were switched on last weekend although, as ever, the as yet unlit tree at this end of the village appeared after the event. At this point, I should confess I have yet to put our own lights up yet. Advent seems early enough - although not very commercially aware.  At least one other local business had lights and a tree up before half-term. It would be interesting to know if it really makes any difference; I remain to be convinced.

Back to Burnham

Thoroughly enjoyed being buzzy on the South Bank - but it's quite good to be back on home turf! The reaction to the exhibition was great and particularly pleasing because we were talking to new customers who - without exception - were stunned by Gerard Stamp's extraordinary paintings.

Naturally we were delighted to hear that the exhibition had received such complimentary coverage in the EDP and it has come as no surprise to have so many visitors here this week.  The exhibition looks very different here compared to the big spaces of the London show, and even if you saw it there I definitely think its worth coming to see it in Burnham.  Both here and in London a number of works have attracted particular comment, the current favourite seems to be the view of Ely across the fields. Purely personally I think it looks even better here than in London.

There has been much discussion as to what is being planted. The early favourite, potatoes, were first overtaken by carrots but these have now been supplanted by celery! Much smaller and slightly closer in geographical terms, a view from Wiveton Church looking across to Cley, and not shown in London, is attracting a lot of attention.

The view from the South Bank

It is a little while since we last transplanted the Grapevine to London, but the last week has found us once again plying our trade at the Menier Gallery in Southwark, just behind Tate Modern.  Not actually sure how many years ago it was, but what a transformation.  The whole area has a real buzz - not just around Borough Market.  And now there's The Shard... which we thought we hated - but now we don't.  Far less dominant than some of the comment and images suggest, it's actually rather appealing.

Unsurprisingly, the exhibition - Gerard Stamp's latest collection of watercolours - looks (immodestly) excellent and has attracted a lot of attention and just like the area, the opening earlier in the week had a real buzz about it. Only in London for the week it seems strange that apparently so soon after opening we move it back to Norfolk at the weekend.  This poses a number of challenges in itself. Packing and loading in London is rather more challenging than Norfolk and then there's the question of hanging in a smaller gallery, albeit on our own patch.  As ever, I guess we'll get there.

If you don't manage to come and see it here in London, we should be ready for you in Burnham on Tuesday.  As always with Gerard's work, this latest collection seems to be his best. Which of course is how it should be!

A Different Perspective

Having long admired the distinctive etchings of one of East Anglia's most popular printmakers, Glynn Thomas, it's a real pleasure to have them on exhibition in the gallery.  Prompted by the publication of the book of his work - we hosted an evening event in the Norwich Grapevine, where Glynn not only signed a few books, but demonstrated just how much work goes into even the smallest prints. Watching this, I'm sure I wasn't alone in realising at just how subtle and sensitive the process is. As Glynn pointed out, these are hand-made prints and a world away from the mass produced digital work that increasingly comes on the market.

Changes

Just over 10 days ago, the gallery was rehung to host an exhibition of the remarkable equestrian paintings of Eleanor-rose Stamp.

None of the eight paintings could be called small - the general perception being that these are big paintings - in all senses - of big animals.  Growing up on and around horses, the artist displays a complete understanding not just of the muscles and sinews but crucially, also the spirit of the horse.  Reaction has been universally positive; perhaps the most telling being from a visitor who came in saying "I don't like horses. Never  have" and left 30 minutes later saying "Wonderful, wonderful paintings. Just extraordinary"  As they say, that is a result.

The exhibition continues for another week, before the gallery changes again - which neatly brings me back to the theme. On the day the exhibition opened a couple who had visited the gallery in the preceding week returned to purchase a ceramic that they had seen. They were however taken aback to discover that a picture they had seen at the same time was no longer there - a reaction that is surprisingly common. The fact is that the gallery changes all the time and in this instance I was able to show them the work they were seeking. What is more surprising is the number of times one person's thoughtful consideration of a work is shortly followed by sale to another.

Birds, Badgers and other things

Yesterday saw (I think) our first flight of geese of the season, although I understand some Pink Foot - or possibly Pink Feet - were noted at Blakeney a week or so ago.  Even so, the ones flying over the village yesterday seemed to be somewhat earlier than last year and much earlier than in 2010. I always think of the geese coming from the north, but yesterday's early birds seemed to come from the south east with subsequent arrivals from all points - bar north. A few more flew over this morning, with the weather turning suitably autumnal; much cooler and no sun.

I can't work out whether this is unusual, but yesterday's arrivals were sharing their air-space with swallows and martins who are still in residence, although I suspect that they may take the hint that the season is on the turn. Definitely not unusual and absolutely on schedule was the arrival of new work from Max Angus including a new print of Pinkfeet at Stiffkey. Very topical!

Badgers have been much in the news this week following the granting of licences for trial culls in Gloucestershire and Somerset. By nature I am not given to great sympathy for those who oppose all such controls and I do appreciate the growing cost of TB to the dairy farmers. However the approach to the trials seems flawed both in theory and practice. Having watched the brief feature about how the trial is to be carried out on Countryfile last weekend, I can't help feeling that the cull will be lengthy and inefficient and secondly that any empty setts will quickly be appropriated by animals from outside the trial areas.  Common sense would seem to suggest that focussing efforts on vaccination of cattle might be more practical and effective.

The other hot topic - at least in Norfolk - this week was UFO's with widespread sightings of mysterious flashing lights on Monday night.  No doubt about the fact they were seen, but after suitable and, one assumes, slightly tongue-in-cheek coverage in the local press it quickly transpired that it was offshore lightning from storms beyond Stalham and Hickling. Apparently on a clear night, such flashes can be seen up to a 100 miles away. So there we are then.

A round trip

Some days just go past and you wonder just what you were doing. And then there the other kind. By 11 o'clock this morning I had circumnavigated Norfolk taking in Fakenham, Norwich, Acle, North Walsham, Gunton, Melton Constable and Walsingham.  Not on foot you understand but 'en voiture' and all for the best possible reason - making sure the invitations for our next exhibition make it to Burghley Horse Trials this weekend.

Starting with a leisurely amble through the apparently still-sleeping Creakes, taking care to avoid the ducks who regard the road as theirs at this hour, to Fakenham to join the by-pass taking equal care to avoid the HGV's who like the ducks regard the road as theirs. Curiously, once past Fakenham, these same HGV's then proceed at a very stately and law-abiding 40mph to Great Witchingham where they all disappear.

Onwards to Norwich and then dual-carriageway all the way to Acle.  It's so fast compared to the rest of the county but... a sign of how quickly we could end up looking like everywhere else. Printing collected from the miraculous Richard Clover, it's off on another agriculturally paced spiral up through Potter Heigham and Stalham, over the top at Wayford Bridge and a quick sprint - old railway lines make fast roads in this corner of Norfolk - to North Walsham, pleasingly busy and buzzy on this Wednesday morning.

With pleasing synchronicity, I meet the talent behind our next exhibition, Eleanor-rose Stamp at the cattle grid. Invitations are exchanged and my mission is accomplished. Should you be going to Burghley you might just see one!

And then the return to Burnham - one of my favourite routes in Norfolk. 30 miles of rural bliss not using any main roads, through Matlaske to Corpusty and onwards to Melton and Walsingham. Beyond Walsingham we're back into what I think of as high Norfolk with rolling countryside so different to the flat lands little more than 30 miles to the east. Across the Dry Road and round the back of Holkham. Then it's downhill through Burnham Thorpe and back to open the doors for the hordes just before 11.