David Jones, artist and poet (1895-1974) begins his PREFACE TO THE ANATHEMATA :

'I have made a heap of all that I could find.' (1) So wrote Nennius, or whoever composed the introductory matter to Historia Brittonum. He speaks of an 'inward wound' which was caused by the fear that certain things dear to him 'should be like smoke dissipated'. Further, he says, 'not trusting my own learning, which is none at all, but partly from writings and monuments of the ancient inhabitants of Britain, partly from the annals of the Romans and the chronicles of the sacred fathers, Isidore, Hieronymous, Prosper, Eusebius and from the histories of the Scots and Saxons although our enemies . . . I have lispingly put together this . . . about past transactions, that [this material] might not be trodden under foot'. (2)

(1) The actual words are coacervavi omne quod inveni, and occur in Prologue 2 to the Historia.
(2) Quoted from the translation of Prologue 1. See The Works of Gildas and Nennius, J.A.Giles, London 1841.


13 October 2009

Petrus Spronk 70 Today


Today is the 7oth birthday of master confectionist Petrus Spronk.

Petrus Spronk-the apprentice confectioner

On Sunday evening at The Hepburn Palais his bounty of friends and family celebrated a life of constant art and boundless generosity.

One of the best known works of Melbourne street art is by Petrus Spronk : Architectural Fragment (1992). His model for it was initially displayed in the window of a shop in Hepburn Springs.


( photo by The Lab : click to enlarge )

Then there are those who know and appreciate his burnished Black Earth Studio bowls. In 2004 Petrus was commissioned to create a group of these from which one was selected as the official gift to the Dalai Lama after his teachings in Melbourne that year.

The bowl below, The endless horizon, the endless journey, was raffled at the Sunday night party and, typical of Petrus, the proceeds were donated to the Daylesford Dharma School.



HAPPY BIRTHDAY PETRUS


detail
A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
someone looks at something . . .

LOGOS/HA HA