SeaSaw

 

Paul Nash, Winter Sea, 1925-1937

In York, England.  Saw this one yesterday at the York City Gallery, a surprising, small-ish museum with a few extremely good pieces.  In person, the one above is so beautiful it belongs in a room by itself.  

These two others were on the lower floor, housing an even more surprising combination of early Dutch religious paintings, taxidermy, and natures mortes.  The peacock ought to come with a caption saying "don't look at my feet", and if I were the curator, I'd call this juxtaposition HourGlasSkull "Time & Wind".

But what topped it all for me was seeing a painting by Jack Butler Yeats, brother of W.B., and not only was the painting quite good (I especially loved the colours) but the title is so unusual! That We May Never Meet Again depicts two friends who for whatever reason will never meet again!  I didn't know W. had a painter brother!  I won't post it, I didn't take a photo of it; just stood there and wondered about the title, and tried to ascertain how many different shades of blue were used, and if this was optimistic or not, and good thing there is a fan in this room cause it is so hot, and why haven't I heard of Jack Butler Yeats before... and I walked away thinking that no matter what the narrative may be, the painting is pretty good.

Can I Borrow A Melody?

If

IF you can keep your head when all about you 

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or being hated, don't give way to hating,

And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;

If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,

And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings 

And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

' Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,

if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!


Kipling