Ich bin Inglander?

Forty seven years on and it remains in the memory and I've no idea why this typing is automatically underlining itself and in the colour purple, why doesn't it go the whole hog and come out vivid green: JFK / Dallas / Doctor Finlay's Casebook: Kennedy once delivered a famous speech in Berlin. I delivered some books on Friday to The International Youth Library in Munich now their library holds sixhundred thousand and five 'picture'books.And then I gave a talk but not in the German tongue I am ashamed to say. I am from an island race and hallo is the same in German as in English.

Professor Dr. Jens Thiele from the university of Oldenburg (who once wrote 2 in depth critiques of Bully and Little Robert for a major German broadsheet newspaper) and Claudia Soffner (the letter o should have those two little dashes hovering above it's head)of the Internationale Jugendbibliothek both invited me to take part in their forum alongside Atak, Chen Jianghong and Yvan Pommaux and others last Friday/Saturday. Germany takes it's illustration seriously,five hours on the subject on a Friday night is pretty serious I'd say but in my own way I bring the level of intellect down to low-brow but I think the punters liked the delivery, publisher Kluas Humann of Carlsen Verlag of Hamburg in the audience, he published the former alta ego's Silent Night in Germany, that sold about 2 copies, Germans take Christmas seriously Klaus admitted and my Silent Night was too much of a comic take on the subject: I liked ATAK'S work and delivery his subversive humour shining through even though it was in German. I must learn to paint - there was a showing of some animated films including the 15 minute The Lost Thing and with hindsight I was more impressed with Sean Tan's film The Lost Thing than I let on. I can be a mean spirited bastard sometimes. Some of the images were breath taking the painting the texture the drawing the observation sublime........but I didn't care for the Thing I suppose. In answer to Prof. Thiele's 'Did you enjoy The Lost Thing?' I answered feebly that yeah it was ok but it reminded me of the Yellow Submarine, the Prof. retorted no more like Bosch's The Garden of Delights.........High brow wins. Anyway I don't suppose Mister Tan gives a flying .....what Hughes thinks. I admit it has grown on me it will probably win an Oscar. Good breakfast the next morning and an unexpected brief encounter which diluted my thick head. 

Flood Damage Continued/Car Boot:

Art Critic Robert Hughes: The New Yorker 

Steven Spielberg: Premiere Magazine 

This looks like actor Ricky Tomlinson, but it's not. Can't remember the magazine but I enjoyed stubbing out cigarette butts on the drawing. 

A really good piece (of writing) in Esquire describing  a rare piece of inspirational song making. Written by musician and producer Joe Henry. But I'm getting to the stage of memory loss and for the love of me I haven't a clue who I was portraying I know the face emerging from the end of the saxaphone is comedian Richard Pryor (the name just popped into my head at the moment of typing) but the sax player? John Coltrane ...I don't think so - any suggestions if anyone is out there?  It's ORNETTE COLEMAN: I managed to answer my own query that's an odd word 'query' not very sexy. Another drawing playing with fire. 
Wilhelm Busch the original comic strip artist.....

Sunday clearing out the garage discover more mouldering damp samples of work and among the spider droppings was a rotting plastic bag stuffed with old magazines/books. Some samples of The Wilhelm-Busch Museum's beautifully produced house magazine 'SATIRE'. The museum is situated in Hannover and is dedicated to illustration believe it or not. A friend was staying the week-end recently and she made the observation that Rin Tin-Tin was like Dexter (my wire-haired Fox Terrier - visit his facebook site - ) Puzzled I corrected my visitor, Rin Tin Tin was a  German Shepherd, an Alsatian, nothing like Dexter and then the dollar dropped, she of course meant Tin Tin's terrier Snowy. Worth a drawing. The other selection of damaged goods are pages from the past from the New York agent's Gerald & Cullen Rapp promotion of their artists. For a number of years I was repped by them, they tracked me down in about 1997 they said I was 'HOT' I had I think 3 full page illustrations appear in American magazines that week so they swooped. Although I am still sort of with them in a relaxed arrangement I feel as if I was probably a disappointment as far as my earning power in the intervening years but I probably helped them attract the more 'radical artiste' to their stable, or maybe not.........Anyway the garage is a bit clearer and I made about fifty five quid at the car boot, about as lucrative as an illustrator. I think I should take a change of direction in life and set up as a market stall holder selling music related gear and junk and second hand illustrations or maybe not.