Wednesday, June 28, 2023

20th-Century Renditions at the Royal Academy, London

John Armstrong
Still Life
1961
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Elizabeth Blackadder
Vase of Flowers
1976
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Frank Brangwyn
Sunflowers
ca. 1910
oil on board
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Gerald Brockhurst
Fruit Basket: Still Life
ca. 1960-70
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Robert Buhler
Flowers: Chrysanthemum Bush
ca. 1970-80
oil on cardboard
Royal Academy of Arts, London

George Clausen
Still Life with Patterned Bowl and Oranges
ca. 1920-40
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

William Gillies
Still Life on a Cupboard
ca. 1966
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Allan Gwynne-Jones
Roses, Buttercups and Cow Parsley
1964
oil on board
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Colin Hayes
Interior
ca. 1961
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Richard MacDonald
Autumn Still Life
ca. 1956
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Charles Mahoney
Auriculas in Pots
1956
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Philip Matthews
Still Life on Striped Cloth
1983
oil on cardboard
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Dod Procter
Autumn Flowers
1946
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Leslie Prothero
Aquarium
ca. 1971
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Ruskin Spear
Mackerel
1943
oil on paper, mounted on board
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Jose Suarez
Still Life
ca. 1970-80
oil on canvas
Royal Academy of Arts, London

Fish or like Fish

He startled to see a statue of blind
justice really did loom over the courtroom. But
remained determined to scorn symbolism.
She needed a quarter to call her lover –
the docket was full, she'd be late for lunch –
and he gave her one. It was not a taunt,
acquiescence, wager, or plea. It was
a quarter. The fact that they had done this –
even this! – together and cordially,
late nights at the dining room table with 
a bottle of cabernet, sharp pencils,
A Love Supreme, and an "E-Z Workbook"
from the well-reviewed – the fact that they'd read
reviews! – Don't Pay an Attorney! series,
as if they were learning Portuguese or 
origami, was not "as if" or "like" 
anything, but just that, a fact, and not
to be pressed for further significance. This
was part of the agreement. They filled out
the forms. Asked lawyer friends for language.
Made stacks of books and towels. Cooked dinner
together, said "excuse me" passing
in the hallway, and even remembered
each other's mother's birthdays. As if. Not
as if. Waiting for their case to be called,
they got hungry. The bailiff pointed toward 
the snack bar in the basement, which was packed
with a class trip from the school for the blind.
In illo tempore such a gift would have
caused them to turn to each other in love
and wonder. Now, no. They didn't even
look to see. She asked for fish sticks, and he
wondered if fish sticks were fish or like fish. 
The children chewed their chicken fingers
with calm deliberation, staring out at what
they saw, then conveyed their limp paper plates
with startling grace to the hinged swinging mouths
of the trash cans which swallowed everything
offered saying THANK YOU THANK YOU.

– Joel Brouwer (2005)