Topic: Vaughan Williams's Veranda

[vandermolen]

His mouth is a recognisable feature of RVW. Get that right and you are nearly there.

I think - and I'm not kidding! The statue below has the "mouth" as does McFall. Epstein misses it.

Haha. Thank you very much Lol. Your kind comment means a lot to me. I have to agree that the vandermolen head is a better likeness than the Epstein. 
All I can say is that when I made the head I had just become obsessed with VW and his music and spent hour after hour during my lunch time in the school's Art department making that head. It was genuinely a true labour of love. Epstein is a truly great sculptor an one of my favourites (his 'Lazarus', Head of Einstein or 'St Michael and the Devil' at Coventry Cathedral for example) but the head of VW was, in my opinion, not his finest hour.
There is a statue of VW in Dorking and on the Chelsea Embankment, both places where he lived. I don't think that either are that brilliant. They should have commissioned me! 

[vandermolen]

Or at least you could afford some special-de-luxe cat food.    Prrrr?

Excellent point!
 

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Haha. Thank you very much Lol. Your kind comment means a lot to me. I have to agree that the vandermolen head is a better likeness than the Epstein. 
All I can say is that when I made the head I had just become obsessed with VW and his music and spent hour after hour during my lunch time in the school's Art department making that head. It was genuinely a true labour of love. Epstein is a truly great sculptor an one of my favourites (his 'Lazarus', Head of Einstein or 'St Michael and the Devil' at Coventry Cathedral for example) but the head of VW was, in my opinion, not his finest hour.
There is a statue of VW in Dorking and on the Chelsea Embankment, both places where he lived. I don't think that either are that brilliant. They should have commissioned me! 

Agreed re the busts not being the best...sorry to say that as I'm sure that the artists tried.     Perhaps send them a photo of yours?  Just a thought! 

PD

[vandermolen]

Here's the one outside the Library in Dorking and the postage stamp issued to commemorate the Vaughan Williams centenary in 1972:

[André]

Here's the one outside the Library in Dorking and the postage stamp issued to commemorate the Vaughan Williams centenary in 1972:

Why is VW made to look like the Creature from the Black Lagoon ? 

[Biffo]

Haha. Thank you very much Lol. Your kind comment means a lot to me. I have to agree that the vandermolen head is a better likeness than the Epstein. 
All I can say is that when I made the head I had just become obsessed with VW and his music and spent hour after hour during my lunch time in the school's Art department making that head. It was genuinely a true labour of love. Epstein is a truly great sculptor an one of my favourites (his 'Lazarus', Head of Einstein or 'St Michael and the Devil' at Coventry Cathedral for example) but the head of VW was, in my opinion, not his finest hour.
There is a statue of VW in Dorking and on the Chelsea Embankment, both places where he lived. I don't think that either are that brilliant. They should have commissioned me! 

If asked to guess I would have said the subject was the actor Robert Hardy, don't think it looks like RVW at any stage in his life.

[Oates]

Here's the one outside the Library in Dorking and the postage stamp issued to commemorate the Vaughan Williams centenary in 1972:

I think that's good statue - would I recognise it was RVW if I saw if without knowing? Maybe, but a more Falstaffian frame might be more true to life! That statue is of a very trim man unless its just a flattering camera angle.   

[Irons]

I think that's good statue - would I recognise it was RVW if I saw if without knowing? Maybe, but a more Falstaffian frame might be more true to life! That statue is of a very trim man unless its just a flattering camera angle.

The statue was holding a baton but local knob-heads (they are everywhere, even Dorking) pinched it. Every year the Leith Hill Music Festival in Vaughan Williams' honour is held at Dorking Halls. An excellent venue which I sincerely hope survives these troubled times. Fine as it is the RVW statue is not the most famous in Dorking. That honour goes to a chicken! A huge statue on the roundabout leading into the High Street a stone's throw from RVW.

[vandermolen]

The statue was holding a baton but local knob-heads (they are everywhere, even Dorking) pinched it. Every year the Leith Hill Music Festival in Vaughan Williams' honour is held at Dorking Halls. An excellent venue which I sincerely hope survives these troubled times. Fine as it is the RVW statue is not the most famous in Dorking. That honour goes to a chicken! A huge statue on the roundabout leading into the High Street a stone's throw from RVW.

Yes, it looks too slim for VW. Pity about the baton. The same thing happened to Conan-Doyle's hat (he lived locally). It's been replaced now. I like the giant chicken:

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Yes, it looks too slim for VW. Pity about the baton. The same thing happened to Conan-Doyle's hat (he lived locally). It's been replaced now. I like the giant chicken:

So sad to hear stories of vandalism like these.  I remember hearing about The Little Mermaid being decapitated at least twice.      And probably like her head, the hat and baton ended up either in the sea or a river somewhere...or abandoned elsewhere.   

PD

[Mirror Image]

This is interesting:

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/imJkrjpkrgg&amp;fbclid=IwAR1WGXhifZAj96uJO9" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/imJkrjpkrgg&amp;fbclid=IwAR1WGXhifZAj96uJO9</a>

Of course, as a Sibelian, this made me grin from ear to ear. Well said, Ralph!

[vandermolen]

This is interesting:

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/imJkrjpkrgg&amp;fbclid=IwAR1WGXhifZAj96uJO9" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/imJkrjpkrgg&amp;fbclid=IwAR1WGXhifZAj96uJO9</a>

Of course, as a Sibelian, this made me grin from ear to ear. Well said, Ralph!

+1

[Irons]

So sad to hear stories of vandalism like these.  I remember hearing about The Little Mermaid being decapitated at least twice.      And probably like her head, the hat and baton ended up either in the sea or a river somewhere...or abandoned elsewhere.   

PD

Going off on a tangent somewhat, P. Over here statues have entered the political arena. Certain factions think it great idea to get their point across by defacing statues or actually pulling them down, as happened in Bristol. Have you had this in the US?
   

[Pohjolas Daughter]

+1

+1

And Mirror Image,

Thank you so much for posting that clip!  And, if I might add, really cool to hear Vaughan Williams himself speaking! 

PD

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Going off on a tangent somewhat, P. Over here statues have entered the political arena. Certain factions think it great idea to get their point across by defacing statues or actually pulling them down, as happened in Bristol. Have you had this in the US?
 

Yes, Irons.  You might find these stories to be of interest; I certainly did and think that they bring up some great questions that need to be addressed.  I recall hearing the first one over the radio this summer.  The second one, I just found.  Trying not to go off-topic here, but there is so much that we need to talk about and figure out how to address in terms of our history--how to make it inclusive, truthful, transparent, and educational for starters.

https://www.npr.org/2020/06/15/876962140/times-are-changing-as-tolerance-weakens-for-confederate-monuments

https://www.npr.org/2020/06/23/881992636/should-statues-of-historic-figures-with-complicated-pasts-be-taken-down

Best wishes,

PD

[Augustus]

I've just got the new Brabbins Hyperion disc of Symphony 5 and I have to say that it goes right to the top of my pile of versions for this symphony.  Each movement is exactly as I think it should go and the recorded sound is simply ravishing.  I know we've had a good number of excellent version in the last few years but I really do feel this is very much worth the attention of any lover of this symphony.  My only gripe is that there is not enough of a gap between the end of the symphony at the start of the Pilgrim's Progress pieces.

[Irons]

Yes, Irons.  You might find these stories to be of interest; I certainly did and think that they bring up some great questions that need to be addressed.  I recall hearing the first one over the radio this summer.  The second one, I just found.  Trying not to go off-topic here, but there is so much that we need to talk about and figure out how to address in terms of our history--how to make it inclusive, truthful, transparent, and educational for starters.

https://www.npr.org/2020/06/15/876962140/times-are-changing-as-tolerance-weakens-for-confederate-monuments

https://www.npr.org/2020/06/23/881992636/should-statues-of-historic-figures-with-complicated-pasts-be-taken-down

Best wishes,

PD

Thanks P. I read your links, and yes the same debate as here. History is what it says on the tin, it is in the past and you are not going to change it by pulling down a statue. We have a young black boxer, Daniel Dubois, who mark my words is a future world heavyweight champion. He was asked in an interview "do black lives matter" he replied "all lives matter".

[vandermolen]

Going off on a tangent somewhat, P. Over here statues have entered the political arena. Certain factions think it great idea to get their point across by defacing statues or actually pulling them down, as happened in Bristol. Have you had this in the US?
 

I've been studying the Roberts Jones Churchill statue with my 6th Form Art History students. We have had some interestingly stormy discussions about Churchill and racism etc.

[Mirror Image]

+1

And Mirror Image,

Thank you so much for posting that clip!  And, if I might add, really cool to here Vaughan Williams himself speaking! 

PD

My pleasure, PD.

[Daverz]

I've been studying the Roberts Jones Churchill statue with my 6th Form Art History students. We have had some interestingly stormy discussions about Churchill and racism etc.

I'm not for defacing property, but the Churchill hagiography industry has had way too long of a run without pushback.