recently spotted in a small norfolk town with an unfortunate name, and i had the camera to document the road works in progress…
a council roadworker with an keen eye for absolute precision in road painting, even if it doesn’t entirely match… i was left briefly pondering, is this normal for norfolk*..?
but this wasn’t the only painterly road incident. further along this minor road there was another occurence of fresh double yellow line painting… what would this exact colour be in pantone..?
it seems that council yellow comes in many shades, or else it fades very quickly…
and sometimes remedial action is taken later on, in trying to match the original colour…
but i am saving my favourite photograph for last… here in close-up, a unique road work composition in a medley of mellow (and not so) yellow hues, wonderfully crackled textures and mismatching layers, subtly embossed by the pattern of tyre treads, my found painting (or print) of the day…
this image has some definite kerb appeal and more than enough art historical references, should one wish to analyse it any further…
this post is written with much reference to and respect for the artist over at the aesthete’sfoot blog, aka the opposite of tomato, an artist who has brought an intriguing, conceptual dimension to what could be loosely termed ‘creative kerb crawling’ in his two years (or more?) drawing project, to visually document discarded drinks cans in all their myriad convoluted, crumpled and flattened forms – see also the curious incidents of the double black (not yellow) lines.. he now calls himself the darjeeling fop… well, that’s the line painting finished – time for a brew..?
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*normal for norfolk; a somewhat derogatory slang term used by medics, often shortened to NFN, as a means to identify in the Doctor’s patient’ notes that the unusual symptoms or behaviour presented maybe the result of the patient being, relatively speaking (so to say), someone wuss abit darf, nut roight in the hed…
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dear reader,
may i also draw your attention to some other posts that reference the accidental or ‘found’ art/painting/drawing (or even sculpture), those posts that i can immediately recall…
http://www.jazzgreen.com/artistjournal/on-art-and-photography-regained
http://www.jazzgreen.com/artistjournal/on-found-drawings-and-lost-paintings
http://www.jazzgreen.com/artistjournal/found-out-and-about-found-drawings
http://www.jazzgreen.com/artistjournal/something-in-passing-found-art
Those bloody council painters – using cheap pigments of non-archival quality (!!!!!) LOL
Have you heard of Kenneth Draper? I’ve recently discovered his work……..
Maybe the council painters are fans of Sean Scully? They are strangely attractive images….. I’m off to go kerb spotting, see you there ;o)
By the wayside.. I love the papier mache vessels.
charlie: many thanks for the comment… i was quite impressed by the precise finish (in the second photo) – close attention to detail being one of my benchmarks…
i should just say that i used ‘normal for norfolk’ here in the context of something unique, surprising, unusual or unexpected. the phrase has now been (re)used by norfolk county council as a marketing/branding slogan because the county is a centre of international research (climate studies, life sciences), has lots of wildlife, interesting waterways, vast marshes, stunning coastlines & quite breathtaking skies (coz it’s quite flat)… ‘world class: [it’s] normal for norfolk’!
archival seems to be a bit of a buzzword everywhere these days – i admire the archival quality of plastic bags, they’re indestructible!
and yes… i have heard of him… hope it inspires you
lisa, many thanks
scully: good call…!! although i think scully would be quite hopeless at painting a sharp edge(!)… i like his prints best, the paintings not so much these days…
thank you also for the compliment on the papier mache bowls… i was beginning to think i was becoming a little bit cranky or eccentric in making them
Cranky is good fun ;o)
I love the Road Paintings. Though I feel sure that we’re appreciating them for something quite differnt than what the ‘artist’ intended, something about the purpose of the colour remains interesting (to me anyway)