Sad News

 

not...the man named above...but titled after Ron Devious, CEO of Spagggettti Enterprises!

Allan Green - a memoir…

I began this idiosyncratic discursive nonsense with an acknowledgement to my close friend Allan Green who I’ve already credited with a vast majority of photographs on this site.  I am extremely saddened to report that Allan died on October 19th 2024.
Much more a figurative than abstract artist Allan was far more interested and attracted to the sessions run by Peter Redgrove than any other aspect of the art school offer.  I don’t recall exactly when but I’m sure it was only a few weeks in he also took up photography in a far more committed and serious fashion than most of the rest of our cohort.  John Wilkinson ran the photography studios high up in Kerris Vean the old house at the top of the small campus and was really helpful to anyone that wanted to engage with the medium (and to the film makers such as Denis Lowe - see this link to his much more comprehensive site on Falmouth).

Allan photographed in front of the photo montage at his degree show

Allan and myself, along with Jimmy Whitehead were the longterm residents of the Penwerris Inn and consequently got to know one another well.  I think it was our shared interest in literature and, especially poetry that bonded us - not least as Allan started to write quite seriously.  Encouraged by Redgrove and, I like to think, egged on by my occasional critiques (or crass commentary as you wish!) he developed a body of written work that stands the test of time.  The three books he produced, The Crack, HMS Air Rifle, Jim’s Dream and Devious are the backbone of his award of a first class Diploma - the only one awarded in our cohort of Painting students!   The last of these volumes is interspersed with photographs in a manner that years later might be termed Sebaldian - indeed Allan’s written work as a whole has something of the same stylistic range as that of the great man.  Oddly enough two years after completing his Diploma in 1973 Allan took a place on the (now) legendary Writing MA at East Anglia.  At the time, WG Sebald was settling into his lecturing berth at the University - I never got to ask Allan if they ever met though in our conversations that included his time in Norwich and our mutual interest in Sebald’s writing he never mentioned him, and his partner Moira tells me that they never had an encounter.  I shall post some extracts from these volumes on this site in the near future.

Like many many others, I miss him a great deal - our conversations down the years often touching on ‘those Ponderosa days’…

That which goes around...

comes around...or so it's often said.  In a 'portfolio' career I spent some time in Art & Design HE, first as Assistant Dean and then Dean of a Faculty at Derby University.  In fact although I didn't start until age 43 it turned out to be my longest employment stint of some fourteen years.  For a period I was fortunate to engage the services of Emma Hunt who became one of my Assistant Dean's before she went onto Huddersfield as Dean of their A&D School. This is all a preamble to her desire in her first year as Vice-Chancellor of Falmouth University to celebrate 120 years of Art & Design education in the town.  And hence my interest in assisting with the task.

 

My studio space just ahead of the diploma show in 1973

Looking back over these posts I'm realising how few images of the School I have.  Sadly Allan Green, the guy who shot the majority of B&W's here, was much more of a people person as regards his images.  Most of what I do have relates to the work I made.  So here's a few, not because the work is of any interest! But more to give a context of the place itself.

A sculpture I took onto the lawn to photograph with the entrance to the Foundation Studies block behind

 It was a rather idyllic set up.  Kerris Vean, an old Edwardian (?) house at the top of the road spilled down towards the beach through gardens that extended beyond the plot of scrub behind the painting studios.  It was on this 'backlot' site that my pal Jimmy Whitehead made one of his Spirograph pieces using up the substantial amount of pigments that lecturer Bob Organ had assembled in a small room to allow for the making of oil paint!  Oddly enough the immaculate lawn above also suffered the indignity of another Spirograph effort where lawn fertisiler was deployed...it didn't entirely come off but the faint difference in tone was noticable from the upper floors of KV...not least from Principal Michael Finn's office!

Jimmy on the 'backlot'...

Its amusing to think how such pranks (sorry serious artworks...) would be handled today inside a substantial institution like Falmouth University!  Back then though the entire Art School I am fairly certain counted for perhaps 300 or 400.  Certainly the painting dept. comprised only 60 or so students and 7 staff.

The view from the lawn towards Kerris Vean with the group prepping our polyhedral dome (inspired by the annual Keith Critchlow visit) for flight. Stuart (Reid) lights the touch paper.