Nude Fountain on a roundabout
It feels terrible to say this, but on the surface, Saint-Junien appeared to be a 'neither here nor there' sort of place.
Usually I just pootle along, following my nose in a general direction: south-east when going out from England and north-west when returning home. When there is the sun, this method works well for those with the greatest gift of all, after good health, the gift of plenty of time.
I was only passing through this little town on the rare occasion of having a predetermined destination.
I still had two single men friends to make a wish for, and this nubile sculpture seemed, in a very
I knew they would appreciate the firm, fleshy thighs, the arms thrust back like swan wings as she raised her unabashed bosom over the greenery. But then, who wouldn't appreciate this celebration of youth.
A sculpture like this towering over the cars and tractors at a busy roundabout in my rural part of Devon is unimaginable. She might cause a flood of letters to the local newspaper. Or she would be clad in an array of graffiti tags within the week. Or possibly be the cause of serious traffic incidents as restless commuters in their Ford Focus battle with Massy Fergusons.
I admire the French attitude towards The Nude.
Some years ago in Brittany I was visiting a regional art museum where children were invited to make their own copy of a Matisse. The example they were given to work from wasn't something "safe" like a bowl of gold fish or fruit or textiles, but an odalisque.
I watch two brothers who were about six and eight years old. They drew the swirly whirly wall paper, the verticals of the bed posts, the odalisque's nose and nipples without prejudice. They set to with the rubber and corrected the angle of the pillow, added some folds to the drapery and adjusted the breast that was too far over to the left.
Then they put down their crayons, collected their super hero cuddly toys before taking their father's hand and left the room without a backwards glance.
Matisse- Odalisque in Red Trousers, 1922
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