Arty stuff

I started my art foundation course yesterday. This involved leaving the house at 7.15am to get there just in time for 9.30! And it's only in Birmingham. Still, I have the joy of seeing people's faces as I try and get on a busy commuter train with an A1 art portfolio case (that's BIG).

The Bournville College is in a leafy suburb. Very pleasant. As it's next door to Cadbury's, there are some rather tantalising smells. I walked back to the station along a path that winds through the factory, and my mouth was just watering as the chocolate caramel smell wafted out of the open windows. Oh, that is going to test my resolve, particularly as I will be hungry, and the path ends at the factory shop!

We arrived to chaos, as all years of the part time foundation met together in the basement. This was a lot of people. Thankfully, we soon split into year groups, which left about 18 in my year. It is difficult to tell how many there actually are. People kept turning up, there were some people on the register that weren't there, others who were but who weren't on the register. It's a case of 'go with the flow' I think, and I'm so glad I'm not the one having to keep records.

We didn't do any art. There was too much admin to do, reading through the course handbook and learning what support is available for students. We left early, so I got the train into Coventry and went to look at the ruined Cathedral. This is quite something. The impressive tower was untouched by the bombing, but the rest is a shell, the windows blown out and the roof missing.

I also visited the Herbert Gallery, where there was a display of work done by children on the theme of 'What is Art'? They'd done some lovely abstracts, experimenting with colour and mark-making, and there were some soundbites like "This is fun! Is it really art?" and "I don't like art, but I like this!" Their work was delightful; colourful, energetic and vibrant. Clearly, having fun produces good art!