Tom Phillips painting Iris Murdoch
Photograph by Leo Phillips, 1986
New this month:
PICTURES FROM POSTCARDS: SOUTH AFRICA : 12 works from Tom's 1973 and 1974 tours of South Africa
FORMS OF TRANSLATION : Tom's reflections on translating the libretto and designing sets for the 1998 English National Opera production of Verdi's OTELLO
HUMUMENT : Pages 121-150
A picture of Titian's THE FLAYING OF MARSYAS, for reference when looking at the portraits of Michael Kustow and Dame Iris Murdoch
A new CONTACT Page
1 March 2001
SLEGS VIR ALMAL
As I write this I'm flying over the Rocky Mountains, crossing the Continental Divide. Outside, snow has bleached the scrolling topography; inside, eight carpenters on a ski trip have cajoled the flight crew into making jocose announcements. The PA crackles to life and instead of, "If you look out the right side of the aircraft..." we hear, "Will the owner of a green Volkswagen Jetta, Virginia plate DTE 468 please return to the parking lot; you've left your lights on." I'm flying from Baltimore to San Francisco; amazing how a relatively short airplane ride can transport a person into an entirely new world.
Our showcase this month documents the trips Tom made to South Africa in 1973 and 1974. His words and reflections on the nation, still in the grip of Apartheid at the time, are among his most stirring. The dichotomy of beauty and injustice had a profound effect on him, and he used his exhibition at Gallery 101 in Johannesburg as an opportunity to speak out. Most of the paintings incorporated an Afrikaans phrase he coined, SLEGS VIR ALMAL. It is his response to the segregationist signs posted in public spaces stating, "For Whites Only", or, "For Non-Whites Only". Tom's slogan means, "For Everyone Only".
In his essay that accompanies Pictures from Postcards: South Africa he tempers his criticism with personal humility. He writes,
"To judge is an impertinence on the part of the short-term visitor. The artist has one role: to see on behalf of other people. Each tries to make small steps forward in seeing for he is the one whose brain and eye should be in union and accord, just as it is the musician whose intellect is married to his ear".Strong words, strong images. I hope you enjoy them.
Speaking of music, I've come through on my promise to honor the Verdi centenary with works and texts from Tom's 1998 collaboration with David Freeman and the English National Opera on an English-language production of Verdi's OTELLO. Not only did Tom provide sets, he also translated the libretto. First Dante, then Verdi; are we due for another Italian translation from TP anytime soon? I'll ask. Check back next month.
Ciao! E grazia
JOHN NICK PULL, editor.
P.S. The steward just announced we're preparing to land ... in Fiji!
