We went a week or two ago to a most disappointing exhibition of photographs in the National Academy. It would really be difficult to convey how bad it was. Many of the exhibits were only about 5”x4” or postcard size on rather tatty mounts and many with an apparently perverse desire to be disenchanting. One of the more memorable large pictures consisted of the back view of a lady squatting on her heels and bending forward – taken from the level of said heels so that the general impression was of a rather blemished mushroom. By contrast we went to a rival exhibition mounted by a man who resigned in protest from the selection committee of the Nat. Gall. show. He had written around and got together about 300 superb exhibits – including a large number rejected from the Nat. Gall. which were emphasised by large red stickers! … Almost all worth looking at including what I think was the newspaper picture of the year – a little crippled boy on crutches and a clown laughing at each other – the boy with his hand over his mouth as though he wasn’t quite sure that it was polite to laugh at a clown.
I didn’t – or won’t be – taking part in the ‘drama’ – the first time I opened my mouth I was told it sounded like a stock report – then remarks were made about the people he’d wanted couldn’t do it and the line he couldn’t teach an OAP new tricks!
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