MIKE: At a loose end recently, time on my hands, twiddling my thumbs, I was gazing round the room in desultory fashion, when my eyes settled on a magnificent piece of cast glass, the work of David Murray. A resonant purple, its colour and mood changes according to the light. From his Hunter-Gatherer series, it was one of our first purchases of local art. I remember the occasion all too well! A fund-raising art auction was being held at the Sarjeant — the domed one! — to benefit the victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Asia, Boxing Day, 2004. We had spent several holidays in Penang, which received some damage, but little in comparison to other areas, and decided to attend. We both admired David's piece, so it was decided I should bid for it. It was my first experience of an auction. Perhaps I was swept away in the exhilaration of a bidding war. More likely it was down to the red wine. In any case, I won! My triumph was only marginally diminished on discovering that the amount I had paid was almost twice the reserve price! Never mind — it was a good cause and well worth it.
Lined up on the shelf alongside it are three more items — a vividly coloured , egg-shaped glass vase by Keith Grinter, Andrea du Chatenier's Yellow Melt, the winner of the Open Award at last year's Whanganui Art Awards and, our most recent acquisition, an interesting ceramic by Ivan Vostinar. Among a number of variegated ceramics are three trademark items, a Rick Rudd teapot and a Tony Kale ball. Others in this field include the Rayner brothers, Lorna Sutherland and Ross Mitchell-Anyon, along with ex-Whanganui Paul Maseyk. Gail Imhoff's breathtaking photograph of Jerusalem, the church spire rising serenely above the trees, has pride of place on one wall, Toni Beard and Billy Bedford on others. Matt Dutton's oil painting of Guyton Street is one of my favourites, closely challenged by a Joan Grehan watercolour, three small Prakash Patel tiles and a Rowan Gardiner multi-media work. Worthy of mention also are a delicate pencil drawing by Sarah Williams, two tiles by Moa Belkouadssi and a cheeky corrugated iron fantail, the work of John Stephens, which sits proudly in the garden.
The final two hold special significance for us. When plumber Mike Bates was recovering from a stroke some years ago, his rehabilitation included working with clay. Mike beautifully fashioned a copy of his own damaged hand and it was presented in a local exhibition. Joan saw it, admired it and was touched by it. A few days later, answering a knock at the door, I was presented by Mike with something wrapped tightly in newspaper. It was the hand. It was an extremely gracious gesture and the sculpture has a valued place in our home. Another lovely object that we treasure is a chunky piece of yellow glass with three panels floating inside it, one of a lamp, the others reading "Aladdin" and "Director". It was a gift from Karen Ellett after she had been in the cast of the panto at Repertory, over a decade ago. It represented an early step on the ladder of her career as an aspiring actor, which was so cruelly — still unbelievably — curtailed. We are lucky to have it.
JOAN: I have always felt that I should have been Judi Dench and that she should have settled for being me. She has, as long as I can remember, been my idol and, whilst admiring her enormously, I have envied her the success and life experiences that her acting ability has brought her.
Tea With The Dames, now playing at Embassy Cinema, gives her and the three other possibly most revered British actresses of today the opportunity to share their love of acting and their long friendship. Sitting in Dame Joan Plowright's garden and, when it rained, her sitting room, she, Dame Judi, Dame Maggie Smith and Dame Eileen Atkins were filmed reminiscing about their long and illustrious careers which stretched from early theatre parts to the pinnacle of theatre careers and included their later success in films.
