Today I spent inside AF Blakemore's SPAR warehouse on Manton Lane. It's a slick operation: drivers collect their forklifts from a solar-charged supply and glide away to the loading bay. It's like dodgems, but without the bumps. Doors open on a pull-cord and deliveries get taken to their appropriate place in long lines of 20-metre high shelving. I had to wear high-viz, but after Sebastian had shown me round, I was allowed to sit and sketch wherever I wanted. I sat on a staircase and watched the afternoon shift collect their machines - the two drivers in the foreground. In the background a man kneels to fix stuff and make adjustments. I just liked the crate shapes, the tiny wheels and the different yellows. |