Off Eastcotts Road, behind Betfred 'the bonus king', behind Rai's Superstore and off-licence, is this unmade road. I've passed it many times, but never noticed it till yesterday when I stopped at a friend's house nearby. It seems odd to call a road 'unmade' when it clearly exists. It's just that the surface is not secured with bitumen and tarmac. Nor could I find a road name. I wouldn't really know how to address a letter to the person who lives in this old house, or the bungalow behind it. Maybe that doesn't matter. Anyway, I liked the broken surface next to the shiny cars, and the way it seemed more accustomed to its vegetation than its vehicles. There was an atmosphere about it - as if by going down the road you could go back to an earlier time - something magical, impossible and - ambiguously - 'unmade'. Yellow ochre, burnt umber, ultramarine blue - and black and white - acrylic on an A3 canvas. Part of 'ROAD', 12-16 September, Basement Gallery. |