In the presence of greatness
Published: Tue, 02/28/17
Ever had that experience of meeting someone but not knowing who they are, then discovering that they are actually quite famous, albeit to a very particular audience? Last week I took my mother to her art society meeting in Epsom. Someone was giving a demonstration of water colour painting and I was willing to stay and watch rather than going away and coming back to collect my mother later. A tall gentleman in his 70s was introduced and an easel and other painting materials were set up ready. It turned out that we would be treated to a nautical themed painting demonstration because the artist is known for maritime pictures. I still had no idea who this painter was but he was introduced as Geoff Hunt and off we went. Mr Hunt made a lot of self-deprecating comments along the lines that he was a little out of practice where water colour was concerned and we should not expect too much.
The project was going to be based on a photograph of a Mediterranean harbour scene. Various washes of paint were laid on, seemingly general shapes created and suddenly there was a picture. You can see what Mr Hunt came up with during the demonstration here http://www.screencast.com/t/DRJZmKh7z
I visited my brother a few days later. I remembered that above his mantelpiece is a rather impressive print of HMS Victory in full sail. So I thought my brother might be interested to hear that I had met an artist who painted similar themes. Once in the room with the picture of Nelson’s flag ship I glanced at the signature and I discovered that this picture was originally painted by Geoff Hunt himself. I said that I had met the artist and seen him in action and my brother got quite excited and produced a couple of books of Hunt’s work. Apparently I had been in the presence of greatness but didn’t realise until I met a genuine fan.
When I met Ivar he had been featured in a high quality martial arts magazine. Reading the interview was how I got to know about Ivar and make contact with him. I did realise straight away that here was someone who could teach me something I didn’t already know. In the 25 years since I have grown to know I was right from the beginning. Some other people have also come to realise what an excellent teacher Ivar is too. If you want to find out for yourself then join us for the annual training in September.
In the meantime there is a Foundation Stav Course on the 11th of March in Crewkerne. You will have the chance to see how Stav is built from the foundation of the runes. You will also experience some of the ways that the runes can be expressed, stances, galdre, staff and animal exercises and combined into bind runes. See http://www.iceandfire.org.uk/foundation.html for the full details.
regards
Graham
PS If you like paintings of old ships then check out this gallery of Geoff Hunt’s work http://www.artmarine.co.uk/geoffhunt.aspx