From this short clip of the film, which I have not seen before, I thought the overall impression is that the man has money, uses it to his advantage, and is the person from whom everyone wants to gain approval, even though secretly, they may not necessarily like him.  He has power. These signs are:

• Had an expensively dressed women on his arm, the first time she had been out with him and was bemused by his actions
• He left his car with a driver, told his girlfriend parking wastes time
• Ignored the queues and went in through a back door and through the kitchen
• No one in the kitchen was bothered about him walking through there, as if it was a regular occurrence
• Staff on the doors all knew him and he tipped well
• A table at the front was immediately set up for him
• The men on the next table shook his hand, although the woman seemed a bit put out at being squashed in behind this new table
• A bottle of bubbly was given as a present from another customer
• His companion asked what he did for a living and he said construction, but changed it to something in the union when she noticed his unblemished hands
• Probably not the case as he had more money that a union man might have.
• Likely to be dishonest? Conman?

This was a difficult exercise because I had a very varied childhood, partly because I had chronic asthma, so was rarely at school, but also because my father’s job took him to different places.  We moved around a lot,  I moved schools, made different friends and felt I didn’t really belong anywhere.  But there was one constant throughout my childhood.  Our horses. My two sisters and I were bought our first pony when I was 7 years old.  Of course, one pony was not enough for three active girls and we soon had one each.  I competed in all the local shows, and was an active member of the Pony Club. I remember that during those years, despite my asthma, I was always felt fit and well when around the ponies.

I don’t have any photographs of myself during that time as they are all packed away in a box my sister’s loft 100 miles away.  And it is not something which could be recreated easily without access to horses – which I don’t have.

When I became a parent, it turned out my daughter had the same interest in horses as me and I was able to relive my childhood through her.  I bought her a pony, went to all the shows, attended Pony Club events, and generally enjoyed recreating the life I had had all those years ago.

I decided to recreate my childhood memories by using a photograph of my daughter aged 10 years competing at a local cross country event, with me taking a photograph of her as my mother would have done when I was 10 years old.  I used Photoshop to create the photograph, adding myself to the image, and although I have achieved what I set out to do, it is not perfect.  However, it is a representation of my childhood – my daughter as me, and myself as my mother.

This exercise brought back memories of my childhood, the excitement, the nerves, the disappointment or elation depending on the outcome of a competition. It also brought back memories of the time spent with my daughter and her pony.  She is now 36, and those years have passed, but we both have strong memories of those times.

I think anyone viewing this photograph would understand the subject matter, but would need to read the narrative to understand how it is a representation of my childhood.

For this exercise I selected the lyrics to the Simon and Garfunkel song The Sound of Silence.  I have always been a fan of Simon and Garfunkel’s music, especially the lyrics, and more recently was amazed at the cover version recorded by Disturbed, a heavy metal rock band. The lead singer, David Draiman, shows a different side to his voice and personality, producing a beautiful sound.  I my view it is better than the original Simon and Garfunkel version. I created a story board and planned to visit London to create a set of images. Then came the news that all unnecessary travel should be avoided, closely followed by a full lockdown due to Covid-19.  So my plans were scuppered!  I decided, rather than try to change my plans, I would upload my story board instead.  I felt that this would be preferable to trying to find another poem and recreate a new story board. Fortunately I was able to use a few images from a previous trip to London when I took a series of night time photographs around Southwark, and I have embedded these into the storyboard where appropriate.

The Sound of Silence

Simon and Garfunkel

Hello, darkness, my old friend
I’ve come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence

In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestone
‘Neath the halo of a streetlamp
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light
That split the night
And touched the sound of silence

And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more
People talking without speaking
People hearing without listening
People writing songs that voices never share
No one dared
Disturb the sound of silence

“Fools,” said I, “You do not know
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you.”
But my words like silent raindrops fell
And echoed
In the wells of silence

And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming
And the sign said, “The words of the prophets
Are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls
And whispered in the sounds of silence.”

Lyrics written by Paul Simon

Paul Simon said these words were written to show how he felt about society and his view that we no longer communicate effectively.  However, I feel these words are just as relevant today and can be applied to the plight of the homeless, the invisible members of our modern society who are consigned to sleeping in the cold and dark streets in many cities across the world.  I wanted to include images of people during rush hour on escalators in the London Underground.  The words in verse three sum up my impressions of a busy Underground station.

People talking without speaking, people hearing without listening

This story board consists of some sketches of the final images, and some actual photographs I was able to take before the lockdown.    I hope to be able to visit London to create the additional images of homeless people, and of a typical scene on the underground at rush hour before submitting for assessment, but that depends on the extent of the Covid-19 virus lock down.