Artists Trio In UK To Visit Art Galleries

Billericay (United Kingdom): Three veteran artists, cartoonists and caricaturists par excellence are presently on 40-day tours to the United Kingdom and European countries. They have drawn up a hectic schedule to visit the world-renowned art galleries in these countries. R Suri, a septuagenarian artist is well-known for his mesmerizing works making it difficult to make out whether they are paintings or professionally snapped photographs. Sexagenarian B G Gujjarappa is an acclaimed cartoonist and has been ranked as one of the top 100 cartoonists in the globe. Maruthi from Dharwad is another senior artist who is part of the three-member team on a unique mission. B G Gujjarappa, despite a hectic schedule, has found time to jot down the significant features of the just-begun trip in his equally artistic handwriting. Here are the excerpts:

Camp in Suri's house: I, Suri and Maruti met at Suri's home on the 18th of August night. We checked the weight of our luggage. Then we had a few drinks and had food and went to sleep early that night. We all got ready to go to the airport on the morning of 19th August at 08.30 AM and booked a taxi. He came at around 09.00 AM and we loaded our luggage and started our journey towards the airport.

 

Rainbow theme is environmentally friendly: We did not encounter any problems at the airport. The Terminal 2 airport theme design is really beautiful. The theme of the airport is the rainbow with lots of streams and greenery right in the middle of the airport, which is really amazing. The size of the airport is also so huge. In totality, the airport is an environmentally friendly place.

Rs 350 per cup of Coffee: My senior friend Suri wanted to drink coffee since we had time. We decided to drink and ordered the coffee priced at Rs 350/- per cup! All three of us bought coffee and I thought there must be something special in that coffee. When I drank the coffee it was not even better than the 10 rupees coffee we drink on the footpaths or in small shops along the roadside. Anyway, it was all an experience.

Four movies on board! While we were waiting we had time at our terminal. We started sketching at the airport and I am sharing a few of them. It was time for us to board the plane which was a huge one. They served the food at around 03.00 PM. It was good food and they also served drinks with it. I saw four movies since we had a lot of time at our disposal. It was a 10-hour flight but got extended to 12 hours.

A smooth going all along: We reached Gatwick airport at around 08.00 PM UK time. Chetan, son of our friend Suri, came and picked us up. We were under the impression that we may have to undergo a tough time at the immigration counter. Fortunately, nothing of that kind happened. The immigration officer at the counter was a Black African-origin person who was very polite and inquired about the purpose of our visit to the UK. We told him that we were friends and had come to see the galleries. I also told him that all three of us are also artists. He looked impressed I believe and stamped our passports. Then we came to Chetan's house, where they had prepared chicken curry and rice and had stomachs full of both as we were tired of such a long journey and went to sleep.

20th August 2024

Surrounded by trees and huge Barley fields: We leisurely got up and for the first time during the day, we could come out of the house and see the place. The place we are staying is called Billericay. It is a very beautiful place and it's a small town on the outskirts of London. It's surrounded by trees and huge Barley fields. There is a beautiful street which passes through the centre, called the High Street where all the shops are located. People are busy with their own business. It is scarcely populated. We spent our time at home and Chetan's wife Hemavati prepared and served a fantastic meal.

Went on foot to the city: Chetan came in the evening early and he had to drop his son to the Karate class, which is around six kilometres from the house. So, we all went to drop him and after that, we had time for an hour at our disposal. We went to the nearby Brentwood where Suri's son Chetan's office is located. We parked the car at his office parking space and we went on foot to the city.

Chapel of St Thomas: Brentwood has a church which is called the Chapel of St Thomas. Brentwood, it's said began as a clearing made in the woods by burning trees and hence 'burnt wood' became Brentwood to provide a stop-off point and about one day's journey from the Thames for pilgrims en route from East Anglia to the shrine of Thomas Becket at Canterbury.

Built around 1221: The first church building dedicated to St Thomas in Brentwood was a chapel built around 1221 to serve these pilgrims. The ruins of this original Chapel of St Thomas a Becket, with its walls of irregular ragstone and flint, are still to be seen in the High Street. This is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

Beautifully maintained: I was surprised by the long history of the place and was carried away by the way it has been so beautifully maintained. From there on we came back home and had a good meal with a few beers. Surprisingly, it happened to be the birthday of Chetan and we went to a pub nearby and had Yale beer. This is the first time in my whole life that I tasted Yale beer. It's very dark in colour and slightly bitter in taste, unlike the regular beers. But it was nice as we enjoyed it with chicken wings and with some peanuts to munch.

The day was fulfilling and very memorable: It's my first time drinking beer in a typical pub in England. It's a dream come true situation for me. We also tasted other kinds of beer which are not available in India. It was a memorable moment for me. I have read a lot about these pubs in many novels which I have read all my life. I also made a few sketches in memory which I am sending with this piece of writing. The day was fulfilling and very memorable.

Inputs and Sketches Courtesy: B G Gujjarappa; Photos Courtesy: R Suri.