Ben Nicholson - a continuous line at the Tate

This week, the on-the-road Ben Nicholson retrospective 'A Continuous Line' rolls into St. Ives for spring stabling at the Tate.

The exhibition - the first major UK presentation of Nicholson's work for over fourteen years - reconsiders the artist's position in British art history and offers a new understanding of the modern in art, particularly in relation to national and local identities.

Son of the celebrated Edwardian painter William Nicholson, and partner of sculptor Barbara Hepworth, Ben Nicholson (1894-1982), became one of the most radical British artists of the twentieth century. He made his reputation by absorbing what was essentially a European abstraction – influenced by artists such as Piet Mondrian and Naum Gabo – into English art.

His anglicised version of abstraction concerned itself with throwing-off the constraints and dark palette of 19th-century academic painting. This was no doubt, partly a reaction against the Edwardian art of his father's generation - but also an expression of his own Christian Science beliefs – the mind, body, spirit philosophy of his day.

The high point of his artistic career were his white reliefs, first produced in 1934 and continued into the Forties. Emptied of all extraneous detail and colour, their whiteness stood for what was pure, modern and spiritual. This simplicity was key to Nicholson. In a period of political turmoil, these works offered a new way of thinking about the world and Englishness.

Focusing on Nicholson's English years, the exhibition divides into three sections: Landscapes of the late 1920s; Abstract & landscape works made in St. Ives during World War II and the Cubist still-lifes made between 1945-58, the latter two influenced by his relationship by Hepworth. Each section draws on a selection of key works to demonstrate Nicholson's continuity of vision and approach.

A Continuous Line at Tate St. Ives runs until 4th May 2009.

Click Here for tickets, room guide, chronology, special events and to access a downloadable MP4 walking tour of the exhibition, playable via ipod.

Walk of art - in step with the Norfolk landscape

Can you pinch more than an inch after the Christmas festivities? Confounded by cabin fever? Stuck in a creative block? Follow in the footsteps of William Wordsworth and Charles Darwin - beat the January blues by joining one of North Norfolk's many free guided walks...

Darwin and Wordsworth were both famous walkers. Darwin trod his 'thinking path' - the Sandwalk at Down House - early each morning whilst formulating his Origin of Species. Wordsworth took regular 'creative' walks through the Lake District with his sister Dorothy, when the rhythm of his steps would help guide the meter and form of his poetic style.

As well as lubricating the mind, walking's also not bad for the bod. NHS guidelines state that 'Adults should do a minimum of 30 minutes moderate-intensity physical activity, at least five days a week.' This translates as any physical activity which leads you to feel warm, and slightly out of breath. People who are obese may need to do 60 to 90 minutes a day to lose weight. Activities such as brisk walking are considered ideal for weight loss.

As part of the county-wide 'Active Norfolk' campaign, 'Fit together' is a Lloyds Pharmacy-sponsored programme of country walks aimed at those 'in mid-life and beyond'.

The schedule incorporates walks of varying duration and intensity, guided through beautiful Norfolk landscapes, to suit a range of abilities and fitness levels.

The Jan/Feb programme includes:

Mon 26th Jan: Kelling Heath/Bodham Woods, 4 mile walk, 10.30am
Tue 27th Jan: Gresham 'Three Churches', 4.5 mile walk, 10.30am;
Sheringham Prom, wheelchair-friendly 1.3 mile walk, 1pm
Wed 28th Jan: Baconsthorpe Castle, 3 mile walk, 10.30am
Fri 30th Jan: Holkham Lake, 2.5 mile walk, 10.30am
Mon 2nd Feb: Salthouse, 3.75 mile walk, 10.30am
Tue 3rd Feb: Holt, 1.5 mile walk, 10.30am
Wed 4th Feb: Walsingham, 3.7 mile walk, 10.30am;
Sculthorpe, 1.8 mile walk, 2pm
Thur 5th Feb: Cromer Cliff top, 2 mile walk, 10.30am
Mon 9th Feb: Bengate Weaver's Way, 1.4 mile walk, 12.30pm
Tue 10th Feb: Holt, 2 mile walk, 10.30am
Thur 12th Feb: Felbrigg Victory and Lake, 3.5 mile walk, 10.30am
Fri 13th Feb: Bayfield Brecks, 4 mile walk, 10.30am

For further details, Click Here to see the 'Fit Together' web page, where you can download a Word Doc containing the full programme.

To incentivise you still further, Holt Library are running a competition to find the 'Best Winter Walks Photograph' of the local area. All entries must be snapped and submitted to the library by Saturday 28th February, 2009. Entries will be on public display throughout March for viewing and voting.

North Norfolk's answer to the Strawberry Thief . . .

We'd like to congratulate seed supplier Haith's on their new Bill Oddie birdfood range 'Garden Banquet' - one of the more unusual Christmas presents which emerged from under our tree.

The glossy packaging blurb promises that this tasy treat will really deliver the goods - enticing an exciting mix of wild and wonderful birdlife to brighten up the grim January back yard.

Bill says: "Who loves our Garden Banquet? House sparrow; Robin; Greenfinch; Song thrush; Collared dove; Blue tit; Great tit; Other birds you might see: Tree sparrow, coal tit, blackbird, siskin, chaffinch, goldfinch, pied wagtail."

Urr - we think you might need to add another species there, Bill . . . unfortunately the other lot don't get a look in!

Still, our visiting raider is certainly great to look at - definitely wild and definitely wonderful - despite being a total gannet. Bill, as bird chefs go, you evidently know your stuff.

Has anyone else had a similar experience with daylight robbery..? If so, let us know through comments on this blog.

Roll-up, roll-up for Cromer 'Big Bang' 2009

10,000 North Norfolk locals and holiday-makers packed Cromer seafront shoulder-to-shoulder on New Year's Day for the town's 10th annual Torchlight Procession and Fireworks Spectacular.

The evening fundraising event - initially conceived as a 'one-off' to commemorate the millennium - proved such a big hit that the Town Council decided to make it a regular feature.

Each year over £5,000 is raised in bucket-rattling donations. The cash goes to local good causes - last year the Seaview Playgroup got £1000 towards a new heating system - plus a contribution goes towards the cost of staging the following year's display.

This year's show - masterminded by Clive Casburn (who had thoughtfully booked a clear night, so as to avoid soggy spectators!) - began with the North Norfolk Beach Runners Fun Run along the Prom, followed by a Torchlit Procession led from the churchyard by the liveried Town Crier.

The awesome 15-minute pyrotechnic display kicked off at 5pm, with 10 rockets fired from the pier in a single symbolic shot, to commemorate the 10th Anniversary.

Despite huge crowds, the atmosphere was at all times warm, friendly and festive: the seafront provides so many excellent vantage points from which to view the display - reflected dramatically in the waves along the shoreline - that there are plenty to go round.

There was also the credit-crunching bonus that car parking in the town was made free-of-charge from 2pm, thanks to the Council.

Click the Play button below for 'live' footage of the sights (and sounds!) of the event - as seen from our viewpoint up on Runton Road. Look out particularly for the amazing 'Olympic Hoops'!

Eve's Orange - a biblical Christmas with a Twist

At four o'clock on a fair-yet-freezing Christmas Eve a scarfed-up, gloved-up posse of locals took a break from the sellotape and made their way up the 'fairy path' to St Nicholas's church, Salthouse...

With traditional carol-singing, crib-dressing and the obligatory candle-lit procession, the village's annual Christingle Service - in aid of the Children's Society - is specially formulated to appeal to young families.

It is always a lovely reminder that there's something a bit more to all this Christmas business than Cadbury's advent calendars, a new set of pyjamas and the latest-coloured Nintentendo DS.

It is also great fun - given the unpredictable tension garnered when combining small children, naked flames and organized religion together in a highly combustible ancient building.

This year certainly did not disappoint on the pageantry front: First there was the delighted tot who lit the advent candles. Next, the assorted hoodies - ranging in size from two foot one to five foot six - who shuffled up to assemble the 'manger-players' plus animal entourage. Bringing up the rear, a diminutive quartet, bibbed with laminated signs to represent the four compass points. They held on to a ring of red rope and were put in charge of the Produce of the World (in the form of an apple, a satsuma, a packet of coffee and a bag of crisps).

The highlight of the service - the lighting & processing of the symbolic Christingles went hitch-free. However, superb comedy ensued when the congregation came to realize, via the tell-tale teethmarks left in the apple, that 'South' - the tiniest compass-point-boy - had quietly chomped a great sly chunk out of the 'Produce of the World' stockpile!

As usual, the music - in the form of the organ-playing of the amazing Rev. Angela Dugdale MBE - was terrific; the flu-subdued caroling of locals supplemented by the hearty lungs of some of the more healthy out-of-towners - plus, of course, Angela's own superb singing voice.

Thanks to Father Phil, the Rev. Angela and the very hard-working church-wardens who made it all possible. Even the torchlit trek home through the pitch black dark was pretty magical.

We were left with only one Christmas Conundrum - what to do with our half-dozen leftover Christingle oranges. Here is our list of uses from 2008 to assist any readers facing a similar challenge in subsequent years:

Top ten things to do with your Christingle Orange...

1. Leave out the jelly babies and dolly mixture on a saucer for Santa and Rudolph on Christmas Eve - a refreshing change from the usual fireside mince pies and carrot.

2. Refrigerate, squeeze and enjoy for a fresh, zesty start on Christmas morning.

3. Squeeze and add cranberries, port and sugar-to-taste to make your very own gourmet D-I-Y cranberry sauce. Or Click here for a non-alcoholic Channel 4 recipe.

4. Go for a Christmas Morning Constitutional and combine the candle with hedgerow snippings of holly, pine, ivy and rosehips stuck into a raw potato to make a 'natural style' table centrepiece.

5. Get the kids to draw round the orange onto the backs of any waste wrapping paper and cut out snowball decorations for the insides of their bedroom windows. For those feeling particularly ambitious: glue cotton wool on to both sides of each disc and suspend on lengths of cotton for a really sophisticated, twirling, touchy-feely version...ooh, ah!

6. Grate off the zest and use to bake up some carrot, orange and cardamon fairy cakes for any guests who fancy a change from heavy fruit cake for Christmas tea. Save a few teaspoons full to add to a mascarpone and icing sugar topping - yum yum yum.

7. Use the cocktail sticks to make small menu flags for 'vegetarian' and 'non-vegetarian' platters for your Christmas buffet table.

8. Wrap in foil to make the base of a fabulously retro 70s-style 'cheesey pineapple hedgehog'.

9. Separate into individual segments for chocolate fondue dippers with a twist.

10. Use the red tape to entertain toddlers with endless games of 'fly away Peter, fly away Paul'.