Mary Reid

I was introduced to the Kingston Contemporary Open art exhibition last year and really enjoyed it, so was pleased to be able to attend its opening this evening.  It features works created by local artists in the last couple of years, and most of it is affordable.

The exhibition is spread over three locations - the Art Gallery at Kingston Museum, the Stanley Picker Gallery, and, for the first time, on the second floor of John Lewis. In fact, the store sponsored the exhibition this year.

Now an artist friend of mine, Jenny Meehan, had entered a piece based on a photo taken, by pure coincidence, during the building of the John Lewis store in Kingston, so I had to snap her with Cliff Vanstone from John Lewis admiring her work.

 Later

Jenny has sent me her description of her work - here are some extracts:

John Lewis Partnership Foundations 1987 - Photographic print on canvas

This artwork was created from a photograph taken by me in 1987 as I walked over Kingston Bridge, and shows the foundations of the John Lewis building in Kingston Upon Thames. It celebrates the positive and inspiring vision of partnership which John Spedan Lewis brought into reality within his own work, in his own lifetime, and now beyond that.

The involvement of John Lewis with the arts in the borough is also very much something to celebrate, and for this reason I specifically created this piece for the Kingston Contemporary Open Exhibition in 2007. 

In the image two men work - a distance apart but still with common aim.  In many organisations today, the individuals desire to work together, whatever their relative status, is what will eventually result in constructive changes and these of course do not only come from the top but happen at many levels; people with faith and vision will carry on working even if the end result is only in sight on paper!

With all the new building going on in Kingston I really liked the idea of bringing forward an image from the past and representing it in a modern way; digital photography has completely transformed photography as an art form...it has now so much more in common with painting.  But, this change has not destroyed its history, which is why I have manipulated it in a way to accentuate bright "paint" like areas and yet at the same time accentuated the grain present in the original negative. The presence of the past form is still very much felt, and while it is easy to tend to resist new developments, it is possible, with careful consideration, to have a good balance which works as a whole.

Just don't try to go down Penrhyn Road in Kingston this Sunday between 10am and 4pm because it will be full of emergency vehicles. But don't be alarmed either - it will be a joint exercise by the Council, police, fire and ambulance services and the University to test what should happen in the case of major contamination.

Some lucky volunteers will act as victims, but the Council reassures us that "No harmful substances will be used during the course of the exercise" - good to know that!

PS Buses and cars will be diverted so expect extra traffic on the Portsmouth Road.

I've said before that in my view 'Every Child Matters' was one of the most humane documents to come from central government in my lifetime. Its theme was that the services to children should be joined up - at one level agencies should be sharing information about children at risk; at another level all services to children and families should be integrated and focus on the needs of the child and not the structures of the service providers.

So I got pretty angry that whilst Councils were required to co-ordinate the work with schools, health, police and voluntary agencies to provide this joined up service, the other agencies were being given different priorities by government.  Kingston has already done some excellent work in this area with innovative children's centres and the development of an integrated service for disabled children - and was cited in best practice guides - but we were always being frustrated by the contradictory messages coming from Government Departments.

So at last Gordon Brown has responded and created a new Children's Ministry, which will cover schools, youth justice, child poverty, children's health and youth sport (hopefully it includes child care as well). I welcome this move; it can only be good for children and their families.

Sing London is getting people singing in all sorts of places over the next week or so.

Hook is doing its own bit, with a community singing workshop led by Nicholas Smith of Kingston Music and Arts Service. It will be at Hook Centre this Saturday from 10.30-11.30am. 

Nicholas says: "No experience or training needed, just the willingness to learn a song, and sing with a group of other people. No one will be expected to perform a solo!"

Every year the new Mayor hosts a farewell dinner for the retiring Mayor. But the latter gets to choose the venue, so I suggested the Patcharee Thai Restaurant near Kingston Station.

I'd been invited there back in February to 'bless' their first anniversary (check it out for pictures of the food). We had been entertained by some excellent Thai dancers on that occasion, so I was very pleased to watch them dance again last night.

So here is the top table. From left, David Jacobs (High Steward) , me, Cllr Shiraz Mirza (Mayor), Naheeda Mirza (Mayoress), Col Geoffrey Godbold (Representative Deputy Lieutenant), Cllr Sheila Griffin (retiring Deputy Mayor), David Griffin (retiring Deputy Mayor's consort), Cllr Bart Ricketts (Deputy Mayor). Ian did his usual trick of getting out of the phot by taking it.

Incidently all four councillors inthe picture have blogs so should all be reporting the event as well as me!

Denbies Vineyard near Dorking is one of those surprises that this country sometimes throws at you.  Can England really produce high quality wine? The site was identified because it is geologically identical to the Champagne region, with the same protective configuration of hills and slopes. I suppose the question would always remain around the climate, but recent changes have acted in its favour. In any case, there is plenty of historical evidence for thriving vineyards in the area from Roman times onwards.

And the investment has certainly paid off. The vineyard produces 400,000 bottles a year, using a number of grape varieties. It's GreenFields sparkling wine astonished the wine world by being awarded the Gold Award at the International Wine and Spirit Competition last year. And I got a chance to sample it, as well as a delicious Greenfields sorbet, last night.

Kingston Rotary had invited Ian and me to their Presidential dinner at Denbies. This is always held at the end of the President's year, and the Mayor who has worked with them (although by now only billed as a Past Mayor) is traditionally invited as a guest. I was only too pleased to propose the toast to the Rotary Club of Kingston upon Thames.

I've said before that we are very privileged to have three active Rotary clubs in the borough, and they do an enormous amount of good, all out of proportion to the size of their membership. Not only do they raise funds for local and international charities, but the members roll their sleeves up to make a number of community events happen from Kids Out to fairs and fun days.

Last September I met the new intake of students to the Pathway programme at Kingston College. So it was great to return again last week to their Graduation ceremony. A high proportion had stuck to the course and made real achievements - acknowledged by the presence of the Mayor and four former mayors.

The students had held a raffle in aid of Young Kingston.  Thank you to all of them!

Here is Miftah Dogar presenting me with the cheque. Thanks to Keith Mellor, one of the tutors on the course, for the photo.

Why don't we have national celebrations at midsummer in the UK?  In most countries in northern latitudes both the summer and winter solstices are celebrated in some way, often with a religious festival overlaying the earlier pagan event.  The darkest part of the year is marked by fire and light; Christmas, of course, picks up on many of the midwinter themes, and we have also transferred many of the non-Christian elements to New Year's Eve, and also 5th November.

So what about the summer? The ancient rituals around 21st June are echoed today across Europe in the festivities for St John's Day on 24th June, which is often referred to as Midsummer Day, or the day before on 23rd June, known as Midsummer Eve. In Sweden it is a big event, with a national holiday and maypole dancing, which implies some overlap with traditional May rites. Catholic countries make much of the religious festival, often with bonfires, fireworks and street dancing.

Isn't it odd that the culture that gave 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' to the world does not celebrate it on 23rd June? Apart from me, that is, but then it is my birthday....

My driving licence has just been returned with three points endorsed on it - my very first. I'm not proud of it and I'm not making excuses (well, only to myself). But I can use this platform to warn you!

You see, some years ago the local Lib Dems campaigned with Ed Davey to have a 50mph limit on the A3 where it passes through the borough. The stretch between Hook and Tolworth is particularly dangerous, with very narrow lanes and no side escape route going south. And to our delight the 50mph restriction was installed.

Now I'd always assumed that this started at the Hook Junction as you come into the borough from Surrey. But it doesn't - it starts some way further out along the A3. And there is a sneaky wholly sensible camera by the Clayton Road bridge. In fact, I very rarely drive along that section; when I come off the M25 I normally leave the A3 at the Esher turnoff.  So I didn't notice the signs and truly thought I was OK doing 65mph. 

But as I said, no excuses, just a warning....

Yesterday I spoke at a workshop for councillors at Eastleigh District Council. They were working on their ICT Strategy and wanted to explore some ideas about e-democracy.

Now Eastleigh is Lib Dem territory and, like Kingston, committed to devolution to Area Committees (aka Neighbourhoods) over 10 years ago. So I didn't need to make out the case for providing spaces, both online and offline, for citizen participation. It was more a question of which tools to use. As usual I directed them to the ICELE website where there is a wealth of advice, case studies and guidance on the use of all kinds of e-democracy tools.

Outside the workshop we had some interesting conversations comparing the ways we have implemented Neighbourhoods/Area Committees. Both Councils have been reviewing their remits and operation, aiming to renew the vision and refresh the practice.  I certainly hope to continue these conversations over the next few months, because I think we can each learn from each other. Eastleigh is probably ahead of Kingston in terms of developing Community Strategies at a local level, whilst Kingston has delegated more to Neighbourhoods.

The number of visitors to my blog seems to have increased dramatically in the last month.

I have been suspecting for some time that the webstats were not recording all the visits, so it does look as though I was right and the visitor rate was higher than it appeared. It's slightly scary knowing that you are all out there peering at me.....

Oddly though, no comments have been posted for some time - has anyone out there been trying and not got through? If so, use the Contact Me link on the right to let me know.

I really should have blogged earlier about last Wednesday's South of the Borough Neighbourhood Meeting, especially as it was the first one I'd chaired.

A number of people who live in Tedder Close, Gibson Close and Mansfield Road wanted to tell us about problems they've been having with uneven pavements, blocked drains and refuse collections. We were able to tell them that Tedder and Gibson had been put on the schedule for pavement replacement at the previous week's meeting, so that was one good outcome. We asked the officers to look into the other problems and get back in touch with them directly, keeping the councillors in the loop.

It struck me that this was exactly why we have Neighbourhood Committees - to give citizens a space where they can voice their opinions and identify problems to the Council. I wrote about 'What are Neighbourhoods for?' only last month.

Most of the agenda was taken up with planning applications. The extension to the Premier Travel Inn was permitted, and the proposed development on the site of The Harrow was refused. The application for 21 houses to be built on 44-56 Leatherhead Road turned out to be quite controversial. Residents in Sussex Gardens, whose homes back on to the site, were very concerned about the flooding they have endured in the past and whether this development would make the problems worse. We decided to defer the application and asked for further reports on drainage.

The Neighbourhood was also asked to pass comments on two applications which will be heard by Development Control Committee. One was for some sensible changes to the original plans for access to the new Chessington Community College. The other was for a depot for Quadron, the Council's Parks contractor, at the back of the bowling club on King George's Field.

Tickets are still available for Kingston Choral Society's concert tonight. We'll be singing Mozart's glorious Requiem, plus a challenging and little known piece by Handel, "Laudate pueri". It's at 7.30pm in Kingston Parish Church.

As a special treat we'll all be able to enjoy listening to Michael Collins playing Mozart's Clarinet Concerto. Engaging a musician of his stature is a terrific coup for the choir.

Whilst I was away there was an excellent article in the Surrey Comet about the fitting out of the theatre.

I was privileged to be given a tour round the site last month, and like the Comet reporter had to don hard hat, boots and jacket. Rosie Hoare, the Building Project Consultant, was cautiously optimistic that the programme was running to time. But she couldn't hide her excitement at seeing this dream, shared by her and many others, finally coming true.

The first time I stepped into the unique space of the auditorium, when the shell was handed over to the Council, was a very emotional moment for me. And the sense that this is something really special has not left me. I can't wait for the opening night next winter.

Photo by Chris Pearsall

Almost every view of New York is somehow iconic.

But this shot sums up all those classic movies set in the city. They always seemed to end with the hero chasing the villian down the steps, leaping from one floor to the next.

The distinctive fire escapes were installed as an afterthought, after some disastrous fires trapped people in the newly erected tall buildings in the 1800s. For the same reason, every building over six storeys high, which is just about every single building in New York, has to have a water tower on the roof ready to supply the fire hydrants at street level. 

When skyscrapers were built later these two requirements were incorporated into their designs, but they are still visible on older buildings.

Whilst I've been away the Mayor's blog has sprung into action again - this time it contains the thoughts and excellent photos of Cllr Shiraz Mirza.

How can anyone leave such a beautiful spot with anything except reluctance?

Several days sitting by the bourgainvilia beside the water of this quiet bay have completely spoilt me. We found good food in tavernas in the evening, whilst sitting and watching the yachts in the harbour.

We have visited some neighbouring towns including the even prettier Assos overlooked by a Venetian castle.

But the roads are simply terrifying. I know some people take them in their stride but I just can't cope with hairpin bends up the side of a mountain with a steep drop to the sea below.

I suppose there are always some drawbacks to Paradise.

New York one day, Greece the next! A quick turnaround and we made it here in time for a family wedding.

Julia, my cousin's daughter, married Alexi yesterday in a beautiful chapel overlooking the sea at Agia Efimia in Kephalonia.

Friends and family gathered from all over the world - between them they have a multi-lingual family from Greece, Germany, Jamaica, Australia and the UK, although their home is in Surbiton.

Almost all the houses here were destroyed in the devasting earthquake in 1953 but the rebuilt village is picturesque and quiet, and set beside a clear sea with views to distant Ithaca.

My US hosts, both Democrats, and I were discussing our linguistic differences over liberalism.

They wanted to know whether, as a Liberal Democrat, I supported economic liberal values. I explained that although the party does have some economic liberals it is a philosophy which lies much closer to the views of the Conservatives. Indeed Tories have started describing themselves as liberals in an attempt to gain some credit with the thinking public.

In contrast, in the States the term 'liberal' is treated with some suspicion, as it suggests a lack of values rather than a coherent set of principles.

Liberal Democrats hold dear the principles developed by John Stuart Mills in 'On Liberty'. These are best described as social liberalism, that is the idea that each person's liberty is inherently valuable and should only be restricted in order to prevent harm to others or to promote greater good.

My American friends referred to this as 'libertarian', a term which is technically correct, but which has rather negative connotations in the public mind in the UK. It suggests to a British audience much the same meaning as the term 'liberal' conveys to an American one.

Once again it seems we are two nations divided by a common language.

I haven't been blogging for  a few days because I've been in New York. And, of course, that would be just the time that mobile blogging stopped working - it's OK now, so although I'm using my host's laptop I'm back in business for the rest of my trip.

I'm here with Kingston Choral Society on a shopping singing tour. It's my first visit to New York but everyone who's been before says how much it has improved. The city made famous in countless movies - with graffiti covered subway trains, litter and high crime rates has been transformed. Central Park is now an enchanting landscaped garden; apparently they employed the rough sleepers and drug addicts who had taken it over to clean it up and plant it. Surplus plants are used in surrounding streets spreading the park outwards. It feels like a safe and welcoming city. And the shopping is brilliant with 2 dollars to the pound.

I've bagged all the usual tourist treats - Empire State Building, Wall Street, boat trip around Manhattan (which is much larger than I realised), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lincoln Center (for the New York City Ballet). And although by no means a treat, I did go to Ground Zero and into St Paul's Chapel nearby which survived the blast and became the rest and feeding station for the firemen and volunteers.

Two famous views of the New York skyline - first with the Staten Island ferry, and then over Central Park from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

And we did find time for singing, with a concert in a church on Tuesday.

Kingston Choral Society singing in the Church of the Blessed Sacrament in West 71st Street
(Thanks to Roger Ward for the photo)

Members of Fairfield County Chorale from Connecticut came to hear us and we are now staying them around Norwalk, some 40 miles up the coast. We've got a joint concert tonight - Mozart Requiem (which I love) and some Handel - and it was inspiring singing with so many voices at rehearsal yesterday.