Lecture Five: Royal College of Art

Thank goodness for the two day respite between lectures, a good time to catch up on sightseeing and rest before starting the week. After a morning meeting at the Association of Illustrators (AOI) with Derek Brazell and Ramón Blomfield we were off to the RCA.

And wouldn't you know it, the one time we didn't consult our map coming up out of the Tube we started walking in the wrong direction. Arriving a bit late Andrzej Klimowski and Debbie Cook swept us off to the faculty dining area for lunch which started with a bottle of red. It was like dining in a museum, a Hockney here, a Moore there, Kitaj and other alumni from the Royal College graced the walls and plinths. We were used to eating in the school's cafeteria which was all well and good, but here they have their own chef; on today's menu: pheasant, risotto, salmon with scrumptious sides. Too nervous to eat much I settled on the risotto. Then time for espresso and on to the lecture hall.

Entering the building I was struck with a familiar smell, turps; it brought back memories of all those days in the fine arts building down in Austin and it had been ages since I had smelled that old palette buddy. Setting up was a breeze and then it was time for the lecture. Good questions at the end and then a quick tour of the school's facility and then back to the flat to ready for our final lecture and then the trip back to New York.

Andrzej and Debbie before the lecture and students, photos by Sarah Munt