OK, America, it has to be said that you still don’t know
what good coffee is (in hotels at least) nor bacon nor apples (import them from
Britain please!) and a barely audible ‘uh-huh’ is not how to respond when
someone says ‘thank you’ but there are so many things I love about this
wonderful country that I always enjoy my trips here. Luckily some of those
things are in the worlds I inhabit on my visits – namely art museums, cinemas
and, when I get the time, running. Many
countries have great galleries but no country has so many in so many cities…I
have just visited a few in New York, Washington, Richmond & West Palm
Beach. But that hardly scratches the
surface: think LA, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Denver, Toledo, MoMA, Met, LACMA, the
Getty and so many more. Yes, it’s
largely down to historic economic power that these collections have come to be
but that’s no different to anywhere else and no worse than through historic military
power which helped create so many of the European collections.
So, a few days in the USA – and visiting as many galleries
as I can. Plus a few screenings of both an encore film I, CLAUDE MONET as well
as a new release CÉZANNE – PORTRAITS OF A LIFE. Plus a bit of research for a film we have in production which is yet to be
announced (stay tuned)! Plus various other meetings… A busy few days indeed. What made it great fun though was the daily
visit to a different cinema to introduce a film and then take questions
afterwards. I have been visiting
American independent cinemas for 15 years and they just get better and better
but above all it’s the audiences I like. They are always so enthusiastic,
interested and gracious. There are many Americas – just as with any country –
and one has to distinguish between the rather two-dimensional America that
might be presented on the nightly news from the multi-faceted one you’ll meet
for yourself. It’s a huge country and,
like English churches, there are way too many cinemas for one person to ever
visit in one lifetime, but the response EXHIBITION ON SCREEN has had this week
has been fantastic across the board and will keep me coming back. You can’t
help but be encouraged by such an enthusiastic response.
The third aspect I really enjoy in the USA, on a personal
level, is a simple one: running. On this
visit I have run along the Hudson in NY, the C&O canal and Potomac in DC,
the James in Richmond, the Atlantic Ocean in West Palm Beach – it’s a great way
to explore. But watch out for the police guarding President Trump at his Mar-a-Lago
resort in West Palm Beach – I am not sure what they thought a sweaty runner
could do but they didn’t want to take the risk of finding out, that’s for
sure. Despite that, and although ten
days is a long time to be out of the office, I look forward to coming back soon
