Painterly images
Sir: As one who has never comprehended Picasso's non-representative work, I would like to thank Mr John McEwen for the clarity and intuition of his article (25 July). I did, however, find some of the word images created by Mr McEwen rather puzzling. What, for example, is 'bottle-nosed traditionalist'? To which end of the bottle is such a nose to be referred? And why must its owner be a 'traditionalist'? Or is it that such a nose is only so described when seen through the bottom of a bottle?
Another of Mr McEwen's words was 'painterly', to describe (maybe) orthodox classical or perhaps 'bottle-nosed traditional' paintings. During a period of military service, I remember being harangued by choleric drill sergeants to walk about in a smart 'soldierly' manner, which I eventually interpreted as purposful and threatening, with the maximum of stamping and body jerking and with no visible signs of cerebral agitation. Is 'painterly' analogous? Anyway, Mr McEwen has persuaded me to visit the Hayward Gallery.
J. D. Scouller
Floringham Lodge, Old Bracknell Lane.
Bracknell, Berkshire
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