Letter from Donald Friend to Brian Johnstone 2 Jan 1959
From RBHARC 7/3/38 Donald Friend Early Correspondence File.
Brief (?)
Bentota (?)
2 Jan 59
Dear Brian
It was a joy to hear from you - my reply delayed by several things- I wanted to finish several drawings & send you the whole lot in one parcel, which was finally done up this morning, and will be posted AIR Freight by the same mail as this. Do let me know when it arrives, as the Ceylon mails are shockingly chancey, & I worry until I know. It should reach you in a couple of weeks - I'm just recovering from some evil germ that laid me low for a week - New Year midnight found me sitting, scowling, on the lav, listening to the natives in the villages letting off their muskets and crackers. Benighted idolaters.
Ceylon went mad with strikes over Christmas & New Year, so no petrol & the army all out - no doubt you've read how the East now is going in for coups d'êtat, & the Sinhalese, who love to be in the swim (this year just over, it was all the rage to have strikes, nationalisations(?), race massacres, national bankrupcy (sic), but such democratic fads & foibles are now quite out of fashion since coups came in) - so it's now the smart thing for someone to cry "Ooh, there's a Coo". It depends on one's social standing whether it's pronounced 'Coo', 'Coop', or, with a frenchified flourish 'Coody Tart'. I favour the latter. So unless their Coody Tart mucks up the Post Office, the drawings should reach you a week or so later than this.
I have no news really - my life is very quiet & industrious, & I'm on a diet of gruel anyway, which seems to take the sparkle out of things, as you must have noticed yourself during your recent illness, even the contemplation of Other People's Folly fails to raise a laugh when the Gruel is due in half an hour.
In the batch of drawings I am sending 3 larger ones (full sheet Watman's) - a view of Galle & two temple murals. I think it would be better to leave it quite vague as to what the murals really are & leave people to draw their own conclusions as to whether they are originals or copies. Actually, they're really neither, being very free renderings of some rather battered 17th Century temple paintings near here. I had 3 in my show in Sydney, as an experiment, not being sure if they'd interest people. They did, & sold. I love the one of the Buddha dying in an antique Dutch four poster, which is very like the marvellous bed I bought in a fisherman's hut - it appears in the drawing "The Sick Merchant".
So glad to hear the Gallery is being such a success - you both certainly deserve it, & have had to fight for it for a long time.
Here is the list of Titles
The Painted Mosque
Fisherfolk
The Catamaran
Fishbuyers
The Scarecrow
The Celebrated Mango Trick
Streetmarket
The Donkey
Moonsoon Weather 18 & 20 guineas
Village Procession
The Hermitage
Jungle Village
The Calamander Cabinet
Stilt-Dancer
The Sick Merchant
Two Musicians
3 Figures
Musician
The House Boy
Two Figures
Two Boys (smaller)
Large: The Walled City of Galle
Temple Mural: The death of the Lord Buddha
Temple Mural: Jataka Story
These big ones sold in Sydney at 40gns - anyway, I leave the prices to you, as you'll know what is best, fond regards to you both
Donald
Last updated: 10th January 2008
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