On a recent exploration-in-minature of England via its railways, taking in Exeter and Dartington, Penzance and Darlington, I was able to indulge in two favourite pastimes: people-watching, and looking at art. Any well-versed people watcher will know that trains offer rich pickings, that the pretty arbitrary seating arrangment juxtaposes people who might never normally talk in the street, and that whilst we are physically in transit, we are often also mentally in transit, creating possibilities for all sorts of unexpected meetings and conversations.Just ask Agatha Christie or Patricia Highsmith. Certainly some of the stranger discussions and encounters I've had in life have taken place whilst on a train: seeing a documentary about family breakdown and reunion being filmed on a train bound for Wales, encountering a mountain rescuer on a train between Grenoble and Lyon, talking to the enterprising teenage girl who taught herself japanese because she didn't want to learn French or German at school. Somehow, apart from those who hide away behind the protective shield of book, people seemed to be compelled to interact when on trains. Perhap it's because of this suspension of normal life that art in stations is such a good idea. Visitors to Penzance are welcomed by bold prints of works by one of Cornwall's shining successes, artist Kurt Jackson. Arguably Jackson's work is ideal for this sort of project: colourful, eye-catching and painted on a large scale, his isn't controversial art and even a cynic couldn't deny that a splash of colour brightens the brickwork up.
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