loved The Pitmen Painters

I had heard about the great reviews in London, and that was enough to convince me to check out the group at the Playhouse in Oxford. It was based on a book and true story about the Ashington group of painters in 1934. They were a group of miners who decided they wanted to learn about art. All dressed up and ready to learn from the best, but they did not realise how they had no real base 'knowledge' of art to learn from, so it seems they really had to paint to learn about what was art. A great turning of tables. There were plenty of north vs south sentiments and there were times, when the accents were so broad, that I really had to concentrate hard. The class stuff was also there, with the expectation that only the upper class can really fully appreciate art. So sad that the talented working class artist could not take the opportunity offered to him by a rich patron, as he feared he would lose his connection to his mates and meaning, and perhaps also the source of his creativity....But in the end it was a great discovery of the role of art in our society, more than just an academic endeavour, perhaps even more like a way to experience life...o so wonderful and true at its core!