Ali Smith - How to be both

Behind the head of the bed the whole east wall here is all pictures, lots of pictures, of yet another woman: it is the same woman in all the pictures with the same laughing eyes: there is love in their arrangement, they are an overwhelm in this arrangement, they fall almost into and over each other: but the woman in these pictures is not the woman from the picture palace: no, this is a dark and different lady who has this warm demeanour and a finesse too about her clothes and her body in them which I admire: there are many portraits of her and at different ages like the spill of a life straight on to a wall: there are some done in greys of a small child I also take to be her.

On this last wall, the north wall, on which I can see there has been some dampwork done and plastering which has an air of recency, there is 1 picture: it is the study the girl took with her magic box tablet of the house we sat outside on the poorly made wall and were looking at until the woman with the bristles came and dispatched us.

She fixed this study of this house — the windows, a door, a gate, a high bush, the front façade — on to the wall by her bed with the earnestness I sense central to her nature.

Then she sat on the bed and stared into it with a like earnestness almost as if she wished she were of the size to enter it bodily.

Better to have a much bigger picture, lifesize and detailed, to look to with such intent.

A painter could make a larger one from a small study with ease: if I had materials or even just one arm, I’d

like when the court of the Duke of Modena and Reggio, the Marquis of Ferara, Borse (whom I’d seen those 10 and more years ago serenaded by the tiny swan-blood angel of Justice) put out a call for painters to cover the walls of the palace of not being bored with lifesize pictures of him and his world.

This longing came I think in part from the fact that his father had had a Bible made before and to rival it Borse had wanted a bigger better one of his own, filled full of tiny miniatures, a thousand small pictures of holy things and people including some pictures of local scenes: I see him in my mind’s eye, Borse, sitting regarding these pages one day, each picture beautiful, each a masterpiece less than the size of the palm of his hand, and finding himself thinking how if he had such pictures made large enough, say they were the size of his own substantial body, then he could be seen by all the townspeople and all the neighbouring dignitaries to walk about inside a Bible of himself: and what better time to do such a thing than now since he was finally to be made first ever Duke of Ferara too which he’d waited for all these years, and by the Pope himself no less.

So he had a new upper floor built on the old palace his ancestor Alberto built way before any of us: the palace was quite far from the middle of town but with a new big hall in it for feasts and dancing and round that hall’s walls was where he wanted painted a whole year of his own life, month by month, to show the people who’d live in the future what a good ruler he’d been.

So in my 33rd year, when I’d been in Venice and Florence and learning my trade and had made good money in Bologna and also a name in Ferara by my work at the palace of beautiful flowers, Mr de Prisciano the Falcon looked my horse and myself and my torch bearer up and down and assigned me for my talent 3 whole months of Borse’s painted year, a season to myself alone, March, April, May, in fact the whole east wall: other lesser painters from the court workshop were to collaborate on the other months: it was a winter — spring job, cause the new building was brick not stone, which meant less time in the making: but as fast as you can go is best for fresco in any case.

I got the blues and golds from Venice cause skills are nothing without good materials and good materials and skill together will make for a kind of grace (and also for good payment in the end).

We stood in the new hall.

(Cosmo wasn’t there.)

I knew none of the workshop workers: compared, they were mere boys: their eyes on me let me know they knew my reputation.

(Cosmo’d had a private tour of the room on a different day. Cosmo’d been instrumental in the design. )

Francescho, this is your assistant, the Falcon said.

The boy at his side looked 16 years of age and had the demeanour of a pickpocket.

(Cosmo had more assistants than Cosmo had family: most of the people in this room had been assistant to Cosmo one time or another.)

I waited till the Falcon moved off to speak elsewhere.

Were you ever assistant to Cosmo? I asked.

The pickpocket boy shook his head.

Good, I said. Cause if I’m not here and Cosmo ever tries to touch my wall, I want you to refuse him. Tell him it’s by order of the Marquis, he’s not to touch my wall.

Is that a lie? the pickpocket said slanting his eyes at me.

Yes, I said.

I’m a very bad liar, the pickpocket said. I need paid extra for lies.

I’ll pay you what you’re worth, I said.

But what about when I’m working on my own bit of wall? the pickpocket said. Cause if they think I’m any good, I’m to be let to do my own work maybe on August or September too. What if he comes in and I’m so busy I don’t see him?

Not see Cosmo come in? I said. Then you’ve really never seen Cosmo.

Oh, you mean him , the pickpocket said. I know who you mean. I’ll lie to him for nothing.

The Falcon told a boy in court clothes to climb on to a chair and stand on the mixing table in the middle of the room: then the Falcon positioned himself beneath the boy, who dipped his head and his knee to put his ear closer to the Falcon then stood straight up again in an instant on the table.

That way, I needn’t, the Falcon said.

THAT WAY I NEEDN’T, the boy shouted as if through a horn and in a voice unexpectedly deep for such a small boy.

Raise my voice, the Falcon said.

RAISE MY VOICE, the dipping boy said.

In this way the Falcon let us know us what would be expected of us.

The walls will be THE WALLS WILL BE. Divided from left to right DIVIDED FROM LEFT TO RIGHT. Except here and here EXCEPT HERE AND HERE. Where there’ll be WHERE THERE’LL BE. Gracious city scenes GRACIOUS CITY SCENES. The scenes will be THE SCENES WILL BE. Scenes of the Dukedom SCENES OF THE DUKEDOM. Of good architecture OF GOOD ARCHITECTURE. Scenes of shows and jousts SCENES OF SHOWS AND JOUSTS. And here will feature AND HERE WILL FEATURE. The Papal visit THE PAPAL VISIT. By which the beloved BY WHICH THE BELOVED. Marquis will be made MARQUIS WILL BE MADE. First Duke of Ferara FIRST DUKE OF FERARA. In celebration IN CELEBRATION. Of this historic OF THIS HISTORIC. Event in our town EVENT IN OUR TOWN. The walls of this room THE WALLS OF THIS ROOM. All the way round ALL THE WAY ROUND. Will tell this story WILL TELL THIS STORY.

The Falcon held up a hand and moved round to the other side of the table: the boy on the table stepped over to be behind him again and dipped down to hear: the Falcon gestured to my wall: down up, down up.

THE YEAR BEGINS HERE. IT BEGINS WITH MARCH. THEN APRIL HERE. THEN MAY HERE.

The boy resembled a drinking bird: the Falcon came round the table to face the north wall: the boy dipped

(later I put this boy in my month of March: I attached a lewd monkey to his lower leg)

the boy rose.

JUNE TO SEPTEMBER, the boy said. HERE, HERE, HERE. OCTOBER TO DECEMBER. HERE AND HERE. (He turned to face the west wall with the Falcon, then spun round to the south.) JANUARY IS HERE. FEBRUARY IS HERE. THE WALL SECTIONS AND MONTHS. WILL BE DIVIDED. FROM EACH OTHER. BY PAINTED PILASTERS. BUT WITHIN EACH SECTION. THERE WILL ALSO BE. ANOTHER DIVISION. CAUSE EACH MONTH. WILL BE DIVIDED. TOP TO BOTTOM. INTO 3 PIECES. AT THE TOP. THE MYTHICAL GODS. ARRIVE IN CHARIOTS. WITH THE SEASONS. MINERVA, VENUS, APOLLO. MERCURY, JUPITER, CERES.