If Hollywood writers submitted a love story based on the home life of the first five-time winner of the Tour de France Jacques Anquetil who died in 1987, the focus groups would throw it out for being far too unlikely. James Straffon, an artist with a passion for cycling, hopes to convey some of the French champion's own passion in a triptych titled 'Le Baiser de sa femme Janine' - the - ahem - kiss of my wife Janine.
How can we put this? Anquetil and his wife Janine married in 1958 but she appeared unable to produce children with Anquetil so she suggested her own daughter 18-year-old Annie by her first husband - Anquetil's doctor - as a surrogate mother for new offspring. Which duly arrived in the form of Sophie who went on to write a book in 2004 'Pour l'amour de Jacques' revealing not only the name of her hitherto secret father but that the dangerously alluring cycling star had also gone on to form an alliance amour with Sophie's brother Alain's wife Dominique. Or to put it another way; Dominique, the wife of Janine's second child Alain, who also produced a child by Anquetil. Blimey.
Here is James Straffon on his own painting:
"Le Baiser de sa femme Janine is a work fused with tension and drama. The backdrop is the 1961 Tour de France, which race organiser Jacques Goddet later termed a 'fiasco'. It would be the last Tour to be contested by national teams - the 1962 Tour de France heralded the familiar structure of the modern era, with its peloton composed of sponsored teams. In 1961 Jacques Anquetil held the leader's yellow jersey from start to finish, a feat he arrogantly announced before the race had even begun. Such chutzpah perfectly illustrated the man who would be known as Maître Jacques.
Pursed lips lay at the epicentre of Le Baiser, yet both sets of eyes look outwards. This central tableau is bookended by the man himself - eyes bowed in contemplation, a bead of sweat running off one cheek. These two identical views are created from original front covers of magazine Miroir Sprint.
Such mute reflection conceals the intricate memoirs of an enigma. Hidden behind a secret kiss."
'Le Baiser de sa femme Janine' by James Straffon
Acrylic, collage, newsprint and pen on canvas. Mixed media with resin 80 x 30cm £1,250
Great stuff. Maybe you could contact FlightFreeUK and take a lifetime pledge as a company. I'm pretty sure the founder cycles too
Shimano for me please ! 👋👋
Looks more like it is designed to keep the bike thieves in rather than out. That might in fact be a better solution.
Shimano were castigated for not bringing on new factories to meet pandemic demand, thus gumming up the supply chain. Their argument at the time was...
I figured out a reason of that squeaking noise. I have xpresso 2 and 7, and also xpro 10 pedals, and that squeaking isn't present only at Xpresso 2...
Italian tourist and pussycat in Portugal.
Yep, it's official - reds under the, er, bonnet...
Indeed, I was drawing from personal experience – I don't use it that often but it's such a nice bit of infrastructure that I sometimes go out of my...
Except socialism doesn't work like that in real life. It's the capitals countries that try to look after those in need, and the average person's...
It's the mass that's the issue. Two people on a petrol powered scooter can really mess up a cyclist. Also the fact so many of the petrol scooters...