February 2010:
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“Cornwall is by tradition the home
of the artist and the craftsman” notes a newspaper
article as the Sloop Craft Market opens in the 1960s.
By reputation, St Ives is one of the highlights of Cornwall,
an ancient fishing village characterised by narrow lanes
and alleyways, beautiful beaches, home to an internationally
important arts community. In the Sloop craftsmen work
behind large picture windows set in Cornish stone, producing
woodwork, jewellery, rugs, and stained glass art. Is this
the kind of souvenir I want, or what else can I find in
St Ives?
The
site of the Sloop could have become a ‘Gifte Shoppe
Arcade’, full of ‘souvenirs and any old local
stuff’. Any number of such gift shops encircles the
Harbour, with beach gear piled up outside. Tourists group
themselves around the postcards hanging outside: “Right,
everyone freeze”, “Wave” laughs an elderly
gentleman to his companion sat below in a wheelchair;
“St Eeves” mutters a French man to his wife
as they decide which postcards to send home to “ma
mere”. “Keep looking, there’s loads of
shops” says a mother to her daughter; “They
might have one in here” says the women to her partner.
A young girl, dressed in Barbie-pink tugs at her mother’s
arm: “Look at this Mummy, the shell; look at this
massive shell, look, Mummy, look, look at this massive
shell”.
Midpoint, in Fudge Kyst, the owners,
surrounded by children’s drawings of seagulls, and
verses to Nana and Grandad, pass the time of day with
the tourists. When asked, ‘what’s particularly
Cornish?’ he replies “oh, you won’t find
much Cornish here, what’s not made in Cornwall is
what sells”, drawing my attention to the yellow boxes
of fudge on which “only the postcard ever changes”,
as “it’s what people buy”. The brisk trade
ongoing in Kelly’s local ice cream, and fudge “traditionally
handmade by ourselves”, especially Clotted Cream
flavour, indicates otherwise.
Further along, in Lower Deck, past the
beachwear, general gifts, and £2.99 tropical fish
moneyboxes (Made in China), a range of walking stick badges,
key rings, pens, pencils, badge patches, and flags, are
displayed around the counter. The young girl behind the
till wrinkles up her nose as she says “It’s
all tat really… but it all sells… it’s
what people want”. Unfortunately, she hadn’t
been able to get hold of baseball caps with ‘Cornwall’
written on them, although many people ask for these to
prove that they’ve been to Cornwall.
Entering Ocean Grill, attracted by the
vulgar seaside postcards, tripping over the baskets piled
high with shells, the shop is a jumble of items: Cornish
mugs, tea towels and calendars, magnets, Cornish piskies;
models of ships, pirates… and cats, cuddly toys,
sunhats, pens, a lucky Buddha, a British Mini. In shorts,
check shirt and flip-flops the middle-aged manager tells
me that the traditional Cornish seaside town is dying,
as locals are priced out by Londoner’s moving to
St Ives with change in their pockets. New residents, including
retirees, want to take part in activities: the Tate and
the Eden Project, waterside activities - Harbourfront
store Dive St Ive offers dive lessons for the adventurous.
Rather than buying ‘something else to stick on the
shelf and gather dust’, time - and money - are spent
in quality restaurants and art galleries.
Along the seafront, the Blue Harbour
Gallery offers a range of limited edition prints, largely
of local scenes, a piece of local art for £30-£100.
“Oh, that’s lov-er-ly, isn’t it” says
a woman in her sixties, recounting a tale of the genuine
art she has bought in French Markets. “That was here
last year” notes a tourist of retired age. Other
galleries were not to be found on the Harbour. Heading
into the back streets a different range of shops is on
offer: surf shops with a range of Animal, Billabong, Quiksilver,
Salomen, and Rip-Curl branded goods; signed copies of
‘Soggy to the Rescue’, a children’s book
- set in St Ives - fills a bookshop window; opposite a
woman peers into a window full of knick-knacks: “I
don’t know what I’d ever do with it, but just
look at the intricate detail on that”.
Clearing up at the end of the day in
the seafront ‘Cornish Pasty Shop’, which sells
over 400 traditional pasties a day in summer, the shopkeeper
lent on her broom and stated that “it’s the
law” to have a pasty, a cream tea and an ice cream
when visiting a Cornish seaside town. People may visit
Cornwall for the arts, crafts, and watersports, but there
is still a place for a Cornish Pasty, whether traditional
or chocolate (display model melted), and the finest of
Brighton Rock, sold as ‘A Present from Cornwall’.
For me, I’ll have a Kelly’s chocolate fudge
ripple ice cream, and some clotted cream fudge.
(799 words)
Course provided by 'Traveller's
Tales'. See full
(unedited) blog entry.
