THE SAD MONK OF ABBEY STREET

I was recently invited to join a ghost walk around the studio where I work, Number 1 Abbey St, otherwise known as Creek Creative. It’s a Victorian industrial building, first utilised by the local brewery before becoming a busy timber merchants. It now houses a cafe, a gallery and collection of artists’ studios as well as being a bustling hive of activity for the living dead.

Tracey, a local medium, walked us around the building commenting on what she experienced. Accompanying her was Liz, who organised the event and Michael who was there to record the tour for local Faversham radio. I was at hand to take notes and sketches, which I was then to turn into a finished painting.

After encountering several ghosts throughout the building, we came across this little monk in the basement. Tracey said his name was Francis, but I’m thinking that may have been a miscommunication. More likely he was telling her he was a Franciscan monk. Francis the Franciscan monk sounds like a character from a very unpopular kids book. Anyway I’ve drawn him as a Franciscan monk and I’m going to call him Billy Bob.

Francis of Assisi started his branch of monkdom in 1209. In order to reflect the absolute poverty of his member monks, Francis adopted the drab, hooded tunics worn by the Assisi peasants. No bling for Francis and his brethren. I have dressed Billy-Bob in the same garb. Which brings up a point I’ve often wondered about. Why is it that clothes get to come back as ghosts? Fair enough that people, with a soul and an energy can re appear after death, but what about a shirt or a pair of trousers. Ghost clothes are more amazing than ghost people. If you think about ghosts logically, they should all appear naked.

Back to the story. Apparently Billy Bob is running away from the violent destruction of Faversham Abbey which occurred back in 1538. (I’m not sure it was destroyed while people were actually in there, it wasn’t a siege, but Billy Bob was there and he knows better than me.) Wracked with guilt and shame that he didn’t stay and pray in the collapsing, burning abbey like his brethren, he scurries away bruised and bloodied until he finds himself cowering in the basement of No 1 Abbey St, which must be confusing for him as this place isn’t built for another 350 years.

Tracey described him as being small and unshaven with bloodied feet and hands. He was clutching at his throat as if suffering from smoke inhalation. She didn’t say he was green, that was just me using my artistic license. If Billy Bob had kept going in the same direction for 20 feet or so he would have bumped into a big bosomed queen Elizabeth l and he could have told her what he thought of her horrible dad, who’s fault it was that he was in this predicament.

We weren’t told why dead Queen Elizabeth was hanging about in the basement, although according to Tracey she was very agitated because she had been kept waiting. Now we know where Charles gets it from.
The plan now is to show Billy Bob the painting and see if he likes it. I think he will because I’ve just realised I’ve made him look a little like Mark Rylance.