Post by Di on Aug 26, 2006 14:13:58 GMT -5
The article below was in The Guardian on Saturday 26th April.
The newsreader Sophie Raworth chips away at her sister Kate's latest sculpture, then tries to hold her tongue as Kate cares for her kids at playgroup
Interviews by Lucy Atkins
Saturday April 29, 2006
The Guardian
Sophie Raworth: Sculpture is so what Kate is about. Her whole life is about making something out of nothing. She let me have a go at a sculpture that she has been working on for a long time and I was terrified that I'd hack something off. Working on the stone reminded me how connected we are. Nobody ever thinks we are sisters because we look so different, but there are some things about us that are exactly the same. We have the same bodies, and her hands on the tools were so familiar, they look exactly like mine.
Our personalities are completely different though. One incident really summed us up. I was chipping away in the workshop, and really getting into it and she shouted through from the kitchen: "Not fast, fast, fast, Sophie! Slow and steady." It's always been like that between us - I've been speeding along through life, doing things all the time, and there she is, slow, steady and methodical, getting extraordinary results. I'm in awe of her talents; she works full-time for Oxfam, but she's also a photographer and a sculptor and she plays saxophone and performs in a jazz band.
There are only two and a half years between us, but as teenagers we didn't understand each other or get on at all. Though I was desperately shy at school, once I hit 16 and moved to St Paul's school, I suddenly started going out to parties and socialising.
Kate was painfully shy as a teenager. She put on weight and was very self-conscious and shut herself away, reading, playing the saxophone and doing art while I was going out to parties. I need people more than she does. She doesn't need anyone's approval.
We had huge rows, physical fights, but now we understand each other. With two children and a full-on job, I can't imagine having the sort of time she has at her disposal - we were chipping away for a couple of hours at the sculpture, but I hardly made a dent in it.
Kate would be a wonderful mother as she's so patient. She can keep Ella occupied for hours just with some finger puppets and she knows how to go at a child's pace, something I'm only just learning to do. I did find myself in a bit of a big sister-type dilemma at one point during the playgroup, though. She was carrying my younger daughter, Georgia, and the baby's head was lolling around. I was thinking, "Do I say something?" I didn't want to cramp her style, but I did have to shout over.
People think of me as the jolly hockey sticks, head girl-type, but it was actually Kate who was the head girl at St Paul's. She was the one who went to Oxford and got a first - but she's so self-contained, and not showy at all. She is not influenced or impressed or bothered by things like money or possessions and she doesn't pander to anyone. These days, I value her opinion so much. Kate is the first person I turn to if I need advice or help.
Kate Raworth: Sophie watched me at the playgroup with a wry smile and it did bring back that feeling of my big sister, sitting with her friends, watching me do something she knows how to do, and I don't. I wanted the challenge of looking after both children, though, and did enjoy the playgroup.
I do think about having children, though I worry that it wouldn't leave me time to do all the things I love. Sophie's always been maternal; I'm so impressed by her as a mother - she copes brilliantly. I remember going to see her in hospital after Ella was born and being struck by this new person who had emerged - not Ella, but Sophie. She used this different voice that I'd never heard before to comfort the baby, and I was very aware that I was seeing a new part of her.
I felt a bit like an impostor at the playgroup, but the environment didn't freak me out. I know Ella enough that it was fun to be with her, rather than intimidating. I was more worried about Georgia, who is prone to crying. When her head was lolling and Sophie told me I wasn't doing it right, it made sense.
I started Sophie on the easy bit of the sculpture. We're both left-handed and seeing her hands working on the stone, I did trust that she'd pick it up and not ruin it. We were joking about her breaking her nails and, at one point, she got thingyy and blew the stone. Dust completely covered her face, which made us laugh.
People compare you all the time as sisters. I remember seeing a school photo of her when she was about 16 and she had this wonderful radiance that everyone noticed. I probably hated her for it at the time - being the perfect older sister. When we were teenagers my world became about what I did. I put all my effort into creating things that looked lovely. We had a very rocky relationship and were really only able to grow out of it in our 20s when we were both more established. Sophie came to visit me in Zanzibar where I worked for three years, and it was a turning point for us.
It amuses me now when people are in awe of Sophie because of what she does - she's totally normal.
The newsreader Sophie Raworth chips away at her sister Kate's latest sculpture, then tries to hold her tongue as Kate cares for her kids at playgroup
Interviews by Lucy Atkins
Saturday April 29, 2006
The Guardian
Sophie Raworth: Sculpture is so what Kate is about. Her whole life is about making something out of nothing. She let me have a go at a sculpture that she has been working on for a long time and I was terrified that I'd hack something off. Working on the stone reminded me how connected we are. Nobody ever thinks we are sisters because we look so different, but there are some things about us that are exactly the same. We have the same bodies, and her hands on the tools were so familiar, they look exactly like mine.
Our personalities are completely different though. One incident really summed us up. I was chipping away in the workshop, and really getting into it and she shouted through from the kitchen: "Not fast, fast, fast, Sophie! Slow and steady." It's always been like that between us - I've been speeding along through life, doing things all the time, and there she is, slow, steady and methodical, getting extraordinary results. I'm in awe of her talents; she works full-time for Oxfam, but she's also a photographer and a sculptor and she plays saxophone and performs in a jazz band.
There are only two and a half years between us, but as teenagers we didn't understand each other or get on at all. Though I was desperately shy at school, once I hit 16 and moved to St Paul's school, I suddenly started going out to parties and socialising.
Kate was painfully shy as a teenager. She put on weight and was very self-conscious and shut herself away, reading, playing the saxophone and doing art while I was going out to parties. I need people more than she does. She doesn't need anyone's approval.
We had huge rows, physical fights, but now we understand each other. With two children and a full-on job, I can't imagine having the sort of time she has at her disposal - we were chipping away for a couple of hours at the sculpture, but I hardly made a dent in it.
Kate would be a wonderful mother as she's so patient. She can keep Ella occupied for hours just with some finger puppets and she knows how to go at a child's pace, something I'm only just learning to do. I did find myself in a bit of a big sister-type dilemma at one point during the playgroup, though. She was carrying my younger daughter, Georgia, and the baby's head was lolling around. I was thinking, "Do I say something?" I didn't want to cramp her style, but I did have to shout over.
People think of me as the jolly hockey sticks, head girl-type, but it was actually Kate who was the head girl at St Paul's. She was the one who went to Oxford and got a first - but she's so self-contained, and not showy at all. She is not influenced or impressed or bothered by things like money or possessions and she doesn't pander to anyone. These days, I value her opinion so much. Kate is the first person I turn to if I need advice or help.
Kate Raworth: Sophie watched me at the playgroup with a wry smile and it did bring back that feeling of my big sister, sitting with her friends, watching me do something she knows how to do, and I don't. I wanted the challenge of looking after both children, though, and did enjoy the playgroup.
I do think about having children, though I worry that it wouldn't leave me time to do all the things I love. Sophie's always been maternal; I'm so impressed by her as a mother - she copes brilliantly. I remember going to see her in hospital after Ella was born and being struck by this new person who had emerged - not Ella, but Sophie. She used this different voice that I'd never heard before to comfort the baby, and I was very aware that I was seeing a new part of her.
I felt a bit like an impostor at the playgroup, but the environment didn't freak me out. I know Ella enough that it was fun to be with her, rather than intimidating. I was more worried about Georgia, who is prone to crying. When her head was lolling and Sophie told me I wasn't doing it right, it made sense.
I started Sophie on the easy bit of the sculpture. We're both left-handed and seeing her hands working on the stone, I did trust that she'd pick it up and not ruin it. We were joking about her breaking her nails and, at one point, she got thingyy and blew the stone. Dust completely covered her face, which made us laugh.
People compare you all the time as sisters. I remember seeing a school photo of her when she was about 16 and she had this wonderful radiance that everyone noticed. I probably hated her for it at the time - being the perfect older sister. When we were teenagers my world became about what I did. I put all my effort into creating things that looked lovely. We had a very rocky relationship and were really only able to grow out of it in our 20s when we were both more established. Sophie came to visit me in Zanzibar where I worked for three years, and it was a turning point for us.
It amuses me now when people are in awe of Sophie because of what she does - she's totally normal.