Looking out to sea and waiting – that is what these “standing stones” appear to be doing!
My StillWalk, “Coastal Walk“, in Scotland in the Spring features these shots. The balanced stones looked as though they were just biding their time and waiting for some spectacular event – or perhaps they were just soaking up the sun while they could.
Sculpture on the Beach
Patterns in the Sand
The mornings are still cold but it’s not going to be long now – the evidence is out there.
These photos are from one of my Spring StillWalks – “Coastal Walk” in Galloway, South West Scotland. You can watch it here.
Chaffinch
Looking at a recent post about London on a blog I follow, I was reminded by a photo showing the Shard in the distance, of a visit to London I made when that structure was still being built.
Half the tube stations were out of action in preparation for the 2012 Olympics but the StillWalk I produced from the photos and sound recording I did on the day does not reflect my frustration with this. Watch the video below.
StillWalks – London Tate Walk from Alastair Duncan on Vimeo.
My StillWalks often use the natural environment as the location, but not always. StillWalks are primarily about relaxation and stress relief but they are also about seeing and hearing all that is around us and I am as interested in the sounds of the city as those of the countryside.
Here is one of the images from that walk.
Light plays an important part in all art work and its display. Despite the display and this photograph revealing the shadows and surfaces of this piece of work by Duncan Ayscough, when seeing it last week at Craft in the Bay, Cardiff, it was difficult to describe just what the ceramic form was doing with the light in the gallery other than absorbing it – like a Black Hole.
The photo cannot do it justice – the matt black surface seemed to negate the existence of light and in other pieces (not those shown here), the form seemed to be a “normal” vessel but when taking a closer look, we realised that the black surface of the interior was deceiving us! If I had taken a closer look still, I fear I too would have been absorbed into that Black Hole.
Fascinating work and well worth a visit if you’re in the area – or even if you’re not! This work must be new as it does not appear on his website yet.
Duncan Ayscough
Duncan Ayscough
The first photo here is not an exhibit at the second gallery we visited last week – the Howard Garden Gallery at Cardiff Met University. The video below the photo was an installation art work which had to be viewed in a dark room. If you want to be able to see the video, I suspect you will also need to darken your room.
Personally, I liked the crack in the dark by the entrance more than the piece itself but I enjoyed the rest of this exhibition by Avtarjeet Dhanjal. More info on the show can be found here – hmmm, just discovered it finishes today so here is a quote from I’m on that web page.
“When growing up in the Panjab, India, I was not aware there was such a thing called ‘Art’; though my mother decorated our house with beautiful wall murals using clay. It was never called Art. One could find many other examples of beautiful objects of daily use; those enhanced the quality of life. To hold a beautiful object on your hand, or to stand facing a unique work of art, one feels a delight whether one has any formal education in aesthetics or not. This is considered the intrinsic worth of a work of art” – Avtarjeet Dhanjal.
Crack in the Dark
Avtarjeet Dhanjal
Avtarjeet Dhanjal
Avtarjeet Dhanjal
Avtarjeet Dhanjal
This trough was half filled with water but because the blue plastic itself was shiny and reflective, it was almost impossible to see the water. The installation shown in the video above also used “invisible” water.
Avtarjeet Dhanjal
We have been to a few galleries lately and in one way or another, light played an important part in each one. Light may always be relevant to art but in these exhibits, the artists had used light as an important and “material” part of the work.
These first shots are from an exhibition called “Difference Engine: Accumulator II” at Oriel Myrddin in Carmarthen. I wasn’t told not to photograph, so I went ahead (on my phone) and feel justified by advertising both the gallery and the artists. More information on the show can be found on the gallery website.
There were other works in the exhibition as well as these and it was well worth the visit but I particularly enjoyed the use of light in these pieces.
Moving away from Lliw Reservoir which has featured a lot in my recent posts, I have some new photos from Hereford. We drove up there last week for my daughter’s final interview for university. She has since been accepted by all five to which she applied – clever girl 🙂
Although the roads in Hereford seemed very busy during mid week, this small city is very attractive in parts with the cathedral being central. The colour of the stone is beautiful and changes with the light (naturally). It was a dull day when we were there but that didn’t spoil what was a pleasant and successful day out. I wonder if we will be seeing more of it – depends on Hannah’s choice really! You can see her blog here.
A park by the castle in Hereford
Church Street, Hereford
Hereford Cathedral
Sunlight or cloud, rain or mist – the weather conditions influence, no, create the available light for photography.
A few weeks ago I was at Lliw Valley Reservoirs in the rain and took some photos on my iPhone 4s of what I described as “fence post gardens”. I posted them on the Moss Appreciation Society Facebook page with the comment that I would have to go back on a dry day to photograph them properly. The response from one group member was that moss likes, and is perhaps, at its best in the rain.
The sun was shining when I was up there last week and following my interview with BBC Radio Wales I proceeded to take some photos of the same “fence post gardens” with my Canon 550D. It was difficult to say the least! Sunlight can be very dramatic – usually in the early morning or evening, but it can also be a major problem depending on the subject matter.
I have picked out four photos that I think are not too bad from those I took on the day but it seems I am going to have to wait for a more overcast day or go there at sunrise to get some decent shots of this subject.
Getting to know the subject is also important whatever medium you are working with, and I think that it was not just the light conditions that gave me a problem. It was also time and the need to figure out the best angles. Next time I will go better informed.
Update (22/03/2013) According to a friend of my sister –
“The second photo has some lichens in as well as moss- the silvery flattish ones at the front which may be a Paramelia – and probably the red and silvey grey one – also a brown cupped one in the middle- these last 2 will be Cladonia species.”
Moss Garden
Peristomes
Ghostly Tree