Ludlow Exhibition

Posted on 14/07/201214/07/2012 by Alastair

Ludlow Assembly Rooms – Not long ago I visited Ludlow for the first time. I needed to view Ludlow Assembly Rooms Arts Centre as I have been invited by them to exhibit both my media work with StillWalks (including my “Interventions“) and my work as a tapestry artist. The exhibition is short notice and so I asked if my mother, Jean Duncan, could exhibit alongside me.

Beautiful Market Town – Unfortunately it was a very wet day but that did not stop us seeing what a beautiful place it is. It was very lively on this particular Saturday as it was a market day and despite the rain, very busy. Ludlow is a great example of an old English market town on the Welsh border and we have driven through the area many times from choice rather than necessity.

I took a couple of pics on my phone and look forward to setting up our exhibition there from 5th – 27th October.

Ludlow

Ludlow Assembly Rooms Arts Centre

Beautiful Brecon Beacons

Posted on 07/07/201207/07/2012 by Alastair

Yr Allt, Fan Nedd and Fan Gyhirych are all on a walk I have done in the Brecon Beacons frequently in the past. That past is a long time ago now though and so when I took a day up there recently with my friend Mark, it seemed even better than my memory allowed.

Walking for pleasure was the main reasoning behind the trip but photos and sounds clips taken on the day can be considered a recce for a StillWalks production day later in the Summer.

Skylark – I actually managed to get a half decent photo of one of the many Skylarks up there and some of the sights and sounds from the day can be listened to and seen below. To view more of the photos, visit Flickr. If you can’t see the sound clips, click here to go to the blog.

Shadows on Yr Allt

Pen y Fan in the distance

On the side of Fan Nedd

Old Fencing

Bog Cotton

Maen Llia standing stone

View from the Top

Posted on 23/06/201223/06/2012 by Alastair

Last Sunday was a beautiful day here in South Wales which encouraged me to take a walk up Graig Fawr. The views over the surrounding countryside are uplifting . . . when the sun is out. Looking west you can see over to Carmarthenshire and looking south the view takes in the Loughor Estuary and the Gower Peninsula.

The wind was blowing and the Skylarks were singing and I needed to get to the top. Here are a few of the photos I took and also a sound clip of those Larks in the wind.

View from the Top

View from the Top 1Loughor Estuary and the Gower

Foxgloves and the Gower

You can hear those Skylarks in the wind here or you can play the clip below if you are already on the blog.

Urban Birds and Babies

Posted on 16/06/201216/06/2012 by Alastair

I got these shots the other day during a garden bird count for the RSPB. I’m just sorry I didn’t get a shot of the funniest looking young Blackbird we have frequenting our garden just now with its fluffy feathers stuck out all over the place.

Mother and Baby 1

Mother and Baby 2

Mother and Baby 3

I was also reminding people this week about StillWalks being about the urban as well as the natural environment or countryside. The photos below are from the Abertawe Walk along the River Tawe going into the SA1 area of Swansea.

from Abertawe Walk

Feeling Felt

Posted on 08/06/201208/06/2012 by Alastair

Last week’s fair at The National Botanic Garden of Wales was a bit of a wash out for StillWalks as was the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations. On a sunny Monday, however, we were in Cardiff at the Welsh Makers Guild Gallery, Craft in the Bay, in Cardiff Bay where there was an exhibition by the International Feltmakers Association. The exhibition was called “The Climate is Changing” and, along with all the other exhibits in the Makers Guild shop, was fascinating and enjoyable to see. Now back to the rain!

99 Pieces of Driftwood by Marianne Sogaard Sorensen of Denmark

Medusa by Annette Block of Germany

Ultimo Salto – The Last Jump by Katia Volpe

Beautiful Journeys

Posted on 26/05/201226/05/2012 by Alastair

I have been travelling about Wales recently – not too far from home but thoroughly enjoyable. The trips I have had to schools as the Josef Herman Foundation Award Artist for 2012, have taken me over the Beacons to Brecon as well as to Ystradgynlais and back over the hills to home where the Spring / Summer sounds of a Blackbird in Coedbach Park are a welcome end to the day. You’ll need to visit the blog to listen to the Blackbird.

Up on the Brecon Beacons

Looking across the Brecon Beacons

River Tawe at Ystradgynlais

Overlooking Craig Cefn Parc

The Josef Herman Foundation has allowed 9 and 10 year old children to create a version of StillWalks. Through an Arts Council of Wales funded project initiated by Caron McColl and Lynne Bebb at Swansea Education Effectiveness Service, the children have been doing their own photography and sound recording for their walk as well as the post production and also poetry with Emily Hinshelwood.

Screening and Exhibition – there will be a celebratory screening and exhibition in the Autumn of the work produced by the children. The children are doing a great job, so watch here later in the year to see examples of their videos and other work.

Rainy Days in Wales and England

Posted on 05/05/201205/05/2012 by Alastair

Sorry to those of you who noticed the lack of a blog entry last week. Here are a couple of the many reasons for the omission.

Pant-y-Sais Fen – Last Friday I discovered this place by Jersey Marine near Swansea. This was part of a bird song identification walk with Bob Tallnack and others from the Gower Ornithological Society. It was most enjoyable in spite of the rain and the fen by Neath Canal is a beautiful place where I hope to do produce a StillWalk on some dry day in the future. More photos can be seen on Facebook.

You’ll need to click on the blog title in order to listen to the Chaffinch in this place as it can only be viewed on the actual blog.

Neath Canal near Pant-y-Sais Fen, Jersey marine.

York’s River Ouse oozes out – It was still raining when I attempted a production day in York last Sunday – the photos here show the evidence. Fortunately, Monday morning brought the sun with it and although the waters had not receded much, I was still able to get the images and sound I need to produce a new StillWalk.

River Ouse, York

Millenium Bridge, River Ouse, York

From the Millennium Bridge, Millenium Bridge, River Ouse, York

River Ouse, York

Monday Sun, River Ouse, York

If I were to associate a StillWalks with this blog entry, I think it would be Quarry Walk – Autumn Rain even though it is the wrong season.

Therapy at its Best in Scotland

Posted on 14/04/201214/04/2012 by Alastair

Featured StillWalks – Coastal Walk Spring

For me, this is therapy at its best! Recently we had some unexpectedly good weather for the time of year and it reminded me of slightly later in the Spring last year when this StillWalk was produced.

Downloads – Coastal Walk Spring is from the South West coast of Scotland. The sample version on the StillWalks website is only 1.5 minutes of the full 6.5 but gives a good taste of a walk well worth downloading. There are some fascinating temporary sculptures on the stony beach. They can also be found in Coastal Walk Evening where they look like sentinels watching the tide.

FREE StillWalks – If you have not already signed up for FREE to StillWalks, you will be able to download a walk of your choice FREE when you do.

Here are some of the images from the full length walk – enjoy 🙂

Coastal Walk Spring

Category Archives: Travel

Ludlow Exhibition

Beautiful Brecon Beacons

View from the Top

Urban Birds and Babies

Feeling Felt

Beautiful Journeys

Rainy Days in Wales and England

Therapy at its Best in Scotland

stillwalks