My Walk this Week – Colour or Monochrome Flood

Posted on 16/04/201815/04/2018 by Alastair

My walk this week follows a flood – not so much follows in fact, more dictated. The River Ouse in York regularly floods if there is a lot of rainfall in the area or up river and when I was there at the start of April the rain was teeming down across the country. I took the earliest opportunity when the rain stopped to check out the watery scene.

I was at least able to cross the Millennium Footbridge whereas on a previous occasion I had not even been able to approach the bridge! What caught my eye in particular was the arrangement of objects such as semi submerged bollards, fence reflections and the ghost image of the footpath as it curved round under the water.

In looking back at the photos I couldn’t decide whether I preferred them in colour or monochrome, so they are both included below – all except the curved footpath shot because in monochrome the path was completely hidden.

Millennium Bridge York

Muddy waters

Ouse overflow

Arrangement of bollards

Fence reflection

Hidden Footpath

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Millennium Bridge – monochrome

Muddy monochrome waters

Ouse overflow – monochrome

Arrangement of monochrome bollards

monochrome reflection

The Nuts, Bolts and Perspective of Architecture

Posted on 11/04/201807/04/2018 by Alastair

On my walk this week around an area of the Bristol cityscape next to Temple Meads railway station, I was attracted by the patterns and perspectives, and the nuts and bolts of the architecture and construction along the riverside.

A passing walker said he liked the view up the river from under a nearby bridge so I made a point of heading that way. Underneath I found I liked the view of the bridge as much as from it, enjoying the rows and patterns in perspective of nuts and bolts and rivets as well as the dark heavy weight of the structure. The design and engineering of structures like this and all the architecture around me was remarkable. The arrangement of the buildings is also remarkable and looking at them from different angles creates a new jigsaw of shapes with every turn of the head.

arrangement of shapes

architectural perspective

Looking out from under

Constructed and construction

Riverside cityscape

nuts and bolts

nuts and bolds perspective

Running Away (from a dark day?)

Posted on 21/03/201817/03/2018 by Alastair

As we came out of the Great Glass House at the National Botanic Garden of Wales on my walk this week, I looked at the impending weather and took a couple of shots. I had noticed the family in the middle ground but only realised the symmetry of the children running away from each other as part of a game after I had taken the photo.

Those dark clouds did catch up with us but not at this point in our walk when I was still interested in the growth andContinue reading→

Still Travelling but Walking in Circles

Posted on 21/02/201819/02/2018 by Alastair

Still in York on my walk this week I found myself getting lost! I wasn’t actually lost in that I knew where I was, but I could not find the place I was looking for. I was full of a rotten cold and blame this for being unable to read the sat nav map I tried using on my phone to navigate on my walk to the required shop. I started out from the car park at Clifford’s Tower and passed by St. Mary’s church but then ended up going round and round in circles in the intricate layout of small central streets and passages.

I did a better job of finding my way to meet my niece and walk with her back to my parents’ house. While waiting I found the these gates of interest Continue reading→

Art and History at The Glynn Vivian Gallery and Museum

Posted on 07/02/201802/02/2018 by Alastair

On my walk this week around the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery and Museum in Swansea, I looked in a number of the rooms. In the main gallery I observed, listened to and contemplated the various abstract and video art works to be experienced in the current exhibition – “These Waters Have Stories To Tell”.

This exhibition is part of the Ephemeral Coast series of touring exhibitions and includes six different artists. The first of the works I have shown below is one of the most deceptive – this (apparent) swimming float is in fact made of concrete and knowing this, my perception of it becomes confused. I am being deliberately deceived, and this brings to mind so many parallels in todays society that I have to start thinking more deeply about it in an effort to figure out my understanding of the themes of the exhibition and the connections the works have to us and the relationship we have with the/our environment.

On the top floor I enjoyed some of the older works in the museum – not just the works themselves but also the displays and the patterns of light and reflection created.

Alexander Duncan

Art at the Glynn Vivian

Glynn Vivian Art Gallery and Museum

Glynn Vivian ceramics collection

Glynn Vivian reflections

My Walk this Week – Architecture at The Glynn Vivian

Posted on 05/02/201802/02/2018 by Alastair

My walk this week is not in a natural environment but instead it is around the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery and Museum – unless you consider our need for creativity a part of nature, which I do! It is an essential part of our existence that we observe the things around us and it is a part of my own particular nature to enjoy observing what we call art, and also on this occasion, architecture and design.

The architecture of the original building is formal, balanced, symmetrical. The newer wing is made in concrete and the even newer entrance is largely glass. This is perhaps fitting as the building opposite also has a new glass extension as entrance to Swansea College of Art and the original design of this building reflects that of the Glynn Vivian.Continue reading→

Looking and Listening Seats for the Landscape

Posted on 31/01/201827/01/2018 by Alastair

The attractively designed benches situated along my walk this week at the National Botanic Garden of Wales (NBGW) are ideal facilities for looking at and listening to the surrounding landscape.

At the moment I am focusing on the looking rather than the listening. It wasn’t actually raining on the walk but the ground was very wet from recent weather . . . as were the seats. Everything in fact, looked Continue reading→

Reviewing the Year – 2017

Posted on 06/01/201827/12/2017 by Alastair

At the end of this first week of 2018 I have selected one image from each month of 2017 plus the featured image on the StillWalks blog page.

I thoroughly enjoyed all my walks in 2017 and look forward to posting about more walks in the coming year. However, I may need to cut down on the number of posts. As much as I enjoy doing the photography, field recording and writing, there will be a distinct pressure on my time in 2018 and cutting to one post per week may be one of the solutions to this problem. I will do my best and we shall see how it goes – either way, unlike this week, future posts will include soundscapes as well as images.

I would like to thank everyone for following the StillWalks blog in 2017 and I look forward to reading all your posts in the coming year. I hope it will be a very productive one for all of us. Happy New Year!