Rain on the Water

Posted on 17/06/201317/06/2013 by Alastair

Swansea may be the wettest city in the UK, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth visiting.

It may be that you can find scenes similar to this in many different places around the world but as with any image (or sound), each one is, in fact, unique to the time and place according to the conditions at the time the photograph is taken or the sound recorded.

Understanding that what we experience of our surroundings is interdependent on these unique conditions from moment to moment is a major part of what StillWalks is about.

More important than that, however, is simply the enjoyment of what we see and hear around us – rain it may be, but I hope you enjoy these images.

PhotoShelter Galleries and Shop

Posted on 16/05/201316/05/2013 by Alastair

Selected StillWalks photographs used in the StillWalks videos plus other images are now available to purchase either as digital downloads or as high quality prints in a range of sizes and finishes through the StillWalks PhotoShelter website.

StillWalks Equestrian – the StillWalks PhotoShelter website includes galleries of the equestrian photography Alastair does. Much of this is for Clydach Riding Club.

Images below are from a range of StillWalks photo galleries on PhotoShelter. Please visit PhotoShelter to see the available images for printing from each StillWalk and more.

A Visit to Middlesbrough – Sculpture?

Posted on 06/04/201306/04/2013 by Alastair

Next to the Anish Kapoor sculpture, “Tenemos” (featured in yesterday’s post), are other “sculptures” which, although functional in their design, are fascinating and attractive in their own way.

The textures, colours and patterns of paint and rust are further enhanced by their juxtaposition with Kapoor’s work. And that, of course, is a part of the purpose of art – to help us see, understand and appreciate what is around us.

I wonder what it is like inside that crane?!

Tenemos and Crane

A Visit to Middlesbrough – Anish Kapoor

Posted on 05/04/201305/04/2013 by Alastair

Temenos by Anish Kapoor was erected in Middlesbrough about three years ago and I have been meaning to go take a look at it since then. As with Claes Oldenburg’s Bottle of Notes in yesterday’s post, there have been many photographs taken of this work of art – but these are mine!

It is an impressive structure which has the effect, as it should, of highlighting the sculptural appearance of many of the industrial structures around it (more of those tomorrow). In the background is Middlesbrough’s Transporter Bridge.

Temenos by Anish Kapoor

Temenos and Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge

A Visit to Middlesbrough – Claes Oldenburg and Haroon Mirza

Posted on 04/04/201304/04/2013 by Alastair

The Bottle of Notes sculpture by Claes Oldenburg is in the centre of Middlesbrough by MIMA (Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art). There have been plenty of photos taken of it before now, but these are mine!

We had a short visit to Middlesbrough at Easter and managed, amongst other things, to see this, the MIMA exhibitions, the Anish Kapoor sculpture at Riverside Park (see tomorrow’s post) and had a walk round Great Ayton.

One of the exhibitions we saw at MIMA was Untitled Song by Haroon Mirza. I can’t show photos other than this wall in the gallery, but I did record part of the audio in the exhibition. Here is 30 seconds of it.

Haroon Mirza

You may not find the sound particularly easy to listen to – it’s not exactly popular music – but there was more to it than this sample and it worked well with the space and the sculptures by James Clarkson, some of which had been modified by Mirza.

Maritime Quarter, Swansea – Different Scales

Posted on 02/04/201302/04/2013 by Alastair

I have managed, in the last photo of this series, to bring the scale of the Meridian Tower down to that of the Helwick Lightship sitting in Swansea’s marina.

The sounds of the marina can be a fascinating orchestra of rigging when the wind is up. On this day there was just the lapping of water under the floating booms, passing voices and high heeled shoes. They would not have been there if the marina wind orchestra had been playing!

Swansea Marina sound sample

You can listen to this on SoundCloud below (if you’re on the blog) or click here.

Meridian Tower

Rigging in the Marina

Helwick Lightship and Meridian Tower

Different Scales

Architecture of Swansea Bay

Posted on 01/04/201301/04/2013 by Alastair

The Maritime Quarter in Swansea has been in development for many years. We used to have a studio there and watched much of the current architecture being constructed.

The view from the 27th floor of the Meridian Tower is almost as good as that from Brynmill or Kilvey Hill – except, of course, when it is in mist! Whether this building is included in a StillWalk of the area remains to be seen.

Moving up from the beach

Swansea Bay Sculpture

Meridian Tower, Swansea

Looking Back

Posted on 29/03/201329/03/2013 by Alastair

The reflections in these puddles and the subject matter of the Cathays Cemetery made me think that while putting the blog posts together for this week, I have mostly been looking back, if only to Saturday – so now to look forward!

Despite the cold on Saturday, I really liked this cemetery and I hope that you can see from the previous images through the week, that it has many different aspects to it. I must visit again in the late Spring or Summer to enjoy it in better conditions.

Cathays Cemetery

On a different note – sometimes, as on this occasion, I compile a few posts all at the same time and scheduled them to go out through the week. It was been a pleasure to do so this time to the music of Carla Bley (have fun on her website :-)). Anyone else enjoy her music?

Category Archives: Urban