Paris: Je Reviens

Paris is a city filled with statues and sculptures....

No... unfortunately, I haven't been back to Paris - just sorting through a few more of my photos from last month's trip!

20:50

While I was in London, I had the chance to see Richard Wilson's installation 20:50, a permanent fixture at the Saatchi Gallery.

20:50’s effects begin as you enter the building — a smell of petroleum hits you which, by the time you’re in the basement room which the work occupies, is almost intoxicating.

You enter the room on a platform and are confronted by a bright space whose walls, ceiling, windows and views outside are mirrored in an tranquil pool of recycled engine oil (which gives 20:50 its name).

Unfortunately the walkway into the heart of the installation was closed, otherwise it would have been possible to survey the room with oil surrounding me at waist height.

I found the piece spellbinding, and more than a little disorientating. One of the most memorable pieces of art I have ever seen...

Seville Cathedral

 Capilla Mayor (main chapel)

One of many stained glass windows

 Detail of the Retablo Mayor

Chapel

Tomb of Columbus

Looking down onto the cathedral from La Giraldi

Looking down onto the cathedral from La Giraldi

Gargoyles

One of the large (and deafeningly loud) bells at the top of La Giraldi

Real Alcázar

Originally a Moorish fort, the Alcázar of Seville (Spanish "Alcázares Reales de Sevilla") is a royal palace that is one of the best remaining examples of mudéjar architecture. You can read more about the history of the Alcázar here, if you’re interested.

I thought it was an exquisite place to visit, and I could happily have spent the whole day there…just gazing at the beautiful patios and halls, and relaxing in the gardens.

Horseshoe Arches - The Ambassadors' Hall

Salon de Embajadores - dome of the Ambassadors' Hall, made from carved and guilded interlaced wood

Ornate door

 Dome of the Patio de las Munecas (Patio of the Dolls)

 Mudejar stucco

Patio de las Doncellas (Patio of the Maidens)

Patio de las Doncellas

 Patio de las Munecas

 Patio de las Doncellas

Salones de Carlos V

Ceramic tiles in the Salones de Carlos V

Gardens

 Gardens

Gardens

Happy Friday!

Must Be An Angel

Probably the most famous piece of public art in the UK, Antony Gormley’s towering 20 m (70 ft) winged figure – the Angel of the North- stands guard over Newcastle and has become an icon of contemporary art. It’s also one of the most viewed pieces of art in the world - seen by more than one person every second, 90,000 every day or 33 million every year. Most of these viewers are driving by on the A1 but it’s well worth stopping off to see the Angel up close, as I found out last autumn.

The Angel spreads its 54 m wings to welcome all who enter Tyneside, and remind them of the workers who once mined coal in the ground underneath.

I sit and wait
does an angel contemplate my fate
and do they know
the places where we go
when we´re grey and old
´cos I´ve been told
that salvation lets their wings unfold
so when I’m lying in my bed
thoughts running through my head
and I feel that love is dead
I’m loving angels instead

and through it all she offers me protection
a lot of love and affection
whether I’m right or wrong
and down the waterfall
wherever it may take me
I know that life won't break me
when I come to call she won't forsake me
I’m loving angels instead

when I’m feeling weak
and my pain walks down a one way street
I look above
and I know I'll always be blessed with love
and as the feeling grows
she breathes flesh to my bones
and when love is dead
I’m loving angels instead
[Angels - Robbie Williams & Guy Chambers]

But Is It Art?

A selection of sculptures from my Canadian Collection....

Jaume Plensa’s WE in profile - Sunset Beach, Vancouver

Gillian Ley's 'Floribunda' Orca at The Victoria Regent Hotel

'Maximilian'  by Sara Gifford, Jane Van Sickle & Michael Hofmann - Victoria Inner Harbour 

Hupacasath Welcome Figure - Port Alberni BC

Hupacasath Welcome Figure - Port Alberni BC

Woman with eagle - Ucluelet, Vancouver Island

Port Hardy Carrot Campaign monument

Sign reads: "This carrot, marking the northern end of the Island Highway, is a symbol of government road building promises, dangled in front of north island settlers since 1897. The successful late 1970's "Carrot Campaign" was aimed at making the government keep promises of a completed Island Highway."

Inukshuk on Whistlers Mountain - near Jasper

Big Head - Canmore, Alberta

Happy weekend everyone!

In This City

I was down in London for business yesterday. I didn't get much chance to do anything else really, but I did capture the ever changing city scape while crossing the Hungerford Bridge....

There was time for a quick stroll past Lord Nelson, perched high above Trafalgar Square....

And to say hello to another famous Nelson....

Then a fleeting visit to The National Gallery to feast my eyes on my three favourite paintings hanging in there.....

Les Parapluies by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Bridge over a Pool of Water Lilies by Claude Monet

Sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh