A Wider View
Here's a wider angle of Volume — it's made up of a grid of LED-covered poles which respond to the movement of people around them.
Posted on Wednesday, January 31, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 2 Comments
Archived: January 2007
Return to Volume
I made it back to Volume at the V&A museum the other week, spending what must have ended up being a couple of hours watching and listening to everything.
There are a few photos to post so I'll work my way through them over the next few days...
Posted on Tuesday, January 30, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 1 Comments
The Crowd
The second (and last) photo in my short-lived secret lives of architecture's model citizens series, from Madrid.
There's still time to score some Belgian chocolates for the most creative suggestion of why I would make an overnight trek to Brugge. I'm back in London now, and the chocolates (and postcard) are sitting right next to me waiting to be mailed out.
Posted on Monday, January 29, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 , Hot Chocolate | 2 Comments
Whirlwind
While in Madrid I stumbled across On Site, an architectural exhibition of modern Spanish architecture originally organised by MoMA New York, which was fascinating even though everything was utterly incomprehensible in Spanish.
I took a few photos of the little people in the scale models of buildings, and entertained the brief idea of making a photo series about the secret lives of miniature people, but ran out of time to take enough photos. Here's one of the couple that I did manage to take.
This Sunday I'm heading off on a whirlwind overnight trip to Brugge, in Belgium (yes, again). Why a one-day trip to Brugge? Well that's a long story.
Actually, I'll offer some Belgian chocolates — and a tacky postcard — for the best suggestion:
Why would I take an overnight trip to Brugge?
Post a comment and let me know.
Posted on Sunday, January 28, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 , Hot Chocolate | 15 Comments
Still Not Australian
It was kinda weird not sitting around in the sun listening to the Hottest 100 on Australia Day yesterday.
Glad to see local-boys-done-good (while still remaining local) Eskimo Joe in the top 2, and actually kinda surprised by Augie March at #1 with One Crowded Hour. I've got the album and it's a great song, but I never would have picked it as popular enough to take out number one. Or maybe I missed something while I was out of the country?
How did everybody else spend Australia Day?
Posted on Saturday, January 27, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 3 Comments
Australia Day
It's January 26 so I'll take a moment to wish everybody a happy Australia Day.
The closest I've got to a suitably-themed photo for the occasion is this one, from Donostia San Sebastian, when it wasn't raining.
It's not quite Australia, but it's surfing and a beach.
Close enough, right?
Posted on Friday, January 26, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 2 Comments
Insight
In case you were wondering, this is what it's like to be a designer. It's scarily accurate.
Also, one day I will own a drawer of type. One day.
Posted on Thursday, January 25, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | No Comments Yet
Row, Row, Row
Our lazy row boat, tied up at the island in the middle of Lake Bled.
After some initial confusion over which seating arrangement was going to be the most stable (and hilarity at the instability of other boats) we set off, charting a fairly meandering course from the shore to the island.
Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 2 Comments
Postcard
Behold: snow-capped mountains, glacial lake, cliff-top castle and church-on-an-island!
All in one photo.
Bled is a place where it's impossible not to take postcard-ish photos.
Posted on Tuesday, January 23, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007
Bled
We hadn't really planned on staying in Bled, Slovenia. It just happened to be perfectly placed for a stop between Vienna and Bologna. Even then it was only when I saw that it was home to the very eastern tip of the Alps that we were really that excited about it.
Naturally, it turned out to be one of the most stunningly beautiful places we stayed on the trip.
Snow capped peaks, castle on cliff tops, church in the middle of a crystal clear glacial lake: holidays (and photo subjects) don't get much better than this.
Posted on Monday, January 22, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | No Comments Yet
Around (Again)
Another shot of the merry go round in Florence.
One of the main things I missed having on my meander around Europe was my trusty camera tripod. Long exposure shots are great for revealing the movement, light and detail in places by night, but they're near impossible to take without a tripod.
You can get mini tripods (or gorillapods) all over the place, especially in Rome (which was littered with street vendors selling tripods and African wood carvings — go figure) but apart from the larger ones they never deal with the weight of a SLR camera and chunky lens. Either way, carrying a tripod around is a bit of an inconvenience unless you only carry it for dedicated photo excursions — but since we only spent one or two nights in each place there wasn't much time for return visits just for photography.
So I made do with sitting the camera on the ground or my shoe (if the ground was wet) and either gently tapping the shutter or using the timer to try and reduce camera shake.
The end result was usually a slightly blurred photo, but occasionally it worked well enough to get a nice clear shot like this one.
Posted on Sunday, January 21, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | No Comments Yet
Around
I'm easily distracted by merry go rounds, especially when they're lit up at night. This one was in Florence, Italy.
Tragically there were usually children riding on them and we weren't game to explain our way onto one in a foreign language — who knows where the charades would end up.
Posted on Saturday, January 20, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 2 Comments
Storms
To be honest I can't remember if anything other than a light shower came of these clouds over the upmarket coastal town of St Tropez in France, but they looked pretty fierce at the time.
St Tropez itself? It's very much a rich kids' summer playground — big yachts, expensive clothes, and possibly the most ridiculously priced coffee we'd ever seen. Then there was the lack of camping or cheap accommodation. On the plus side, there was a bakery which made the most unbelievably good chocolate slice, so all was forgiven.
I'm told there was a Bridget Bardot film that put St Tropez on the map, but to be honest I haven't seen it...
Maybe you have? Can you give some background to this one?
Posted on Friday, January 19, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 2 Comments
Below
Here's another view of the forest in Arnhem, our unintentional stopover point in the Netherlands.
It rained quite heavily on the last morning we were there, which obviously isn't a rare event based on the erosion along some of the streams. The canopy was thick enough to shelter from the worst of the showers, quietly snapping photos while listening to the pitter-patter of the rain on leaves and waiting for the rain to ease.
The soft dapplied light through the rain was worth the damp coat.
Posted on Thursday, January 18, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 4 Comments
Arnhem
We stumbled on the town of Arnhem in the Netherlands by chance, looking for somewhere to grab dinner before skipping over the border into Germany.
It was getting late after finding a supermarket (always a fun experience) so we decided to ditch our German plans and track down the campsite we saw signposted near Arnhem instead.
The campsite itself was among the best we stayed in — thick green grass, good facilities and it backed onto a massive forest. So each day began with a walk along the trails in the forest, watching the sunlight filter through the thick canopy.
I did go for a sunset/twilight walk once, but once the sun disappeared it got a little cold and spooky in there.
Posted on Wednesday, January 17, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 3 Comments
Preoccupied
No posts yesterday because I've been busy copying photos from the holiday back on to my laptop.
I've now got a huge backlog of photos to look at and post, so the new posts should be pretty regular for the next few weeks.
Posted on Tuesday, January 16, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 3 Comments
Lazy Sunday
Since it's a lazy weekend and (miraculously) the sun's shining outside I'll make this another short post with a new angle on an earlier photo.
This time it's another shot of the Falkirk Wheel looking bleak and futuristic in the thick Scottish fog.
Posted on Sunday, January 14, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 3 Comments
London Taxis
Another angle on the taxis outside Westminster Abbey.
Posted on Saturday, January 13, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | No Comments Yet
Signs
Towards the end of the trip I started trying to take a photo of a street sign in each country, since they're wonderfully different in each place. The Roman sign I found sat alongside window shutters and was chiselled in marble in a classical all-caps serif typeface.
Typographic factoid: it's believed that the origin of the serif lies in the techniques used to carve letters into stone in ancient Rome. (more background at Wikipedia)
This sign from somewhere in Barcelona also looks like it might be chiselled into marble, but this time it's a fairly utilitarian sans-serif. It's also hemmed in by a sea of cables, which is fairly typical of Barcelona's ad-hoc building style.
Posted on Friday, January 12, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 1 Comments
The Light
The Spanish pigeons in Barcelona are a little less flighty than their friends in Rome (this one's probably having a siesta).
One thing I already miss from continental Europe is the golden late afternoon light, which seems to linger for an amazingly long time (courtesy of the sun's low winter arc, I know). We were lucky enough to get a string of clear days around Europe which meant plenty of time for me to run around in the beautiful late-afternoon sunlight taking photos.
Probably giggling like a madman.
Posted on Thursday, January 11, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | No Comments Yet
Don't Blame Me
Amidst all the hoopla over the launch of Apple's new iPhone (which I'll write about soon) there have been some inspired quotes from Jonathan Ive, the British industrial designer behind almost everything Apple since the original candy-coloured iMacs.
On the complexity of electronic devices:
I think there's almost a belligerence—people are frustrated with their manufactured environment. We tend to assume the problem is with us, and not with the products we're trying to use.
– (Time Magazine)
It's painfully obvious that most electronics companies place design — in the all-encompassing sense of both function and form — far below other priorities such as profit and technological box-ticking.
Just last week we had a frustrating couple of days trying to get a DVD recorder to download a program guide (something worthy of a mere paragraph or two in the NASA-grade instruction manual).
Three days and as many tech-geeks down, and it's still not working.
If you're interested in design, it's worth tracking down some of his (very rarely granted) interviews to get some background on the way he and the Apple design team work. The following, on the design of his design team at Apple, is from November last year when he returned to the UK to receive an Honorary Doctorate:
A huge amount of what we try to do is simplification, solving very complex problems without making the complexity evident. In so many products you see the designer wagging his or her tail in your face. Our obsession is being very, very pure and inevitable, in some cases getting design out of the way.
– (International Herald Tribune)
Amen.
Posted on Wednesday, January 10, 2007 | Life | No Comments Yet
Fence Sitting
I do sometimes wonder what I'm doing over here in the depths of winter when there's a beautiful sunny summer right now back in Perth.
It's looking kinda threatening out the window right now, but I'm going to ignore the dark clouds and head out into London to see what Tuesday brings. There's a talk by a photojournalist at the Apple store tonight so I might go check that out if I'm looking for a warm seat away from the cold and rain.
Posted on Monday, January 8, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 4 Comments
Bilbao
How could a self-respecting architecture nut visit Spain without visiting Bilbao? Yes, Franky Gehry's Guggenheim building is jaw-droppingly amazing. It's one of those buildings you have to see in the flesh to really make sense of.
While we're talking about the Guggenheim, here's a couple of random facts that the I'm not sure the audioguide mentioned:
- Although it's usually seen as the first building in this style by Gehry, it was actually designed after the Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. Due to funding and other delays the Guggenheim was actually constructed first.
- Unusually for a building of its scale and style, it was completed on time and on budget. Gehry puts this down to: the architect retaining control throughout the project, avoiding political/business interference; accurate budgeting; and using advanced computer modeling and close contact with trades to ensure everything was finished correctly the first time.
It's well worth a day-trip to check out if you're ever in the neighbourhood. I lost at least six hours wandering around inside, and could've lost another six leafing through their well-stocked bookshop.
And I spent countless hours just looking at the building's shimmering skin from every angle.
Posted on Sunday, January 7, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | No Comments Yet
The Rain in Spain
Here's some proof that it does rain in Spanish places other than planes, airports and the like. In this case, the stunning coastal town of Donostia San Sebastian in Spain, where is bucketed down for about twenty-four hours before the sun reappeared.
I may also hold fond memories of San Sebastian as the first place to have offered churros.
Acting like a local, part one: a place selling churros is called a Churreria.
Posted on Saturday, January 6, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 1 Comments
Bright Lights
A while back, Rosemary suggested I check out the Volume temporary installation at the V&A museum here in London. I'm glad she did, otherwise I might have missed this amazing experience.
I managed to duck by one afternoon earlier this week just as it was getting dark —which is about 3:30pm— and stood for a while in the cool winter air, mesmerised by the shifting colours and sounds... It's a stunning sculpture. I was in a bit of a hurry so I'm planning a return visit to really sit down and soak it all in, and hopefully take some more photos.
I'll freely admit that I don't really get into most modern art but I did enjoy this piece, partly because it's such a hypnotic show it's hard not to be drawn in (literally) and walk in and around the poles.
Volume is sponsored by the Playstation 3, so I'm not sure if it'll be touring anywhere after its stay at the V&A in London, but if it does tour anywhere near you it's worth checking out.
Continue reading "Bright Lights"
Posted on Friday, January 5, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | 2 Comments
Courage
I've yet to actually catch one of the classic London taxis, but that doesn't stop me taking photos of them.
Today's odd London moment involved buying a drink to go with a pub lunch:
"I'll have a pint of Courage please."
Sort of London pub meets Scarecrow from Wizard of Oz.
Posted on Thursday, January 4, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | No Comments Yet
Number 57
The weather's pretty consistently grey here in London: despite the brief occasional moments of brilliantly crisp blue sky, most of the short daylight hours are clouded over.
Walking through the streets of London on these bleak days I do miss the random splashes of colour that appeared all through Europe, particularly Scandinavia (though this photo is from Bruges, Belgium). Vibrant doors, happy windows, garish walls: it all combines to bring life to these long dark winters.
I'm told the Danish combat the cold, dark winters with what's called hygge (which is as unpronounceable as it is untranslatable). But I'll report more on that once I've actually visited the country.
Posted on Wednesday, January 3, 2007 | Europe 2006-2007 | No Comments Yet
My Year in Cities - 2006
I've never bothered with that list-the-places-I've-been web meme in the past, mostly because each year's list would consist solely of Perth (which, as the place I live, hardly counts) and Melbourne. It hardly seems worth reporting a list containing only one item (and does one item even maketh a list?).
As it happens, last year's list is slightly more impressive. I think it's best illustrated by a chart.
Continue reading "My Year in Cities - 2006"
Posted on Tuesday, January 2, 2007 | Life | 3 Comments
The Usual Resolve
Here's to another new year — hope your New Year's Eve was as loud/quiet as hoped. We ended up seeing just the very top of the London fireworks over the top of a building between the river and where we ended up, stuck in a mass of people. But it was still a mass of people in London so we were happy.
I've skipped the New Year resolutions this year, but that said I'm going to try and post more photos, more often. Not sure I'll make it to a photo a day but I'll try my best.
To help me along, I've added a pretty little calendar on the monthly archive pages, so it's painfully obvious when I've gotten distracted and haven't posted for a while... check out June or December last year then compare it to holiday-induced posting drought that was November (and nothing at all in October).
So then, 2007. More photos, more posts... Well, for a little while at least.
Posted on Monday, January 1, 2007 | Life | 1 Comments