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Showing posts from November, 2017

How does it feel to survive Execution?

Well John Half-Hanged Smith survived in 1705  to be revived and pardoned. This is link includes his memoire of what it was like to be hanged. http://www.executedtoday.com/2008/12/24/1705-john-half-hanged-smith-half-hanged/

The Swinging Sixties. 'You want to get a f***ing joint, they're coming out of your earholes. You want a cup of tea, you've got no f***ing chance!' Cecil Beaton on the set of Performance

  Performance was largely filmed in Powis Square, near Portobello Road in Notting Hill.   Some good quotes come from it but my favourits is by Cecil Beaton, fed up on the set of the film,  said  'You want to get a fucking joint, they're coming out of your earholes. You want a cup of tea, you've got no fucking chance!'  This is an interesting post about Powis Square and Performance.   http://www.nickelinthemachine.com/2009/01/donald-cammells-performance-at-powis-square/
This gives images of some of London's leading post-modern buildings - by no means comprehensive but a few of the most notable. Click here for link

Main Wheel Decider for Narrative Environments Lecture

This was a test for the device I used to run my Practice Lecture at Central St Martin#'s M.A. for Narrative Environments Course.  In the event I had more options. It would be good if you could click through to a picture or a web site. Otherwise an easy to use tool. Click to make your own at Wheel Decide

The Canals in Autumn

Smells of Autumn on the Canal

Story Shapes in Museum displays

This is a short video by Tim Gardom of an idea I first came across in Saying it Differently A handbook for museums refreshing their display Alison Grey, Tim Gardom and Catherine Booth The video is here:  https://vimeo.com/243303263 The handbook is here https://www.swfed.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Saying-It-Differently.pdf

Charles Roach Smith

Interesting article on the pioneer archaeologist. 19th Century and worked in London. http://intarch.ac.uk/journal/issue45/6/5.html

All Saints Road,Portobello Rd and its history

Everything you want to know about the formation of Girl Band All Saints. http://www.allsaintsroad.co.uk/our-history/

The True Facts about the Christine Keeler Chair

It wasn't an Arne Jacobson Chair it was a knock-off copy possibly by Heals. And the V&A have it and the famous photo. Read all about it here. http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/c/christine-keeler-photograph-a-modern-icon/

Bloomberg, Walbrook - a review

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 My review on facebook. I walked around the new Bloomberg Building yesterday. I have contradictory thoughts. But what is clear is what an impact it has. Its huge, its restrained, elegant, perhaps timeless and brings out its neighbours. It places you face to face with great architecture by Wren, Koolhaas, Stirling, Lutyens, Dance and so on. It reinstates part of Watling Street. it creates a sense of space. So it many ways it is a magnificent achievement. And by far the best Foster building in the City for a very long time. But and there are a few buts for me.  The public space it creates is not great. Yes, it does give it a sense of space around the building but there is no great new public square. just quite nice small spaces. The building lets down Cannon Street. The facade along Cannon Street could have helped make Cannon Street into a better retail street but it is given over to a services entry which is surely very wrong for Cannon Street. But mostly, it
 This is an excerpt of an interview with me about the canal at Kings Cross. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/activity:6336844589701431296/?midToken=AQGvXGqxQZn2UA&trk=eml-email_mentions_individual_single_01-hero-11-check_update_cta&trkEmail=eml-email_mentions_individual_single_01-hero-11-check_update_cta-null-mj5ag%7Eja286l4w%7Esv-null-neptune%2Ffeed%2Eupdate&lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Aemail_email_mentions_individual_single_01%3BYezvU9FyTgSmbtXVvWNJjw%3D%3D

Evidence of world's earliest winemaking uncovered by archaeologists | Science | The Guardian

This is quite interesting because Georgie has always claimed to be the original wine producing area. Evidence of world's earliest winemaking uncovered by archaeologists | Science | The Guardian

Viennese Modernism 2018 - Be ahead of your time

Interesting web site which is, I assume, advertising Vienna. Short videos on Klimt and Schiele. Viennese Modernism 2018 - Be ahead of your time

The Making of the London Mithraeum

A billion pound building by Norman Foster has allowed the rebuilding of the Mithraeum.  It is the 3rd one.  The first was built in the 3rd Century in the Roman Period, the second one in 1954, and that one was then moved back to its original place. So how much is it an original? The Making of the London Mithraeum - YouTube here is a second film a bit longer