The ArcelorMittal Orbit at Stratford, London is the UK’s largest sculpture and observation tower. On a cold winter’s night the warm red glow under the bright moon makes it look like a welcoming fairground ride.
Orbit and moon
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Tag Archives: london
V&A: Islamic Middle East
The Victoria and Albert Museum in London has some really interesting exhibits, showcasing pieces from all around the world. One of the collections I always stop to admire when I visit is the Islamic Middle East which consists of some really beautiful pieces from as far back as the 7th century.
Some of my favourite and I think most impressive pieces on show are the Ardabil carpet which is one of the largest and finest in existence made in 1540, the second largest Qu’ran in the world from the 14th century and the pretty turquoise coloured tiles from 1358. I love the use of detailed geometric patterns and writings to embellish everyday objects that were placed in homes and places of worship.
My photos don’t do justice to how intricate and colourful some of these artifacts are but if you’re ever in London I would definitely recommend a visit.
Giant fingers
On my last visit through Trafalger Square in London I came across this curious sculpture. It automatically made me think of Michealangelo’s famous painting Creation of Adam but there was no information about who or what these fingers were meant to represent. I have since looked it up and discovered that this is a piece by Jose Rivelino, a Mexican artist and is meant to represent equality between people. I really like the idea and I think this is an interesting and thought provoking piece of work. What do you think?
Italian gardens in London
Wondering around Hyde park earlier this year I came across the Italian Gardens. The Gardens have embellished statues, urns and large water fountains, all which create a really nice relaxing space.
The main water fountain leading to the top of the Serpentine lake was a combination of a group of boys holding a huge platter with a woman on either side holding an urn, all pouring water into the lake.
On the far side of the garden is a chapel with really pretty flowers planted on either side in neat geometric rows.
I thought the gardens were laid out nicely and kept in really good condition. I found them to be a calming space with the sound of rushing water from the fountains drowning out some of the background noise and pretty flowers soothing to the eyes. I’ll definitely look to visiting it again at some point.
Gift horse
Currently the fourth plinth in Trafalger Square is occupied by a skeletal figure of a gift horse with a ribbon around it’s leg displaying the London Stock Market. It replaces the giant blue chicken that was there previously. As artistic as the horse looks I think I miss the chicken. What do you think?
Capturing artwork
I recently went to the National Gallery in London and since my last visit you are now allowed to take photographs. I would normally never take photographs of paintings as I always would want to visit and appreciate the work in person, but on this occasion I decided to take a few snaps as a nice reminder. The photos I took were of some of my favourite paintings by great artists that I’m lucky to have on my doorstep in London, namely The Waterlily Pond by Monet and Sunflowers by Van Gogh.
I always like to take a moment and think about how long it must have taken to create such a painting and what kind of person the artist must have been to paint in this way during their life, artworks that really stand the test of time. I love being able to see the textures of the layered paint and the colours, which close up looks quite messy but stand back and you see how great it all comes together and looks quite beautiful.
I hope to visit again at some point and enjoy all the great paintings that are luckily so easy for me to access.
Hyde Park
I’ve had some free time since having left my job and being determined to make the most of it and the nice weather I decided to go to Hyde Park which I have passed by on many occasions but have never really explored.
Hyde Park is a Royal Gardens and is based in Central London. There are so many parts to it that I wasn’t able to visit everything but I did see lots of lovely things.
I decided to walk down to and along the huge lake called The Serpentine and follow the edge across the park. As its summer there were lots of deckchairs, geese and beautiful flowers to enjoy along the way.
What I liked was there were lots of smaller paths away from the main walkways in case you fancied a varied and perhaps quieter walk. There were also lots of statues to admire, each one quite different to the last. The most famous is the Princess Diana fountain which is a huge circular waterway. Each section is different, some with steps, or curves or even water shooting upwards. The kids really seemed to be enjoying the cool water.
Something that I unexpectedly came across really made my day, Ring-necked Parakeets! They were camouflaged in the trees and I almost missed them but I luckily joined a few people in watching them. The parakeets seemed completely at ease with people and even flew down to get food from out stretched hands. There were also pretty magpies, squirrels and pigeons that were enjoying the attention and food too.
I really enjoyed my walk around Hyde park, and I really appreciate all the hard work that it’s taken to make it look beautiful. The park is huge and there’s lots more to see, so I hope to visit it again at some point. I know how lucky I am to live in such an amazing city with so much culture, art and history and I plan to keep making the most of it. I’ll keep you posted on what else I explore and enjoy.
Strange sculptures
I was playing tourist recently in London (of which I will post more about soon) and on my wonderings I came across these interesting sculptures. The horse’s head is called Still Water and looks quite calming. The black beast-looking thing across, I have to admit gave me the creeps so I didn’t take any closer photos of it but it’s called She Guardian and I’m sure will also be scaring others. There was also a temporary summer observation wheel which gives you a view of the local area including Hyde Park, which seemed nice.
Turkish cannon
This old Turkish cannon can be found at the Household Cavalry museum in London. I like the how decorative the wheels and base are, and seem to fit into Middle Eastern stye embellishment.
Take a load off
Alas, London is at a halt again due to the Underground tube strikes. On the plus side, on my long walk to the office I did come across this pretty bench which looks so inviting; shame I couldn’t make use of it though. I hope all those affected got to work ok and aren’t too tired from the journey in.
everyphototunity 