« July 2007 | Main | September 2007 »
On Tuesday Louise, Laura her housemate and I went to see the Andy Goldsworhy exhibition.
I have loved his work for quite a while. He works with nature and many of his works are outdoors. He works with natural things, stone, wood, leaves, snow, even cow dung and blood.
Here's a quick look at some of the photos I took.
Large log enclosed in a wall and an outclosure.
Red sandstone arches and yellow sandstone domes.
Long wavy line created from cow dung.
Back from Spain, I needed to take Louise back to Huddersfield. We arrived back here at lunchtime, thank you Jason for picking us up at the airport, reorganised the packing and then set off to Huddersfield. We got there at about 7.30pm. Ed came round to look at the holiday photos and we finally went to bed.
On Tuesday morning, I looked out of the window and saw this ......
My garden in Huddersfield.
Grass 2 foot high, borders, well, you couldn't really see them and everything growing vigorously. I decided I had an hour to spare before going to the Yorkshire Sculpture Park. So I got out the old, trusty Flymo and set to. It was hard work and I was a bit scared I would burn the Flymo motor out, but finally, after help from Louise, about an hour after we got back from the Sculpture Park, it was returned to order.
Garden, much tidier.
Asher
Asher is Ed's dog. She came to stay with us at the weekend, the same time as Ed did. She is very beautiful and quite funny.
She went paddling at Plessey Woods and decided to just lie down in the water.
After this she did even sillier things.
Thank you for coming to visit, Ed. It was very cool to see you. :-)
Taken on Thursday as I continued the garden-fest.
As Andy has commented, his mum is staying with us for a few days. As he was busy trying to finish off his current project before we go on holiday, Audrey, Andy's mum, and I went out for the day.
We started out at Heighley Gate Garden Centre near Morpeth, well worth a visit if you are in the area. We had coffee and bought plants which Audrey is hoping to take back on the train and then had lunch in the café there. The weather was mixed, but the sun managed to shine on us when we were outdoors.
Our next port of call was Herterton House just outside Cambo. It's a private garden created over the past 30 years by a dedicated couple. We got the details from a Northumberland and Borders garden book designed by Tim Sokell. It was delightful and once again the weather held while we looked around. It is a mixture of informal flowers and well laid out more formal parts, but we both really enjoyed the visit.
On our way to Herterton House we called in for a comfort break at the Kitchen Garden. It turned out to have a very posh cafe called the Comfort Food Company.
We enjoyed a cup of tea and scone and a walk round their kitchen garden, which was anything but. It did have vegetables, but lots of flowers too in a peaceful walled garden. This is beginning to sound like a badly written tour guide for Northumberland gardens, so I think I'll shut up now.
The Kitchen Garden garden
Small things in the Kitchen Garden
Our last stop was at the Coffee, Cake and Kink Café.
I had arranged a meeting, at Andy's behest, with one Lord 'Paul' Birch in order to complete a business transaction. At his suggestion, we joined him for coffee and cake, but definitely not any kinks at the above watering place. The coffee and cakes were excellent .... and free, thanks to the generosity of Paul and we spent a pleasant hour or so chatting about London and its markets, The Arts, Dali, and Paul's various interests.
When we first arrived, Paul was nowhere to be seen. An assistant approached us enquiring if this was our first visit. Ali and I did have slight misgivings about what initiation procedures might be obligatory. However we needn't have worried, the only requirement was to go and choose a cake and drink. Shortly afterwards, Paul appeared from downstairs and invited us to join him in the more comfortable surroundings to be found there. After negotiating an interesting spiral staircase, we found ourselves in an atmospherically lit room with sofas placed around small tables. Our table number, engagingly displayed on a feathered wand, waited on the table flanked by red candles. Paul named the above photo of it "Unfinished Phrase".
We were surrounded by .... erm ..... interesting art work, the most intriguing being a collection of hand-made glass dildos. There were other things on display which I was far too naive to know the use of. I'm sure Paul would have only too willingly enlightened me, but I'm not sure I really wanted to know. I'm just an ordinary girl.
Dildo collection
Still, rather an interesting end to the day and, with the business satisfactorily completed, a useful one too.
So Paul, with thanks for the coffee and cakes and the introduction to a different side of life ....
here you are!
I spent a pleasing couple of days in London visiting my friend Ali. We had a quiet day on Wednesday, I was recovering from a migraine and Ali was newly returned from Spain.
The next day we ventured forth into the city. We were very focussed. I had a small amount of light shopping to do which consisted of a lightening visit to BHS in Oxford Street. Ali wanted to find a particular shop in Covent Garden and we both wanted to visit the Tate Modern art gallery. The last part of our trip entailed meeting a client of Andy's for a coffee at 5pm. There's nothing like a time to focus the mind and organise activity.
We managed all our goals other than finding the special shop which seemed to wish to hide. However, it was a lovely day, a good day to see London at her best, adorned with sunshine. St Paul's looked magnificent against the bright sky, but we resisted the urge to go in and look at its glories. After a brisk walk across the Millennium Bridge, we arrived at the Tate Modern.
We spent the most time there at the current Salvador Dali exhibition. I knew a little about him and had seen pictures of his more famous works. I hadn't realised the huge importance of film to him and also that his screen icons were nearly all humorists. His work, both for screen, paintings and sculpture are an indescribable mix of surrealism, sexual torment, humour, brilliance and plain weirdness.
My favourite bits included a film called L'age d'or totally surreal containing scenes both grotesque and utterly funny, Monti Python came to mind, a film created by Dali and Walt Disney - influence of Fantasia? - and a collection of photos of Dali's moustache taken at an interview with Philippe Halsman.
Dali's moustache
From thence it was a quick, fruitful trip to Oxford Street, then Covent Garden, then to a very special cafe in Endell Street.
So, here I am at Stansted Airport in the quietest airport lounge ever. Like I am the only person in it other than the Cafe Alba emplyees. Thank you Cafe Alba for the free use of your wireless internet. I flew in from Newcastle arriving at 11am-ish, followed by a four and a half hours' wait until my friend Ali arrives from Italy. Then we will drive to her house where I will spend an enjoyable few days.
At the moment I'm feeling pretty ropey as I'm struggling to contain a migraine and not quite succeeding. I thought I was getting the better of it, but this post has had to be interrupted while I rushed off to the loo to perform acts better left private, suffice to say my stomach is now really very empty!
Sadly, I think the first thing I will be doing when I arrive at Ali's is going to bed. I'll be fine tomorrow. Anyway, just 2 hours to go now.
I loved the holiday on Tiree. There are so many memories that I will treasure, not least is the making of new friends. We spent quite some time with Sue and Colin Woodcock of Blue Beyond fame. While Andy mended Colin's computer I was privileged to spend time chatting with Sue and watching her work producing her textile pictures. She used to be a Nursery teacher and so we found we had quite a lot in common. I admire her move to a more creative lifestyle. I'm still enjoying teaching, but maybe one day .......
Blue Sea by Sue Woodcock
The beaches and sea are beautiful. The sand is white and fine, made of ground up shells. The sea is extremely clear and a startling turquoise colour, ranging from deep to light as the sea becomes shallower over the sand. I went paddling a few times, but next time we go to Tiree I intend to spend more time on the seashore.
One day I went walking at the west end of the island. As I wandered towards the shore, a kind man told me there was a very interesting Broch. I had no idea what one of those was, but I went to look for it anyway. It turned out to be a 2,000 year old temporary shelter, circular in shape with very thick walls.
The Broch doorway
We stayed in a guest house called Glebe House run by a lovely couple called Ian and Eileen Tainsh. I have rarely been so comfortable or well fed. They're thinking of retiring and have bought a cottage on another part of the island. Attached to the cottage is an old forge complete with the original tools. Andy and I popped out there one afternoon. It was fascinating, like the blacksmith's version of the Marie Celeste.
The forge building complete with decorative wheel barrow.
Some of the blacksmith's tools abandoned ... no-one knows why.
I met some interesting animals too. The hens, sheep and cows that just wandered freely along the very narrow roads, the many wild birds and, my favourite, Ian and Eileen's cat. As I bent down to stroke it, it leapt onto my shoulders and stayed there purring away happily. It reminded me of another cat I had years ago who did the same thing. Most of the animals were fairly unfazed by the few humans disturbing their lives. I liked this cow. The other thing I found wonderful was the proliferation of wild flowers. I have never seen as many, and so many varieties together. There are hardly any trees, but that lack is covered by the flowers.
For such a small island there is plenty to see and do. We hardly scratched the surface and are very much looking forward to a return visit next year. One place we drove through briefly was Hynish, where there are buildings dating back to the mid 19th Century which housed the workers building Skerryvore lighthouse. we will go back and visit there I think.
A panorama of Hynish
Recent Comments