Serpentine Pavilion, by Frank Gehry

Serpentine Pavilion, by Frank Gehry, originally uploaded by peripathetic.

Serpentine Pavilion, by Frank Gehry

Serpentine Pavilion, by Frank Gehry, originally uploaded by peripathetic.

Serpentine Pavilion, by Frank Gehry

Serpentine Pavilion, by Frank Gehry, originally uploaded by peripathetic.

Serpentine Pavilion, by Frank Gehry

Serpentine Pavilion, by Frank Gehry, originally uploaded by peripathetic.

Wandered over to see this last night, before the Prom at the Albert Hall. You have the sense while outside it that it is solid and weighty and strong, a real edifice - and when inside, that you are in a very light, open space rather than a building. Like being under a pergola in a garden.

Stilettoes

Stilettoes, originally uploaded by peripathetic.

I don't actually care about shoes, or female ankles. Or male ones, for that matter. This is just here because I like it.

Olympics photo blog

Here is a blog documenting the complete run of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing from one pro photographer's perspective - it has the photos which of course provide the instant wow factor, but also has the photography background which provides the geekery factor also. Enjoy.

On the shelves

On the shelves, originally uploaded by peripathetic.

In lieu of a proper Friday night post, because I am feeling tired and would rather like to chill, take a look at one of my many bookshelves instead. Nosey. Truffle-hunt. Enjoy.

Sunday afternoon

Sunday afternoon, originally uploaded by peripathetic.

Taken in the back garden, earlier.

Why cameras were invented

Come on In, originally uploaded by Lisa McKinnon.

Yes, I know that I have never been to Japan. But perhaps one day.

The rule of thirds

The rule of thirds, originally uploaded by peripathetic.

Taken with a brand-new Canon EOS 450D. It's a sharp learning curve!

Light graffiti

IMG_8720, originally uploaded by illum.

An amazing set of photos. Again, sorry, but that is all for tonight...

Voyeurism central

One of the abandoned mansions of Mike Tyson. That is all.

Money Talks - sorry, *talks*?!

Money Talks, originally uploaded by chinese_fashion.

I suppose this all depends on how snooty / particular / loving you are about your coffee. But it isn’t just about coffee, so please do read on.

So, a guy walks into a coffeeshop in Arlington. Over the water in the United States. The coffeeshop is apparently locally renowned for being Very Serious About Coffee. Just my kind of place, really, and everything that Starbuck’s isn’t. He wanders up to the bar, and orders a triple espresso. Poured over ice.

(Here, I have to explain that pouring espresso over ice destroys the crema, that brown greamy goo that sits on the surface. Inside the brown creamy goo are many, many, many of the flavour and smell elements of your little shot of caffeinated delight. Sorry.)

The barista apologises. Explains that it’s against their store policy to ice espresso. The guy fumes, and orders a triple espresso and a cup of ice separately. Pours one over the other. Gets warned that it will lead to a less-than-enjoyable drink. Becomes insulting. Isn’t thrown out, has another drink made for him (as he says, perfectly delicious) a bit later.

Then, he leaves a tip of one dollar with “FUCK YOU AND YOUR PRECIOUS COFFEE POLICY” scrawled on it.

Many interesting questions rear their heads here. One: who’s in the right? Unanswerable. Two: who’s in the wrong? Slightly more clear — the guy, for that insult. Third: does his dollar give him the right to demand anything from a coffeeshop that advises its customers that it doesn’t serve just anything?

I think it says a lot about the wider differences between the work ethic in his country and my country. Here, receiving a paycheck does not mean that you must put up with any shit thrown your way. Indeed, you may highlight important points about your products and policies to customers using your store, or tell off your boss (and, indeed, your customers) for saying something rude to you.

In the States, I get the impression, when you cash your paycheck you sign a lot of your rights away in a very real sense, and your customers (who, I might add, are also employees themselves and should remember their own workaday miseries when about to open their mouths to others) are practically to be treated as if they are on the same level as god. No space for human interplay in a 10-hour workday. No space for you. Or me. Just the wallet and the product.

I won’t harp on the injustices here, or on my distant admiration for the barista and coffeeshop concerned. I will just say this again, though: in their unashamed dedication to an excellent cup of coffee, they appear to be everything that Starbuck’s isn’t.

(Also, lookee here!)

Update: the coffeeshop owner has commented (in a, well... very fiery manner!) on the issue here.

15,000

Geometry, originally uploaded by Denise V&A Web Team.

Well, here’s a thing. A great big thing, made of lots of little ones. 15,000 little Swarovski crystals (black), to be exact. And the work is by Zaha Hadid, who has featured on peripathetic before — as if we matter beside her wider fame!

I don’t have many thoughts on it right now because it was only yesterday that I first came across a photo! But I’m going to do my best to stand underneath it and feel exhilarated, vaguely scared, and frustrated with my camera, when I’m next in London.

Speaking of London, another exciting thing is happening — yes, happening, at Hyde Park. Be sure you don’t miss it — we certainly won’t. We might even refresh ourselves with some coffee on the train on the way home.

Sexual surrogacy. I know: it’s rather jarring after the last thing, but very compelling all the same. Also compelling, a human mirror — a real, live human mirror on a train. People get puzzled and amused, gradually realising this is some glorious mass practical joke.

Not for the squeamish: death of a pig. From a live pig to bacon and pork belly. Videos included. Don’t say I didn’t warn you! But this is where your bacon comes from.

The other day in work, I wasn’t working. Instead I was perusing the work of Ansel Adams, having heard all about him (very famous photographer who had his heyday back in the early 30s and 40s and really made people realise that photography could be art) but hadn’t seen much of his work. And the links at the bottom of the article are really worth exploring. But then, surfing around, I forget where exactly, I came across a page full of old photos of New York City. Marvellous stuff, with which I will leave you. But hopefully not for quite so long, this time.

Rather worrying for when I next visit....

82-8000 VC-25 c/s AIR FORCE 1

82-8000 VC-25 c/s AIR FORCE 1, originally uploaded by Canon John's 40D.

Approaching Belfast for touchdown, earlier this week.

Prayer 24/7

Prayer 24/7, originally uploaded by bartmaguire.

A nice summer day in Belfast. Complete with relaxing prayer. All the time.

Heat in Belfast? No!

Victoria Square, Belfast, originally uploaded by dukeyandelmo.

It was hot last Saturday. That's true. But I didn't realise it was so hot that the dome at Victoria Square was closed for a time as temperatures hit 30 degrees.

I wandered through, briefly, for the first time, with my friend John and thought, hmm, it's nice. But not that nice. For a start, those wooden platforms could have been made with a single curving sweep of wood, not angular panels. And the surrounding architecture could have been a bit more cohesive.

But at least we have one place in Belfast that's truly hot. That's a first.

Well, I guess it's still May

Two posts in the same month! That is something, at least.

I was looking at this page of amazing designs by Luigi Colani. The kind of page which makes you want to blog it, too. And then thought, shit, my blog has been untouched for too long. Apologies — I transferred jobs and things have been... different lately!

Full service should resume soon. Or what passes for full service here these days.

Vintage wartime newspaper goodness

Allies move down road to Rome: Germans in full retreat, originally uploaded by peripathetic.

A family friend was clearing out a drawer and found that her mother (deceased when very old a few years ago) had stored a roll of chamois leather away. It was wrapped in some newspaper — this one.

There are many more pages, and closeups, to look at if you click the photo and then the photostream. There are advertisements for Guinness and Lux Toilet Soap. There are wonderful examples of typeface design and typesetting. There are all the telltale signs of old newspapers — a rubber-stamped masthead logo here, a rubber-stamped news item there, no colour, a hell of a lot more news, and some superb writing.

The date of the paper is October 17, 1943, a time when the Allies were moving up Italy as the Nazis, having rescued the deposed Mussolini, had taken temporary control and then been forced to retreat. There is a driven, enthusiastic tone to the main reporting, and this comes from the now abandoned style whereby fact and open speculation are frankly mixed into a single news story. It also, of course, comes from the need for propaganda.