between a shout and a whisper
walking east london greenway – ‘twixt plaistow and stratford
one of the great pleasures of living in london is walking.the city is criss-crossed with urban pathways through the remnants of an earlier industrial age, through inner-city decline, through pre-railway and motor vehicle waterways.
with the increased popularity of cycling, bith mechanical and electrically assisted, the casual pedestrian…
is po-mo now retro?
recently visited charles jencks’ residence; the cosmic house, a somewhat imposing property in what used to be my old neighbourhood; holland park, notting hill. it’s open to the public, although visiting parties are limited in number. there’s much postmodernism in evidence here, with its attendant historicism (neoclassical, ancient egyptian, gothic and medieval refererences)…
is po-mo now retro?
a visit to charles jencks’ the cosmic house, a somewhat striking property in what used to be my old neighbourhood; holland park, notting hill. it’s open to the public, although visiting parties are limited in number. there’s much postmodernism in evidence here, with its attendant historicism (neoclassical, ancient egyptian, gothic and medieval refererences) but most striking…
and now, it all seems a distant blur
mayfair; one of the poshest boroughs in london. it was here that former chairman of the conservative party and alleged novelist, the serially mendacious jeffrey archer, was accused of soliciting in shepherd market. mayfair is a bit like that. ‘all fur coat and no knickers ‘ as they say up north. a mecca for money to burn consumerism, and a cover for all kinds…
naoshima | yes, again
when i first visited naoshima in a mild january in 2003, although you would immediately recognise the house benesse resort / cum hotel / cum art gallery, that would be pretty much all there would be to see. what is now the park resort didn’t exist, and was occupied by a pau (or yurt) glamping site. the museum’s main collection, although it hasn’t grown hugely in the…
the phoenix hall of byōdō-in
byōdō-in is a temple situated in uji-shi a city found between the two historical capitals of japan; nara and kyoto. the most prominent feature of the temple is the central hall or pavilion, which through exquisite landscape design is seen to be perched on top of a small island in the centre of a small lake or pond. it therefore presents itself as floating, detached…
arashiyama + kodai-ji
http://kenedwards.org.uk/image/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/bamboozled.mov
these images are from visits to kodai-ji, a temple of the rinzai school of zen buddhism located in the west of kyoto. and arashiyama in the northeast of kyoto.
kodai-ji was founded by ねねさん (nene san) the wife of the daimyo, 豊臣秀吉 (toyotomi hideyoshi), renowned for its exquisite garden and bamboo groves,…
yufuin | kengo kuma’s comico art museum and residential annex
situated in oita, japan, yufuin has traditionally attracted visitors by its location at the foot of yufu dake (mt. yufu or yufu peak) in a landscape wrought by seismic activity, farming and onsen traditional japanese hot spring bathing lodges and hostels. more recently, it has become known as a destination for contemprorary art lovers…
10 views of fujisan (with apologies to hokusai)
10 views of fujisan (with apologies to hokusai)
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tokyo tower
tokyo tower is a conundrum of beauty and ugliness, a paradoxical structure that has fascinated architects, urbanists, and photographers since it appeared on the tokyo skyline in 1958. its dominant presence in the cityscape is a testament to design and the allure of modernity.
this dominant tower, with its arachnidian lines and skyscraping spire, embodies the ideology of progress and…
paris | en hiver
NB: this is a temporary text generated by AI
paris holds significant interest in the realm of intellectual and cultural movement, having served as a prominent residence for renowned existentialist writers simone de beauvoir and jean-paul sartre. the duo were avid flâneurs, traversing the streets and cafes, intently observing and commenting on their surrounding environment. their…
walking with sigmund and anna
this started as an idea for a small entry combining photographs i took in soprabolzano last year; the small town on a plateau overlooking the city of bolzano in the italian tyrol with some from the freud museum, london. i took a christmas walk in the dolomites on the ‘freud promenade’ near soprabolzano which is a relatively short hike through woodland, with views of…
néon de montparnasse
early autumn visit to paris. two weeks after covid jab number 4, and one week after ‘flu jab. the day after my arrival in paris in my small hotel room near odéon i develop a full-on cold. not nearly as bad as ‘flu or, G forbid, covid, but bad enough.<br />you know what the symptoms are like. an inability to concentrate or do very much that could be described as…
