Darker is the Memory

Particularly taken with these photographs of Raquel Zimmermann by photographer Mario Sorrenti. Even though Naples is the backdrop, I am reminded of the ghostly and mysterious corridors of Palermo in Sicily - the catacombs, the forgotten palazzos, the tragic religious icons and rooms full of nameless deceased...

 Vogue Japan via here

Through the Looking Glass (IX)

The ninth in the Through the Looking Glass series of photographs.

An exhibition at Villa Foscari La Malcontenta by Zaha Hadid Architects and Patrik Schumacher to celebrate the 500th anniversary of architect Andrea Palladio's birth.

From here...

Concealed

A fantastically seamless, invisible cabinet solution by the brilliant architect Peter Pennoyer. Inspired by the intricate details of French Boiserie, this particular diningroom feature boasts giant panelled pockets constructed around the windows. These open up to reveal an abundance of storage...

Image from Veranda (April 2011)

Noblesse Oblige (Ditte Isager)

I grew up surrounded by horses. They are still front and center in my family's life. Sometimes I think that my parents' stallion 'Jet Master' usurps my position as chief offspring and attention-seeker. My mother named me Philippa. It means 'Lover of Horses'. Say no more. The following photographs by Danish Photographer Ditte Isager do justice to all things equestrian...

From bridles to bridges... here are some photographs of the floating city, also by Ditte Isager for Departures Magazine...

All images from Ditte Isager's website

Street Cred

I almost trip over my double-take every time I see one of Gaia's mammoth-scale works on the decaying walls of abandoned structures throughout the blighted parts of Baltimore. 

My first encounter with a Gaia was in the form of an anguished bear. Miraculously it appeared on a crumbling door in an alley around the corner from our house. I was instantly smitten. 

Ironically, it's only when the harsh elements ensure the decomposition of a Gaia, that a new one appears — but never in the same place twice. Take last Sunday, when we stumbled upon the compelling gaze of his latest creation (see below). 

I am still plotting how I could possibly remove the boards from the bricks, and erect them in my home... look at those hands!

In a recent article in Urbanite, Gaia was quoted as saying, "Baltimore's been a fantastic canvas, which is sad because ultimately my work wouldn't exist if there wasn't any neglected space. What that neglected space allows for is a certain freedom and grassroots, democratic, public space. The artist has full agency, and there aren't any boundaries or obstacles for an artist to produce work besides the law of posting on property."

Keep your eyes peeled. This is a transient genre. When it's gone, it's gone...

Couldn't resist using both lenses

See more of the genius here

Through the Looking Glass (VIII)

The eighth in the Through the Looking Glass series of photographs.

In the Louvre

Via here

Curvatura

Curvatura... Italian for "how soon can I move in?"

 No details on these images, but all via here

Jean Shrimpton (Part II)

Shrimpton was prolific as a model, which made my task of editing the images all the more difficult. I could not resist another posting. These images say so much about her milieu. Incidentally, Karen Gillian (of Doctor Who fame) is to play Shrimpton in a BBC drama about the infamous love affair with photographer, David Bailey in the 1960's....

All images via here

Jean Shrimpton

Penzance, or 'Holy Headland' in the Cornish language, is where my husband, 13-month old daughter and I once spent a special night in a Georgian Gothic hotel with views across to St. Michael's Mount. Dating back 400 years, the distinctive sky-blue Abbey Hotel is chock-full of antiques, books and gilt mirrors - rather like staying in a grand and slightly eccentric English home. The owner just happens to be... Jean Shrimpton.

The Shrimp, as she was known (a nickname which she loathed), was said to have represented the 'coltish, gamine look of the Youthquake Movement in sixties swinging London'. That retroussé nose, doe eyes, aristocratically arched eyebrows and naturally pouting mouth defined the look of the day.

Shrimpton still owns the hotel and has done so since 1979. It is a wonderful place to stay, and naturally I was desperate for a glimpse of that elusive face. No luck that time, but these images are penetrative enough to suffice, for now...

Photographer: David Bailey 1963

Thanks to here for an extraordinary bank of images...