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A Flamingo in one of the salty pools of Floreana
Flamingo
The American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) is a large species of flamingo closely related to the Greater Flamingo and Chilean Flamingo. It has also been known as the Caribbean Flamingo, but the species' presence in the Galápagos makes that name problematic. The American Flamingo breeds in the Galápagos Islands, coastal Colombia and Venezuela and nearby islands, the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, and in the northern Caribbean in the Bahamas, Hispaniola, Cuba and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Most sightings in southern Florida are usually considered to be escapees, although at least one bird banded as a chick in the Yucatán Peninsula has been sighted in Everglades National Park, and others may be genuine wanderers from Cuba. Its preferred habitats are similar to that of its relatives: saline lagoons, mudflats, and shallow brackish coastal or inland lakes. Like all flamingos, it lays a single chalky white egg on a mud mound, between May and August; incubation until hatching takes from 28 to 32 days; both parents brood the young for a period of up to 6 years when they reach sexual maturity. Their life expectancy of 40 years is one of the longest in birds. The American Flamingo is 120–140 cm (47–55 in) in length; males weigh 2.8 kg (6.2 lb) and females 2.2 kg (4.9 lb) kg. Most of its plumage is pink, giving rise to its earlier name of Rosy Flamingo and differentiating adults from the much paler Greater Flamingo. The wing coverts are red, and the primary and secondary flight feathers are black. It is the only flamingo which naturally inhabits North America. The bill is pink and white with a restricted black tip, and the legs are entirely pink. The call is a goose-like honking.
Floreana (Cormorant Point)
Located approximately 4 to 5 hours west of Española and equal distance south of Santa Cruz, this island has long been a favorite site of visitors including pirates, whalers and early settlers. One of the oldest islands Floreana illustrates the aging process of a volcanic island. Unlike the younger western islands, Floreana's volcano has been long extinct and is in the advanced stages of erosion. The erosion process gave the island the nutrients and soils need to sustain plant life. The combination of this rich soil and a good water supply have given the highlands of Floreana a diversified landscaping of native and introduced flora. Floreana is best known for its colorful history of buccaneers, whalers, convicts, and colonists. In 1793 British whalers established the Post Office Barrel to send letters to and from England. This tradition has continued over the years, and even today visitors may drop off and pick up letters, without stamps, to be carried to far destinations. Punta Cormorant offers two highly contrasting beaches. The landing beach is of volcanic origin and is composed of olivine crystals, giving it a greenish tinge. At the end of the short trail is a carbonate beach of extremely fine white sand. Formed by the erosion of coral skeletons, it is a nesting site for green sea turtles. In the 1930's Floreana was the setting for intrigue and mystery. A German dentist and his mistress, a young family (the Wittmer family who still live on the island) and a self-styled baroness with three men came to settle in the island. Shortly after the baroness and her lovers arrived chaos began. The baroness and her entourage terrorized the other inhabitants while planning to build a luxury hotel. Eventually the baroness, two of her lovers and the dentist all turned up missing or dead. There has been much investigation searching for what really happened on Floreana, but there have never been any hard answers. John Treherne wrote of these people in "The Galapagos Affair". The visit to Punta Cormorant offers two contrasting beaches. Arriving on shore you will encounter a green sand beach (the green sand is caused by the olivine crystals derived silicates or magnesium and iron) from here you will follow the trail leading to a lagoon where pink flamingoes and other shore birds can be seen in the distance making their home. Looking into the mud of the lagoon there appears to be 'cracks' in the mud. These cracks are not caused from dryness but are actually the footpaths of flamingos. This is also a good spot for seeing large-billed flycatchers, small-ground finch, medium-ground finch or cactus finch. The walk continues to another beach on the other side made of fine white sand particles known as "Flour Beach". In the waters ghost crabs and rays can be seen swimming.
Galapagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands (official name: Archipiélago de Colón; other Spanish names: Islas de Colón or Islas Galápagos) are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, some 900 km west of Ecuador. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site: wildlife is its most notable feature. Because of the only very recent arrival of man the majority of the wildlife has no fear of humans and will allow visitors to walk right up them, often having to step over Iguanas or Sea Lions.The Galápagos islands and its surrounding waters are part of a province, a national park, and a biological marine reserve. The principal language on the islands is Spanish. The islands have a population of around 40,000, which is a 40-fold expansion in 50 years. The islands are geologically young and famed for their vast number of endemic species, which were studied by Charles Darwin during the voyage of the Beagle. His observations and collections contributed to the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection.
A Flamingo in one of the salty pools of Floreana
Flamingo
The American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) is a large species of flamingo closely related to the Greater Flamingo and Chilean Flamingo. It has also been known as the Caribbean Flamingo, but the species' presence in the Galápagos makes that name problematic. The American Flamingo breeds in the Galápagos Islands, coastal Colombia and Venezuela and nearby islands, the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, and in the northern Caribbean in the Bahamas, Hispaniola, Cuba and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Most sightings in southern Florida are usually considered to be escapees, although at least one bird banded as a chick in the Yucatán Peninsula has been sighted in Everglades National Park, and others may be genuine wanderers from Cuba. Its preferred habitats are similar to that of its relatives: saline lagoons, mudflats, and shallow brackish coastal or inland lakes. Like all flamingos, it lays a single chalky white egg on a mud mound, between May and August; incubation until hatching takes from 28 to 32 days; both parents brood the young for a period of up to 6 years when they reach sexual maturity. Their life expectancy of 40 years is one of the longest in birds. The American Flamingo is 120–140 cm (47–55 in) in length; males weigh 2.8 kg (6.2 lb) and females 2.2 kg (4.9 lb) kg. Most of its plumage is pink, giving rise to its earlier name of Rosy Flamingo and differentiating adults from the much paler Greater Flamingo. The wing coverts are red, and the primary and secondary flight feathers are black. It is the only flamingo which naturally inhabits North America. The bill is pink and white with a restricted black tip, and the legs are entirely pink. The call is a goose-like honking.
Floreana (Cormorant Point)
Located approximately 4 to 5 hours west of Española and equal distance south of Santa Cruz, this island has long been a favorite site of visitors including pirates, whalers and early settlers. One of the oldest islands Floreana illustrates the aging process of a volcanic island. Unlike the younger western islands, Floreana's volcano has been long extinct and is in the advanced stages of erosion. The erosion process gave the island the nutrients and soils need to sustain plant life. The combination of this rich soil and a good water supply have given the highlands of Floreana a diversified landscaping of native and introduced flora. Floreana is best known for its colorful history of buccaneers, whalers, convicts, and colonists. In 1793 British whalers established the Post Office Barrel to send letters to and from England. This tradition has continued over the years, and even today visitors may drop off and pick up letters, without stamps, to be carried to far destinations. Punta Cormorant offers two highly contrasting beaches. The landing beach is of volcanic origin and is composed of olivine crystals, giving it a greenish tinge. At the end of the short trail is a carbonate beach of extremely fine white sand. Formed by the erosion of coral skeletons, it is a nesting site for green sea turtles. In the 1930's Floreana was the setting for intrigue and mystery. A German dentist and his mistress, a young family (the Wittmer family who still live on the island) and a self-styled baroness with three men came to settle in the island. Shortly after the baroness and her lovers arrived chaos began. The baroness and her entourage terrorized the other inhabitants while planning to build a luxury hotel. Eventually the baroness, two of her lovers and the dentist all turned up missing or dead. There has been much investigation searching for what really happened on Floreana, but there have never been any hard answers. John Treherne wrote of these people in "The Galapagos Affair". The visit to Punta Cormorant offers two contrasting beaches. Arriving on shore you will encounter a green sand beach (the green sand is caused by the olivine crystals derived silicates or magnesium and iron) from here you will follow the trail leading to a lagoon where pink flamingoes and other shore birds can be seen in the distance making their home. Looking into the mud of the lagoon there appears to be 'cracks' in the mud. These cracks are not caused from dryness but are actually the footpaths of flamingos. This is also a good spot for seeing large-billed flycatchers, small-ground finch, medium-ground finch or cactus finch. The walk continues to another beach on the other side made of fine white sand particles known as "Flour Beach". In the waters ghost crabs and rays can be seen swimming.
Galapagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands (official name: Archipiélago de Colón; other Spanish names: Islas de Colón or Islas Galápagos) are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, some 900 km west of Ecuador. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site: wildlife is its most notable feature. Because of the only very recent arrival of man the majority of the wildlife has no fear of humans and will allow visitors to walk right up them, often having to step over Iguanas or Sea Lions.The Galápagos islands and its surrounding waters are part of a province, a national park, and a biological marine reserve. The principal language on the islands is Spanish. The islands have a population of around 40,000, which is a 40-fold expansion in 50 years. The islands are geologically young and famed for their vast number of endemic species, which were studied by Charles Darwin during the voyage of the Beagle. His observations and collections contributed to the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection.
When I said on my uploads that getting into Tilmanstone was a bugbear, how then to describe my frustration about St Anthony, as this is a church I see each time we travel up or down the Alkham valley to Folkestone.
St Anthony sits on a bluff overlooking the village and the main road, and so seems impressively tall. But up close, one finds the tower to appear short and squat.
I had driven over from Tilmanstone, I had decided to give Eythorne a miss as I really wanted to make sure I got to Alkham and the next church on the list, Acrise, before the day faded and I would lose the chance for another year.
Parking in the village is problematic, so I leave the car opposite the village hall beside the cricket pitch, which now looks like it would be perfect for a few overs. How different from the late winter, when the Drellingore was in full flood and the pitch was under a good foot of water, and houses down the hill had water bubbling up between the plants in their gardens borders.
And looking at the Drellingore itself, reveals it to be the dried up bed it always was, with just the occasional pool of still wet mud showing where once the torrent flowed.
It is quite a steep climb back to the main road and then along to the old village pub, The Marquess of Granby, now sadly rebranded as a gastropub and called simply "The Marquess".
Up beside the pub, past a pretty row of cottages and into the churchyard. My, I was puffing well, but after stopping to take a shot of the outside of the church, I walk to the porch to find both the outer and inner doors open, and the interior glowing with sunlight refracted by Victorian stained glass.
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Picturesquely situated on a quiet bluff high above the main road, the simple flint exterior of Alkham church hides a remarkable surprise. From the south the building looks little different to many others in the region, but inside it immediately presents its trump card - a north aisle/chapel built in the thirteenth century which contains the finest blank wall arcading in any Kent church. This should be compared with the contemporary chancel arcading at Cooling and Woodchurch - in each designed to emphasise the importance of the (recently rebuilt) chancel. Here it served an altogether different purpose, competing with the nearby commandery of the Knights Hospitallers at Swingfield. At the west end of the nave, filling the tower arch, is a rather heavy but fine, wooden nineteenth century screen. The east window contains some fine nineteenth century glass. West tower, nave, chancel, north aisle, south porch
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Alkham
ALKHAM is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Dover.
The church, which is dedicated to St. Anthony the Martyr, is a handsome building, consisting of three isles and two chancels, having a tower steeple, with a low pointed turret on it, in which hang three bells. The north isle is shut out by boarding from the rest of the church, and made no use of at present, to which the school now kept in the chancel might be removed, and have no kind of communication with that part of the church appropriated for divine service, which would prevent that unseemly and indecent resort which it is at present subject to. In the chancel are several memorials for the Slaters, lessees of the parsonage; and on the south side, against the wall, is an antient tomb of Bethersden marble.
The church of Alkham, with the chapel of Mauregge, or Capell as it is now called, belonging to it, was given by Hamon de Crevequer to the abbot and convent of St. Radigund, together with the advowson of it, to hold in free, pure, and perpetual alms. It was appropriated to that abbey about the 43d year of king Henry III. anno 1258, and was afterwards, anno 8 Richard II. valued among the temporalities of the abbey at fourteen pounds. In which state this church and advowson remained till the dissolution of the abbey, which happened in the 27th year of king Henry VIII. when it was suppressed by the act of that year, as being under the clear yearly value of two hundred pounds, and their lands and possessions given to the king, who granted the scite of it, with the whole of its possessions, that year, to archbishop Cranmer, in exchange for other lands, who in the same year exchanged them back again with the king, being enabled so to do by an act then specially passed for that purpose; but in the deed of exchange, among other exceptions, was that of all churches and advowsons of vicarages; by virtue of which, the appropriation of the church of Alkham, together with the advowson of the vicarage, remained part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury, as they do at this time, his grace the archbishop of Canterbury being now entitled to them.
The vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Ferne, alias Capell, annexed to it, is valued in the king's books at eleven pounds, and the yearly tenths at Il.2s. per annum. (fn. 4) It is now of the clear yearly certified value of 53l. 9s. 6d. In 1588 here were communicants eighty; in 1640 it was valued at sixty pounds. The vicar of it is inducted into the vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Capell le Ferne, alias St.Mary le Merge, annexed to it. There are three acres of glebe land belonging to the vicarage.
The great tithes of Evering ward, in this parish and Swingfield ward, part of the parsonage of Alkham, are held of the archbishop for three lives, at the yearly rent of 1l. 6s. 8d. and the parsonage for twenty-one years, at the yearly rent of twelve pounds.
When I said on my uploads that getting into Tilmanstone was a bugbear, how then to describe my frustration about St Anthony, as this is a church I see each time we travel up or down the Alkham valley to Folkestone.
St Anthony sits on a bluff overlooking the village and the main road, and so seems impressively tall. But up close, one finds the tower to appear short and squat.
I had driven over from Tilmanstone, I had decided to give Eythorne a miss as I really wanted to make sure I got to Alkham and the next church on the list, Acrise, before the day faded and I would lose the chance for another year.
Parking in the village is problematic, so I leave the car opposite the village hall beside the cricket pitch, which now looks like it would be perfect for a few overs. How different from the late winter, when the Drellingore was in full flood and the pitch was under a good foot of water, and houses down the hill had water bubbling up between the plants in their gardens borders.
And looking at the Drellingore itself, reveals it to be the dried up bed it always was, with just the occasional pool of still wet mud showing where once the torrent flowed.
It is quite a steep climb back to the main road and then along to the old village pub, The Marquess of Granby, now sadly rebranded as a gastropub and called simply "The Marquess".
Up beside the pub, past a pretty row of cottages and into the churchyard. My, I was puffing well, but after stopping to take a shot of the outside of the church, I walk to the porch to find both the outer and inner doors open, and the interior glowing with sunlight refracted by Victorian stained glass.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Picturesquely situated on a quiet bluff high above the main road, the simple flint exterior of Alkham church hides a remarkable surprise. From the south the building looks little different to many others in the region, but inside it immediately presents its trump card - a north aisle/chapel built in the thirteenth century which contains the finest blank wall arcading in any Kent church. This should be compared with the contemporary chancel arcading at Cooling and Woodchurch - in each designed to emphasise the importance of the (recently rebuilt) chancel. Here it served an altogether different purpose, competing with the nearby commandery of the Knights Hospitallers at Swingfield. At the west end of the nave, filling the tower arch, is a rather heavy but fine, wooden nineteenth century screen. The east window contains some fine nineteenth century glass. West tower, nave, chancel, north aisle, south porch
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Alkham
ALKHAM is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Dover.
The church, which is dedicated to St. Anthony the Martyr, is a handsome building, consisting of three isles and two chancels, having a tower steeple, with a low pointed turret on it, in which hang three bells. The north isle is shut out by boarding from the rest of the church, and made no use of at present, to which the school now kept in the chancel might be removed, and have no kind of communication with that part of the church appropriated for divine service, which would prevent that unseemly and indecent resort which it is at present subject to. In the chancel are several memorials for the Slaters, lessees of the parsonage; and on the south side, against the wall, is an antient tomb of Bethersden marble.
The church of Alkham, with the chapel of Mauregge, or Capell as it is now called, belonging to it, was given by Hamon de Crevequer to the abbot and convent of St. Radigund, together with the advowson of it, to hold in free, pure, and perpetual alms. It was appropriated to that abbey about the 43d year of king Henry III. anno 1258, and was afterwards, anno 8 Richard II. valued among the temporalities of the abbey at fourteen pounds. In which state this church and advowson remained till the dissolution of the abbey, which happened in the 27th year of king Henry VIII. when it was suppressed by the act of that year, as being under the clear yearly value of two hundred pounds, and their lands and possessions given to the king, who granted the scite of it, with the whole of its possessions, that year, to archbishop Cranmer, in exchange for other lands, who in the same year exchanged them back again with the king, being enabled so to do by an act then specially passed for that purpose; but in the deed of exchange, among other exceptions, was that of all churches and advowsons of vicarages; by virtue of which, the appropriation of the church of Alkham, together with the advowson of the vicarage, remained part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury, as they do at this time, his grace the archbishop of Canterbury being now entitled to them.
The vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Ferne, alias Capell, annexed to it, is valued in the king's books at eleven pounds, and the yearly tenths at Il.2s. per annum. (fn. 4) It is now of the clear yearly certified value of 53l. 9s. 6d. In 1588 here were communicants eighty; in 1640 it was valued at sixty pounds. The vicar of it is inducted into the vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Capell le Ferne, alias St.Mary le Merge, annexed to it. There are three acres of glebe land belonging to the vicarage.
The great tithes of Evering ward, in this parish and Swingfield ward, part of the parsonage of Alkham, are held of the archbishop for three lives, at the yearly rent of 1l. 6s. 8d. and the parsonage for twenty-one years, at the yearly rent of twelve pounds.
When I said on my uploads that getting into Tilmanstone was a bugbear, how then to describe my frustration about St Anthony, as this is a church I see each time we travel up or down the Alkham valley to Folkestone.
St Anthony sits on a bluff overlooking the village and the main road, and so seems impressively tall. But up close, one finds the tower to appear short and squat.
I had driven over from Tilmanstone, I had decided to give Eythorne a miss as I really wanted to make sure I got to Alkham and the next church on the list, Acrise, before the day faded and I would lose the chance for another year.
Parking in the village is problematic, so I leave the car opposite the village hall beside the cricket pitch, which now looks like it would be perfect for a few overs. How different from the late winter, when the Drellingore was in full flood and the pitch was under a good foot of water, and houses down the hill had water bubbling up between the plants in their gardens borders.
And looking at the Drellingore itself, reveals it to be the dried up bed it always was, with just the occasional pool of still wet mud showing where once the torrent flowed.
It is quite a steep climb back to the main road and then along to the old village pub, The Marquess of Granby, now sadly rebranded as a gastropub and called simply "The Marquess".
Up beside the pub, past a pretty row of cottages and into the churchyard. My, I was puffing well, but after stopping to take a shot of the outside of the church, I walk to the porch to find both the outer and inner doors open, and the interior glowing with sunlight refracted by Victorian stained glass.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Picturesquely situated on a quiet bluff high above the main road, the simple flint exterior of Alkham church hides a remarkable surprise. From the south the building looks little different to many others in the region, but inside it immediately presents its trump card - a north aisle/chapel built in the thirteenth century which contains the finest blank wall arcading in any Kent church. This should be compared with the contemporary chancel arcading at Cooling and Woodchurch - in each designed to emphasise the importance of the (recently rebuilt) chancel. Here it served an altogether different purpose, competing with the nearby commandery of the Knights Hospitallers at Swingfield. At the west end of the nave, filling the tower arch, is a rather heavy but fine, wooden nineteenth century screen. The east window contains some fine nineteenth century glass. West tower, nave, chancel, north aisle, south porch
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Alkham
ALKHAM is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Dover.
The church, which is dedicated to St. Anthony the Martyr, is a handsome building, consisting of three isles and two chancels, having a tower steeple, with a low pointed turret on it, in which hang three bells. The north isle is shut out by boarding from the rest of the church, and made no use of at present, to which the school now kept in the chancel might be removed, and have no kind of communication with that part of the church appropriated for divine service, which would prevent that unseemly and indecent resort which it is at present subject to. In the chancel are several memorials for the Slaters, lessees of the parsonage; and on the south side, against the wall, is an antient tomb of Bethersden marble.
The church of Alkham, with the chapel of Mauregge, or Capell as it is now called, belonging to it, was given by Hamon de Crevequer to the abbot and convent of St. Radigund, together with the advowson of it, to hold in free, pure, and perpetual alms. It was appropriated to that abbey about the 43d year of king Henry III. anno 1258, and was afterwards, anno 8 Richard II. valued among the temporalities of the abbey at fourteen pounds. In which state this church and advowson remained till the dissolution of the abbey, which happened in the 27th year of king Henry VIII. when it was suppressed by the act of that year, as being under the clear yearly value of two hundred pounds, and their lands and possessions given to the king, who granted the scite of it, with the whole of its possessions, that year, to archbishop Cranmer, in exchange for other lands, who in the same year exchanged them back again with the king, being enabled so to do by an act then specially passed for that purpose; but in the deed of exchange, among other exceptions, was that of all churches and advowsons of vicarages; by virtue of which, the appropriation of the church of Alkham, together with the advowson of the vicarage, remained part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury, as they do at this time, his grace the archbishop of Canterbury being now entitled to them.
The vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Ferne, alias Capell, annexed to it, is valued in the king's books at eleven pounds, and the yearly tenths at Il.2s. per annum. (fn. 4) It is now of the clear yearly certified value of 53l. 9s. 6d. In 1588 here were communicants eighty; in 1640 it was valued at sixty pounds. The vicar of it is inducted into the vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Capell le Ferne, alias St.Mary le Merge, annexed to it. There are three acres of glebe land belonging to the vicarage.
The great tithes of Evering ward, in this parish and Swingfield ward, part of the parsonage of Alkham, are held of the archbishop for three lives, at the yearly rent of 1l. 6s. 8d. and the parsonage for twenty-one years, at the yearly rent of twelve pounds.
Pride and Prejudice: on Raphael Perez's Artwork
Raphael Perez, born in 1965, studied art at the College of Visual Arts in Beer Sheva, and from 1995 has been living and working in his studio in Tel Aviv. Today Perez plays an important role in actively promoting the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual) art and culture in Tel Aviv, and the internet portal he set up helps artists from the community reach large audiences in Israel and abroad. Hundreds of his artworks are part of private collections in Israel and abroad, and his artworks were shown in several group exhibitions: in Tel Aviv Museum of Art, "Zman Le'Omanut" art gallery, Camera Obscura, The Open House in Jerusalem, Ophir Gallery, The Haifa Forum and other private businesses and galleries.
In 2003-4 his paintings and studio appeared in a full-length movie, three student films and two graduation films.
Raphael Perez is the first Israeli artist to express his lifestyle as a Gay. His life and the life of the LGBT community are connected and unfold over hundreds of artwork pieces. His art creation is rare and extraordinary by every Israeli and international artistic standard. His sources of inspiration are first and foremost life events intertwined in Jewish and Israeli locality as well as influences and quotes from art history (David Hockney, Matisse). This uniqueness has crossed international borders and has succeeded in moving the LGBT and art communities around the world.
This is the first time we meet an Israeli artist who expresses all of his emotions in a previously unknown strength. The subjects of the paintings are the everyday life of couples in everyday places and situations, along with the aspiration to a homosexual relationship and family, equality and public recognition. Perez's works bring forward to the cultural space and to the public discourse the truth about living as LGBT and about relationships, with all of their aspects – casual relationships and sex, the yearning for love, the everyday life and the mundane activities that exist in every romantic relationship – whether by describing two men in an intimate scene in the bathroom, the bedroom or the toilet, a male couple raising a baby or the homosexual version of the Garden of Eden, family dinners, relationship ups and downs, the complexity in sharing a life as well as mundane, everyday life competing with the aspiration to self realization – through Perez's life.
Perez's first artworks are personal diaries, which he creates at 14 years of age. He makes sure to hide these diaries, as in them he keeps a personal journal describing his life events in the most genuine way. In these journals he draws thousands of drawings and sketches, next to which he alternately writes and erases his so-called "problematic texts", texts describing his struggle with his sexual orientation. His diaries are filled with obsessive cataloging of details, daily actions, friends and work, as well as repeating themes, such as thoughts, exhibits he has seen, movies, television, books and review of his work.
When he is done writing, Perez draws on his diaries. Each layer is done from beginning to end all along the journal. In fact, the work on the diaries never ends.
This struggle never ends, and when the emotion is passed on to paper, and it ends its role and becomes meaningless in a way, the visual-graphic side becomes dominant, due to the need to hide the written text, according to Perez. In books and diaries this stands out even more – when he chooses to draw in a style influenced by children's drawings, the characters are cheerful, happy, naïve and do not portray any sexuality, and when he tries drawing as an adult the sketches became more depressed and somber. During these years Perez works with preschool children, teaching them drawing and movement games. Perez says that during this period he completely abandoned the search for a relationship, either with a woman or a man, and working with children has given him existential meaning. This creation continues over 10 years, and Perez creates about 60 books-personal journals in various sizes (notepads, old notebooks, atlases and even old art books).
In his early paintings (1998-1999) the transition from relationships with women to relationships with men can be seen, from restraint to emotional outburst in color, lines and composition. Some characters display strong emotional expression. The women are usually drawn in restraint and passiveness, while a happy and loving emotional outburst is expressed in the colors and style of the male paintings.
"I fantasized that in a relationship with a woman I could fly in the sky, love, fly. However, I felt I was hiding something; I was choked up, hidden behind a mask, as if there was an internal scream wanting to come out. I was frustrated, I felt threatened…"
His first romance with a man in 1999 has drawn out a series of naïve paintings dealing with love and the excitement of performing everyday actions together in the intimate domestic environment.
"The excitement from each everyday experience of doing things together and the togetherness was great, so I painted every possible thing I liked doing with him."
From the moment the self-oppression and repression stopped, Perez started the process of healing, which was expressed in a burst of artworks, enormous in their size, amount, content and vivid colors – red, pink and white.
In 2000 Perez starts painting the huge artworks describing the hangouts of the LGBT community (The Lake, The Pool) and the Tel Avivian balcony paintings describing the masculine world, which, according to him, becomes existent thanks to the painting. Perez has dedicated this year to many series of drawings and paintings of the experience of love, in which he describes his first love for his new partner, and during these months he paints from morning to night. These paintings are the fruit of a long dialogue with David Hockney, and the similarity can be seen both in subjects and in different gestures.
In 2001 Perez creates a series of artworks, "Portraits from The Community". Perez describes in large, photorealistic paintings over 20 portraits of active and well-known members of the LGBT community. The emphasis is on the achievements that reflect the community's strong standing in Tel Aviv.
As a Tel-Avivian painter, in the past two years Perez has been painting urban landscapes of central locations in his city. Perez wanders around the city and chooses familiar architectural and geographical landmarks, commerce and recreation, and historical sites, and paints them from a homosexual point of view, decorated with the rainbow flag, which provide a sense of belonging to the place. His artworks are characterized by a cheerful joie de vivre and colors, and they also describe encounters and meetings. The touristic nature of his paintings makes them a declaration of Tel Aviv's image as a place where cultural freedom prevails.
Perez's Tel Aviv is a city where young families and couples live and fill the streets, the parks, the beach, the houses and the balconies – all the city's spaces. The characters in his paintings are similar, which helps reinforcing the belonging to the LGBT community in Tel Aviv. The collective theme in Perez's artwork interacts with the work of the Israeli artist Yohanan Simon, who dealt with the social aspects of the Kibbutz. Simon, who lived and worked in a Kibbutz, expressed the human model of the Kibbutznik (member of a Kibbutz) and the uniqueness of the Kibbutz members as part of a group where all are equal. Simon's works, and now Perez's, have contributed to the Israeli society what is has been looking for endlessly, which is a sense of identity and belonging.
Perez maps his territory and marks his boundaries, and does not forget the historical sites. Unlike other Tel Avivian artists, Perez wishes to present the lives of the residents of the city and the great love in their hearts. By choosing the historical sites in Tel Aviv, he also pays tribute to the artist Nachum Gutman, who loved the city and lived in it his whole life. In his childhood Gutman experienced historical moments (lighting the first oil lamp, first concert, first pavement), and as an adult he recreated the uniqueness of those events while keeping the city's magic.
Like Gutman, Perez has also turned the city into an object of love, and it has started adorning itself in rich colors and supplying the energy of a city that wishes to be "the city that never sleeps", combining old and new. Perez meticulously describes the uniqueness and style of the Bauhaus houses and balconies along the modern glass and steel buildings, all from unusual angles in a rectangular format that wishes to imitate the panorama of a diverse city in its centennial celebrations.
Daniel Cahana-Levensohn, curator.
Interview with the painter Raphael Perez about his family artist book
An interview with the painter Raphael Perez about an artist's book he created about his family, the Peretz family from 6 Nissan St. Kiryat Yuval Jerusalem
Question: Raphael Perez, tell me about the family artist book you created
Answer: I created close to 40 artist books, notebooks, diaries, sketch books and huge books. I dedicated one of the books to my dear family, a book in which I took a childhood photograph of my family, my parents and brothers and sisters.. I pasted the photographs inside a book (the photograph is 10 percent of the total painting) and I drew with acrylic paints, markers and ink on the book and the photograph, so that the image of the photograph was an inspiration to me Build the story that includes page by page..
Question: Tell me when you were born, where, and a little about your family
Answer: I was born on March 4, 1965 in the Kiryat Yuval neighborhood in Jerusalem
I have a twin brother named Miki Peretz and we are seven brothers and sisters, five boys and two girls
Question: Tell us a little about your parents
Answer: My parents were new immigrants from Morocco, both immigrated young.
My mother's name before the wedding was Alice - Aliza ben Yair and my father's name was Shimon Peretz,
My mother was born in the Atlas Mountains and was orphaned at a young age and was later adopted by my father's family at the age of 10, so that my mother and father spent childhood and adolescence together....
They had a beautiful and happy relationship but sometimes when they argued my mother would say "even when she was a child she was like that..." This means that their acquaintance and relationship dates back to childhood..
Question: What did your parents Shimon and Aliza Peretz work for?
Answer: My father, Shimon Perez, born in 1928 - worked in a building in his youth and then for thirty years worked as a receptionist at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem... My father's great love was actually art, he loved to draw as a hobby, write, read, solve crossword puzzles and research Regarding the issue of medicinal plants, as a breadwinner he could not fulfill his dream of becoming an artist, in order to support and feed seven children. But we are the next generation, his children are engaged in the world of creativity and education, a field in which both of my parents were engaged during their lives. My father died at the age of 69
My mother, Alice Aliza Perez, born in 1934, worked as an assistant to a kindergarten teacher, and later took care of a baby at home. She is a woman of wholehearted giving and caring for children and people, a warm, generous and humble woman.. and took care of us in our childhood for every emotional and physical deficiency.. My mother is right For the year 2023, the 89-year-old is partly happy and happy despite the difficulties of age.. May you have a long life..
My mother really loved gardening and nature and both of them together created a magnificent garden, my parents have a relatively large garden so they could grow many types of special and rare medicinal plants and my father even wrote a catalog (unpublished) of medicinal plants and we even had botany students come to us who were interested in the field... today they They also grow ornamental plants, and fruit trees...
Question: A book about the brothers and sisters
Answer: My elder brother David Perez repented in his mid-twenties.. He was a very sharp, opinionated, curious and very charismatic guy who brought many people back to repentance, and also helped people with problems through the yeshiva and the synagogue to return to the normal path of life, he died young at the age of 56
Hana Peretz: My lovely sister, raised eight children, worked in the field of education, a kindergarten teacher, and child care.
She has a very large extended family of grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren...
My brother Avi (Abraham) Peretz studied in Israel at the University of Philosophy and Judaism, he married a wonderful woman named Mira Drumi, a nurse by profession, and together they had three wonderful children, when they moved to the United States in their mid-twenties, where my brother Avi Peretz completed his master's degree in education, worked in the field Education and for the last twenty years is A conservative rabbi
The fourth brother is Asher Peretz - a great man of the world, very fond of traveling and has been to magical places all over the world, engaged in the creation of jewelry with two children.
I am Rafi Peretz english raphael perez the fifth and after fifteen minutes my twin brother was born
My mother still gets confused and can't remember who was born first :-)
My twin brother Miki micky - Michael Peretz, a beloved brother (everyone is beloved), a talented industrial designer, he has three children, his wife Revital Peretz Ben, who is a well-known art curator, active and responsible for the art field in Tel Aviv, they are a dynamic and talented couple, full of talents and action
The lovely little sister Shlomit Peretz - has been involved in the Bezeq telephone company for almost three decades, and is there in management positions, raising her lovely and beloved child.
The art book I dedicated to my family is colorful, rich in details, shows a very intense childhood, happy, cheerful, colorful, ... We were taught to be diligent and to be happy in our part and to see the glass half full in life, to have emotional intelligence and to put the relationship and love at the center with self-fulfillment in work that will interest you us and you will give us satisfaction.
Each of us is different in our life decisions and my family is actually a mosaic of the State of Israel that includes both religious and secular people from the entire political spectrum who understand that the secret to unity is mutual respect for each other... when my mother these days is also the family glue in everyone's gatherings on Shabbat and holidays..
The personification of the flower couple paintings by the Israeli painter Raphael Perez
Raphael Perez, also known as Rafi Peretz, is an Israeli painter who
explores his personal and sexual identity through his flower paintings. He created a series of flower paintings from 1995 to 1998, when he was in his early thirties and still in relationships with women, despite feeling gay. His flower paintings reflect his emotional turmoil and his struggle with his sexual orientation. He painted two flowers, one blooming and one wilting, to represent the contrast and conflict between his heterosexual relationships and his true self. He also painted single flowers or two flowers in their prime, to express his longing for a harmonious relationship that matches his nature. He chose sunflowers, white lilies, and red lilies as symbols of expression, purity, and joy, respectively. He painted from real flowers, using different styles and light to create drama and mood. Perez’s paintings of the flower couples are minimalist and focused on the theme of the complex relationship. He omitted any background or context, leaving only the canvas and the drawing of the flower couples. In some of the paintings, he added a very airy abstract surface with thin oil paints that give an atmosphere of watercolors. He also made drawings of flowers in ink, markers and gouache on paper. Later on, he created large acrylic paintings of flowers and still life. Perez’s flower paintings are not mere illustrations or decorations. They are autobiographical and psychological expressions of his inner state and his struggle with his sexuality. He wanted to reveal his loneliness, distress and concealment through these paintings, and to connect with people who are in a similar situation. He deliberately chose only two flowers and no more to intensify the engagement in the charged and complex relationship. Perez also painted and drew couples of men and women with charged psychological states, as well as states of desire for connection and realization of a heterosexual relationship that did not succeed. He used hyperrealism and expressive styles to convey his frozen and calculated state, as well as his mental stress. He used harsh lighting to create contrast and drama, with one side very bright and the other side darker. Perez was influenced by some of the famous artists who painted flowers, such as Van Gogh, who also used sunflowers as a symbol of expression. He also used white lilies and red lilies to convey freshness, cleanliness, purity, color, joy, movement, eruption, and splendor. Perez also painted some single flowers or two flowers in their prime, to show his aspiration for a future where he will have a harmonious relationship. Today, he is 58 years old and in a happy relationship for 10 years with his partner Assaf Henigsberg. He is surrounded by female friends and soulmates and not conflicted with heterosexual relationships as he used to be. He occasionally paints flowers in pots to symbolize home, stability, and peace. Sometimes I paint flowers in pots, which represent home, stability, and solid ground for me. I don’t paint just a couple of flowers, but pots full of flowers that overflow with life. This means that we also have a supportive network of family, friends, and peers around us. We live in a rich, supportive, and protective world. These paintings are a personification of my psychological state, when I had no words to express my feelings to myself. The painting began In 35 years of my creation (starting in 1998), you can read more about how my art and style evolved over time. Perez’s flower paintings are a unique and extraordinary artistic creation that reveals his personal journey and his sexual identity. His work is honest, expressive, and emotional, as well as beautiful and vibrant.
The characteristics of the naive painting of the painter Raphael Perez
A full interview with the Israeli painter Raphael Perez (Hebrew name: Rafi Peretz) about the ideas behind the naive painting, resume, personal biography and curriculum vitae Question: Raphael Perez Tell us about your work process as a naive painter? Answer: I choose the most iconic and famous buildings in every city and town that are architecturally interesting and have a special shape and place the iconic buildings on boulevards full of trees, bushes, vegetation, flowers. Question: How do you give depth in your naive paintings? Answer: To give depth to the painting, I build the painting with layers of vegetation, after those low famous buildings, followed by a tall avenue of trees, and behind them towers and skyscrapers, in the sky I sometimes put innocent signs of balloons, kites. A recurring motif in some of my paintings is the figure of the painter who is in the center of the boulevard and paints the entire scene unfolding in front of him, also there are two kindergarten teachers who are walking with the kindergarten children with the state flags that I paint, and loving couples hugging and kissing and family paintings of mother, father and child walking in harmony on the boulevard. Question: Raphael Perez, what characterizes your naive painting? Answer: Most naive paintings have the same characteristics (Definition as it appears in Wikipedia) • Tells a simple story to absorb from everyday life, usually with humans. • The representation of the painter's idealization to reality - the mapping of reality. • Failure to maintain perspective - especially details even in distant details. • Extensive use of repeating patterns - many details. • Warm and bright colors. • Sometimes the emphasis is on outlines. • Most of the characters are flat, lack volume • No interest in texture, expression, correct proportions • No interest in anatomy. • There is not much use of light and shade, the colors create a three-dimensional effect. I find these definitions to be valid for all my naive paintings Question: Raphael Perez, why do you choose the city of Tel Aviv? Answer: I was born in Jerusalem, the capital city which I love very much and also paint, I love the special Bauhaus buildings in Tel Aviv, the ornamental buildings that were built a century ago in the 1920s and 1930s, the beautiful boulevards, towers and modern skyscrapers give you the feeling of the hustle and bustle of a large metropolis and there are quite a few low and tall buildings that are architecturally fascinating in their form the special one Also, the move to Tel Aviv, which is the capital of culture, freedom, and secularism, allowed me to live my life as I chose, to live in a relationship with a man, Jerusalem, which is a traditional city, it is more complicated to live a homosexual life, also, the art world takes place mainly in the city of Tel Aviv, and it is possible that from a professional point of view, this allows I can support myself better in Tel Aviv than in any other city in Israel. Question: Raphael Perez, are the paintings of the city of Tel Aviv different from the paintings of the city of Jerusalem? Answer: Most of the paintings of Jerusalem have an emphasis on the color yellow, gold, the color of the old city walls, the subjects I painted in Jerusalem are mainly a type of idealization of a peaceful life between Jews and Arabs and paintings that deal with the Jewish religious world, a number of paintings depict all shades of the currents of Judaism today In contrast, the Tel Aviv paintings are more colorful, with skyscrapers, the sea, balloons and more secular motifs Question: Raphael Perez, tell me about which buildings and their architects you usually choose in your drawings of cities Answer: My favorite buildings are those that have a special shape that anyone can recognize and are the symbols of the city and you will give several examples: In the city of Tel Aviv, my favorite buildings are: the opera building with its unusual geometric shape, the Yisrotel tower with its special head, the Hail Bo Shalom tower that for years was the symbol of the tallest building in Tel Aviv, the Levin house that looks like a Japanese pagoda, the burgundy-colored Nordeau hotel with the special dome at the end of the building, A pair of Alon towers with the special structure of the sea, Bauhaus buildings typical of Tel Aviv with the special balconies and the special staircase, the Yaakov Agam fountain in Dizengoff square appears in a large part of the paintings, many towers that are in the stock exchange complex, the Aviv towers and other tall buildings on Ayalon, in some of the paintings I took plans An outline of future buildings that need to be built in the city and I drew them even before they were built in reality, In the paintings of Jerusalem, I mainly chose the area of the Old City and East Jerusalem, a painting of the walls of the Old City, the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the El Akchea Mosque, the Tower of David, most of the famous churches in the city, the right hand of Moses, in most of the paintings the Jew is wearing a blue shirt with a red male cord I was in the youth movement and the Arab with a galabia, and in the paintings of the religious public then, Jews with black suits and white shirts, tallitas, kippahs, special hats, synagogues and more I also created three paintings of the city of Haifa and one painting of Safed In the Haifa paintings I drew the university, the Technion, the famous Egged Tower, the Sail Tower, well-known hotels, of course the Baha'i Gardens and the Baha'i Temple, Haifa Port and the boats and other famous buildings in the city Question: Raphael Perez, have you created series of other cities from around the world? Answer: I created series of New York City with all the iconic and famous buildings such as: the Guggenheim Museum, the famous skyscrapers - the Chrysler Building, the Empire State Building, Lincoln Center, the famous synagogue in the city, the Statue of Liberty, the flags of the United States and other famous buildings Two paintings of London and all its famous sites, Big Ben, famous monuments, the Ferris wheel, Queen Elizabeth and her family, the double bus, the famous public telephone, palaces, famous churches, well-known monuments I created 4 naive paintings of cities in China, a painting of Shanghai, two paintings of the city of Suzhou and a painting of the World Park in the city of Beijing... I chose the famous skyline of Shanghai with all the famous towers, the famous promenade, temples and old buildings, two Paintings of the city of Suzhou with the famous canals, bridges, special gardens, towers and skyscrapers of the city Question: Raphael Perez What is the general idea that accompanies your paintings Answer: To create a good, beautiful, naive, innocent world in which we will see the innovation of the modern city through the skyscrapers in front of small and low buildings that bring the history and past of each country, all with an abundance of vegetation, boulevards, trees Resume, biography, CV of the painter Rafi Peretz and his family Question: When was Raphael Perez born in hebrew his name rafi peretz? Answer: Raphael Perez in Hebrew his name Rafi Peretz was born on March 4, 1965 Question: Where was Raphael Perez born? Answer: Raphael Perez was born in Jerusalem, Israel Question: What is the full name of Raphael Perez? Answer: His full name is Raphael Perez Question: Which art institution did Raphael Perez graduate from? Answer: Raphael Perez graduated from the Visual Arts Center in Be'er Sheva Question: When did Raphael Perez start painting? Answer: Raphael Perez started painting in 1989 Question: When did you start making a living selling art? Answer: Raphael Perez started making a living selling art in 1999 Question: Where does Raphael Perez live and work? Answer: Since 1995, Raphael Perez has been living and working from his studio in Tel Aviv Question: In which military framework did Raphael Perez serve in the IDF? Answer: Raphael Perez served in the artillery corps Question: Raphael Perez, what jobs did he work after his military service? Answer: Raphael Perez worked for 15 years in education in therapeutic settings for children and taught arts and movement Question: How many brothers and sisters does Raphael Perez, the Israeli painter, have? Answer: There are seven children in total, with the painter 5 sons and two daughters, that means the painter Raphael Perez has 4 more brothers and two sisters Question: What do the brothers and sisters of the painter Raphael Perez do? Answer: The elder brother David Peretz Perez was involved in the field of religious studies, the sister Hana Peretz Perez is involved in the field of education, a kindergarten teacher and child care, the brother Avi Peretz Perez who is in the United States today is a conservative rabbi but in the past was involved in education and therapy, the brother Asher Peretz Perez is involved in the fields of creativity and jewelry The twin brother Mickey Peretz Perez is a well-known industrial designer and seller. The younger sister Shlomit Peretz Perez works in a managerial position at Bezeq. Question: Tell me about the parents of the painter Raphael PerezAnswer: The painter Raphael Perez's parents are Shimon Perez Peretz and Eliza Alice Ben Yair, they were married in 1950 in Jerusalem, both were born in Morocco and immigrated to Israel in 1949, Shimon Peretz worked in a building in his youth and later as a receptionist at the Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital, Eliza Alice Peretz dealt in child care Kindergarten, working in kindergartens and of course taking care of and raising her seven children
Getting through the Reeds too this little guy , was a little problematic hence the title.
Latin name
Acrocephalus scirpaceus
Family
Warblers and allies (Sylviidae)
Overview
The reed warbler is a plain unstreaked warbler. It is warm brown above and buff coloured underneath. It is a summer visitor to breed in the UK, with the largest concentrations in East Anglia and along the south coast - there are relatively few breeding in Scotland and Ireland. It winters in Africa.
Where to see them
In the summer, can be looked for in reedbeds in lowland central and southern England and Wales - it is rarer elsewhere. Sings from within the reedbed rather than from a perch, so often heard rather than seen.
When to see them
Mid-April to early October.
What they eat
Insects; berries in autumn
Pride and Prejudice: on Raphael Perez's Artwork
Raphael Perez, born in 1965, studied art at the College of Visual Arts in Beer Sheva, and from 1995 has been living and working in his studio in Tel Aviv. Today Perez plays an important role in actively promoting the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual) art and culture in Tel Aviv, and the internet portal he set up helps artists from the community reach large audiences in Israel and abroad. Hundreds of his artworks are part of private collections in Israel and abroad, and his artworks were shown in several group exhibitions: in Tel Aviv Museum of Art, "Zman Le'Omanut" art gallery, Camera Obscura, The Open House in Jerusalem, Ophir Gallery, The Haifa Forum and other private businesses and galleries.
In 2003-4 his paintings and studio appeared in a full-length movie, three student films and two graduation films.
Raphael Perez is the first Israeli artist to express his lifestyle as a Gay. His life and the life of the LGBT community are connected and unfold over hundreds of artwork pieces. His art creation is rare and extraordinary by every Israeli and international artistic standard. His sources of inspiration are first and foremost life events intertwined in Jewish and Israeli locality as well as influences and quotes from art history (David Hockney, Matisse). This uniqueness has crossed international borders and has succeeded in moving the LGBT and art communities around the world.
This is the first time we meet an Israeli artist who expresses all of his emotions in a previously unknown strength. The subjects of the paintings are the everyday life of couples in everyday places and situations, along with the aspiration to a homosexual relationship and family, equality and public recognition. Perez's works bring forward to the cultural space and to the public discourse the truth about living as LGBT and about relationships, with all of their aspects – casual relationships and sex, the yearning for love, the everyday life and the mundane activities that exist in every romantic relationship – whether by describing two men in an intimate scene in the bathroom, the bedroom or the toilet, a male couple raising a baby or the homosexual version of the Garden of Eden, family dinners, relationship ups and downs, the complexity in sharing a life as well as mundane, everyday life competing with the aspiration to self realization – through Perez's life.
Perez's first artworks are personal diaries, which he creates at 14 years of age. He makes sure to hide these diaries, as in them he keeps a personal journal describing his life events in the most genuine way. In these journals he draws thousands of drawings and sketches, next to which he alternately writes and erases his so-called "problematic texts", texts describing his struggle with his sexual orientation. His diaries are filled with obsessive cataloging of details, daily actions, friends and work, as well as repeating themes, such as thoughts, exhibits he has seen, movies, television, books and review of his work.
When he is done writing, Perez draws on his diaries. Each layer is done from beginning to end all along the journal. In fact, the work on the diaries never ends.
This struggle never ends, and when the emotion is passed on to paper, and it ends its role and becomes meaningless in a way, the visual-graphic side becomes dominant, due to the need to hide the written text, according to Perez. In books and diaries this stands out even more – when he chooses to draw in a style influenced by children's drawings, the characters are cheerful, happy, naïve and do not portray any sexuality, and when he tries drawing as an adult the sketches became more depressed and somber. During these years Perez works with preschool children, teaching them drawing and movement games. Perez says that during this period he completely abandoned the search for a relationship, either with a woman or a man, and working with children has given him existential meaning. This creation continues over 10 years, and Perez creates about 60 books-personal journals in various sizes (notepads, old notebooks, atlases and even old art books).
In his early paintings (1998-1999) the transition from relationships with women to relationships with men can be seen, from restraint to emotional outburst in color, lines and composition. Some characters display strong emotional expression. The women are usually drawn in restraint and passiveness, while a happy and loving emotional outburst is expressed in the colors and style of the male paintings.
"I fantasized that in a relationship with a woman I could fly in the sky, love, fly. However, I felt I was hiding something; I was choked up, hidden behind a mask, as if there was an internal scream wanting to come out. I was frustrated, I felt threatened…"
His first romance with a man in 1999 has drawn out a series of naïve paintings dealing with love and the excitement of performing everyday actions together in the intimate domestic environment.
"The excitement from each everyday experience of doing things together and the togetherness was great, so I painted every possible thing I liked doing with him."
From the moment the self-oppression and repression stopped, Perez started the process of healing, which was expressed in a burst of artworks, enormous in their size, amount, content and vivid colors – red, pink and white.
In 2000 Perez starts painting the huge artworks describing the hangouts of the LGBT community (The Lake, The Pool) and the Tel Avivian balcony paintings describing the masculine world, which, according to him, becomes existent thanks to the painting. Perez has dedicated this year to many series of drawings and paintings of the experience of love, in which he describes his first love for his new partner, and during these months he paints from morning to night. These paintings are the fruit of a long dialogue with David Hockney, and the similarity can be seen both in subjects and in different gestures.
In 2001 Perez creates a series of artworks, "Portraits from The Community". Perez describes in large, photorealistic paintings over 20 portraits of active and well-known members of the LGBT community. The emphasis is on the achievements that reflect the community's strong standing in Tel Aviv.
As a Tel-Avivian painter, in the past two years Perez has been painting urban landscapes of central locations in his city. Perez wanders around the city and chooses familiar architectural and geographical landmarks, commerce and recreation, and historical sites, and paints them from a homosexual point of view, decorated with the rainbow flag, which provide a sense of belonging to the place. His artworks are characterized by a cheerful joie de vivre and colors, and they also describe encounters and meetings. The touristic nature of his paintings makes them a declaration of Tel Aviv's image as a place where cultural freedom prevails.
Perez's Tel Aviv is a city where young families and couples live and fill the streets, the parks, the beach, the houses and the balconies – all the city's spaces. The characters in his paintings are similar, which helps reinforcing the belonging to the LGBT community in Tel Aviv. The collective theme in Perez's artwork interacts with the work of the Israeli artist Yohanan Simon, who dealt with the social aspects of the Kibbutz. Simon, who lived and worked in a Kibbutz, expressed the human model of the Kibbutznik (member of a Kibbutz) and the uniqueness of the Kibbutz members as part of a group where all are equal. Simon's works, and now Perez's, have contributed to the Israeli society what is has been looking for endlessly, which is a sense of identity and belonging.
Perez maps his territory and marks his boundaries, and does not forget the historical sites. Unlike other Tel Avivian artists, Perez wishes to present the lives of the residents of the city and the great love in their hearts. By choosing the historical sites in Tel Aviv, he also pays tribute to the artist Nachum Gutman, who loved the city and lived in it his whole life. In his childhood Gutman experienced historical moments (lighting the first oil lamp, first concert, first pavement), and as an adult he recreated the uniqueness of those events while keeping the city's magic.
Like Gutman, Perez has also turned the city into an object of love, and it has started adorning itself in rich colors and supplying the energy of a city that wishes to be "the city that never sleeps", combining old and new. Perez meticulously describes the uniqueness and style of the Bauhaus houses and balconies along the modern glass and steel buildings, all from unusual angles in a rectangular format that wishes to imitate the panorama of a diverse city in its centennial celebrations.
Daniel Cahana-Levensohn, curator.
Interview with the painter Raphael Perez about his family artist book
An interview with the painter Raphael Perez about an artist's book he created about his family, the Peretz family from 6 Nissan St. Kiryat Yuval Jerusalem
Question: Raphael Perez, tell me about the family artist book you created
Answer: I created close to 40 artist books, notebooks, diaries, sketch books and huge books. I dedicated one of the books to my dear family, a book in which I took a childhood photograph of my family, my parents and brothers and sisters.. I pasted the photographs inside a book (the photograph is 10 percent of the total painting) and I drew with acrylic paints, markers and ink on the book and the photograph, so that the image of the photograph was an inspiration to me Build the story that includes page by page..
Question: Tell me when you were born, where, and a little about your family
Answer: I was born on March 4, 1965 in the Kiryat Yuval neighborhood in Jerusalem
I have a twin brother named Miki Peretz and we are seven brothers and sisters, five boys and two girls
Question: Tell us a little about your parents
Answer: My parents were new immigrants from Morocco, both immigrated young.
My mother's name before the wedding was Alice - Aliza ben Yair and my father's name was Shimon Peretz,
My mother was born in the Atlas Mountains and was orphaned at a young age and was later adopted by my father's family at the age of 10, so that my mother and father spent childhood and adolescence together....
They had a beautiful and happy relationship but sometimes when they argued my mother would say "even when she was a child she was like that..." This means that their acquaintance and relationship dates back to childhood..
Question: What did your parents Shimon and Aliza Peretz work for?
Answer: My father, Shimon Perez, born in 1928 - worked in a building in his youth and then for thirty years worked as a receptionist at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem... My father's great love was actually art, he loved to draw as a hobby, write, read, solve crossword puzzles and research Regarding the issue of medicinal plants, as a breadwinner he could not fulfill his dream of becoming an artist, in order to support and feed seven children. But we are the next generation, his children are engaged in the world of creativity and education, a field in which both of my parents were engaged during their lives. My father died at the age of 69
My mother, Alice Aliza Perez, born in 1934, worked as an assistant to a kindergarten teacher, and later took care of a baby at home. She is a woman of wholehearted giving and caring for children and people, a warm, generous and humble woman.. and took care of us in our childhood for every emotional and physical deficiency.. My mother is right For the year 2023, the 89-year-old is partly happy and happy despite the difficulties of age.. May you have a long life..
My mother really loved gardening and nature and both of them together created a magnificent garden, my parents have a relatively large garden so they could grow many types of special and rare medicinal plants and my father even wrote a catalog (unpublished) of medicinal plants and we even had botany students come to us who were interested in the field... today they They also grow ornamental plants, and fruit trees...
Question: A book about the brothers and sisters
Answer: My elder brother David Perez repented in his mid-twenties.. He was a very sharp, opinionated, curious and very charismatic guy who brought many people back to repentance, and also helped people with problems through the yeshiva and the synagogue to return to the normal path of life, he died young at the age of 56
Hana Peretz: My lovely sister, raised eight children, worked in the field of education, a kindergarten teacher, and child care.
She has a very large extended family of grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren...
My brother Avi (Abraham) Peretz studied in Israel at the University of Philosophy and Judaism, he married a wonderful woman named Mira Drumi, a nurse by profession, and together they had three wonderful children, when they moved to the United States in their mid-twenties, where my brother Avi Peretz completed his master's degree in education, worked in the field Education and for the last twenty years is A conservative rabbi
The fourth brother is Asher Peretz - a great man of the world, very fond of traveling and has been to magical places all over the world, engaged in the creation of jewelry with two children.
I am Rafi Peretz english raphael perez the fifth and after fifteen minutes my twin brother was born
My mother still gets confused and can't remember who was born first :-)
My twin brother Miki micky - Michael Peretz, a beloved brother (everyone is beloved), a talented industrial designer, he has three children, his wife Revital Peretz Ben, who is a well-known art curator, active and responsible for the art field in Tel Aviv, they are a dynamic and talented couple, full of talents and action
The lovely little sister Shlomit Peretz - has been involved in the Bezeq telephone company for almost three decades, and is there in management positions, raising her lovely and beloved child.
The art book I dedicated to my family is colorful, rich in details, shows a very intense childhood, happy, cheerful, colorful, ... We were taught to be diligent and to be happy in our part and to see the glass half full in life, to have emotional intelligence and to put the relationship and love at the center with self-fulfillment in work that will interest you us and you will give us satisfaction.
Each of us is different in our life decisions and my family is actually a mosaic of the State of Israel that includes both religious and secular people from the entire political spectrum who understand that the secret to unity is mutual respect for each other... when my mother these days is also the family glue in everyone's gatherings on Shabbat and holidays..
The personification of the flower couple paintings by the Israeli painter Raphael Perez
Raphael Perez, also known as Rafi Peretz, is an Israeli painter who
explores his personal and sexual identity through his flower paintings. He created a series of flower paintings from 1995 to 1998, when he was in his early thirties and still in relationships with women, despite feeling gay. His flower paintings reflect his emotional turmoil and his struggle with his sexual orientation. He painted two flowers, one blooming and one wilting, to represent the contrast and conflict between his heterosexual relationships and his true self. He also painted single flowers or two flowers in their prime, to express his longing for a harmonious relationship that matches his nature. He chose sunflowers, white lilies, and red lilies as symbols of expression, purity, and joy, respectively. He painted from real flowers, using different styles and light to create drama and mood. Perez’s paintings of the flower couples are minimalist and focused on the theme of the complex relationship. He omitted any background or context, leaving only the canvas and the drawing of the flower couples. In some of the paintings, he added a very airy abstract surface with thin oil paints that give an atmosphere of watercolors. He also made drawings of flowers in ink, markers and gouache on paper. Later on, he created large acrylic paintings of flowers and still life. Perez’s flower paintings are not mere illustrations or decorations. They are autobiographical and psychological expressions of his inner state and his struggle with his sexuality. He wanted to reveal his loneliness, distress and concealment through these paintings, and to connect with people who are in a similar situation. He deliberately chose only two flowers and no more to intensify the engagement in the charged and complex relationship. Perez also painted and drew couples of men and women with charged psychological states, as well as states of desire for connection and realization of a heterosexual relationship that did not succeed. He used hyperrealism and expressive styles to convey his frozen and calculated state, as well as his mental stress. He used harsh lighting to create contrast and drama, with one side very bright and the other side darker. Perez was influenced by some of the famous artists who painted flowers, such as Van Gogh, who also used sunflowers as a symbol of expression. He also used white lilies and red lilies to convey freshness, cleanliness, purity, color, joy, movement, eruption, and splendor. Perez also painted some single flowers or two flowers in their prime, to show his aspiration for a future where he will have a harmonious relationship. Today, he is 58 years old and in a happy relationship for 10 years with his partner Assaf Henigsberg. He is surrounded by female friends and soulmates and not conflicted with heterosexual relationships as he used to be. He occasionally paints flowers in pots to symbolize home, stability, and peace. Sometimes I paint flowers in pots, which represent home, stability, and solid ground for me. I don’t paint just a couple of flowers, but pots full of flowers that overflow with life. This means that we also have a supportive network of family, friends, and peers around us. We live in a rich, supportive, and protective world. These paintings are a personification of my psychological state, when I had no words to express my feelings to myself. The painting began In 35 years of my creation (starting in 1998), you can read more about how my art and style evolved over time. Perez’s flower paintings are a unique and extraordinary artistic creation that reveals his personal journey and his sexual identity. His work is honest, expressive, and emotional, as well as beautiful and vibrant.
The characteristics of the naive painting of the painter Raphael Perez
A full interview with the Israeli painter Raphael Perez (Hebrew name: Rafi Peretz) about the ideas behind the naive painting, resume, personal biography and curriculum vitae Question: Raphael Perez Tell us about your work process as a naive painter? Answer: I choose the most iconic and famous buildings in every city and town that are architecturally interesting and have a special shape and place the iconic buildings on boulevards full of trees, bushes, vegetation, flowers. Question: How do you give depth in your naive paintings? Answer: To give depth to the painting, I build the painting with layers of vegetation, after those low famous buildings, followed by a tall avenue of trees, and behind them towers and skyscrapers, in the sky I sometimes put innocent signs of balloons, kites. A recurring motif in some of my paintings is the figure of the painter who is in the center of the boulevard and paints the entire scene unfolding in front of him, also there are two kindergarten teachers who are walking with the kindergarten children with the state flags that I paint, and loving couples hugging and kissing and family paintings of mother, father and child walking in harmony on the boulevard. Question: Raphael Perez, what characterizes your naive painting? Answer: Most naive paintings have the same characteristics (Definition as it appears in Wikipedia) • Tells a simple story to absorb from everyday life, usually with humans. • The representation of the painter's idealization to reality - the mapping of reality. • Failure to maintain perspective - especially details even in distant details. • Extensive use of repeating patterns - many details. • Warm and bright colors. • Sometimes the emphasis is on outlines. • Most of the characters are flat, lack volume • No interest in texture, expression, correct proportions • No interest in anatomy. • There is not much use of light and shade, the colors create a three-dimensional effect. I find these definitions to be valid for all my naive paintings Question: Raphael Perez, why do you choose the city of Tel Aviv? Answer: I was born in Jerusalem, the capital city which I love very much and also paint, I love the special Bauhaus buildings in Tel Aviv, the ornamental buildings that were built a century ago in the 1920s and 1930s, the beautiful boulevards, towers and modern skyscrapers give you the feeling of the hustle and bustle of a large metropolis and there are quite a few low and tall buildings that are architecturally fascinating in their form the special one Also, the move to Tel Aviv, which is the capital of culture, freedom, and secularism, allowed me to live my life as I chose, to live in a relationship with a man, Jerusalem, which is a traditional city, it is more complicated to live a homosexual life, also, the art world takes place mainly in the city of Tel Aviv, and it is possible that from a professional point of view, this allows I can support myself better in Tel Aviv than in any other city in Israel. Question: Raphael Perez, are the paintings of the city of Tel Aviv different from the paintings of the city of Jerusalem? Answer: Most of the paintings of Jerusalem have an emphasis on the color yellow, gold, the color of the old city walls, the subjects I painted in Jerusalem are mainly a type of idealization of a peaceful life between Jews and Arabs and paintings that deal with the Jewish religious world, a number of paintings depict all shades of the currents of Judaism today In contrast, the Tel Aviv paintings are more colorful, with skyscrapers, the sea, balloons and more secular motifs Question: Raphael Perez, tell me about which buildings and their architects you usually choose in your drawings of cities Answer: My favorite buildings are those that have a special shape that anyone can recognize and are the symbols of the city and you will give several examples: In the city of Tel Aviv, my favorite buildings are: the opera building with its unusual geometric shape, the Yisrotel tower with its special head, the Hail Bo Shalom tower that for years was the symbol of the tallest building in Tel Aviv, the Levin house that looks like a Japanese pagoda, the burgundy-colored Nordeau hotel with the special dome at the end of the building, A pair of Alon towers with the special structure of the sea, Bauhaus buildings typical of Tel Aviv with the special balconies and the special staircase, the Yaakov Agam fountain in Dizengoff square appears in a large part of the paintings, many towers that are in the stock exchange complex, the Aviv towers and other tall buildings on Ayalon, in some of the paintings I took plans An outline of future buildings that need to be built in the city and I drew them even before they were built in reality, In the paintings of Jerusalem, I mainly chose the area of the Old City and East Jerusalem, a painting of the walls of the Old City, the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the El Akchea Mosque, the Tower of David, most of the famous churches in the city, the right hand of Moses, in most of the paintings the Jew is wearing a blue shirt with a red male cord I was in the youth movement and the Arab with a galabia, and in the paintings of the religious public then, Jews with black suits and white shirts, tallitas, kippahs, special hats, synagogues and more I also created three paintings of the city of Haifa and one painting of Safed In the Haifa paintings I drew the university, the Technion, the famous Egged Tower, the Sail Tower, well-known hotels, of course the Baha'i Gardens and the Baha'i Temple, Haifa Port and the boats and other famous buildings in the city Question: Raphael Perez, have you created series of other cities from around the world? Answer: I created series of New York City with all the iconic and famous buildings such as: the Guggenheim Museum, the famous skyscrapers - the Chrysler Building, the Empire State Building, Lincoln Center, the famous synagogue in the city, the Statue of Liberty, the flags of the United States and other famous buildings Two paintings of London and all its famous sites, Big Ben, famous monuments, the Ferris wheel, Queen Elizabeth and her family, the double bus, the famous public telephone, palaces, famous churches, well-known monuments I created 4 naive paintings of cities in China, a painting of Shanghai, two paintings of the city of Suzhou and a painting of the World Park in the city of Beijing... I chose the famous skyline of Shanghai with all the famous towers, the famous promenade, temples and old buildings, two Paintings of the city of Suzhou with the famous canals, bridges, special gardens, towers and skyscrapers of the city Question: Raphael Perez What is the general idea that accompanies your paintings Answer: To create a good, beautiful, naive, innocent world in which we will see the innovation of the modern city through the skyscrapers in front of small and low buildings that bring the history and past of each country, all with an abundance of vegetation, boulevards, trees Resume, biography, CV of the painter Rafi Peretz and his family Question: When was Raphael Perez born in hebrew his name rafi peretz? Answer: Raphael Perez in Hebrew his name Rafi Peretz was born on March 4, 1965 Question: Where was Raphael Perez born? Answer: Raphael Perez was born in Jerusalem, Israel Question: What is the full name of Raphael Perez? Answer: His full name is Raphael Perez Question: Which art institution did Raphael Perez graduate from? Answer: Raphael Perez graduated from the Visual Arts Center in Be'er Sheva Question: When did Raphael Perez start painting? Answer: Raphael Perez started painting in 1989 Question: When did you start making a living selling art? Answer: Raphael Perez started making a living selling art in 1999 Question: Where does Raphael Perez live and work? Answer: Since 1995, Raphael Perez has been living and working from his studio in Tel Aviv Question: In which military framework did Raphael Perez serve in the IDF? Answer: Raphael Perez served in the artillery corps Question: Raphael Perez, what jobs did he work after his military service? Answer: Raphael Perez worked for 15 years in education in therapeutic settings for children and taught arts and movement Question: How many brothers and sisters does Raphael Perez, the Israeli painter, have? Answer: There are seven children in total, with the painter 5 sons and two daughters, that means the painter Raphael Perez has 4 more brothers and two sisters Question: What do the brothers and sisters of the painter Raphael Perez do? Answer: The elder brother David Peretz Perez was involved in the field of religious studies, the sister Hana Peretz Perez is involved in the field of education, a kindergarten teacher and child care, the brother Avi Peretz Perez who is in the United States today is a conservative rabbi but in the past was involved in education and therapy, the brother Asher Peretz Perez is involved in the fields of creativity and jewelry The twin brother Mickey Peretz Perez is a well-known industrial designer and seller. The younger sister Shlomit Peretz Perez works in a managerial position at Bezeq. Question: Tell me about the parents of the painter Raphael PerezAnswer: The painter Raphael Perez's parents are Shimon Perez Peretz and Eliza Alice Ben Yair, they were married in 1950 in Jerusalem, both were born in Morocco and immigrated to Israel in 1949, Shimon Peretz worked in a building in his youth and later as a receptionist at the Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital, Eliza Alice Peretz dealt in child care Kindergarten, working in kindergartens and of course taking care of and raising her seven children
Went out this morning to check over some potential sites for rapseed/sunrise images. I should have got up earlier really. Had to crop this one 1:1 due to lens flare creeping in to the right of this image (always seems to be more problematic with my 50mm when shooting into the sun).
Canon EOS7D with 50mm f/1.4 prime. Lee 0.9ND grad.
exposure: 1/6 sec @ f/22 (ISO:100)
Church of Holy Trinity
Tomb of Sir Roger († after 1395) and Margaret († 1350?) de Boys, Alabaster.
The monument was long problematic, since Blomefield reported a now missing inscription requesting the viewer to pray for the souls of Roger de Bois and Lady Margaret, whose death he recorded as 1300, Sir Roger, and 1315, Lady Margaret. Pevsner noted that in style the monument belonged not to the early 1300s but to the end of the century. Recent research by Sally Badham has unravelled the confusion. She used the British Library manuscript Harleian MS 906 fol. 197 verso to establish that Sir Roger was descended from John de Boys and his wife Eustace Sandbie of Coningsby and that his wife died in 1365. There is no record of his death, suggesting that he was not a landowner in East Anglia, but since he was mentioned in other records it must have been sometime after 1394. With the old dates it was unclear why they had such a prominent tomb in the nave. Sir Roger, an otherwise obscure knight, was mentioned in the document of 1355 establishing the Church of the Holy Trinity as a chantry chapel and a priory for the Trinitarian order with. Those for whose souls the priests were to pray included, King Edward III, Sir Oliver and Lady Elizabeth Ingham, the relatives and parents of Sir Miles Stapleton, including his sister, the deceased Lady Catherine Boys and her husband John de Boys, Dame Margaret Honing. Sir roger’s wife, was not included.
The now sadly worn (and vandalised) tomb chest is set at the east end of the south aisle, originally guarded by railings, set into holes drilled into the base. Its position at the head of the nave would have made it opposite the altar in the chapel of St Mary, destroyed in 1799, an extension to the south east corner of the nave. The tomb is built around a pillar, which once supported the image of a saint, to whom Sir Roger de Boys would have looked. The figures lie side by side, now without their arms and with the detail of their costumes difficult to make out. The notes in the church suggest, on the basis of an analysis of the traces of colour, that she wore a heraldic dress. From the position of the stumps of their arms it is has been argued that they were represented holding hands, rather than in prayer. Sir Roger de Boys rests his head on a Saracen’s helmet, complete with decapitated head, perhaps sign that, as suggested below, he had been a crusader. His wife’s is set on two pillows, where a faint painted pattern can still be made out. His sword is missing but there is a hole on his right side where it was probably fixed. His statue has been convincingly compared with that a distinguished warrior knight, Sir Guy de Brian †1390, in Tewkesbury Abbey. They share the detail of the moustache, fashionably poking over the chain mail of his helmet. The figures are like caricatures, with his barrel chest and her extreme height (she must be about seven foot) and thinness, a sign of breeding (then as now) for those who could, as Professor Sandy Heslop has argued, ostensibly afford expensive food.
The base is decorated with (now blank) coats of arms set in quatrefoils and flanked by niches filled with angels, whose wings can just be made out (with some traces of colour). On the north they turn slightly to the door, a movement that culminates in the wider niche facing the entrance. Here the couple’s devotion to the Trinity, the church’s dedication, is shown in the panel. Two angels hold up their souls besides the Trinity, represented by the seated God the Father. He held a now lost crucifix with the dead Christ, supported by the (also missing) Dove of the Holy Ghost. The scheme also occurred in a roundel decorating the splendid and nearly contemporary brass memorial Sir Hugh Hastings (†1347) at Elsing.
Sir Roger de Boys was granted letters of attorney when travelling abroad between 1361-67 and again in the 1370s. At least one of these trips coincided with the crusade to capture Alexandria, called by Peter de Lusignan, King of Cyprus, in 1365, and the letters granting him permission to travel mention other crusader knights. That his death was not recorded may have been because he was not a land owner, although in 1378, together with his brother, he had given the Priory property in Worstead and Scottow. The family were established in Honing and Rollesby by the early years of the fifteenth century and their involvement with the church continued, since the arms on the tower (rebuilt in the 1450s), recorded by Blomefield, included Stapleton impaled with Boys.
Francis Blomefield, ‘House of Trinitarian canons: The priory of Ingham', A History of the County of Norfolk: Volume 2 (1906), pp. 410-412 corrected by Sally Badham 'Beautiful Remains of Antiquity': The Medieval Monuments in the Former Trinitarian Priory Church at Ingham Norfolk. Part 2: the High Tombs. CHURCH MONUMENTS VOLUME XXII 2007, esp. pp. 23-43; Sir Richard Le Scrope, edited Samuel Bentley, London 1832, De Controversia in Curia Militari Inter Ricardum Le Scrope Et Robertum Grosvenor Milites: Rege Ricardo Secundo, MCCCLXXXV-MCCCXC E Recordis in Turre Londinensi Asservatis, p. 220, googlebooks, accessed 03/08/15
A Flamingo in one of the salty pools of Floreana
Flamingo
The American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) is a large species of flamingo closely related to the Greater Flamingo and Chilean Flamingo. It has also been known as the Caribbean Flamingo, but the species' presence in the Galápagos makes that name problematic. The American Flamingo breeds in the Galápagos Islands, coastal Colombia and Venezuela and nearby islands, the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, and in the northern Caribbean in the Bahamas, Hispaniola, Cuba and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Most sightings in southern Florida are usually considered to be escapees, although at least one bird banded as a chick in the Yucatán Peninsula has been sighted in Everglades National Park, and others may be genuine wanderers from Cuba. Its preferred habitats are similar to that of its relatives: saline lagoons, mudflats, and shallow brackish coastal or inland lakes. Like all flamingos, it lays a single chalky white egg on a mud mound, between May and August; incubation until hatching takes from 28 to 32 days; both parents brood the young for a period of up to 6 years when they reach sexual maturity. Their life expectancy of 40 years is one of the longest in birds. The American Flamingo is 120–140 cm (47–55 in) in length; males weigh 2.8 kg (6.2 lb) and females 2.2 kg (4.9 lb) kg. Most of its plumage is pink, giving rise to its earlier name of Rosy Flamingo and differentiating adults from the much paler Greater Flamingo. The wing coverts are red, and the primary and secondary flight feathers are black. It is the only flamingo which naturally inhabits North America. The bill is pink and white with a restricted black tip, and the legs are entirely pink. The call is a goose-like honking.
Floreana (Cormorant Point)
Located approximately 4 to 5 hours west of Española and equal distance south of Santa Cruz, this island has long been a favorite site of visitors including pirates, whalers and early settlers. One of the oldest islands Floreana illustrates the aging process of a volcanic island. Unlike the younger western islands, Floreana's volcano has been long extinct and is in the advanced stages of erosion. The erosion process gave the island the nutrients and soils need to sustain plant life. The combination of this rich soil and a good water supply have given the highlands of Floreana a diversified landscaping of native and introduced flora. Floreana is best known for its colorful history of buccaneers, whalers, convicts, and colonists. In 1793 British whalers established the Post Office Barrel to send letters to and from England. This tradition has continued over the years, and even today visitors may drop off and pick up letters, without stamps, to be carried to far destinations. Punta Cormorant offers two highly contrasting beaches. The landing beach is of volcanic origin and is composed of olivine crystals, giving it a greenish tinge. At the end of the short trail is a carbonate beach of extremely fine white sand. Formed by the erosion of coral skeletons, it is a nesting site for green sea turtles. In the 1930's Floreana was the setting for intrigue and mystery. A German dentist and his mistress, a young family (the Wittmer family who still live on the island) and a self-styled baroness with three men came to settle in the island. Shortly after the baroness and her lovers arrived chaos began. The baroness and her entourage terrorized the other inhabitants while planning to build a luxury hotel. Eventually the baroness, two of her lovers and the dentist all turned up missing or dead. There has been much investigation searching for what really happened on Floreana, but there have never been any hard answers. John Treherne wrote of these people in "The Galapagos Affair". The visit to Punta Cormorant offers two contrasting beaches. Arriving on shore you will encounter a green sand beach (the green sand is caused by the olivine crystals derived silicates or magnesium and iron) from here you will follow the trail leading to a lagoon where pink flamingoes and other shore birds can be seen in the distance making their home. Looking into the mud of the lagoon there appears to be 'cracks' in the mud. These cracks are not caused from dryness but are actually the footpaths of flamingos. This is also a good spot for seeing large-billed flycatchers, small-ground finch, medium-ground finch or cactus finch. The walk continues to another beach on the other side made of fine white sand particles known as "Flour Beach". In the waters ghost crabs and rays can be seen swimming.
Galapagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands (official name: Archipiélago de Colón; other Spanish names: Islas de Colón or Islas Galápagos) are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, some 900 km west of Ecuador. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site: wildlife is its most notable feature. Because of the only very recent arrival of man the majority of the wildlife has no fear of humans and will allow visitors to walk right up them, often having to step over Iguanas or Sea Lions.The Galápagos islands and its surrounding waters are part of a province, a national park, and a biological marine reserve. The principal language on the islands is Spanish. The islands have a population of around 40,000, which is a 40-fold expansion in 50 years. The islands are geologically young and famed for their vast number of endemic species, which were studied by Charles Darwin during the voyage of the Beagle. His observations and collections contributed to the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection.
Fortress Špilberk
The fortress Spielberg (Czech: Špilberk) is located in South Moravian Brno in the Czech Republic. It has a changing history as a medieval castle, fortress, barracks and prison behind it. Today are located in here exhibitions and a restaurant. The complex is a cultural and tourist destination of the Brno population. Its location on a hill offers a good view over the city.
Location
The former Spielberg fortress is situated on a hill (282 meters above sea level) above the old town of Brno.
History
Fortress
Spielberg Castle was built in the second half of the 13th century and has undergone some changes over the centuries. At first it was the Gothic castle of the Bohemian kings and seat of the Moravian margrave. In the middle of the 17th century, it was expanded into a powerful Baroque fortress. In the middle of the eighteenth century, with the then fortified city of Brno, it formed the most important bastion in Moravia.
The casemates, completed in 1742, were an important part of the fortress. They should provide protection for a 1200 man strong military corps. In the end, however, only military depots were placed here. In the year 1783, a prison was established for the most dangerous and worst criminals, in the course of the reform of the Austrian prison system by order of Emperor Joseph II. In 1785, the southern part of the casemates was also converted into a prison and called the Leopoldine tract. However, joint use as a military fortress and civilian prison was problematic.
After the destruction of important fortifications by the withdrawing Napoleonic army in 1809, the fortress lost its military importance. The whole fortress Spielberg became from 1820 a civilian prison. Under Franz Joseph I, the complex was again a military prison and barracks in 1855.
Fountain
The castle fountain is of medieval origin. In the years 1716 to 1717 its original depth was increased from 39 m to 112 m so that the ground was below the water level of the river Svratka in Old Brno. The upper part of the fountain is made of natural stone and bricks, while the lower part consists only of rocks. The average diameter is 3.5 m. The water level is 90 m, so that a water volume of more than 1,000 m³ is available. At the bottom of the well are two horizontal shafts with a length of 17 and 26 meters respectively.
By the Napoleonic troops, the well together with the destruction of the castle in 1809 was filled up but in the subsequent years it was exposed again. Above the well was a fountain house with a wooden wheel driven by convicts to bring up the water. This house was only abolished in the years 1939-1941 by the German Wehrmacht. The last cleaning work in the years 1990 and 1991 was connected with research, 308 m³ of material from the well were cleared. Interesting finds, which are exhibited in the Museum of the Castle, have been exposed. Among them is a skeleton of a soldier from the end of the 19th century. But his identity is unknown.
Near the well is a Baroque cistern, where the rain water of the surrounding roofs was caught.
Since 1990, on the rear wall of the castle courtyard, there is a clockwork consisting of 15 bells weighing between 16 kg and 220 kg.
Casemates
The casemates are laid out as a two-storey military dugout (for 1,200 men) with attached dungeon system below the castle buildings. From 1746 to 1749 Franz Freiherr von der Trenck was imprisoned here, his mortal remains are located in the crypt of the Capuchin monastery in Brno's old town. In 1783 Emperor Joseph II had the upper storey of the northern casemates rebuilt into a prison. In 1784 by imperial decree in the casemates of the lower story the sentenced for life have been quartered. In addition to this, 29 single-cells made of planks were built, in which the prisoners were forged to the wall. Spielberg became the most feared prison in the country. It was considered safe from outbreaks. Even the widely spread narrative of the only one escape from Spielberg prison castle of the very famous Czech robber Babinsky is just one of his numerous personal legends. This was spread by himself as a former Spielberg prisoner with the number 1042 after his release. In 1785, the upper storey of the southern casemates was also converted into a prison. From 1824 there was the Italian poet Silvio Pellico as a political prisoner. After his release in the autumn of 1830 he wrote his memoirs "Le mie prigioni", which made Spielberg's prison known throughout Europe.
In 1855, Emperor Franz Joseph I converted the former civil prison into a military prison. With the opening of the new penitentiary in Karthaus, 1857 the first felons were transferred there. In 1880 the casemates were made available to the public.
During the Second World War, the German army settled in in Spielberg. This led to considerable structural changes at the casemates in order to make them usable as a shelter. The Gestapo, in turn, also instituted here a notorious prison, where prisoners of resistance and opponents often died.
Today
During the years 1987 to 1992 comprehensive renovation work took place. The state of the eighteenth century was to be restored, so the time before the conversion of the fortress to the notorious dungeon of the Josephine period.
In addition to a tour of the dungeon and the casemates there are changing exhibitions and installations on the city and history with numerous documents in the castle's premises. A restaurant and a view tower in the inner part of the castle complex offer a nice panorama on parts of Brno. In the courtyard of the castle there are regularly concerts in the summer.
Festung Špilberk
Die Festung Spielberg (tschechisch: Špilberk) befindet sich im südmährischen Brünn in Tschechien. Sie hat eine wechselvolle Geschichte als mittelalterliche Burg, Festung, Kaserne und Gefängnis hinter sich. Heute befinden sich in ihr Ausstellungen und ein Restaurant. Die Anlage ist ein kultureller Ort und Ausflugsziel der Brünner Bevölkerung. Durch ihre Lage auf einer Anhöhe bietet sie einen guten Blick über die Stadt.
Lage
Grundriss der Festung Spielberg
Die ehemalige Festung Spielberg liegt auf einer Erhebung (282 m ü. NN) oberhalb der Altstadt von Brünn.
Geschichte
Festung
Die Burg Spielberg wurde in der zweiten Hälfte des 13. Jahrhunderts angelegt und machte im Laufe der Jahrhunderte einige Wandlungen durch. Anfangs war es die gotische Burg der böhmischen Könige und Sitz des mährischen Markgrafen. Mitte des 17. Jahrhunderts wurde sie zu einer mächtigen Barockfestung erweitert. Mitte des 18. Jahrhunderts bildete sie mit der damals ebenfalls befestigten Stadt Brünn das bedeutendste Bollwerk in Mähren.
Die 1742 fertiggestellten Kasematten waren ein wichtiger Teil der Festung. Sie sollten Schutz für ein 1200 Mann starkes militärisches Corps bieten. Letztlich waren hier jedoch nur Depots für militärisches Material untergebracht. Im Jahr 1783 wurde dort auf Beschluss Kaiser Josephs II., im Zuge der Reform des österreichischen Gefängniswesens ein Gefängnis für die gefährlichsten und schlimmsten Verbrecher eingerichtet. 1785 wurde auch der südliche Teil der Kasematten in ein Gefängnis umgebaut und leopoldinischer Trakt genannt. Die gemeinsame Nutzung als militärische Festung und ziviles Gefängnis war allerdings problematisch.
Nach der Zerstörung wichtiger Festungsteile durch das abziehende napoleonische Heer im Jahre 1809 verlor die Festung ihre militärische Bedeutung. Die gesamte Festung Spielberg wurde ab 1820 zu einem zivilen Gefängnis. Unter Franz Joseph I. wurde die Anlage 1855 wiederum ein Militärgefängnis und Kaserne.
Brunnen
Der Burgbrunnen ist mittelalterlichen Ursprungs. In den Jahren 1716 bis 1717 wurde seine ursprüngliche Tiefe von 39 m auf 112 m erhöht, sodass der Grund unter dem Wasserspiegel des Flusses Svratka in Alt-Brünn lag. Der obere Teil des Brunnens ist aus Naturstein und Ziegeln gemauert, während der untere Teil nur aus Felsen besteht. Der durchschnittliche Durchmesser beträgt 3,5 m. Der Wasserstand beträgt 90 m, sodass ein Wasservolumen von über 1.000 m³ zur Verfügung steht. Am Grund des Brunnens befinden sich zwei horizontale Schächte mit einer Länge von 17 bzw. 26 Metern.
Durch die napoleonischen Truppen wurde mit der Zerstörung der Burg 1809 auch der Brunnen zugeschüttet, in den Folgejahren allerdings wieder freigelegt. Oberhalb des Brunnens befand sich ein Brunnenhaus mit einem Holzrad, das von Sträflingen angetrieben wurde, um das Wasser heraufzuholen. Dieses Haus wurde erst in den Jahren 1939–1941 durch die deutsche Wehrmacht abgetragen. Die letzten Reinigungsarbeiten in den Jahren 1990 und 1991 waren mit Forschungen verbunden, dabei wurden 308 m³ Material aus dem Brunnen geräumt. Dabei wurden interessante Funde freigelegt, die im Museum der Burg ausgestellt sind. Unter diesen findet sich auch ein Skelett eines Soldaten aus dem Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts. Seine Identität ist aber unbekannt.
Nahe dem Brunnen liegt noch eine barocke Zisterne, in der das Regenwasser der umliegenden Dächer aufgefangen wurde.
Seit 1990 befindet sich an der Rückwand des Burghofes ein Glockenspiel, das aus 15 Glocken mit einem Gewicht zwischen 16 kg und 220 kg besteht.
Kasematten
Die Kasematten sind als zweistöckiger militärischer Unterstand (für 1.200 Mann) mit angeschlossener Kerkeranlage unterhalb der Burggebäude angelegt. 1746 bis 1749 wurde hier Franz Freiherr von der Trenck inhaftiert, seine sterblichen Überreste befinden sich in der Gruft des Kapuzinerklosters in der Brünner Altstadt. 1783 ließ Kaiser Joseph II. das obere Geschoss der nördlichen Kasematten in ein Gefängnis umbauen. 1784 wurden per kaiserlichem Dekret in den Kasematten des unteren Stockwerks die lebenslang Verurteilten einquartiert. Dazu entstanden 29 aus Brettern gezimmerte Einzelzellen, in denen die Gefangenen angeschmiedet wurden. Spielberg wurde zum gefürchtetsten Gefängnis des Landes. Es galt als ausbruchsicher. Selbst die landesweit verbreitete Erzählung von einem einzigen, jemals von der Burg Spielberg gelungenen Gefängnisausbruch des damals sehr berühmten tschechischen Räuber Babinsky ist nur eine seiner zahlreichen persönlichen Legenden. Diese wurde von ihm selbst als ehemaligem Spielberg-Häftling mit der Nummer 1042 nach seiner Entlassung verbreitet. 1785 wurde auch das obere Geschoss der südlichen Kasematten zum Gefängnis umgebaut. Ab 1824 war dort der italienische Dichter Silvio Pellico als politischer Gefangener. Nach seiner Freilassung im Herbst 1830 verfasste er seine Erinnerungen „Le mie prigioni“, die das Gefängnis von Spielberg in ganz Europa bekannt machten.
1855 wandelte Kaiser Franz Joseph I. das bisherige Zivil-Gefängnis in ein Militärgefängnis um. Mit der Eröffnung des neuen Zuchthauses in Karthaus wurden 1857 die ersten Schwerverbrecher dorthin überführt. 1880 wurden die Kasematten der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich gemacht.
Während des Zweiten Weltkriegs richtete sich die deutsche Wehrmacht in Spielberg ein. Diese führte an den Kasematten erhebliche bauliche Änderungen durch, um sie als Schutzkeller nutzbar zu machen. Auch die Gestapo richtete hier ein – wiederum berüchtigtes – Gefängnis ein um dort Widerstandskämpfer und Gegner einzusperren, die dort oftmals verstarben.
Heute
Während der Jahre 1987 bis 1992 fanden umfangreiche Renovierungsarbeiten statt. Es sollte der Zustand des ausgehenden 18. Jahrhunderts wiederhergestellt werden, also die Zeit vor dem Umbau der Festung zum berüchtigten Kerker der josephinischen Zeit.
Neben einem Rundgang durch den Kerker und die Kasematten befinden sich wechselnde Ausstellungen und Installationen zur Stadt und Geschichte mit zahlreichen Dokumenten in den Räumlichkeiten der Burg. Ein Restaurant und ein Aussichtsturm im inneren Teil der Burganlagen bieten ein schönes Panorama auf Teile Brünns. Im Hof der Burg finden im Sommer regelmäßig Konzerte statt.
A Flamingo in one of the salty pools of Floreana
Flamingo
The American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) is a large species of flamingo closely related to the Greater Flamingo and Chilean Flamingo. It has also been known as the Caribbean Flamingo, but the species' presence in the Galápagos makes that name problematic. The American Flamingo breeds in the Galápagos Islands, coastal Colombia and Venezuela and nearby islands, the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, and in the northern Caribbean in the Bahamas, Hispaniola, Cuba and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Most sightings in southern Florida are usually considered to be escapees, although at least one bird banded as a chick in the Yucatán Peninsula has been sighted in Everglades National Park, and others may be genuine wanderers from Cuba. Its preferred habitats are similar to that of its relatives: saline lagoons, mudflats, and shallow brackish coastal or inland lakes. Like all flamingos, it lays a single chalky white egg on a mud mound, between May and August; incubation until hatching takes from 28 to 32 days; both parents brood the young for a period of up to 6 years when they reach sexual maturity. Their life expectancy of 40 years is one of the longest in birds. The American Flamingo is 120–140 cm (47–55 in) in length; males weigh 2.8 kg (6.2 lb) and females 2.2 kg (4.9 lb) kg. Most of its plumage is pink, giving rise to its earlier name of Rosy Flamingo and differentiating adults from the much paler Greater Flamingo. The wing coverts are red, and the primary and secondary flight feathers are black. It is the only flamingo which naturally inhabits North America. The bill is pink and white with a restricted black tip, and the legs are entirely pink. The call is a goose-like honking.
Floreana (Cormorant Point)
Located approximately 4 to 5 hours west of Española and equal distance south of Santa Cruz, this island has long been a favorite site of visitors including pirates, whalers and early settlers. One of the oldest islands Floreana illustrates the aging process of a volcanic island. Unlike the younger western islands, Floreana's volcano has been long extinct and is in the advanced stages of erosion. The erosion process gave the island the nutrients and soils need to sustain plant life. The combination of this rich soil and a good water supply have given the highlands of Floreana a diversified landscaping of native and introduced flora. Floreana is best known for its colorful history of buccaneers, whalers, convicts, and colonists. In 1793 British whalers established the Post Office Barrel to send letters to and from England. This tradition has continued over the years, and even today visitors may drop off and pick up letters, without stamps, to be carried to far destinations. Punta Cormorant offers two highly contrasting beaches. The landing beach is of volcanic origin and is composed of olivine crystals, giving it a greenish tinge. At the end of the short trail is a carbonate beach of extremely fine white sand. Formed by the erosion of coral skeletons, it is a nesting site for green sea turtles. In the 1930's Floreana was the setting for intrigue and mystery. A German dentist and his mistress, a young family (the Wittmer family who still live on the island) and a self-styled baroness with three men came to settle in the island. Shortly after the baroness and her lovers arrived chaos began. The baroness and her entourage terrorized the other inhabitants while planning to build a luxury hotel. Eventually the baroness, two of her lovers and the dentist all turned up missing or dead. There has been much investigation searching for what really happened on Floreana, but there have never been any hard answers. John Treherne wrote of these people in "The Galapagos Affair". The visit to Punta Cormorant offers two contrasting beaches. Arriving on shore you will encounter a green sand beach (the green sand is caused by the olivine crystals derived silicates or magnesium and iron) from here you will follow the trail leading to a lagoon where pink flamingoes and other shore birds can be seen in the distance making their home. Looking into the mud of the lagoon there appears to be 'cracks' in the mud. These cracks are not caused from dryness but are actually the footpaths of flamingos. This is also a good spot for seeing large-billed flycatchers, small-ground finch, medium-ground finch or cactus finch. The walk continues to another beach on the other side made of fine white sand particles known as "Flour Beach". In the waters ghost crabs and rays can be seen swimming.
Galapagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands (official name: Archipiélago de Colón; other Spanish names: Islas de Colón or Islas Galápagos) are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, some 900 km west of Ecuador. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site: wildlife is its most notable feature. Because of the only very recent arrival of man the majority of the wildlife has no fear of humans and will allow visitors to walk right up them, often having to step over Iguanas or Sea Lions.The Galápagos islands and its surrounding waters are part of a province, a national park, and a biological marine reserve. The principal language on the islands is Spanish. The islands have a population of around 40,000, which is a 40-fold expansion in 50 years. The islands are geologically young and famed for their vast number of endemic species, which were studied by Charles Darwin during the voyage of the Beagle. His observations and collections contributed to the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection.
Closest remaining thing in Leeds to the problematic Leek Street Flats of Hunslet that were bulldozed within 14 years (1968 to 1982) This shared an eerily coincidental timeline to the similar and infamous Divis Flats of Belfast.
Chaunograptus contortus Ruedemann, 1947 - problematic graptolites(?) encrusting a limestone paleocobble from the Ordovician of Indiana, USA. (Rich Fuchs collection)
Graptolites are an extinct group of hemichordates that are most commonly preserved as carbonized compressions on shale bedding planes. They are typically not glamorous fossils, but they are critically important guide fossils and are widely used in biostratigraphy and for international correlation.
The most abundant group of graptolites in the fossil record is the graptoloids. Graptoloid graptolites typically resemble small hacksaw blades. Each “tooth” of the hacksaw blades housed a tentaculate, filter-feeding organism. The entire hacksaw blade is the graptolite skeleton, known as a rhabdosome - a nonmineralized colonial skeleton. Most graptolites were planktonic.
The second most abundant group of graptolites is the dendroids. Dendroid graptolites attached to substrates and had colonial skeletons (rhabdosomes) that are generally broadly branching (conical to fan-shaped to shrub-like to flat spirals).
Other graptolite groups are very rare: the crustoids, tuboids, camaroids, and stolonoids.
The fossils seen here are examples of Chaunograptus, a small, uncommon, obscure, black-colored, encrusting fossil organism. The genus includes several nominal species that may or may not be true graptolites.
--------------
The following is a synthesis of information about Chaunograptus that was provided by Rich Fuchs during presentations at Dry Dredgers meetings in November 1997 and May 2010:
There are 5 or 6 species of Cincinnatian Chaunograptus named. Most are Liberty Formation forms. Most are based on one specimen. Most of the holotypes are now missing (museum-wise). The Smithsonian renumbered their collections a while ago and lost the Chaunograptus. One was lost in a Dayton flood. Few holotypes are left. Chaunograptus are extremely fragile - they are not often found.
Chaunograptus is an encruster that may not be a graptolite. It is fairly rare and easily overlooked. It is more likely to be found in the Richmondian Stage (upper Cincinnatian Series, Upper Ordovician), especially encrusting brachiopod shells. Chaunograptus is classified as a dendroid graptolite or uncertain. There are several species, but some don't look like the rest. Rudolf Ruedemann listed 11 species in his 1947 book "Graptolites of North America" - 7 of these species are Upper Ordovician - 6 species are Cincinnatian. Now we're down to five species. Two of these species are synonymous, according to John Taylor's 1974 University of Cincinnati Master's thesis on Cincinnatian graptolites. Taylor's thesis says that Chaunograptus shideleri is the same as Chaunograptus delicatus. Most of the species are from the Richmondian Stage. Chaunograptus fossils have been found at the Newport Shopping Center. Rich Fuchs has found what he calls Chaunograptus contortus and Chaunograptus delicatus in the Kope Formation (Edenian Stage, lower Cincinnatian Series, Upper Ordovician). This is probably a form whose ranges are not well known.
Chaunograptus contortus - encrusting black spots on nodules. Twisted thecae with extremely thin lines (nemas). Rich Fuchs has found Chaunograptus contortus in the Kope Formation, but it was described from the Liberty Formation (Richmondian Stage, upper Cincinnatian Series, Upper Ordovician). The type specimen is missing - it couldn't be found by Taylor.
Chaunograptus delicatus - the type specimen is encrusting a nodule; thicker lines than Chaunograptus contortus; the lines trail around; occasional thecae structures; the lines move out from a central point. This species was also first described from the Liberty Formation. It occurs in the Liberty Fm. and the Whitewater Formation (upper Richmondian Stage, upper Cincinnatian Series, upper Upper Ordovician). The type specimen is known.
Chaunograptus vermiformis - Liberty Formation. The type specimen is in the Smithsonian - it's been renumbered, but it has been found.
Chaunograptus macrothecae - Grant Lake Formation (Cincinnatian Series, Upper Ordovician). Type specimen can't be found.
Chaunograptus gemmatus - Kope Formation. The type specimen (one specimen) is known.
--------------------
Classification: Animalia, Graptolithina?
Stratigraphy: Kope Formation, Edenian Stage, Upper Ordovician
Locality: Dearborn County, Indiana, USA
A Flamingo in one of the salty pools of Floreana
Flamingo
The American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) is a large species of flamingo closely related to the Greater Flamingo and Chilean Flamingo. It has also been known as the Caribbean Flamingo, but the species' presence in the Galápagos makes that name problematic. The American Flamingo breeds in the Galápagos Islands, coastal Colombia and Venezuela and nearby islands, the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, and in the northern Caribbean in the Bahamas, Hispaniola, Cuba and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Most sightings in southern Florida are usually considered to be escapees, although at least one bird banded as a chick in the Yucatán Peninsula has been sighted in Everglades National Park, and others may be genuine wanderers from Cuba. Its preferred habitats are similar to that of its relatives: saline lagoons, mudflats, and shallow brackish coastal or inland lakes. Like all flamingos, it lays a single chalky white egg on a mud mound, between May and August; incubation until hatching takes from 28 to 32 days; both parents brood the young for a period of up to 6 years when they reach sexual maturity. Their life expectancy of 40 years is one of the longest in birds. The American Flamingo is 120–140 cm (47–55 in) in length; males weigh 2.8 kg (6.2 lb) and females 2.2 kg (4.9 lb) kg. Most of its plumage is pink, giving rise to its earlier name of Rosy Flamingo and differentiating adults from the much paler Greater Flamingo. The wing coverts are red, and the primary and secondary flight feathers are black. It is the only flamingo which naturally inhabits North America. The bill is pink and white with a restricted black tip, and the legs are entirely pink. The call is a goose-like honking.
Floreana (Cormorant Point)
Located approximately 4 to 5 hours west of Española and equal distance south of Santa Cruz, this island has long been a favorite site of visitors including pirates, whalers and early settlers. One of the oldest islands Floreana illustrates the aging process of a volcanic island. Unlike the younger western islands, Floreana's volcano has been long extinct and is in the advanced stages of erosion. The erosion process gave the island the nutrients and soils need to sustain plant life. The combination of this rich soil and a good water supply have given the highlands of Floreana a diversified landscaping of native and introduced flora. Floreana is best known for its colorful history of buccaneers, whalers, convicts, and colonists. In 1793 British whalers established the Post Office Barrel to send letters to and from England. This tradition has continued over the years, and even today visitors may drop off and pick up letters, without stamps, to be carried to far destinations. Punta Cormorant offers two highly contrasting beaches. The landing beach is of volcanic origin and is composed of olivine crystals, giving it a greenish tinge. At the end of the short trail is a carbonate beach of extremely fine white sand. Formed by the erosion of coral skeletons, it is a nesting site for green sea turtles. In the 1930's Floreana was the setting for intrigue and mystery. A German dentist and his mistress, a young family (the Wittmer family who still live on the island) and a self-styled baroness with three men came to settle in the island. Shortly after the baroness and her lovers arrived chaos began. The baroness and her entourage terrorized the other inhabitants while planning to build a luxury hotel. Eventually the baroness, two of her lovers and the dentist all turned up missing or dead. There has been much investigation searching for what really happened on Floreana, but there have never been any hard answers. John Treherne wrote of these people in "The Galapagos Affair". The visit to Punta Cormorant offers two contrasting beaches. Arriving on shore you will encounter a green sand beach (the green sand is caused by the olivine crystals derived silicates or magnesium and iron) from here you will follow the trail leading to a lagoon where pink flamingoes and other shore birds can be seen in the distance making their home. Looking into the mud of the lagoon there appears to be 'cracks' in the mud. These cracks are not caused from dryness but are actually the footpaths of flamingos. This is also a good spot for seeing large-billed flycatchers, small-ground finch, medium-ground finch or cactus finch. The walk continues to another beach on the other side made of fine white sand particles known as "Flour Beach". In the waters ghost crabs and rays can be seen swimming.
Galapagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands (official name: Archipiélago de Colón; other Spanish names: Islas de Colón or Islas Galápagos) are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, some 900 km west of Ecuador. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site: wildlife is its most notable feature. Because of the only very recent arrival of man the majority of the wildlife has no fear of humans and will allow visitors to walk right up them, often having to step over Iguanas or Sea Lions.The Galápagos islands and its surrounding waters are part of a province, a national park, and a biological marine reserve. The principal language on the islands is Spanish. The islands have a population of around 40,000, which is a 40-fold expansion in 50 years. The islands are geologically young and famed for their vast number of endemic species, which were studied by Charles Darwin during the voyage of the Beagle. His observations and collections contributed to the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection.
Dharamshala (also Dharamsala) is a city and a municipal council in Kangra district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is the district headquarters. It was formerly known as Bhagsu. The Dalai Lama's residence in McLeodGanj and the headquarters of Central Tibetan Administration (the Tibetan government in exile) are in Dharamshala. Dharamshala is 18 kilometres from Kangra.
DESCRIPTION
Dharamshala is a city in the upper reaches of the Kangra Valley and is surrounded by dense coniferous forest consisting mainly of stately Deodar cedar trees. The suburbs include McLeodGanj, Bhagsunath, Dharamkot, Naddi, ForsythGanj, Kotwali Bazaar (the main market), Kaccheri Adda (government offices such as the court, police, post, etc.), Dari, Ramnagar, Sidhpur, and Sidhbari (where the Karmapa is based).
The village of McLeodGanj, lying in the upper reaches, is known worldwide for the presence of the Dalai Lama. On 29 April 1959, the 14th Dalai Lama (Tenzin Gyatso) established the Tibetan exile administration in the north Indian hill station of Mussoorie. In May 1960, the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) was moved to Dharamshala.
Dharamshala is the centre of the Tibetan exile world in India. Following the 1959 Tibetan uprising there was an influx of Tibetan refugees who followed the 14th Dalai Lama. His presence and the Tibetan population has made Dharamshala a popular destination for Indian and foreign tourists, including students studying Tibet.
One of the main attractions of Dharamshala is Triund hill. Jewel of Dharamshala, Triund is one day trek at the upper reaches of McLeodGanj, about 9 km from McLeodGanj.
ETYMOLOGY
Dharamshala (Devanagari: धर्मशाला; ITRANS: Dharmashaalaa; IAST: Dharmaśālā) is a Hindi word (derived from Sanskrit) that is a compound of dharma (धर्म) and shālā (शाला). A loose translation into English would be 'spiritual dwelling' or, more loosely, 'sanctuary'. Rendering a precise literal translation into English is problematic due to the vast and conceptually rich semantic field of the word dharma[1] and the cultural aspect of India.
In common Hindi usage, the word dharamshala refers to a shelter or rest house for spiritual pilgrims. Traditionally, such dharamshalas (pilgrims' rest houses) were commonly constructed near pilgrimage destinations (often in remote areas) to give visitors a place to sleep for the night. When the first permanent settlement was created in the place now called Dharamshala, there was one such pilgrims' rest house on the site, and the settlement took its name from that dharamshala.
HISTORY
BEFORE THE RAJ
From the earliest times until the British Raj, Dharamshala and its surrounding area was ruled by the Katoch Dynasty of Kangra. The Katoch Dynasty is said to be the oldest serving Royal Family in the world. The Royal Family still keeps a residence in Dharamshala, known as 'Clouds End Villa'.
The indigenous people of the Dharamshala area (and the surrounding region) are the Gaddis, a predominantly Hindu group who traditionally lived a nomadic or semi-nomadic (transhumant) lifestyle. Due to the lack of permanent settlements in the area, some Gaddis lost their seasonal pastures and farmland when the British and the Gurkhas arrived to settle.
In 1848, the area now known as Dharamshala was annexed by the British.
"Dharamsāla lies on a spur of the Dhaola Dhār, 16 miles north-east of Kāngra, in the midst of wild and picturesque scenery. It originally formed a subsidiary cantonment for the troops stationed at Kāngra, and was first occupied as a station in 1849, when a site was required for a cantonment to accommodate a Native regiment which was being raised in the District. A site was found upon the slopes of the Dhaola Dhār, in a plot of waste land, upon which stood an old Hindu resthouse, or dharmsāla, whence the name adopted for the new cantonment. The civil authorities, following the example of the regimental officers, and attracted by the advantages of climate and scenery, built themselves houses in the neighbourhood of the cantonment; and in 1855 the new station was formally recognised as the head-quarters of the [Kāngra] District."
In 1860, the 66th Gurkha Light Infantry was moved from Kangra, Himachal Pradesh to Dharamshala, which was at first made a subsidiary cantonment. An ideal position for the new base was found on the slopes of the Dhauladhar Hills, near the site of a Hindu sanctuary, or Dharamshala, hence the name of the town. The Battalion was later renamed the historic 1st Gurkha Rifles, this was the beginning of the legend of the Gurkhas, also known as the 'Bravest of the Brave'. Consequently, fourteen Gurkha platoon villages grew from this settlement, and exist to this day, namely Dari, Ramnagar, Shyamnagar, Dal, Totarani, Khanyara, Sadher, Chaandmaari, Sallagarhi, Sidhbari, Yol, and so on. The Gurkhas worshipped at the ancient Shiva temple of Bhagsunag. The Gurkhas referred to Dharamshala as 'Bhagsu' and referred to themselves as Bhagsuwalas.
The 21st Gurkha Regiment from Dharamshala performed heroic feats during World War I and the North West Frontier Province campaigns. The Gurkha cantonment then reached its zenith during World War II, when battalions from Dharamshala made history. Many place names in the town still retain their former cantonment terminologies: Depot Bazaar, Pensioners' Lines, Tirah Lines (named after the 19th century Tirah Campaign), Bharatpore Lines (named after the 1826 Battle of Bharatpore).
The second Lord Elgin, Viceroy of India died here (at the 1st Gurkha Rifles Officers' Mess) in 1863 and is buried in the cemetery of St. John in the Wilderness, a small Anglican church distinguished by its stained-glass windows. Dharamshala became a popular hill station for the British working in or near Delhi, offering a cool respite during the hot summer months.
"Before the earthquake of 1905, the upper part of the station, which rises to a height of 2,168 metres, contained the European houses, the station church, and the officers' mess and lines of the 1st Gurkhas, together with the public gardens, post office, and two bazars, the Forsythganj and McLeodganj. The public offices, a bazar, and a few European houses made up the lower station, as low as 1,372 metres. The 1st battalion of the 1st Gurkhas used to be stationed here, but was moved to the upper station in 1894-5.... The public gardens, which were, before the earthquake, laid out with much taste in lawns and terraces, contained a valuable collection of indigenous and imported trees and shrubs, and were overlooked by the Assembly Rooms, a handsome building comprising a public hall, a library and reading-room and a billiard-room. The church was beautifully situated in a recess of the mountain."
In 1905, the Kangra valley suffered a major earthquake. On April 4 of that year, the earth shook, demolishing much of the cantonment and the neighbouring city of Kangra, Himachal Pradesh as well as the Bhagsunag temple. Altogether, the 1905 Kangra earthquake killed 20,000 people. "1,625 persons perished at Dharamsāla alone, including 15 Europeans and 112 of the Gurkha garrison."."
The Gurkhas rebuilt the town along with the temple, which today is acknowledged as the 1st Gurkha Rifles' heritage. The British had planned to make Dharamshala the summer capital of India, but moved to Shimla after the disaster.
Not only did the Gurkhas of Dharmshala make a major contribution to India's defence, many were freedom fighters for the Indian National Army, which had been founded by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The Indian National Army Captain Ram Singh Thakur, a Gurkha from the village of Khanyara, composed some of India's most popular and stirring patriotic songs, including "Kadam Kadam Badaye Ja". He is acknowledged so by the Netaji Research Bureau, Kolkata. The important contribution of the noted Gurkha social commentator, the late Master Mitrasen Thapa, from the village of Totarani, has been acknowledged by the Himachal Pradesh government. Recently, a park dedicated to the memory of the late Brigadier Sher Jung Thapa, MVC, the 'Hero of Skardu', has been opened alongside the road between Lower and Upper Dharamshala.
ESTABLISHMENT OF TIBETAN EXILE COMMUNITY
The Tibetan settlement of Dharamshala began in 1959, when His Holiness the Dalai Lama had to flee Tibet and the Prime Minister of India allowed him and his followers to settle in McLeodGanj (in Upper Dharmshala), a former colonial British summer picnic spot. There they established the "government-in-exile" in 1960. Dharamshala had been connected with Hinduism and Buddhism for a long time, many monasteries having been established there in the past, by Tibetan immigrants in the 19th century.In 1970, The Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, opened the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives which houses over 80,000 manuscripts and other important resources related to Tibetan history, politics and culture. It is considered one of the most important institutions for Tibetology in the world, the new director is Geshe Lahkdor, the old translator of H.H. the Dalai Lama.
Several thousand Tibetan exiles have now settled in the area, and most live in and around McLeodGanj in Upper Dharamshala, where they have built monasteries, temples and schools. McLeodGanj is sometimes known as 'Little Lhasa", after the Tibetan capital city, or 'Dhasa' (a compound of 'Dharamshala' and 'Lhasa'). It has become an important tourist destination with many hotels and restaurants, leading to growth in tourism and commerce.
Dharamshala is the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh. The Legislative Assembly is at Sidhbari, near the Chinmaya Tapovan Ashram, and the winter sessions of the Government are held there.
GEOGRAPHY
Dharamshala has an average elevation of 1457 metres, covering an area of almost 8.51 km².
Dharamsala is located in the Kangra Valley, in the shadow of the Dhauladhar mountains.
The city is divided into two distinct sections. Kotwali Bazaar and the surrounding markets are referred to as "Lower Dharamshala" or just "Dharamshala." Further up the mountain is McLeodGanj separated in between by the village of Ganchen Kyishong, the home of the Tibetan government-in-exile. A steep, narrow road connects McLeodGanj from Dharamshala and is only accessible to taxis and small cars, while a longer road winds around the valley for use by buses and trucks. McLeodGanj is surrounded by pine, Himalayan oak, and rhododendron.
The main crops grown in the valleys below are rice, wheat and tea.
CONNECTIONS
Dharamshala town is reached by Gaggal Airport, (IATA: DHM, ICAO: VIGG), about 15 km to the town's south and about 10 km north of Kangra, Himachal Pradesh town. To reach Dharamshala by train, one has to reach Kangra, Himachal Pradesh town by Kangra Valley Railway line from Pathankot 94 km away and then take a bus or a taxi.
Pathankot is a broad gauge railway head. There is another railway line from Pathankot to Jogindernagar, a part of the Mandi District of Himachal Pradesh, which is a narrow-gauge line. The nearest station to Dharamshala on this line is Chamunda Marg, half an hour away, where a Shaktipitha is; the town is well connected by road to other parts of the country.
Buses of all classes (deluxe, air-conditioned, and regular) drive daily between Dharamshala and major cities such as Chandigarh, Delhi, and Shimla. Several buses each night connect McLeodGanj with Majnu Ka Tila, the Tibetan settlement in Delhi.
CLIMATE
Dharamshala has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Cwa). Summer starts in early April, peaks in early June (when temperatures can reach 36 °C) and last till mid-June. From July to mid-September is the monsoon season when up to 3000 mm of rainfall can be experienced, making Dharamshala one of the wettest places in the state. Autumn is mild and lasts from October to the end of November.
Autumn temperatures average around 16–17 °C. Winter starts in December and continues until late February. Snow and sleet are common during the winter in upper Dharamshala (including McLeodganj, Bhagsu Nag and Naddi). Lower Dharamshala receives little solid precipitation except hail. The snowfall of January 7, 2012 was an exception. It was caused by deep low pressure entering the Kangra district. Winter is followed by a short, pleasant spring until April. Historically, the Dhauladhar mountains used to remain snow-covered all year long, however, in recent years they have been losing their snow blanket during dry spells.
The best times to visit are the autumn and spring months.
TREKKING
Dharamshala is a starting point to a number of trekking trails that especially lead trekkers across Dhauladhar into the upper Ravi Valley and Chamba district. En route, you cross through forests of deodar, pine, oak and rhododendron, and pass streams and rivers and wind along vertiginous cliff tracks, and the occasional lake waterfall and glacier.
A 2-km amble takes one to Bhagsu, and then a further 3-km walk will lead the trekkers to Dharamkot. If one wishes to go on a longer walk then he/she can trek 8-km to Triund. The snow line of Ilaqa Got is just a 5-km walk.
Other trekking trails that lead you to Chamba from Dharamshala are:
Toral Pass (4575m) which begins from Tang Narwana (1150m) that is nearly 10 km from Dharamshala
Across Bhimghasutri Pass (4580m) via near-vertical rocky ascents, steep cliffs and dangerous gorges. This is a highly difficult level trek and takes around six days to complete.
Dharamshala - Bleni Pass (3710m) – Dunali. Compared to other trekking trails, this one is much easier and takes around four or five-days to complete. The trek leads you through alpine pastures, woods, and streams, before ending at Dunali, on the Chamba road.
Dharamshala is an ideal destination for rock climbing enthusiasts. One can go rock climbing over the ridges of the Dhauladhar range.
Kareri Lake (near Kareri Village) is also a famous trekking destination for travellers.
PLACES OF ATTRACTION
Naam Art Gallery The exhibition in ‘NAAM ART GALLERY’ exhibits paintings by Elsbeth Buschmann - watercolours and acrylics - and oil paintings by Alfred W. Hallett. Elsbeth Buschmann, is a professional painter from Germany, having studied painting in London and Paris . She lived in many countries where she held exhibitions, especially in the USA where she received various awards. Her paintings are in private collections in Germany, USA, Scotland, India and Switzerland. In India she held solo exhibitions at AIFAX, New Delhi and TAG, the Art Gallery of the Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai. She also took part in ‘The Himalayan National Exhibition of Art’ and was awarded. Open 10am to 7.00pm (Monday Closed)
Masrur (or Masroor): The major attraction of this place is the fifteen exquisitely carved monolithic rock temples dating back to the 8th century. The carvings of these temples are similar to Kailash temple at Ellora. In the sanctum of the main temple, one can find images of Lord Ram, and the Goddesses Sita and Lakshmi. Masrur is 40 km south of Kangra, Himachal Pradesh at 32°4′22″N 76°8′14″E. Template:Jama Masjid, Kotwali Bazar, Dharamshala.
Bhagsu Waterfall: This waterfall is in Bhagsu, 2 km from McLeodGanj. It lies behind the Bhagsunag Temple. During Monsoon, the fall turns into a 30 feet cascade.
Bhagsunag Temple: Temple of god Shiva situated around 2 km from McLeodGanj Bazaar. Constructed by 1 GR by around 1800 century and then worshipped majorly by 14 Gukha platoon villages in Dharamshala. Very next to Bhagsunag temple is a water fall, one of the major tourist attraction spot in Dharamshala.
Kangra Museum: Situated close to the bus stand, Kangra Art Museum is a unique museum displaying the artifacts of Tibetan and Buddhist cultures. This is a treasure of Kangra valley’s cultural past, crafts, arts and other ancient artifacts. Some of the displayed items in the museum are dating back to the 5th century.
Kangra Museum encloses a gallery consisting of miniature paintings of Kangra’s rich past, pottery, rare coin memorabilia, sculptures and anthropological materials. It has a varied collection of tribal jewelry, embroidered costumes and wood carvings. A section dedicated to contemporary artworks adds the attraction to the museum.
Tourists can easily reach by bus or taxi and it will take 30 mins to one hour to see the museum. While visiting the museum, never miss to explore the Kotwali bazar.
Kunal Pathri Temple: This temple is dedicated to Goddess Kalpeshwari and is 3 km from the Kotwali Bazaar. It's believed that a part of Goddess Sati's skull fell here when Lord Shiva was carrying the charred body of the Goddess; hence the name of the temple.
Chamunda Temple: This temple is around 15 km from Dharamshala on the right bank of river Baner on the Mandi-Pathankot highway. According to mythology, Goddess Kali killed the demons Chand and Mund at this place.
Dal Lake: The Lake is spread in an area of 1 km and is bounded by rhododendrons, deodars, and junipers forest. Annually, a fair is held at the Kali Temple near the Lake. There is another temple close to the lake that is dedicated to sage Durvasa. Dal Lake is 2 km walk westwards from McLeodGanj bazaar.
Triund: Triund is nestled in the foothills of Dhauladhar and is around 17 km from Dharamshala. It's a trekking destination from McLeodGanj, and offers magnificent vistas of the mountains and valleys. The nightstays are in the hoods, small time caves, that local gaddis with their goat herds use as shelters from rains during the daytime.
Naddi: This scenic picnic spot is located 5 km northwest of McLeodGanj. Naddi offers a spectacular view of the Kangra valley. You can trek to Kareri Lake, Triund, and Guna Devi from here. It's becoming a popular destination for nature lovers.
Thaneek Pura or Thanik Pura is a hill station village (hamlet) in Chintpurni in the Una district of the state of Himachal Pradesh in India. It is near the Chintpurni Temple, which is a place of pilgrimage for both Hindus and Sikhs. The area is surrounded by the western Himalayas in the north and east in the smaller Shiwalik (or Shivalik) range bordering the state of Punjab.
McLeodGanj is around 9 km from Dharamshala. This place is famous for its markets, where one can shop for handicraft items, eat Tibetan food and visit statue of Lord Buddha.
Sidhbari : A village located 6 km from Dharamshala near Yol Cantonment and a place of historical spiritual significance. Attractions around Sidhbari include the Kapila Muni Cave, Chinmaya Ashram, Gyuto monastery, Aganjar Mahadev Temple and the newly constructed State legislature. The agricultural hamlet of Rakkar nearby is an ideal base to explore the rest of the Kangra district and experience the traditional lifestyle and mud architecture of the Gaddi community.
Adi Shakti Temple, Naddi
Aghanjar Mahadev
Bhagsu waterfall
Bhagsunath
Sheela Chowk
Bir - Popular destination for ecotourism, meditation studies, volunteering, and paragliding at Billing.
Brajeshwari Devi Temple
Chamunda Devi Mandir
Chinmaya Tapovan
Chime Gyatsarling Monastery, just behind of Norbulingka Institute, upper Sidhpur. 6 km from Dharmshala and 14 km from Gagal airport.
Dal Lake
Dari
Gopalpur Zoo and tea gardens
Dehra Gopipur
Dharamkot (2100 m)
Guna Devi Mandir amidst dense forest
Historical fort in Old Kangra, Himachal Pradesh. Adjoining the Fort is the Maharaja Sansar Chandra Museum, run by the Kangra Royal Family. The Museum provides audio guides for the fort and the museum.
Haripur Village (near Guler)
Pong Dam Lake
Indru Nag Temple
Kareri Lake
Khaniyara
Kunal Pathri
Lam Dal Lake
Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
Masrur (rock temple)
Namgyal Monastery
Narghota
Norbulingka Institute
Nurpur
Sidhbari
Church of St. John in the Wilderness
Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts
Triund (2975 m), a popular day hike or overnight trek. There is a forest rest house for overnight stay.
Tatwani and Machhrial
Trilokpur
Chime Gyatseling Monastery (Guru Padmasambhava)
Near Norbulingka Tibetan Institute
Jama Masjid kotwalibazar Dharamshala
WIKIPEDIA
Tetradium [or Prismostylus] sp. from the Ordovician of Ohio, USA. (Jack Kallmeyer collection)
Tetradium is a problematic fossil organism that superficially resembles a coral. It has distinctive, often quadrate to tetradiate to four-leaf clover-shaped, corallite-like structures (click on the above photo to zoom in and look around). Tetradium has been identified as a coral (cnidarian) or a chaetetid sponge (poriferan) or a red alga (rhodophyte). Some prefer replacing the name "Tetradium" with "Prismostylus".
This Late Ordovician-aged Tetradium mass was found associated with stromatoporoid sponges.
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Exhibit info.:
What are stromatoporoids?
For many years, paleontologists weren't certain how to classify fossils called stromatoporoids. These fossils all had shared characteristics with each other but no modern analogue was known. Early classifications grouped these fossils with coelenterates, the group of animals that include the corals in the Phylum Cnidaria. In the 1960s, divers found a different kind of sponge called a sclerosponge that closely resembles the stromatoporoids. New classifications place the stromatoporoids as a class in the Order Sclerospongiae in the Phylum Porifera (the group containing the sponges).
The stromatoporoids secrete a calcareous skeleton that forms mounds, columnal forms, and even encrusting forms. These were not soft sponges like bath sponges. The actual living tissue is only at the surface of the structure and at most a few millimeters below the surface. The rest of the structure is the older "dead" part of the colony. Like other sponges, the stromatoporoids were filter feeders moving water through the living tissue in order to trap tiny food particles. Some fossil stromatoporoids have small ridges radiating in a starburst pattern (astrorhizae) away from raised surface bumps (mamelons). These radiating patterns are thought to be the remnants of the canals used to move water through the animal. In forms where these structures appear absent (like those shown in this display), it is thought that the astrorhizae canals existed only in the soft tissue of the animal and thus were not preserved.
In examining these specimens, you will note that stromatoporoids grow in layers. Stromatoporoids should not be confused with stromatolites, even though both are layered. The organisms that create stromatolites are various types of bacteria.
The massive forms of stromatoporoids were significant contributors to reef formation. In some parts of the Ordovician south towards Lexington, Kentucky, large stromatoporoids can be seen in roadcuts along Interstate-75 as light colored oval boulders in the gray matrix. These forms can be several feet in diameter. While the specimens displayed here were not these large reef formers, they appear to have covered a significant area of the sea floor.
A stromatoporoid required a hard surface to begin growing and any hard surface, regardless of size, was apparently sufficient. They may have begun growing on fragments of shells on the sea floor. Considering the ultimate size of these sponges, they could quickly outgrow a small substrate and become supported by the sea floor itself. On muddy bottoms, the stromatoporoid could sink in to some degree as it grew. Stromatoporoids also grew on top of other stromatoporoids.
This display contains stromatoporoids from a single locality in the Elkhorn Formation south of Dayton, Ohio. All of the specimens are classified in the genus Labechia, which has an internal structure of pillars and cysts.
While all specimens are in the same genus, they exhibit different growth habits. This could be an indication of different species being represented or it could alternately mean that three was an environmental change that altered the growth habit of a single species.
In general, we find two forms in this locality: 1) a lighter colored form with prominent mamelons and broad growth bands; and 2) a dark form with very low mamelons and narrow growth bands. The dark form occurs in a restricted band of dark shale.
One of the unique features of this occurrence is the preservation. Unlike stromatoporoids from other formations in the Cincinnatian that are calcitic, these stromatoporoids are silicified.
A few other types of fossil fauna were found with the stromatoporoids at this location but not many. Prismostylus, as seen here, a calcareous algae (formerly known as Tetradium coral) was the most significant of the associated organisms. This specimen is is growing upward forming a massive structure.
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Classification: Incertae Sedis (Cnidaria or Porifera or Rhodophyta ?)
Stratigraphy: Elkhorn Formation, upper Richmondian Stage, upper Cincinnatian Series, upper Upper Ordovician
Locality: undisclosed site south of Dayton, southwestern Ohio, USA
Dharamshala (also Dharamsala) is a city and a municipal council in Kangra district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is the district headquarters. It was formerly known as Bhagsu. The Dalai Lama's residence in McLeodGanj and the headquarters of Central Tibetan Administration (the Tibetan government in exile) are in Dharamshala. Dharamshala is 18 kilometres from Kangra.
DESCRIPTION
Dharamshala is a city in the upper reaches of the Kangra Valley and is surrounded by dense coniferous forest consisting mainly of stately Deodar cedar trees. The suburbs include McLeodGanj, Bhagsunath, Dharamkot, Naddi, ForsythGanj, Kotwali Bazaar (the main market), Kaccheri Adda (government offices such as the court, police, post, etc.), Dari, Ramnagar, Sidhpur, and Sidhbari (where the Karmapa is based).
The village of McLeodGanj, lying in the upper reaches, is known worldwide for the presence of the Dalai Lama. On 29 April 1959, the 14th Dalai Lama (Tenzin Gyatso) established the Tibetan exile administration in the north Indian hill station of Mussoorie. In May 1960, the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) was moved to Dharamshala.
Dharamshala is the centre of the Tibetan exile world in India. Following the 1959 Tibetan uprising there was an influx of Tibetan refugees who followed the 14th Dalai Lama. His presence and the Tibetan population has made Dharamshala a popular destination for Indian and foreign tourists, including students studying Tibet.
One of the main attractions of Dharamshala is Triund hill. Jewel of Dharamshala, Triund is one day trek at the upper reaches of McLeodGanj, about 9 km from McLeodGanj.
ETYMOLOGY
Dharamshala (Devanagari: धर्मशाला; ITRANS: Dharmashaalaa; IAST: Dharmaśālā) is a Hindi word (derived from Sanskrit) that is a compound of dharma (धर्म) and shālā (शाला). A loose translation into English would be 'spiritual dwelling' or, more loosely, 'sanctuary'. Rendering a precise literal translation into English is problematic due to the vast and conceptually rich semantic field of the word dharma[1] and the cultural aspect of India.
In common Hindi usage, the word dharamshala refers to a shelter or rest house for spiritual pilgrims. Traditionally, such dharamshalas (pilgrims' rest houses) were commonly constructed near pilgrimage destinations (often in remote areas) to give visitors a place to sleep for the night. When the first permanent settlement was created in the place now called Dharamshala, there was one such pilgrims' rest house on the site, and the settlement took its name from that dharamshala.
HISTORY
BEFORE THE RAJ
From the earliest times until the British Raj, Dharamshala and its surrounding area was ruled by the Katoch Dynasty of Kangra. The Katoch Dynasty is said to be the oldest serving Royal Family in the world.[3] The Royal Family still keeps a residence in Dharamshala, known as 'Clouds End Villa'.
The indigenous people of the Dharamshala area (and the surrounding region) are the Gaddis, a predominantly Hindu group who traditionally lived a nomadic or semi-nomadic (transhumant) lifestyle. Due to the lack of permanent settlements in the area, some Gaddis lost their seasonal pastures and farmland when the British and the Gurkhas arrived to settle.
Settlement by the British and the Gurkhas
In 1848, the area now known as Dharamshala was annexed by the British.
"Dharamsāla lies on a spur of the Dhaola Dhār, 16 miles north-east of Kāngra, in the midst of wild and picturesque scenery. It originally formed a subsidiary cantonment for the troops stationed at Kāngra, and was first occupied as a station in 1849, when a site was required for a cantonment to accommodate a Native regiment which was being raised in the District. A site was found upon the slopes of the Dhaola Dhār, in a plot of waste land, upon which stood an old Hindu resthouse, or dharmsāla, whence the name adopted for the new cantonment. The civil authorities, following the example of the regimental officers, and attracted by the advantages of climate and scenery, built themselves houses in the neighbourhood of the cantonment; and in 1855 the new station was formally recognised as the head-quarters of the [Kāngra] District."
In 1860, the 66th Gurkha Light Infantry was moved from Kangra, Himachal Pradesh to Dharamshala, which was at first made a subsidiary cantonment. An ideal position for the new base was found on the slopes of the Dhauladhar Hills, near the site of a Hindu sanctuary, or Dharamshala, hence the name of the town. The Battalion was later renamed the historic 1st Gurkha Rifles, this was the beginning of the legend of the Gurkhas, also known as the 'Bravest of the Brave'. Consequently, fourteen Gurkha platoon villages grew from this settlement, and exist to this day, namely Dari, Ramnagar, Shyamnagar, Dal, Totarani, Khanyara, Sadher, Chaandmaari, Sallagarhi, Sidhbari, Yol, and so on. The Gurkhas worshipped at the ancient Shiva temple of Bhagsunag. The Gurkhas referred to Dharamshala as 'Bhagsu' and referred to themselves as Bhagsuwalas.
The 21st Gurkha Regiment from Dharamshala performed heroic feats during World War I and the North West Frontier Province campaigns. The Gurkha cantonment then reached its zenith during World War II, when battalions from Dharamshala made history. Many place names in the town still retain their former cantonment terminologies: Depot Bazaar, Pensioners' Lines, Tirah Lines (named after the 19th century Tirah Campaign), Bharatpore Lines (named after the 1826 Battle of Bharatpore).
The second Lord Elgin, Viceroy of India died here (at the 1st Gurkha Rifles Officers' Mess) in 1863 and is buried in the cemetery of St. John in the Wilderness, a small Anglican church distinguished by its stained-glass windows. Dharamshala became a popular hill station for the British working in or near Delhi, offering a cool respite during the hot summer months.
"Before the earthquake of 1905, the upper part of the station, which rises to a height of 7,112 feet [2,168 metres], contained the European houses, the station church, and the officers' mess and lines of the 1st Gurkhas, together with the public gardens, post office, and two bazars, the Forsythganj and McLeodganj. The public offices, a bazar, and a few European houses made up the lower station, as low as 1,372 metres. The 1st battalion of the 1st Gurkhas used to be stationed here, but was moved to the upper station in 1894-5.... The public gardens, which were, before the earthquake, laid out with much taste in lawns and terraces, contained a valuable collection of indigenous and imported trees and shrubs, and were overlooked by the Assembly Rooms, a handsome building comprising a public hall, a library and reading-room and a billiard-room. The church was beautifully situated in a recess of the mountain."
In 1905, the Kangra valley suffered a major earthquake. On April 4 of that year, the earth shook, demolishing much of the cantonment and the neighbouring city of Kangra, Himachal Pradesh as well as the Bhagsunag temple. Altogether, the 1905 Kangra earthquake killed 20,000 people. "1,625 persons perished at Dharamsāla alone, including 15 Europeans and 112 of the Gurkha garrison."."
The Gurkhas rebuilt the town along with the temple, which today is acknowledged as the 1st Gurkha Rifles' heritage. The British had planned to make Dharamshala the summer capital of India, but moved to Shimla after the disaster.
Not only did the Gurkhas of Dharmshala make a major contribution to India's defence, many were freedom fighters for the Indian National Army, which had been founded by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The Indian National Army Captain Ram Singh Thakur, a Gurkha from the village of Khanyara, composed some of India's most popular and stirring patriotic songs, including "Kadam Kadam Badaye Ja". He is acknowledged so by the Netaji Research Bureau, Kolkata. The important contribution of the noted Gurkha social commentator, the late Master Mitrasen Thapa, from the village of Totarani, has been acknowledged by the Himachal Pradesh government. Recently, a park dedicated to the memory of the late Brigadier Sher Jung Thapa, MVC, the 'Hero of Skardu', has been opened alongside the road between Lower and Upper Dharamshala.
ESTABLISHMENT OF TIBETAN EXILE COMMUNITY
The Tibetan settlement of Dharamshala began in 1959, when His Holiness the Dalai Lama had to flee Tibet and the Prime Minister of India allowed him and his followers to settle in McLeodGanj (in Upper Dharmshala), a former colonial British summer picnic spot. There they established the "government-in-exile" in 1960. Dharamshala had been connected with Hinduism and Buddhism for a long time, many monasteries having been established there in the past, by Tibetan immigrants in the 19th century.In 1970, The Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, opened the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives which houses over 80,000 manuscripts and other important resources related to Tibetan history, politics and culture. It is considered one of the most important institutions for Tibetology in the world, the new director is Geshe Lahkdor, the old translator of H.H. the Dalai Lama.
Several thousand Tibetan exiles have now settled in the area, and most live in and around McLeodGanj in Upper Dharamshala, where they have built monasteries, temples and schools. McLeodGanj is sometimes known as 'Little Lhasa", after the Tibetan capital city, or 'Dhasa' (a compound of 'Dharamshala' and 'Lhasa'). It has become an important tourist destination with many hotels and restaurants, leading to growth in tourism and commerce.
Dharamshala is the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh. The Legislative Assembly is at Sidhbari, near the Chinmaya Tapovan Ashram, and the winter sessions of the Government are held there.
GEOGRAPHY
Dharamshala has an average elevation of 1457 metres, covering an area of almost 8.51 km².
Dharamsala is located in the Kangra Valley, in the shadow of the Dhauladhar mountains.
The city is divided into two distinct sections. Kotwali Bazaar and the surrounding markets are referred to as "Lower Dharamshala" or just "Dharamshala." Further up the mountain is McLeodGanj separated in between by the village of Ganchen Kyishong, the home of the Tibetan government-in-exile. A steep, narrow road connects McLeodGanj from Dharamshala and is only accessible to taxis and small cars, while a longer road winds around the valley for use by buses and trucks. McLeodGanj is surrounded by pine, Himalayan oak, and rhododendron.
The main crops grown in the valleys below are rice, wheat and tea.
CONNECTIONS
Dharamshala town is reached by Gaggal Airport, (IATA: DHM, ICAO: VIGG), about 15 km to the town's south and about 10 km north of Kangra, Himachal Pradesh town. To reach Dharamshala by train, one has to reach Kangra, Himachal Pradesh town by Kangra Valley Railway line from Pathankot 94 km away and then take a bus or a taxi.
Pathankot is a broad gauge railway head. There is another railway line from Pathankot to Jogindernagar, a part of the Mandi District of Himachal Pradesh, which is a narrow-gauge line. The nearest station to Dharamshala on this line is Chamunda Marg, half an hour away, where a Shaktipitha is; the town is well connected by road to other parts of the country.
Buses of all classes (deluxe, air-conditioned, and regular) drive daily between Dharamshala and major cities such as Chandigarh, Delhi, and Shimla. Several buses each night connect McLeodGanj with Majnu Ka Tila, the Tibetan settlement in Delhi.
CLIMATE
Dharamshala has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Cwa). Summer starts in early April, peaks in early June (when temperatures can reach 36 °C) and last till mid-June. From July to mid-September is the monsoon season when up to 3000 mm of rainfall can be experienced, making Dharamshala one of the wettest places in the state. Autumn is mild and lasts from October to the end of November.
Autumn temperatures average around 16–17 °C. Winter starts in December and continues until late February. Snow and sleet are common during the winter in upper Dharamshala (including McLeodganj, Bhagsu Nag and Naddi). Lower Dharamshala receives little solid precipitation except hail. The snowfall of January 7, 2012 was an exception. It was caused by deep low pressure entering the Kangra district. Winter is followed by a short, pleasant spring until April. Historically, the Dhauladhar mountains used to remain snow-covered all year long, however, in recent years they have been losing their snow blanket during dry spells.
The best times to visit are the autumn and spring months.
TREKKING
Dharamshala is a starting point to a number of trekking trails that especially lead trekkers across Dhauladhar into the upper Ravi Valley and Chamba district. En route, you cross through forests of deodar, pine, oak and rhododendron, and pass streams and rivers and wind along vertiginous cliff tracks, and the occasional lake waterfall and glacier.
A 2-km amble takes one to Bhagsu, and then a further 3-km walk will lead the trekkers to Dharamkot. If one wishes to go on a longer walk then he/she can trek 8-km to Triund. The snow line of Ilaqa Got is just a 5-km walk.
Other trekking trails that lead you to Chamba from Dharamshala are:
Toral Pass (4575m) which begins from Tang Narwana (1150m) that is nearly 10 km from Dharamshala
Across Bhimghasutri Pass (4580m) via near-vertical rocky ascents, steep cliffs and dangerous gorges. This is a highly difficult level trek and takes around six days to complete.
Dharamshala—Bleni Pass (3710m) – Dunali. Compared to other trekking trails, this one is much easier and takes around four or five-days to complete. The trek leads you through alpine pastures, woods, and streams, before ending at Dunali, on the Chamba road.
Dharamshala is an ideal destination for rock climbing enthusiasts. One can go rock climbing over the ridges of the Dhauladhar range.
kareri lake (near kareri village) is also a famous trekking destination for travellers.
PLACES OF ATTRACTION
Naam Art Gallery The exhibition in ‘NAAM ART GALLERY’ exhibits paintings by Elsbeth Buschmann - watercolours and acrylics - and oil paintings by Alfred W. Hallett. Elsbeth Buschmann, is a professional painter from Germany, having studied painting in London and Paris . She lived in many countries where she held exhibitions, especially in the USA where she received various awards. Her paintings are in private collections in Germany, USA, Scotland, India and Switzerland. In India she held solo exhibitions at AIFAX, New Delhi and TAG, the Art Gallery of the Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai. She also took part in ‘The Himalayan National Exhibition of Art’ and was awarded. Open 10am to 7.00pm (Monday Closed) Mobile 098160-43708
Masrur (or Masroor): The major attraction of this place is the fifteen exquisitely carved monolithic rock temples dating back to the 8th century. The carvings of these temples are similar to Kailash temple at Ellora. In the sanctum of the main temple, one can find images of Lord Ram, and the Goddesses Sita and Lakshmi. Masrur is 40 km south of Kangra, Himachal Pradesh at 32°4′22″N 76°8′14″E. Template:Jama Masjid, Kotwali Bazar, Dharamshala.
Bhagsu Waterfall: This waterfall is in Bhagsu, 2 km from McLeodGanj. It lies behind the Bhagsunag Temple. During Monsoon, the fall turns into a 30 feet cascade.
Bhagsunag Temple: Temple of god Shiva situated around 2 km from McLeodGanj Bazaar. Constructed by 1 GR by around 1800 century and then worshipped majorly by 14 Gukha platoon villages in Dharamshala. Very next to Bhagsunag temple is a water fall, one of the major tourist attraction spot in Dharamshala.
Kangra Museum: Situated close to the bus stand, Kangra Art Museum is a unique museum displaying the artifacts of Tibetan and Buddhist cultures. This is a treasure of Kangra valley’s cultural past, crafts, arts and other ancient artifacts. Some of the displayed items in the museum are dating back to the 5th century.
Kangra Museum encloses a gallery consisting of miniature paintings of Kangra’s rich past, pottery, rare coin memorabilia, sculptures and anthropological materials. It has a varied collection of tribal jewelry, embroidered costumes and wood carvings. A section dedicated to contemporary artworks adds the attraction to the museum.
Tourists can easily reach by bus or taxi and it will take 30 mins to one hour to see the museum. While visiting the museum, never miss to explore the Kotwali bazar.
Kunal Pathri Temple: This temple is dedicated to Goddess Kalpeshwari and is 3 km from the Kotwali Bazaar. It's believed that a part of Goddess Sati's skull fell here when Lord Shiva was carrying the charred body of the Goddess; hence the name of the temple.
Chamunda Temple: This temple is around 15 km from Dharamshala on the right bank of river Baner on the Mandi-Pathankot highway. According to mythology, Goddess Kali killed the demons Chand and Mund at this place.
Dal Lake: The Lake is spread in an area of 1 km and is bounded by rhododendrons, deodars, and junipers forest. Annually, a fair is held at the Kali Temple near the Lake. There is another temple close to the lake that is dedicated to sage Durvasa. Dal Lake is 2 km walk westwards from McLeodGanj bazaar.
Triund: Triund is nestled in the foothills of Dhauladhar and is around 17 km from Dharamshala. It's a trekking destination from McLeodGanj, and offers magnificent vistas of the mountains and valleys. The nightstays are in the hoods, small time caves, that local gaddis with their goat herds use as shelters from rains during the daytime.
Naddi: This scenic picnic spot is located 5 km northwest of McLeodGanj. Naddi offers a spectacular view of the Kangra valley. You can trek to Kareri Lake, Triund, and Guna Devi from here. It's becoming a popular destination for nature lovers.
Thaneek Pura or Thanik Pura is a hill station village (hamlet) in Chintpurni in the Una district of the state of Himachal Pradesh in India. It is near the Chintpurni Temple, which is a place of pilgrimage for both Hindus and Sikhs. The area is surrounded by the western Himalayas in the north and east in the smaller Shiwalik (or Shivalik) range bordering the state of Punjab.
McLeodGanj is around 9 km from Dharamshala. This place is famous for its markets, where one can shop for handicraft items, eat Tibetan food and visit statue of Lord Buddha.
Sidhbari : A village located 6 km from Dharamshala near Yol Cantonment and a place of historical spiritual significance. Attractions around Sidhbari include the Kapila Muni Cave, Chinmaya Ashram, Gyuto monastery, Aganjar Mahadev Temple and the newly constructed State legislature. The agricultural hamlet of Rakkar nearby is an ideal base to explore the rest of the Kangra district and experience the traditional lifestyle and mud architecture of the Gaddi community.
Adi Shakti Temple, Naddi
Aghanjar Mahadev
Bhagsu waterfall
Bhagsunath
Sheela Chowk
Bir - Popular destination for ecotourism, meditation studies, volunteering, and paragliding at Billing.
Brajeshwari Devi Temple
Chamunda Devi Mandir
Chinmaya Tapovan
Chime Gyatsarling Monastery, just behind of Norbulingka Institute, upper Sidhpur. 6 km from Dharmshala and 14 km from Gagal airport.
Dal Lake
Dari
Gopalpur Zoo and tea gardens
Dehra Gopipur
Dharamkot (2100 m)
Guna Devi Mandir amidst dense forest
Historical fort in Old Kangra, Himachal Pradesh. Adjoining the Fort is the Maharaja Sansar Chandra Museum, run by the Kangra Royal Family. The Museum provides audio guides for the fort and the museum.
Haripur Village (near Guler)
Pong Dam Lake
Indru Nag Temple
Kareri Lake
Khaniyara
Kunal Pathri
Lam Dal Lake
Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
Masrur (rock temple)
Namgyal Monastery
Narghota
Norbulingka Institute
Nurpur[18]
Sidhbari
Church of St. John in the Wilderness
Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts
Triund (2975 m), a popular day hike or overnight trek. There is a forest rest house for overnight stay.
Tatwani and Machhrial
Trilokpur
Chime Gyatseling Monastery (Guru Padmasambhava)
Near Norbulingka Tibetan Institute
Jama Masjid kotwalibazar Dharamshala
North of City of Bandung is well-known for its problematic environment vs. development. Government always emphasizes that this area is for water reservation from rain and also a forest for City of Bandung, but in reality it seems like developments continue day to day.
Identified as taken by Athanasiou, with precise date of 1886.
What is problematic with dating here here is that there are fewer houses built in Kolonaki (centre of Lykavittos, here) than appear in the other photo here, and also there are no statues visible on the Schliemann mansion...
Postrcript: I have concluded that the dating is erroneous (possibly referring to date of publication in a book, rather than the year when the photograph was taken). So, earliest and most probable date is 1880.
PUBLIC DOMAIN
My passion is West German trains from the post WWII period, but a train layout is pretty boring without scenery. With this in mind I've always wanted to build a grand station. My first choice would be Frankfurt Main Station, but with over 20 tracks, and being a terminus, rather than a through station, it's way too huge and impractical.
Bonn Main Station on the other hand, has 5 tracks, is a through station, and lends itself to being built in a modular fashion. Not only that, it is a bit of a trope among German model railways, which seems to be a common theme in my LEGO builds. There is a very practical aspect to this since it means many photos are available, and excellent pictures in model railway catalogues. This helps enormously when copying a building on the other side of the world.
Due to shipping disruptions last year parts orders have gone missing, got stuck waiting for flights, been sent to Austria instead of Australia, and in general been problematic. This has resulted in the two ends of the station being built, but not the central hall. Lucky I planned to build Bonn in modules just like the model railway kits. In the future I'll expand this build to reflect the complete original building, hopefully in time for the next in person Brickvention.
By Peter Ogilvy
So Gents — At the conclusion of Day Two on the Fabulous Las Vegas Strip, what have you learned about ‘Living Las Vegas’ during a COVID-19 global pandemic?
Hmmm.... 🤔
As for bars — you cannot have a situation at a bar where a lot of people are going to be within six feet of each other without gloves and face masks. So that means bars are going to be problematic. 😷🍸
As for nightclubs — committed couples who can maintain an NBA style Bubble, can go to a nightclub and dance together without a face mask and gloves. Singles willing to wear disposable gloves and a face mask can go to a nightclub and dance together provided they sit six feet apart when not dancing. Singles would need to change their disposable gloves often or wear cotton or satin gloves. So that means nightclubs operating at 25% to 50% capacity could function successfully. 😷🍸
As for stage shows — the George Strait Show, or the SEXXY Dance Revue for instance, and their stage bands and stage crews would need to maintain an NBA style Bubble and could perform with or without face masks. Vegas showrooms and arenas would need to maintain six feet of Social Distancing at 25% to 50% capacity. The audience would need to wear face masks. 😷
So Gents — While you are doing your midnight stroll of the charming and inviting New York-New York Hotel & Casino, think long and hard about what you will say to your very lovely lady when she calls you from home and wants to know if it’s safe to leave the comfort and safety of her home and come with you to Las Vegas again. How will you convince your woman that life is still good here?
Think about it! 🤔
Pride and Prejudice: on Raphael Perez's Artwork
Raphael Perez, born in 1965, studied art at the College of Visual Arts in Beer Sheva, and from 1995 has been living and working in his studio in Tel Aviv. Today Perez plays an important role in actively promoting the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual) art and culture in Tel Aviv, and the internet portal he set up helps artists from the community reach large audiences in Israel and abroad. Hundreds of his artworks are part of private collections in Israel and abroad, and his artworks were shown in several group exhibitions: in Tel Aviv Museum of Art, "Zman Le'Omanut" art gallery, Camera Obscura, The Open House in Jerusalem, Ophir Gallery, The Haifa Forum and other private businesses and galleries.
In 2003-4 his paintings and studio appeared in a full-length movie, three student films and two graduation films.
Raphael Perez is the first Israeli artist to express his lifestyle as a Gay. His life and the life of the LGBT community are connected and unfold over hundreds of artwork pieces. His art creation is rare and extraordinary by every Israeli and international artistic standard. His sources of inspiration are first and foremost life events intertwined in Jewish and Israeli locality as well as influences and quotes from art history (David Hockney, Matisse). This uniqueness has crossed international borders and has succeeded in moving the LGBT and art communities around the world.
This is the first time we meet an Israeli artist who expresses all of his emotions in a previously unknown strength. The subjects of the paintings are the everyday life of couples in everyday places and situations, along with the aspiration to a homosexual relationship and family, equality and public recognition. Perez's works bring forward to the cultural space and to the public discourse the truth about living as LGBT and about relationships, with all of their aspects – casual relationships and sex, the yearning for love, the everyday life and the mundane activities that exist in every romantic relationship – whether by describing two men in an intimate scene in the bathroom, the bedroom or the toilet, a male couple raising a baby or the homosexual version of the Garden of Eden, family dinners, relationship ups and downs, the complexity in sharing a life as well as mundane, everyday life competing with the aspiration to self realization – through Perez's life.
Perez's first artworks are personal diaries, which he creates at 14 years of age. He makes sure to hide these diaries, as in them he keeps a personal journal describing his life events in the most genuine way. In these journals he draws thousands of drawings and sketches, next to which he alternately writes and erases his so-called "problematic texts", texts describing his struggle with his sexual orientation. His diaries are filled with obsessive cataloging of details, daily actions, friends and work, as well as repeating themes, such as thoughts, exhibits he has seen, movies, television, books and review of his work.
When he is done writing, Perez draws on his diaries. Each layer is done from beginning to end all along the journal. In fact, the work on the diaries never ends.
This struggle never ends, and when the emotion is passed on to paper, and it ends its role and becomes meaningless in a way, the visual-graphic side becomes dominant, due to the need to hide the written text, according to Perez. In books and diaries this stands out even more – when he chooses to draw in a style influenced by children's drawings, the characters are cheerful, happy, naïve and do not portray any sexuality, and when he tries drawing as an adult the sketches became more depressed and somber. During these years Perez works with preschool children, teaching them drawing and movement games. Perez says that during this period he completely abandoned the search for a relationship, either with a woman or a man, and working with children has given him existential meaning. This creation continues over 10 years, and Perez creates about 60 books-personal journals in various sizes (notepads, old notebooks, atlases and even old art books).
In his early paintings (1998-1999) the transition from relationships with women to relationships with men can be seen, from restraint to emotional outburst in color, lines and composition. Some characters display strong emotional expression. The women are usually drawn in restraint and passiveness, while a happy and loving emotional outburst is expressed in the colors and style of the male paintings.
"I fantasized that in a relationship with a woman I could fly in the sky, love, fly. However, I felt I was hiding something; I was choked up, hidden behind a mask, as if there was an internal scream wanting to come out. I was frustrated, I felt threatened…"
His first romance with a man in 1999 has drawn out a series of naïve paintings dealing with love and the excitement of performing everyday actions together in the intimate domestic environment.
"The excitement from each everyday experience of doing things together and the togetherness was great, so I painted every possible thing I liked doing with him."
From the moment the self-oppression and repression stopped, Perez started the process of healing, which was expressed in a burst of artworks, enormous in their size, amount, content and vivid colors – red, pink and white.
In 2000 Perez starts painting the huge artworks describing the hangouts of the LGBT community (The Lake, The Pool) and the Tel Avivian balcony paintings describing the masculine world, which, according to him, becomes existent thanks to the painting. Perez has dedicated this year to many series of drawings and paintings of the experience of love, in which he describes his first love for his new partner, and during these months he paints from morning to night. These paintings are the fruit of a long dialogue with David Hockney, and the similarity can be seen both in subjects and in different gestures.
In 2001 Perez creates a series of artworks, "Portraits from The Community". Perez describes in large, photorealistic paintings over 20 portraits of active and well-known members of the LGBT community. The emphasis is on the achievements that reflect the community's strong standing in Tel Aviv.
As a Tel-Avivian painter, in the past two years Perez has been painting urban landscapes of central locations in his city. Perez wanders around the city and chooses familiar architectural and geographical landmarks, commerce and recreation, and historical sites, and paints them from a homosexual point of view, decorated with the rainbow flag, which provide a sense of belonging to the place. His artworks are characterized by a cheerful joie de vivre and colors, and they also describe encounters and meetings. The touristic nature of his paintings makes them a declaration of Tel Aviv's image as a place where cultural freedom prevails.
Perez's Tel Aviv is a city where young families and couples live and fill the streets, the parks, the beach, the houses and the balconies – all the city's spaces. The characters in his paintings are similar, which helps reinforcing the belonging to the LGBT community in Tel Aviv. The collective theme in Perez's artwork interacts with the work of the Israeli artist Yohanan Simon, who dealt with the social aspects of the Kibbutz. Simon, who lived and worked in a Kibbutz, expressed the human model of the Kibbutznik (member of a Kibbutz) and the uniqueness of the Kibbutz members as part of a group where all are equal. Simon's works, and now Perez's, have contributed to the Israeli society what is has been looking for endlessly, which is a sense of identity and belonging.
Perez maps his territory and marks his boundaries, and does not forget the historical sites. Unlike other Tel Avivian artists, Perez wishes to present the lives of the residents of the city and the great love in their hearts. By choosing the historical sites in Tel Aviv, he also pays tribute to the artist Nachum Gutman, who loved the city and lived in it his whole life. In his childhood Gutman experienced historical moments (lighting the first oil lamp, first concert, first pavement), and as an adult he recreated the uniqueness of those events while keeping the city's magic.
Like Gutman, Perez has also turned the city into an object of love, and it has started adorning itself in rich colors and supplying the energy of a city that wishes to be "the city that never sleeps", combining old and new. Perez meticulously describes the uniqueness and style of the Bauhaus houses and balconies along the modern glass and steel buildings, all from unusual angles in a rectangular format that wishes to imitate the panorama of a diverse city in its centennial celebrations.
Daniel Cahana-Levensohn, curator.
Interview with the painter Raphael Perez about his family artist book
An interview with the painter Raphael Perez about an artist's book he created about his family, the Peretz family from 6 Nissan St. Kiryat Yuval Jerusalem
Question: Raphael Perez, tell me about the family artist book you created
Answer: I created close to 40 artist books, notebooks, diaries, sketch books and huge books. I dedicated one of the books to my dear family, a book in which I took a childhood photograph of my family, my parents and brothers and sisters.. I pasted the photographs inside a book (the photograph is 10 percent of the total painting) and I drew with acrylic paints, markers and ink on the book and the photograph, so that the image of the photograph was an inspiration to me Build the story that includes page by page..
Question: Tell me when you were born, where, and a little about your family
Answer: I was born on March 4, 1965 in the Kiryat Yuval neighborhood in Jerusalem
I have a twin brother named Miki Peretz and we are seven brothers and sisters, five boys and two girls
Question: Tell us a little about your parents
Answer: My parents were new immigrants from Morocco, both immigrated young.
My mother's name before the wedding was Alice - Aliza ben Yair and my father's name was Shimon Peretz,
My mother was born in the Atlas Mountains and was orphaned at a young age and was later adopted by my father's family at the age of 10, so that my mother and father spent childhood and adolescence together....
They had a beautiful and happy relationship but sometimes when they argued my mother would say "even when she was a child she was like that..." This means that their acquaintance and relationship dates back to childhood..
Question: What did your parents Shimon and Aliza Peretz work for?
Answer: My father, Shimon Perez, born in 1928 - worked in a building in his youth and then for thirty years worked as a receptionist at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem... My father's great love was actually art, he loved to draw as a hobby, write, read, solve crossword puzzles and research Regarding the issue of medicinal plants, as a breadwinner he could not fulfill his dream of becoming an artist, in order to support and feed seven children. But we are the next generation, his children are engaged in the world of creativity and education, a field in which both of my parents were engaged during their lives. My father died at the age of 69
My mother, Alice Aliza Perez, born in 1934, worked as an assistant to a kindergarten teacher, and later took care of a baby at home. She is a woman of wholehearted giving and caring for children and people, a warm, generous and humble woman.. and took care of us in our childhood for every emotional and physical deficiency.. My mother is right For the year 2023, the 89-year-old is partly happy and happy despite the difficulties of age.. May you have a long life..
My mother really loved gardening and nature and both of them together created a magnificent garden, my parents have a relatively large garden so they could grow many types of special and rare medicinal plants and my father even wrote a catalog (unpublished) of medicinal plants and we even had botany students come to us who were interested in the field... today they They also grow ornamental plants, and fruit trees...
Question: A book about the brothers and sisters
Answer: My elder brother David Perez repented in his mid-twenties.. He was a very sharp, opinionated, curious and very charismatic guy who brought many people back to repentance, and also helped people with problems through the yeshiva and the synagogue to return to the normal path of life, he died young at the age of 56
Hana Peretz: My lovely sister, raised eight children, worked in the field of education, a kindergarten teacher, and child care.
She has a very large extended family of grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren...
My brother Avi (Abraham) Peretz studied in Israel at the University of Philosophy and Judaism, he married a wonderful woman named Mira Drumi, a nurse by profession, and together they had three wonderful children, when they moved to the United States in their mid-twenties, where my brother Avi Peretz completed his master's degree in education, worked in the field Education and for the last twenty years is A conservative rabbi
The fourth brother is Asher Peretz - a great man of the world, very fond of traveling and has been to magical places all over the world, engaged in the creation of jewelry with two children.
I am Rafi Peretz english raphael perez the fifth and after fifteen minutes my twin brother was born
My mother still gets confused and can't remember who was born first :-)
My twin brother Miki micky - Michael Peretz, a beloved brother (everyone is beloved), a talented industrial designer, he has three children, his wife Revital Peretz Ben, who is a well-known art curator, active and responsible for the art field in Tel Aviv, they are a dynamic and talented couple, full of talents and action
The lovely little sister Shlomit Peretz - has been involved in the Bezeq telephone company for almost three decades, and is there in management positions, raising her lovely and beloved child.
The art book I dedicated to my family is colorful, rich in details, shows a very intense childhood, happy, cheerful, colorful, ... We were taught to be diligent and to be happy in our part and to see the glass half full in life, to have emotional intelligence and to put the relationship and love at the center with self-fulfillment in work that will interest you us and you will give us satisfaction.
Each of us is different in our life decisions and my family is actually a mosaic of the State of Israel that includes both religious and secular people from the entire political spectrum who understand that the secret to unity is mutual respect for each other... when my mother these days is also the family glue in everyone's gatherings on Shabbat and holidays..
The personification of the flower couple paintings by the Israeli painter Raphael Perez
Raphael Perez, also known as Rafi Peretz, is an Israeli painter who
explores his personal and sexual identity through his flower paintings. He created a series of flower paintings from 1995 to 1998, when he was in his early thirties and still in relationships with women, despite feeling gay. His flower paintings reflect his emotional turmoil and his struggle with his sexual orientation. He painted two flowers, one blooming and one wilting, to represent the contrast and conflict between his heterosexual relationships and his true self. He also painted single flowers or two flowers in their prime, to express his longing for a harmonious relationship that matches his nature. He chose sunflowers, white lilies, and red lilies as symbols of expression, purity, and joy, respectively. He painted from real flowers, using different styles and light to create drama and mood. Perez’s paintings of the flower couples are minimalist and focused on the theme of the complex relationship. He omitted any background or context, leaving only the canvas and the drawing of the flower couples. In some of the paintings, he added a very airy abstract surface with thin oil paints that give an atmosphere of watercolors. He also made drawings of flowers in ink, markers and gouache on paper. Later on, he created large acrylic paintings of flowers and still life. Perez’s flower paintings are not mere illustrations or decorations. They are autobiographical and psychological expressions of his inner state and his struggle with his sexuality. He wanted to reveal his loneliness, distress and concealment through these paintings, and to connect with people who are in a similar situation. He deliberately chose only two flowers and no more to intensify the engagement in the charged and complex relationship. Perez also painted and drew couples of men and women with charged psychological states, as well as states of desire for connection and realization of a heterosexual relationship that did not succeed. He used hyperrealism and expressive styles to convey his frozen and calculated state, as well as his mental stress. He used harsh lighting to create contrast and drama, with one side very bright and the other side darker. Perez was influenced by some of the famous artists who painted flowers, such as Van Gogh, who also used sunflowers as a symbol of expression. He also used white lilies and red lilies to convey freshness, cleanliness, purity, color, joy, movement, eruption, and splendor. Perez also painted some single flowers or two flowers in their prime, to show his aspiration for a future where he will have a harmonious relationship. Today, he is 58 years old and in a happy relationship for 10 years with his partner Assaf Henigsberg. He is surrounded by female friends and soulmates and not conflicted with heterosexual relationships as he used to be. He occasionally paints flowers in pots to symbolize home, stability, and peace. Sometimes I paint flowers in pots, which represent home, stability, and solid ground for me. I don’t paint just a couple of flowers, but pots full of flowers that overflow with life. This means that we also have a supportive network of family, friends, and peers around us. We live in a rich, supportive, and protective world. These paintings are a personification of my psychological state, when I had no words to express my feelings to myself. The painting began In 35 years of my creation (starting in 1998), you can read more about how my art and style evolved over time. Perez’s flower paintings are a unique and extraordinary artistic creation that reveals his personal journey and his sexual identity. His work is honest, expressive, and emotional, as well as beautiful and vibrant.
The characteristics of the naive painting of the painter Raphael Perez
A full interview with the Israeli painter Raphael Perez (Hebrew name: Rafi Peretz) about the ideas behind the naive painting, resume, personal biography and curriculum vitae Question: Raphael Perez Tell us about your work process as a naive painter? Answer: I choose the most iconic and famous buildings in every city and town that are architecturally interesting and have a special shape and place the iconic buildings on boulevards full of trees, bushes, vegetation, flowers. Question: How do you give depth in your naive paintings? Answer: To give depth to the painting, I build the painting with layers of vegetation, after those low famous buildings, followed by a tall avenue of trees, and behind them towers and skyscrapers, in the sky I sometimes put innocent signs of balloons, kites. A recurring motif in some of my paintings is the figure of the painter who is in the center of the boulevard and paints the entire scene unfolding in front of him, also there are two kindergarten teachers who are walking with the kindergarten children with the state flags that I paint, and loving couples hugging and kissing and family paintings of mother, father and child walking in harmony on the boulevard. Question: Raphael Perez, what characterizes your naive painting? Answer: Most naive paintings have the same characteristics (Definition as it appears in Wikipedia) • Tells a simple story to absorb from everyday life, usually with humans. • The representation of the painter's idealization to reality - the mapping of reality. • Failure to maintain perspective - especially details even in distant details. • Extensive use of repeating patterns - many details. • Warm and bright colors. • Sometimes the emphasis is on outlines. • Most of the characters are flat, lack volume • No interest in texture, expression, correct proportions • No interest in anatomy. • There is not much use of light and shade, the colors create a three-dimensional effect. I find these definitions to be valid for all my naive paintings Question: Raphael Perez, why do you choose the city of Tel Aviv? Answer: I was born in Jerusalem, the capital city which I love very much and also paint, I love the special Bauhaus buildings in Tel Aviv, the ornamental buildings that were built a century ago in the 1920s and 1930s, the beautiful boulevards, towers and modern skyscrapers give you the feeling of the hustle and bustle of a large metropolis and there are quite a few low and tall buildings that are architecturally fascinating in their form the special one Also, the move to Tel Aviv, which is the capital of culture, freedom, and secularism, allowed me to live my life as I chose, to live in a relationship with a man, Jerusalem, which is a traditional city, it is more complicated to live a homosexual life, also, the art world takes place mainly in the city of Tel Aviv, and it is possible that from a professional point of view, this allows I can support myself better in Tel Aviv than in any other city in Israel. Question: Raphael Perez, are the paintings of the city of Tel Aviv different from the paintings of the city of Jerusalem? Answer: Most of the paintings of Jerusalem have an emphasis on the color yellow, gold, the color of the old city walls, the subjects I painted in Jerusalem are mainly a type of idealization of a peaceful life between Jews and Arabs and paintings that deal with the Jewish religious world, a number of paintings depict all shades of the currents of Judaism today In contrast, the Tel Aviv paintings are more colorful, with skyscrapers, the sea, balloons and more secular motifs Question: Raphael Perez, tell me about which buildings and their architects you usually choose in your drawings of cities Answer: My favorite buildings are those that have a special shape that anyone can recognize and are the symbols of the city and you will give several examples: In the city of Tel Aviv, my favorite buildings are: the opera building with its unusual geometric shape, the Yisrotel tower with its special head, the Hail Bo Shalom tower that for years was the symbol of the tallest building in Tel Aviv, the Levin house that looks like a Japanese pagoda, the burgundy-colored Nordeau hotel with the special dome at the end of the building, A pair of Alon towers with the special structure of the sea, Bauhaus buildings typical of Tel Aviv with the special balconies and the special staircase, the Yaakov Agam fountain in Dizengoff square appears in a large part of the paintings, many towers that are in the stock exchange complex, the Aviv towers and other tall buildings on Ayalon, in some of the paintings I took plans An outline of future buildings that need to be built in the city and I drew them even before they were built in reality, In the paintings of Jerusalem, I mainly chose the area of the Old City and East Jerusalem, a painting of the walls of the Old City, the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the El Akchea Mosque, the Tower of David, most of the famous churches in the city, the right hand of Moses, in most of the paintings the Jew is wearing a blue shirt with a red male cord I was in the youth movement and the Arab with a galabia, and in the paintings of the religious public then, Jews with black suits and white shirts, tallitas, kippahs, special hats, synagogues and more I also created three paintings of the city of Haifa and one painting of Safed In the Haifa paintings I drew the university, the Technion, the famous Egged Tower, the Sail Tower, well-known hotels, of course the Baha'i Gardens and the Baha'i Temple, Haifa Port and the boats and other famous buildings in the city Question: Raphael Perez, have you created series of other cities from around the world? Answer: I created series of New York City with all the iconic and famous buildings such as: the Guggenheim Museum, the famous skyscrapers - the Chrysler Building, the Empire State Building, Lincoln Center, the famous synagogue in the city, the Statue of Liberty, the flags of the United States and other famous buildings Two paintings of London and all its famous sites, Big Ben, famous monuments, the Ferris wheel, Queen Elizabeth and her family, the double bus, the famous public telephone, palaces, famous churches, well-known monuments I created 4 naive paintings of cities in China, a painting of Shanghai, two paintings of the city of Suzhou and a painting of the World Park in the city of Beijing... I chose the famous skyline of Shanghai with all the famous towers, the famous promenade, temples and old buildings, two Paintings of the city of Suzhou with the famous canals, bridges, special gardens, towers and skyscrapers of the city Question: Raphael Perez What is the general idea that accompanies your paintings Answer: To create a good, beautiful, naive, innocent world in which we will see the innovation of the modern city through the skyscrapers in front of small and low buildings that bring the history and past of each country, all with an abundance of vegetation, boulevards, trees Resume, biography, CV of the painter Rafi Peretz and his family Question: When was Raphael Perez born in hebrew his name rafi peretz? Answer: Raphael Perez in Hebrew his name Rafi Peretz was born on March 4, 1965 Question: Where was Raphael Perez born? Answer: Raphael Perez was born in Jerusalem, Israel Question: What is the full name of Raphael Perez? Answer: His full name is Raphael Perez Question: Which art institution did Raphael Perez graduate from? Answer: Raphael Perez graduated from the Visual Arts Center in Be'er Sheva Question: When did Raphael Perez start painting? Answer: Raphael Perez started painting in 1989 Question: When did you start making a living selling art? Answer: Raphael Perez started making a living selling art in 1999 Question: Where does Raphael Perez live and work? Answer: Since 1995, Raphael Perez has been living and working from his studio in Tel Aviv Question: In which military framework did Raphael Perez serve in the IDF? Answer: Raphael Perez served in the artillery corps Question: Raphael Perez, what jobs did he work after his military service? Answer: Raphael Perez worked for 15 years in education in therapeutic settings for children and taught arts and movement Question: How many brothers and sisters does Raphael Perez, the Israeli painter, have? Answer: There are seven children in total, with the painter 5 sons and two daughters, that means the painter Raphael Perez has 4 more brothers and two sisters Question: What do the brothers and sisters of the painter Raphael Perez do? Answer: The elder brother David Peretz Perez was involved in the field of religious studies, the sister Hana Peretz Perez is involved in the field of education, a kindergarten teacher and child care, the brother Avi Peretz Perez who is in the United States today is a conservative rabbi but in the past was involved in education and therapy, the brother Asher Peretz Perez is involved in the fields of creativity and jewelry The twin brother Mickey Peretz Perez is a well-known industrial designer and seller. The younger sister Shlomit Peretz Perez works in a managerial position at Bezeq. Question: Tell me about the parents of the painter Raphael PerezAnswer: The painter Raphael Perez's parents are Shimon Perez Peretz and Eliza Alice Ben Yair, they were married in 1950 in Jerusalem, both were born in Morocco and immigrated to Israel in 1949, Shimon Peretz worked in a building in his youth and later as a receptionist at the Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital, Eliza Alice Peretz dealt in child care Kindergarten, working in kindergartens and of course taking care of and raising her seven children
Bicycles in the snow @ Nieuwgracht, Utrecht. Photomerge of two shots, interestingly quite problematic as I shot them at 1/2.8 with completely different focus points (beginner's mistake). If you look closer, you will see the transition between the bokeh and the background..
PS: You can also check out my most "interesting" photo's on: www.flickriver.com/photos/lambertwm/popular-interesting/
Workout for you and your baby
Post pregnancy weight gain is pretty common. After childbirth, your body will definitely change and you are going to put on lots of weight. The tummy fat is particularly problematic because it doesn’t go away easily. You need a dedicated workout regime to get rid of those extra pounds but that does become a little difficult with a growing kid around. However, won’t it be fun if you could include your kid in your workout sessions? Well, yes. You can enjoy a lot of time with your child while you both workout. Some light exercises will help you get back in shape and at the same time, your child will enjoy spending some fun time with you. This way, you don’t need to take stress about leaving your baby unattended or wait fr someone to take care of your kid while you are working out.
Here are some exercises that we have got together for you wherein you can engage your babies and also get back to your pre-pregnancy body. So, while you stretch and do some push-ups, let your baby join in too. That way you can also bond with your baby – a win-win situation this is!
Here are some workout ideas for you and your little one –
Dance for fun with your baby
If there is any type of workout that you can be sure your baby would enjoy, then it has to be the dance. Every baby loves to dance and when you are grooving too, you will surely pass on some positive vibes to your kid and this will help you both bond better. What more, dancing helps you lose quite some calories and that rigid fat around your waist will also get a twist. Dancing is also a type of a light cardiovascular exercise that will help in burning calories easily. Lastly, spending some fun time with the little one will instantly lift your mood and make you feel better – something that is essential for improving your emotional health.
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When I said on my uploads that getting into Tilmanstone was a bugbear, how then to describe my frustration about St Anthony, as this is a church I see each time we travel up or down the Alkham valley to Folkestone.
St Anthony sits on a bluff overlooking the village and the main road, and so seems impressively tall. But up close, one finds the tower to appear short and squat.
I had driven over from Tilmanstone, I had decided to give Eythorne a miss as I really wanted to make sure I got to Alkham and the next church on the list, Acrise, before the day faded and I would lose the chance for another year.
Parking in the village is problematic, so I leave the car opposite the village hall beside the cricket pitch, which now looks like it would be perfect for a few overs. How different from the late winter, when the Drellingore was in full flood and the pitch was under a good foot of water, and houses down the hill had water bubbling up between the plants in their gardens borders.
And looking at the Drellingore itself, reveals it to be the dried up bed it always was, with just the occasional pool of still wet mud showing where once the torrent flowed.
It is quite a steep climb back to the main road and then along to the old village pub, The Marquess of Granby, now sadly rebranded as a gastropub and called simply "The Marquess".
Up beside the pub, past a pretty row of cottages and into the churchyard. My, I was puffing well, but after stopping to take a shot of the outside of the church, I walk to the porch to find both the outer and inner doors open, and the interior glowing with sunlight refracted by Victorian stained glass.
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Picturesquely situated on a quiet bluff high above the main road, the simple flint exterior of Alkham church hides a remarkable surprise. From the south the building looks little different to many others in the region, but inside it immediately presents its trump card - a north aisle/chapel built in the thirteenth century which contains the finest blank wall arcading in any Kent church. This should be compared with the contemporary chancel arcading at Cooling and Woodchurch - in each designed to emphasise the importance of the (recently rebuilt) chancel. Here it served an altogether different purpose, competing with the nearby commandery of the Knights Hospitallers at Swingfield. At the west end of the nave, filling the tower arch, is a rather heavy but fine, wooden nineteenth century screen. The east window contains some fine nineteenth century glass. West tower, nave, chancel, north aisle, south porch
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Alkham
ALKHAM is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Dover.
The church, which is dedicated to St. Anthony the Martyr, is a handsome building, consisting of three isles and two chancels, having a tower steeple, with a low pointed turret on it, in which hang three bells. The north isle is shut out by boarding from the rest of the church, and made no use of at present, to which the school now kept in the chancel might be removed, and have no kind of communication with that part of the church appropriated for divine service, which would prevent that unseemly and indecent resort which it is at present subject to. In the chancel are several memorials for the Slaters, lessees of the parsonage; and on the south side, against the wall, is an antient tomb of Bethersden marble.
The church of Alkham, with the chapel of Mauregge, or Capell as it is now called, belonging to it, was given by Hamon de Crevequer to the abbot and convent of St. Radigund, together with the advowson of it, to hold in free, pure, and perpetual alms. It was appropriated to that abbey about the 43d year of king Henry III. anno 1258, and was afterwards, anno 8 Richard II. valued among the temporalities of the abbey at fourteen pounds. In which state this church and advowson remained till the dissolution of the abbey, which happened in the 27th year of king Henry VIII. when it was suppressed by the act of that year, as being under the clear yearly value of two hundred pounds, and their lands and possessions given to the king, who granted the scite of it, with the whole of its possessions, that year, to archbishop Cranmer, in exchange for other lands, who in the same year exchanged them back again with the king, being enabled so to do by an act then specially passed for that purpose; but in the deed of exchange, among other exceptions, was that of all churches and advowsons of vicarages; by virtue of which, the appropriation of the church of Alkham, together with the advowson of the vicarage, remained part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury, as they do at this time, his grace the archbishop of Canterbury being now entitled to them.
The vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Ferne, alias Capell, annexed to it, is valued in the king's books at eleven pounds, and the yearly tenths at Il.2s. per annum. (fn. 4) It is now of the clear yearly certified value of 53l. 9s. 6d. In 1588 here were communicants eighty; in 1640 it was valued at sixty pounds. The vicar of it is inducted into the vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Capell le Ferne, alias St.Mary le Merge, annexed to it. There are three acres of glebe land belonging to the vicarage.
The great tithes of Evering ward, in this parish and Swingfield ward, part of the parsonage of Alkham, are held of the archbishop for three lives, at the yearly rent of 1l. 6s. 8d. and the parsonage for twenty-one years, at the yearly rent of twelve pounds.
37422 TNT 37419 on the late running RHTT due to loco & possesion / control sending it wrong way issues.... 3S23 23:10 Hall Royd Jn - Leeds having its crew change at Low Moor 04/10/2023
Do you like my "chunkies". I like them but during my driving, the peripherial vision can problematic.
10 O'clock lighting made these captures , some what problematic .
One more before I bury the other captures for a rainy day .
I had to climb down the rocky dam face to get these wader images , not as young as I used to be , and got some funny looks from the joggers , and cyclists :0)
Camera Canon EOS-1D Mark IV
Exposure 0.001 sec (1/1250)
Aperture f/8.0
Focal Length 600 mm
ISO Speed 800
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Trying out the SEL55210 telephoto lens on a sliver of crescent moon through a bit of cloud. Focus was slightly problematic.
Helena says "mathematics problematics" ... seems that this is one of traditional school songs, but she is the best in math - here is the proof - she pictured it!
DS - the two letters which haunt Citroen. The DS of 1955 was arguably the most advanced and beautiful car in the world at launch.
It is true that many of the ingredients had already been tried out before. The car looked like a hovercar, and rode that way too. The DS lived on to 1975, when it still looked futuristic. Its replacement, the CX was also advanced and comfortable, the Wankel rotary engine it was set to debut with was problematic however, and the funding drain of a new car, with an engine that wasn't working properly caused Citroen into bankruptcy and the arms of Peugeot parent PSA.
PSA was keen to stop some of teh madness, and though the y allowed the CX and GS to continue, they closed down the exclusive Maserati-engined SM luxury coupe line early (having been unable to move the car successfully in the US - bizarrely due to the high-variable suspension making the car fall foul of US Headlight laws!). The rest of the Citroen range was rationlised over time to share platforms and mechanical systems with Peugeot, and gradually, the brand lost much of its inventive distinctiveness in the name of cost rationalisation.
Sadly, by the 1990s, Citroen became the 'cost-brand' arm of PSA, selling average cars on cost and a long-revered name rather than style and innovation.
Fortunately, it was seen that this was not going to be a road to success, as the European (and American) markets were now been competitively fought by competent and increasing innovative, quality Japanese and Korean brands, and that to survive, it was in the interest of European marques to provide content that customers valued and would pay for.
Enter the DS.
The brand has now gained greater planning freedom, and is known as DS Automobiles, but at it genesis with the Citroen DS3 (and Citroen C3/C4 derivative) in 2009, the sub-rand intent was to provide vehicles of stylistic distinction and material quality (somewhat like the relaunch of Mini).
The DS5, an EMP2 chassis derivative sat at the top of the range at launch in 2011. The car could be described in many disparate terms that do not do the whole justice. The car rides on a long wheelbase. The car is shaped somewhere between a hatchback, wagon and an MPV. Chrome highlights, including a spear running from the headlamps up to the 2nd A-pillar and a curious beltline liven up the exterior, but the real party trick is the interior.
The car seats are embossed in what is known as 'watchstrap' trim, kind of like a gentleman's 1970s era watchband. The car has three sunroofs. One small one over each front seat, and a large one over the rear row. The car has an aeroplane flight deck control deck with buttons on the roof between the sunroofs that mirror those on the centre console. Luxury is high, with massage seats, sat nav, heated seats and other luxuries.
You will note the miniland fig standing with the car is wearing my trademark navy and white stripe pullover - I definitely have a soft spot for the DS5 - its looks, its luxury and its precipitous depreciation. I periodically temped to pick up a 3-year old car at half of its original price, to cruise around with my butt gently warmed and massaged by the seats.
More info at wikipedia:
This Lego miniland-scale Citroen DS5 has been created for Flickr LUGNuts' 115th Build Challenge, - "The French Connection", - for vehicles with some connection with France.
The typical American problematic of classifying “famous black performers”. Ever heard of a list of “famous white performers”? Of course here we can have a sub-category of performers and their relative involvement or non-involvment in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s in the USA. Still, we (the white people) are looking at two black performers thinking there probably would be some kind of obvious self interest in being involved in that struggle. Surely, we can scratch George Jones off that list, but what about Johnny Cash?
OK, but what about the goddam music? Both of these performers were already listed by Spinning45rpm:
www.flickr.com/photos/spinning45rpm/3415204936/in/set-721...
. . . where a smaller image of the Belafonte 45rpm is posted, along with another Sammy Davis 45rpm, which is most definitely a better selection than the one posted here. That’s “Something’s Gotta Give” b/w “Love Me or Leave Me” (which charted at #9 in 1955)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Xwl4oVnbhU
www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1mX2qib9mY
The Sammy Davis Jr. 45rpm EP posted here, while having a groovy retro cover is pretty much wretched to my ears, with that whole Broadway show tune/corny nightclub vibe. Occasionally I spin it and mutter to myself, “C’mon, Sammy . . . what were you thinking?” Which in some ways does provoke the aesthetic/social comparison between these two high-profile performers.
First of all, why was the Belafonte EP initially listed in the Jazz Wide category of Spinning45rpm? The closest he really gets to Jazz is by performing in Porgy and Bess, but he does have the nightclubby career ambiance (TV specials, etc.), even though his number one smash hit album “Calypso” (from 1956) was also riding the “folk” wave of the late 50s/early 60s. And let’s face it, while he did firmly established the Caribbean (as opposed to the Cuban/Rumba) influence and song book in the US market, these songs totally hit the catchy-Pop-song mark.
Sammy on the other hand, most definitely has at least one finger in the Jazz pie, most notably through his association with Frank Sinatra, or by his less well known collaboration with Carmen McRae. But he too is really a Pop singer (Oh yeah, “The Candy Man” . . .)
For better or worse, all celebrities are called on to comment on social/political developments that are more or less tangential to their chosen career. Yet that precisely is part of their “aesthetic”, and the manner and style in which every famous individual handles their Fame ultimately has a bearing on their artistic legacy. Let’s leave the rest, in regards to Sammy and Harry, to your own research via Wikipedia:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sammy_Davis,_Jr.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sammy_Davis,_Jr._discography
When I said on my uploads that getting into Tilmanstone was a bugbear, how then to describe my frustration about St Anthony, as this is a church I see each time we travel up or down the Alkham valley to Folkestone.
St Anthony sits on a bluff overlooking the village and the main road, and so seems impressively tall. But up close, one finds the tower to appear short and squat.
I had driven over from Tilmanstone, I had decided to give Eythorne a miss as I really wanted to make sure I got to Alkham and the next church on the list, Acrise, before the day faded and I would lose the chance for another year.
Parking in the village is problematic, so I leave the car opposite the village hall beside the cricket pitch, which now looks like it would be perfect for a few overs. How different from the late winter, when the Drellingore was in full flood and the pitch was under a good foot of water, and houses down the hill had water bubbling up between the plants in their gardens borders.
And looking at the Drellingore itself, reveals it to be the dried up bed it always was, with just the occasional pool of still wet mud showing where once the torrent flowed.
It is quite a steep climb back to the main road and then along to the old village pub, The Marquess of Granby, now sadly rebranded as a gastropub and called simply "The Marquess".
Up beside the pub, past a pretty row of cottages and into the churchyard. My, I was puffing well, but after stopping to take a shot of the outside of the church, I walk to the porch to find both the outer and inner doors open, and the interior glowing with sunlight refracted by Victorian stained glass.
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Picturesquely situated on a quiet bluff high above the main road, the simple flint exterior of Alkham church hides a remarkable surprise. From the south the building looks little different to many others in the region, but inside it immediately presents its trump card - a north aisle/chapel built in the thirteenth century which contains the finest blank wall arcading in any Kent church. This should be compared with the contemporary chancel arcading at Cooling and Woodchurch - in each designed to emphasise the importance of the (recently rebuilt) chancel. Here it served an altogether different purpose, competing with the nearby commandery of the Knights Hospitallers at Swingfield. At the west end of the nave, filling the tower arch, is a rather heavy but fine, wooden nineteenth century screen. The east window contains some fine nineteenth century glass. West tower, nave, chancel, north aisle, south porch
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Alkham
ALKHAM is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Dover.
The church, which is dedicated to St. Anthony the Martyr, is a handsome building, consisting of three isles and two chancels, having a tower steeple, with a low pointed turret on it, in which hang three bells. The north isle is shut out by boarding from the rest of the church, and made no use of at present, to which the school now kept in the chancel might be removed, and have no kind of communication with that part of the church appropriated for divine service, which would prevent that unseemly and indecent resort which it is at present subject to. In the chancel are several memorials for the Slaters, lessees of the parsonage; and on the south side, against the wall, is an antient tomb of Bethersden marble.
The church of Alkham, with the chapel of Mauregge, or Capell as it is now called, belonging to it, was given by Hamon de Crevequer to the abbot and convent of St. Radigund, together with the advowson of it, to hold in free, pure, and perpetual alms. It was appropriated to that abbey about the 43d year of king Henry III. anno 1258, and was afterwards, anno 8 Richard II. valued among the temporalities of the abbey at fourteen pounds. In which state this church and advowson remained till the dissolution of the abbey, which happened in the 27th year of king Henry VIII. when it was suppressed by the act of that year, as being under the clear yearly value of two hundred pounds, and their lands and possessions given to the king, who granted the scite of it, with the whole of its possessions, that year, to archbishop Cranmer, in exchange for other lands, who in the same year exchanged them back again with the king, being enabled so to do by an act then specially passed for that purpose; but in the deed of exchange, among other exceptions, was that of all churches and advowsons of vicarages; by virtue of which, the appropriation of the church of Alkham, together with the advowson of the vicarage, remained part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury, as they do at this time, his grace the archbishop of Canterbury being now entitled to them.
The vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Ferne, alias Capell, annexed to it, is valued in the king's books at eleven pounds, and the yearly tenths at Il.2s. per annum. (fn. 4) It is now of the clear yearly certified value of 53l. 9s. 6d. In 1588 here were communicants eighty; in 1640 it was valued at sixty pounds. The vicar of it is inducted into the vicarage of Alkham, with the chapel of Capell le Ferne, alias St.Mary le Merge, annexed to it. There are three acres of glebe land belonging to the vicarage.
The great tithes of Evering ward, in this parish and Swingfield ward, part of the parsonage of Alkham, are held of the archbishop for three lives, at the yearly rent of 1l. 6s. 8d. and the parsonage for twenty-one years, at the yearly rent of twelve pounds.
Happy Valentine’s Day to all of my friends and lovers! El Rio’s Valentine’s Day Cards are back in the ring to take another swing! This is the 8th year of my cards and it’s turned into my longest running project yet. Enjoy! As always, please post these cards on the pages of your online friends, real life enemies, booty calls, baby daddies, OK Cupid regrets, and people you’re stalking on instagram.
Any title could have been problematic ...
A series of rather abstract photos taken at a dance party. Played with different approaches. Love the results!
Inevitably during quite a bit of motorway/autobahn/autoroute driving backwards and forwards across five countires we would hit a problem somewhere. We didn't get held up once getting to Germany from Norfolk, but the journey from Germany back to France was a bit more problematic...
We'd already got stuck in traffic after an earlier accident, then we hit another queue on the A2 having just crossed from Belgium into France, only 10-15 miles from our hotel. We let a lorry in just in front of us, but then a fireman stepped out with a cone and stopped us, the lorry passing through and not knowing how lucky he was. We sat here for nearly three hours.
It was clearly serious, as a helicopter was brought in which initially landed in a field beside the road. However that was obviously a problem in getting to it, so it took off again and landed on the road, hence the closure. Numerous emergency vehicles turned up, most of which we couldn't see once they'd hurtled down the hard shoulder and to be honest I felt uneasy going further down the road to look.
Eventually another 2-3 helicopters turned up, also landing in the road (see other photo). We didn't know what had happened, but when we eventually got let through we could see a coach completely off the road though luckily still on its wheels. Found this story: translate.google.co.uk/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=ht...
One young lad killed and a number of people injured, suspicion of either speed or the driver nodding off. Very sad, we couldn't feel bad about getting stuck for so long when it was clearly pretty grim.