View allAll Photos Tagged Solidity
Roof boss in the 14th century vault of the nave.
The attractive town of Tewkesbury has been dominated by its superb abbey church since the beginning of the 12th century, and we can be forever grateful to its townspeople for purchasing the monastic church in 1540 for £453 for use as their parish church, saving it from the fate that befell countless similar great churches across the land during the turmoil of the Dissolution. It reminds us both how lucky we are to still marvel at it today, yet also how great a loss to our heritage the period wrought when many more such buildings were so utterly plundered as to have gone without trace (the fate of the monastic buildings here and even the lady chapel of the church whose footings are laid out in the grass at the east end).
Tewkesbury Abbey is thus rightly celebrated as one of our greatest non-cathedral churches, and remarkably much of the original Norman church remains substantially intact, most apparently in the great central tower, a fine example of Romanesque architecture adorned with rows of blind-arcading. The west front is dominated by a massive Norman-arched recess (enclosing the somewhat later west window) and the nave and transepts remain largely as originally built, though this is less clear externally owing to the changes made to the windows, nearly all of which were enlarged in the 14th century in the Decorated Gothic style. This century also saw the complete rebuilding of the eastern limb of the church, of a form less common in England with radiating chapels surrounding the eastern apse of the choir (the central lady chapel sadly missing since 1540).
The interior reveals far more of the Romanesque structure with mighty columns supporting the round Norman arches of the nave arcades giving the building a great sense of solidity. The space is further enlivened by the changes made during the 14th century by the stunning vault over the nave (adorned with a rewarding series of figurative bosses) which sits surprisingly well with the Norman work below. Beyond the apsidal choir beckons, and both this and the space below the tower are enriched with stunningly complex vaulted ceilings (replete with further bosses and gilded metal stars), all ablaze with colour and gilding.
There is much to enjoy in glass here, most remarkably a complete set of 14th century glazing in the clerestorey of the choir, seven windows filled with saints and prophets (and most memorably two groups of knights in the westernmost windows on each side). A few of the figures have fared less well over the centuries but on the whole this is a wonderfully rare and well preserved scheme. There is much glass from the 19th century too, with an extensive scheme in the nave of good quality work by Hardman's, and more recently a pair of rich windows by Tom Denny were added in one of the polygonal chapels around the east end.
Some of the most memorable features are the monuments with many medieval tombs of note, primarily the effigies and chantry chapels of members of the Despenser family around the choir (two of the chantries being miniature architectural gems in their own right with exquisite fan-vaulting). In one of the apsidal chapels is the unusual cenotaph to Abbot Wakeman with his grisly cadaver effigy, a late medieval reminder of earthly mortality.
Tewkesbury Abbey is not to be missed and is every bit as rewarding as many of our cathedrals (superior in fact to all but the best). It is normally kept open and welcoming to visitors on a daily basis. I have also had the privilege of working on this great building several times over the years (as part of the team at the studio I once worked for), and have left my mark in glass in a few discreet places.
Ferstel
(Pictures you can see by clicking on the link at the end of page!)
Ferstel and Café Central, by Rudolf von Alt, left the men's alley (Herrengasse - Street of the Lords), right Strauchgasse
Danube mermaid fountain in a courtyard of the Palais Ferstel
Shopping arcade of the Freyung to Herrengasse
Entrance to Ferstel of the Freyung, right the Palais Harrach, left the palace Hardegg
The Ferstel is a building in the first district of Vienna, Inner City, with the addresses Strauchgasse 2-4, 14 Lord Street (Herrengasse) and Freyung 2. It was established as a national bank and stock exchange building, the denomination Palais is unhistoric.
History
In 1855, the entire estate between Freyung, Strauchgasse and Herrengasse was by Franz Xaver Imperial Count von Abensperg and Traun to the k.k. Privileged Austrian National Bank sold. This banking institution was previously domiciled in the Herrengasse 17/ Bankgasse. The progressive industrialization and the with it associated economic expansion also implied a rapid development of monetary transactions and banking, so that the current premises soon no longer have been sufficient. This problem could only be solved by a new building, in which also should be housed a stock exchange hall.
According to the desire of the then Governor of the National Bank, Franz von Pipitz, the new building was supposed to be carried out with strict observance of the economy and avoiding a worthless luxury with solidity and artistic as well as technical completion. The building should offer room for the National Bank, the stock market, a cafe and - a novel idea for Vienna - a bazaar.
The commissioned architect, Heinrich von Ferstel, demonstrated in the coping with the irregular surface area with highest conceivable effective use of space his state-of-the art talent. The practical requirements combine themselves with the actually artistic to a masterful composition. Ferstel has been able to lay out the rooms of the issuing bank, the two trading floors, the passage with the bazar and the coffee house in accordance with their intended purpose and at the same time to maintain a consistent style.
He was an advocate of the "Materialbaues" (material building) as it clearly is reflected in the ashlar building of the banking institution. Base, pillars and stairs were fashioned of Wöllersdorfer stone, façade elements such as balconies, cornices, structurings as well as stone banisters of the hard white stone of Emperor Kaiser quarry (Kaisersteinbruch), while the walls were made of -Sankt Margarethen limestone. The inner rooms have been luxuriously formed, with wood paneling, leather wallpaper, Stuccolustro and rich ornamental painting.
The facade of the corner front Strauchgasse/Herrengasse received twelve sculptures by Hanns Gasser as decoration, they symbolized the peoples of the monarchy. The mighty round arch at the exit Freyung were closed with wrought-iron bare gates, because the first used locksmith could not meet the demands of Ferstel, the work was transferred to a silversmith.
1860 the National Bank and the stock exchange could move into the in 1859 completed construction. The following year was placed in the glass-covered passage the Danube mermaid fountain, whose design stems also of Ferstel. Anton von Fernkorn has created the sculptural decoration with an artistic sensitivity. Above the marble fountain basin rises a column crowned by a bronze statue, the Danube female with flowing hair, holding a fish in its hand. Below are arranged around the column three also in bronze cast figures: merchant, fisherman and shipbuilder, so those professions that have to do with the water. The total cost of the building, the interior included, amounted to the enormous sum of 1.897.600 guilders.
The originally planned use of the building remained only a few years preserved. The Stock Exchange with the premises no longer had sufficient space: in 1872 it moved to a provisional solution, 1877 at Schottenring a new Stock Exchange building opened. The National Bank moved 1925 into a yet 1913 planned, spacious new building.
The building was in Second World War battered gravely particularly on the main facade. In the 1960s was located in the former Stock Exchange a basketball training hall, the entire building appeared neglected.
1971 dealt the President of the Federal Monuments Office, Walter Frodl, with the severely war damaged banking and stock exchange building in Vienna. The Office for Technical Geology of Otto Casensky furnished an opinion on the stone facade. On the facade Freyung 2 a balcony was originally attached over the entire 15.4 m long front of hard Kaiserstein.
(Usage of Leith lime: Dependent from the consistence and structure of the Leitha lime the usage differed from „Reibsand“ till building material. The Leitha lime stone is a natural stone which can be formed easily and was desired als beautiful stone for buildings in Roman times. The usage of lime stone from Eggenburg in the Bronze age already was verified. This special attribute is the reason why the Leitha lime was taken from sculptors and masons.
The source of lime stone in the Leitha Mountains was important for Austria and especially for Vienna from the cultur historical point of view during the Renaissance and Baroque. At the 19th century the up to 150 stone quarries of the Leitha mountains got many orders form the construction work of the Vienna „Ring road“.
At many buildings of Graz, such as the castle at the Grazer castle hill, the old Joanneum and the Cottage, the Leitha lime stone was used.
Due to the fact that Leitha lime is bond on carbonate in the texture, the alteration through the actual sour rain is heavy. www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC2HKZ9_leithagebirge-leithak...)
This balcony was no longer present and only close to the facade were remnants of the tread plates and the supporting brackets recognizable. In July 1975, followed the reconstruction of the balcony and master stonemason Friedrich Opferkuh received the order to restore the old state am Leithagebirge received the order the old state - of Mannersdorfer stone, armoured concrete or artificial stone.
1975-1982, the building was renovated and re-opened the Café Central. Since then, the privately owned building is called Palais Ferstel. In the former stock exchange halls now meetings and presentations take place; the Café Central is utilizing one of the courtyards.
a beautiful story inspired from the old gate in the Rose village , the yellow is a new color.. a continuity of shapes, hues, and uniformity of appearance that reinforce the integration of these constructions at the desert 🐫 Sahara.the walls are made up of a double row of large stones, the mortar of hewing, it, of particularly adherent earth added sometimes with chopped straw to give him more cohesion and solidity.The architectural and urban composition in the Algerian work of Fernand Pouillon (more than two million square metres built by the architect), including the housing estates built in the 1950s (Diar Es Saada, Diar El Mahçoul, Climat de France, the Cité Lescure, etc.) and those of the 1980s (the Cité Bordj El Bahri, the 400 housing units in Boufarik). Fernand Pouillon has always tried to respond to the problem of mass housing by proposing compositions that integrate urban concerns as well as ideas of comfort for the inhabitants, in terms of hotel architecture, Fernand Pouillon moves away from his rationalism of the 1950s and takes a completely different path for this programme, that of the picturesque of eclecticism and multiculturalism without ever breaking the relationship of continuity between territory, city and architecture.
A letter to the motoring public
about a remarkable new car
designed
for Americans
by Sweden’s
leading builder
of jet aircraft
Dear Motorist:
Four years ago, SAAB of Sweden introduced the Saab automobile in the United States.
Built by one of Europe’s leading producers of jet aircraft, the Saab presented an entirely
new automotive concept to American motorists. But it was a concept that had already been proved over hundreds of millions of
miles throughout Europe. Americans took to the Saab with enthusiasm, Here was a car that combined beauty, economy, safety and comfort with the precision craftsmanship of aircraft engineering.
Most notable of Saab’s many unique features is its front wheel
drive, developed and perfected more than ten years ago. By
combining the engine, gear box and differential in a compact
front-end power pack, Saab offers exceptional traction, maneuverability and ease of handling—even in mud, snow and sand.
Another significant feature is Saab’s highly
efficient dual-stroke engine. With no valves, no cams, no tappets;
the engine has only seven basic moving parts. Three cylinders do
the work of six—with the same smooth power flow. Saab owners
often travel more than 100,000 miles without an engine overhaul.
Saab is a beautiful car. But its sleek body lines are as functional as
they are handsome. The design was actually developed in a wind
tunnel to minimize wind resistance
and air drag. As a result, Saab’s ride is amazingly smooth,
quiet and stable—even at high speeds. Another advantage
of the car’s aerodynamic design is remarkable fuel economy
which averages 33-38 miles per gallon,
An authoritative automotive magazine recently referred to Saab as the “safest small car in
the world.” Here again Saab’s aircraft experience was of prime
importance, for the car was actually subjected to stress tests in
much the same manner as airplane construction is tested. Saab’s
body shell is an armored fuselage of heavy gauge steel, welded and
reinforced for tremendous strength and solidity.
Saab is unique among cars. Its compact exterior dimensions belie
its interior spaciousness. Compared with other imported cars Saab
offers more leg room, more head room and much more luggage
space for greater driving comfort. The special convertible
seating transforms the car at will into a utility wagon
for big loads or a camping unit to sleep two. Although
it consistently wins sports car rallies and competitions—
often against larger, more powerful cars—Saab is very
much a family car. It is nimble in traffic, easy to park.
Under Saab’s sound marketing policy, fine dealer service is assured through regional depots with complete supplies of spare parts promptly available. Furthermore, all Saab parts are in standard American S.A.E. tool sizes. Any service man can work on a Saab.
In the four years Saab has been in the United States, we have made over 30 improvements in comfort and performance to meet American preferences. Yet there have been no changes in Saab’s basic and proven design. Unlike many domestic cars which undergo yearly changes
for change sake only, Saab retains its smartness and value for years. We do not build in obsolescence; we build in quality.
We firmly believe the 1961 SAAB 5-seater
Sports Sedan and 7-pass. Station Wagon to
be the finest automobiles ever produced for
the money. They incorporate many important
advancements—at no increase in price.
May I suggest you visit your nearest Saab
dealer and let him show you the unusual fea-
tures of this remarkable automobile, Then test-
drive and compare the ’61 SAAB for yourself!
Ralph T. Millet,
President Saab Motors Inc.
P.S. The 1961 SAAB is definitely competitive in price with cars selling at $1600 because its complete price of $1895* includes special equipment and features not found in other cars.
SAAB, 1961
River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
These images were taken towards the end of the second week of February 2017.
These are the critical stabilisation works at the Silverbridge site, adjacent to the N11 dual-carriageway:
Back in November 2014, we'd observed bank stabilisation works here involving excavation, repair and building of a support wall structure -- carried out by JONS Construction on behalf of the National Roads Authority.
We would occasionally catch sight of this work in the distance. Quite an impressive little piece of structural engineering.
Having built a retaining concave wall, backfilled for solidity, they were also drilling, fixing and sealing ground anchors to pin the entire structure together.
Now we see that further works are being undertaken.
Word has it that extra ‘stabilisation work’ had to be done to protect the integrity of the riverbank.
At the section here we can see that there’s not much space between the edge of the rock face and the Armco at the side of the dual-carriageway.
Have yet to determine what precisely that will entail. Serious work to reinforce the side access ramp down to the river.
The N11 carriageway runs adjacent to this sunken side of the riverbank -- barely 2 (large) paces divide the two. Even with twin strips of Armco along the roadside, it's perilously close. Traffic speeds along this stretch (maximum speed 100 kmp). Only needs a touch from a heavy vehicle to cause secondary impact, which (worst possible scenario) could result in something going airborne.
Working in these confined spaces puts a premium of safety and communication.
The guys have hard-filled a working shelf on the riverbed, to allow machinery access to the rockface. Obviously some serious drilling is called for before a form of extra 'pinning' is put in place.
They have sunk a series of hollowed tubes/casings -- obviously to form the foundations of a more extensive structure.
And some investigative work around the transverse buttress of the access bridge, parallel to the heavy-duty pipeline carrying water down from the Vartry reservoir.
At a (rough) guess -- I'd say the foundations were sunk to a depth of approx 4+m.
With such secure foundations in place, they would then look to construct a substantial bank of material, and/or retaining wall (similar to that in place further along the roadside bank).
=================================================
Previously the guys drilled and sunk 4+metre deep reinforced tubing and rods along a newly laid concrete base. Those stubs were then used to attach steel rod cradles -- which, in turn, were filled with poured concrete. Result - the wall quickly rises. Variation on the method they've used elsewhere along this stretch of the river.
A continuous stretch of protective wall has now been poured, and joined up with the section originally erected back in 2014.
As we can see from the side-on shot, the base of the wall has pre-cut openings for the retaining pins that have been driven into the side wall of the roadside cliff. These have been sealed and capped.
Progress has been rapid, the full stretch of wall is completed, and the guys are now working on back-filling the empty space between the protective wall and the roadside rock face. You don't just throw in a few trucks loads of soil and hope for the best. You load, layer, level and compress.
And, at the same time, the guys are clearing away material used to build access ramps down into the riverbed.
The thought crossed my mind -- in doing so (removing the stone-filled gabions etc,) are they potentially exposing the river bank on that side to erosion, slippage etc?
We know the destructive force of fast running waters. Hell, this is precisely why the protective works have been carried out along the rest of the stretch, down to the Bray Harbour. Unless they have other plans to stabilise it, what is going to be left here is loose soil -- very close to the access road into the halting site itself.
Some repair/reinforcing work is going on here to protect the (old) buttress that supports the pipework carrying water to the Bray region.
1992 Tetsuo HARADA
LE 38ème PARALLÈLE
1992s234-38th parallele-kajigawa-Japan
Hauteur 4 m, l’axe 20 m, dallage 25 m2
Granit rose de la Clarté
Kajigawa, Niigata, Japon
La ville de Kajigawa, au Japon, est située sur le 38ème parallèle (latitude). Cette ligne sépare la Corée du Nord de la Corée du Sud.
Tetsuo Harada a réalisé cette sculpture pour la paix et la réconciliation entre les deux Corée. Les deux blocs de la pyramide se rejoignent exactement au niveau du 38ème parallèle et sont unis par une spère.
Le Tricot de la Terre, porteur de paix et d’union, est également présent dans cette sculpture.
Comme Tetsuo Harada, la ville de Kajigawa et le Ministère de l’Equipement qui ont commandé cette sculpture, souhaitent exprimer ce message de paix. Ils invitent les autres villes du monde situées également sur le 38ème parallèle à exprimer cet espoir par la culture, l'art ou le sport.
La ville d’Athènes, également située sur le 38ème parallèle, a adopté ce thème “38ème parallèle, horizon” pour le programme artistique et culturel des Jeux olympiques de 2004. Le 38ème traverse : Italie, Espagne, Portugal, Turquie, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Chine, Corée, Japon, Californie, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia.
1992
THE 38th PARALLEL
Height 4 m, axis 20 m, paving 25 m2
Pink Granite of Clarity
Kajigawa, Niigata, Japan
The city of Kajigawa, Japan, is located on the 38th parallel (latitude). This line separates North Korea from South Korea.
Tetsuo Harada created this sculpture for peace and reconciliation between the two Koreas. The two blocks of the pyramid meet exactly at the level of the 38th parallel and are joined by a marker.
The Knit of the Earth, bearer of peace and union, is also present in this sculpture.
As Tetsuo Harada, the city of Kajigawa and the Ministry of Equipment who commissioned this sculpture, wish to express this message of peace. They invite the other cities of the world also located on the 38th parallel to express this hope through culture, art or sport.
The city of Athens, also located on the 38th parallel, has adopted this theme "38th parallel, horizon" for the artistic and cultural programme of the 2004 Olympic Games. The 38th parallel runs through: Italy, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, China, Korea, Japan, California, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia.
1992 KAGIGAWA-NIIGATA (JAPON)
ASSOCIATION DE VILLE ET DE L’EQUIPEMENT
Le 38ème parallèle sépare la Corée de nord de celle du Sud. Ce lieu particulier devient dans la ville de Kagigawa le symbole de la Paix. Tetsuo HARADA semble tout à fait indiqué en y installant le Tricot de la Terre. Les liens du Tricot de la Terre se tournent vers cette sculpture, forte, pyramidale, rehaussée d’une très belle colonne de granit. La solidité et le temps semble imposer leur sérénité. On y vient à pied, en vélo, en voiture sur cet air destiné à la rencontre et au dialogue. Du train on l’aperçoit petite et de plus en plus grande avant de disparaître dans son écrin de verdure et de rizières. Plus qu’une simple destination le 38ème parallèle entoure la terre et se veut réunir les hommes de Paix. Athènes contribue à donner une suite ...
Sur le 38ème le programme est ouvert pour Hamonten (Chine), San Fransisco (USA), Sado (Japon).
1992 KAGIGAWA-NIIGATA (JAPAN)
CITY AND EQUIPMENT ASSOCIATION
The 38th parallel separates North and South Korea. This particular place becomes in the city of Kagigawa the symbol of Peace. Tetsuo HARADA seems quite appropriate by installing there the Knitting of the Earth. The links of the Knitwear of the Earth turn towards this sculpture, strong, pyramidal, raised by a very beautiful granite column. Solidity and time seem to impose their serenity. One comes there on foot, by bicycle, by car on this air intended for the meeting and the dialogue. From the train you can see it small and getting bigger and bigger before disappearing into its green and rice fields. More than a simple destination, the 38th parallel surrounds the earth and is intended to bring together men of Peace. Athens contributes to give a continuation ...
On the 38th the program is open for Hamonten (China), San Fransisco (USA), Sado (Japan) ...
————————
ASSOCIATION OF THE CITY AND THE EQUIPEMENT
The 38th parallel separtes North and South Korea. The sculpture represents in a way the union of both these countries. This particular site in Kagigawa city becomes symbol of Peace. Tetsuo Harada’s ideas and interests find a great deal of expression here, through the theme of the “Earth Weaving”. The links of the “Earth Weaving” head towards this sculpture, strong pyramidal, matched with an imposing granite column. The solidity and the permanence seem to surround the site with serenity. One can go there walking or by car, the area is dedicated to meetings ans dialogue. By train, one can catch the sight of it, slowly disappearing amongst the setting of greenery and paddy fields. More than a mere destination, th e38th parallel surrounds the earth and aims to unify men of peace. Athena contributes to giving a continuation...
One the theme of the 38th, opportunieies are to be found the Hamonten (China), San Francisco (USA), Sado (Japan)...
El paralelo 38 separa Korea del norte de Korea del sur. La escultura representa en cierta manera la union de estos dos paises. Tetsuo Harada parece completamente la persona indicada en este lugar para construir “La tejeduria de la tierra”. Los vinculos de La tejeduria de la tierra vuelven hara esta escultura, fuerte piramidal realjada par una manestuosa columna de granito. La solidez y la parecn imponer su serenidad. Se viene en este sitio destinado a los encuentros y al dialogo andando, en bicideta, en coche. Desde el tren se preda divisar pequerran mas y mas grande, rapidamente desapareciedo joyera de verdura y de arrozales. Mas que una simple destincion, “el 38 paralelo” rodea toto el planeta y quiere runir los hombres de paz. Alterras contribuye a dar una continuacion...
A proposito des 38 paralelo, los aportunidades quedan abiertas en Hamonten (China), San Francisco (Estados Unidos), Sado (Japon)...
I like the composition and the solidity of the grandma. They don't make grandmothers like that anymore.
Teodoro Buenaventura (1863-1950)
Landscape
signed and dated 1945 (lower right)
oil on wood
20” x 30” (51 cm x 76 cm)
Starting bid: P 120,000
This landscape shows Buenventura’s knack for strongly defined forms, such as the carabao at the center, and his sensitive eye for detail. Buenaventura’s forte was landscape and his views of the Philippine countryside are notable for their solidity of mass, somber color, and brooding atmosphere.
Fatherless at age 14, Teodoro Buenaventura came to Manila to look for work. The mother of his employer, much impressed with Buenventura’s talents, sponsored his education at the Escuela Superior de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado. In 1899, he opened a portrait shop in San Jose, Trozo. He also opened a school, the Academia de Dibujo, Escultura y Grabado. Among his students were Serafin Serna, Tomas Bernardo, and Mauro Malang Santos. He was also a founding teacher of the UP School of Fine Arts where he taught from 1909 to 1935.
One of the early masters of classical realism in the Philippines, the bulk of his major works were destroyed in World War 2. Most of those preserved are small landscapes and genre pieces such as the pair of portraits at the Central Bank of the Philippines. Buenaventura won the bronze medal at the Exposition Regional de Filipinas in 1895, and a silver medal in 1908 at the Asosacion Internacional de Artistas Exhibit, where the prize-winners read like a Who’s Who: Vicente Rivera y Mir and Gaston O Farrel for first prize; Ramon Peralta, Jorge Pineda, Fernando Amorsolo and Buenaventura for the second prizes.
Lot 199 of the Leon Gallery auction on 5 December 2015. Please see www.leon-gallery.com for more details.
Entrance foyer, the Plaza Theatre, which was below the Regent, Collins Street, Melbourne, opened on 10 May, 1929. It seated 1235 in its single-level Spanish-style auditorium, with its entrance adjacent to that of the Regent.
"Seating only twelve hundred people, and furnished in true old-world Spanish style, the Plaza provides the acme of comfort for every patron. Every seat is a luxurious lounge armchair. The entire floor space is covered with deep rich carpets. At every turn an objet d'art, never obtrusive but bringing a dash of old-world adventure and romance to the new world masterpiece of theatre construction." [Plaza Theatre advertisement (full-page), The Herald, 10 May, 1929, p. 11].
"Following the recent practice of designing theatres in accordance with the style of some particular period, the Plaza is Spanish in its decorative scheme. Entrance from Collins Street is by way of stairs leading to a court constructed after the manner of a Spanish close. the floor simulates the rough paving of a courtyard, and on one side a fountain pays. Through archways to the right is a rockery with orange trees, and here furniture of the appropriate Spanish period has been placed.
The auditorium also is decorated in a Spanish scheme, in which atmosphere rather than any particular period is suggested. On the roof a variegated design in which red, yellow and green are prominent, gives an appearance of solidity, and the scheme is extended to the leather chairs...
The 'talkies' provide their own accompaniment, and consequently an orchestra is unnecessary. An organ had been installed, however, to supplement the pictures when that is called for, and for solo items." [The Argus, 11 May, 1929]
In February, 1959, a new Cinerama screen and projection system were installed in the Plaza. The Regent Plaza Theatre is cited as one of the few cinemas adapted for Cinerama outside of North America.
The Cinerama screen was well forward of the proscenium, in front of the pit and the organ chambers. Although the organ was no longer able to be played in public, it was still operable, and was used by organists playing at the Regent for practice between the Cinerama sessions.
The Plaza closed in November, 1970. In December that year an auction was held at the theatre where everything that was not bolted down was auctioned off, raising a few thousand dollars.
Entrepreneur David Marinner earmarked the Regent for restoration when he established a revival movement for classical performing arts theatres in Melbourne during 1991. The Plaza Theatre was also fully and magnificently restored to its original ballroom format and reopened in 1996.
Ceiling of the main auditorium, the Plaza Theatre, which was below the Regent, Collins Street, Melbourne, opened on 10 May, 1929. It seated 1235 in its single-level Spanish-style auditorium, with its entrance adjacent to that of the Regent.
"Seating only twelve hundred people, and furnished in true old-world Spanish style, the Plaza provides the acme of comfort for every patron. Every seat is a luxurious lounge armchair. The entire floor space is covered with deep rich carpets. At every turn an objet d'art, never obtrusive but bringing a dash of old-world adventure and romance to the new world masterpiece of theatre construction." [Plaza Theatre advertisement (full-page), The Herald, 10 May, 1929, p. 11].
"Following the recent practice of designing theatres in accordance with the style of some particular period, the Plaza is Spanish in its decorative scheme. Entrance from Collins Street is by way of stairs leading to a court constructed after the manner of a Spanish close. the floor simulates the rough paving of a courtyard, and on one side a fountain pays. Through archways to the right is a rockery with orange trees, and here furniture of the appropriate Spanish period has been placed.
The auditorium also is decorated in a Spanish scheme, in which atmosphere rather than any particular period is suggested. On the roof a variegated design in which red, yellow and green are prominent, gives an appearance of solidity, and the scheme is extended to the leather chairs...
The 'talkies' provide their own accompaniment, and consequently an orchestra is unnecessary. An organ had been installed, however, to supplement the pictures when that is called for, and for solo items." [The Argus, 11 May, 1929]
Gustav Michael Pillig was in entire charge of the designing of decoration and the figure modelling for the Plaza Theatre.
In February, 1959, a new Cinerama screen and projection system were installed in the Plaza. The Regent Plaza Theatre is cited as one of the few cinemas adapted for Cinerama outside of North America.
The Cinerama screen was well forward of the proscenium, in front of the pit and the organ chambers. Although the organ was no longer able to be played in public, it was still operable, and was used by organists playing at the Regent for practice between the Cinerama sessions.
The Plaza closed in November, 1970. In December that year an auction was held at the theatre where everything that was not bolted down was auctioned off, raising a few thousand dollars.
Entrepreneur David Marinner earmarked the Regent for restoration when he established a revival movement for classical performing arts theatres in Melbourne during 1991. The Plaza Theatre was also fully and magnificently restored to its original ballroom format and reopened in 1996.
River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
These images were taken in the last full week of January 2017.
These are the critical stabilisation works at the Silverbridge site, adjacent to the N11 dual-carriageway:
Back in November 2014, we observed bank stabilisation works here involving excavation, repair and building of a support wall structure -- carried out by JONS Construction on behalf of the National Roads Authority.
We would occasionally catch sight of this work in the distance. Quite an impressive little piece of structural engineering.
Having built a retaining concave wall, backfilled for solidity, they were also drilling, fixing and sealing ground anchors to pin the entire structure together.
Now we see that further works are being undertaken.
Word has it that extra ‘stabilisation work’ has to be done to protect the integrity of the riverbank. At the section here we can see that there’s not much space between the edge of the rock face and the Armco at the side of the dual-carriageway.
Have yet to determine what precisely that will entail. Serious work to reinforce the side access ramp down to the river.
The N11 carriageway runs adjacent to this sunken side of the riverbank -- barely 2 (large) paces divide the two. Even with twin strips of Armco along the roadside, it's perilously close. Traffic speeds along this stretch (maximum speed 100 kmp). Only needs a touch from a heavy vehicle to cause secondary impact, which (worst possible scenario) could result in something going airborne.
Working in these confined spaces puts a premium of safety and communication.
The guys have hard-filled a working shelf on the riverbed, to allow machinery access to the rockface. Obviously some serious drilling is called for before a form of extra 'pinning' is put in place.
They have sunk a series of hollowed tubes/casings -- obviously to form the foundations of a more extensive structure.
And some investigative work around the transverse buttress of the access bridge, parallel to the heavy-duty pipeline carrying water down from the Vartry reservoir.
At a (rough) guess -- I'd say the foundations were sunk to a depth of approx 4+m.
With such secure foundations in place, they would then look to construct a substantial bank of material, and/or retaining wall (similar to that in place further along the roadside bank).
=================================================
Previously the guys drilled and sunk 4+metre deep reinforced tubing and rods along a newly laid concrete base. Those stubs were then used to attach steel rod cradles -- which, in turn, were filled with poured concrete. Result - the wall quickly rises. Variation on the method they've used elsewhere along this stretch of the river.
A continuous stretch of protective wall has now been poured, and joined up with the section originally erected back in 2014.
As we can see from the side-on shot, the base of the wall has pre-cut openings for the retaining pins that have been driven into the side wall of the roadside cliff. These will be sealed and capped.
Large empty space, for now, between the wall and the existing roadside rock face.
www.lissongallery.com/exhibitions/anish-kapoor-f45a2ea5-2...
For his latest exhibition, Anish Kapoor presents a new series of paintings, an element of his practice that has rarely been seen, exploring the intimate and ritualistic nature of his work. Created over the past year, the show provides a poetic view of the artist's recent preoccupations. While painting has always been an integral part of Kapoor’s practice, this radical new body of work is both spiritual and ecstatic, showing Kapoor working in more vivid and urgent form than ever. Alongside this exhibition, a solo show dedicated to Kapoor's paintings will run at Modern Art Oxford from 2 October 2021 - 13 February 2022, and both shows precede Kapoor’s major retrospective at Gallerie dell'Accademia di Venezia, opening April 2022 to coincide with the Venice Biennale.
Through painting, Kapoor delves into the deep inner world of our mind and body, from the physical exploration of the flesh and blood, to investigating psychological concepts as primal and nameless as origin and obliteration. Since the 1980s, Kapoor has been celebrated largely as a sculptor, yet painting, and its rawest composition, colour and form, have been a fundamental element of his practice-. The presentation will feature a selection of new and recent paintings, created between 2019 and 2021, the majority in the artist’s London-based studio during the pandemic. Like the artist’s wider oeuvre, these paintings are rooted in a drive to grasp the unknown, to awaken consciousness and experiment with the phenomenology of space.
Kapoor’s work has been characterized by an intense encounter with colour and matter – manifest either through refined, reflective surfaces such as metal or mirrors, or through the tactile, sensual quality of the blankets of impasto. The magnetism of the colour red is evident in these new paintings, manifesting the elemental force that flows through us all, yet now accompanied by a new palette of telluric greys and yellows, as if witnessing a surge from the depths of the earth. Some works appear volcanic, with an intense, fiery energy, while others are more primitive and abstract, with layers of dense pigment and resin forming a sculpted solidity. Many of the paintings have a visceral outpouring where a canvas within a canvas rotates and evolves in space, seeming to defy gravity, with brushstrokes cascading over the edges like a waterfall. In others we see distorted, polymorphic figures emerging from a deep, radiant void, with a ghostly aura.
Kapoor achieves a coherence of mind and body, of interior and exterior in two of the series of works, illustrating a mythic landscape with a turbulent, ominous atmosphere that differentiates land from sky, body from space. These whirling landscapes evoke the extraordinary, eerie Romanticism of JMW Turner, a worship of nature marked through an expressive, dramatic scene. Similar in disposition are two works where we imagine the moon rising over the peak – a symbolic narrative of a new cycle, of origins and menstruation.
The wall-based paintings recall some of Kapoor’s most ambitious, distinguished works, including Svayambhu (2007), My Red Homeland (2003) and Symphony for a Beloved Sun (2013). In these floor-based works we see a more ritualistic, visceral language, where Kapoor unashamedly delves into depicting the very blood and flesh from which we are all born. Artists from Leonardo di Vinci to Francis Bacon have been fascinated with the innards of the body, be it our anatomy or the surrealist beauty in violence. The work also stands in a powerful tradition of artists exploring the human body’s expression of divine matters, yet through the unique vision of Kapoor’s Eastern and Western influences, and ---– considering the year in which they were created --– taking on new meaning highlighting the fragility of the body and self.
1992 Tetsuo HARADA
LE 38ème PARALLÈLE
Hauteur 4 m, l’axe 20 m, dallage 25 m2
Granit rose de la Clarté
Kajigawa, Niigata, Japon
La ville de Kajigawa, au Japon, est située sur le 38ème parallèle (latitude). Cette ligne sépare la Corée du Nord de la Corée du Sud.
Tetsuo Harada a réalisé cette sculpture pour la paix et la réconciliation entre les deux Corée. Les deux blocs de la pyramide se rejoignent exactement au niveau du 38ème parallèle et sont unis par une spère.
Le Tricot de la Terre, porteur de paix et d’union, est également présent dans cette sculpture.
Comme Tetsuo Harada, la ville de Kajigawa et le Ministère de l’Equipement qui ont commandé cette sculpture, souhaitent exprimer ce message de paix. Ils invitent les autres villes du monde situées également sur le 38ème parallèle à exprimer cet espoir par la culture, l'art ou le sport.
La ville d’Athènes, également située sur le 38ème parallèle, a adopté ce thème “38ème parallèle, horizon” pour le programme artistique et culturel des Jeux olympiques de 2004. Le 38ème traverse : Italie, Espagne, Portugal, Turquie, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Chine, Corée, Japon, Californie, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia.
1992
THE 38th PARALLEL
Height 4 m, axis 20 m, paving 25 m2
Pink Granite of Clarity
Kajigawa, Niigata, Japan
The city of Kajigawa, Japan, is located on the 38th parallel (latitude). This line separates North Korea from South Korea.
Tetsuo Harada created this sculpture for peace and reconciliation between the two Koreas. The two blocks of the pyramid meet exactly at the level of the 38th parallel and are joined by a marker.
The Knit of the Earth, bearer of peace and union, is also present in this sculpture.
As Tetsuo Harada, the city of Kajigawa and the Ministry of Equipment who commissioned this sculpture, wish to express this message of peace. They invite the other cities of the world also located on the 38th parallel to express this hope through culture, art or sport.
The city of Athens, also located on the 38th parallel, has adopted this theme "38th parallel, horizon" for the artistic and cultural programme of the 2004 Olympic Games. The 38th parallel runs through: Italy, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, China, Korea, Japan, California, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia.
1992 KAGIGAWA-NIIGATA (JAPON)
ASSOCIATION DE VILLE ET DE L’EQUIPEMENT
Le 38ème parallèle sépare la Corée de nord de celle du Sud. Ce lieu particulier devient dans la ville de Kagigawa le symbole de la Paix. Tetsuo HARADA semble tout à fait indiqué en y installant le Tricot de la Terre. Les liens du Tricot de la Terre se tournent vers cette sculpture, forte, pyramidale, rehaussée d’une très belle colonne de granit. La solidité et le temps semble imposer leur sérénité. On y vient à pied, en vélo, en voiture sur cet air destiné à la rencontre et au dialogue. Du train on l’aperçoit petite et de plus en plus grande avant de disparaître dans son écrin de verdure et de rizières. Plus qu’une simple destination le 38ème parallèle entoure la terre et se veut réunir les hommes de Paix. Athènes contribue à donner une suite ...
Sur le 38ème le programme est ouvert pour Hamonten (Chine), San Fransisco (USA), Sado (Japon).
1992 KAGIGAWA-NIIGATA (JAPAN)
CITY AND EQUIPMENT ASSOCIATION
The 38th parallel separates North and South Korea. This particular place becomes in the city of Kagigawa the symbol of Peace. Tetsuo HARADA seems quite appropriate by installing there the Knitting of the Earth. The links of the Knitwear of the Earth turn towards this sculpture, strong, pyramidal, raised by a very beautiful granite column. Solidity and time seem to impose their serenity. One comes there on foot, by bicycle, by car on this air intended for the meeting and the dialogue. From the train you can see it small and getting bigger and bigger before disappearing into its green and rice fields. More than a simple destination, the 38th parallel surrounds the earth and is intended to bring together men of Peace. Athens contributes to give a continuation ...
On the 38th the program is open for Hamonten (China), San Fransisco (USA), Sado (Japan) ...
1992 Tetsuo HARADA
LE 38ème PARALLÈLE
Hauteur 4 m, l’axe 20 m, dallage 25 m2
Granit rose de la Clarté
Kajigawa, Niigata, Japon
La ville de Kajigawa, au Japon, est située sur le 38ème parallèle (latitude). Cette ligne sépare la Corée du Nord de la Corée du Sud.
Tetsuo Harada a réalisé cette sculpture pour la paix et la réconciliation entre les deux Corée. Les deux blocs de la pyramide se rejoignent exactement au niveau du 38ème parallèle et sont unis par une spère.
Le Tricot de la Terre, porteur de paix et d’union, est également présent dans cette sculpture.
Comme Tetsuo Harada, la ville de Kajigawa et le Ministère de l’Equipement qui ont commandé cette sculpture, souhaitent exprimer ce message de paix. Ils invitent les autres villes du monde situées également sur le 38ème parallèle à exprimer cet espoir par la culture, l'art ou le sport.
La ville d’Athènes, également située sur le 38ème parallèle, a adopté ce thème “38ème parallèle, horizon” pour le programme artistique et culturel des Jeux olympiques de 2004. Le 38ème traverse : Italie, Espagne, Portugal, Turquie, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Chine, Corée, Japon, Californie, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia.
1992
THE 38th PARALLEL
Height 4 m, axis 20 m, paving 25 m2
Pink Granite of Clarity
Kajigawa, Niigata, Japan
The city of Kajigawa, Japan, is located on the 38th parallel (latitude). This line separates North Korea from South Korea.
Tetsuo Harada created this sculpture for peace and reconciliation between the two Koreas. The two blocks of the pyramid meet exactly at the level of the 38th parallel and are joined by a marker.
The Knit of the Earth, bearer of peace and union, is also present in this sculpture.
As Tetsuo Harada, the city of Kajigawa and the Ministry of Equipment who commissioned this sculpture, wish to express this message of peace. They invite the other cities of the world also located on the 38th parallel to express this hope through culture, art or sport.
The city of Athens, also located on the 38th parallel, has adopted this theme "38th parallel, horizon" for the artistic and cultural programme of the 2004 Olympic Games. The 38th parallel runs through: Italy, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, China, Korea, Japan, California, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia.
1992 KAGIGAWA-NIIGATA (JAPON)
ASSOCIATION DE VILLE ET DE L’EQUIPEMENT
Le 38ème parallèle sépare la Corée de nord de celle du Sud. Ce lieu particulier devient dans la ville de Kagigawa le symbole de la Paix. Tetsuo HARADA semble tout à fait indiqué en y installant le Tricot de la Terre. Les liens du Tricot de la Terre se tournent vers cette sculpture, forte, pyramidale, rehaussée d’une très belle colonne de granit. La solidité et le temps semble imposer leur sérénité. On y vient à pied, en vélo, en voiture sur cet air destiné à la rencontre et au dialogue. Du train on l’aperçoit petite et de plus en plus grande avant de disparaître dans son écrin de verdure et de rizières. Plus qu’une simple destination le 38ème parallèle entoure la terre et se veut réunir les hommes de Paix. Athènes contribue à donner une suite ...
Sur le 38ème le programme est ouvert pour Hamonten (Chine), San Fransisco (USA), Sado (Japon).
1992 KAGIGAWA-NIIGATA (JAPAN)
CITY AND EQUIPMENT ASSOCIATION
The 38th parallel separates North and South Korea. This particular place becomes in the city of Kagigawa the symbol of Peace. Tetsuo HARADA seems quite appropriate by installing there the Knitting of the Earth. The links of the Knitwear of the Earth turn towards this sculpture, strong, pyramidal, raised by a very beautiful granite column. Solidity and time seem to impose their serenity. One comes there on foot, by bicycle, by car on this air intended for the meeting and the dialogue. From the train you can see it small and getting bigger and bigger before disappearing into its green and rice fields. More than a simple destination, the 38th parallel surrounds the earth and is intended to bring together men of Peace. Athens contributes to give a continuation ...
On the 38th the program is open for Hamonten (China), San Fransisco (USA), Sado (Japan) ...
River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
These images were taken on the last day of January 2017.
These are the critical stabilisation works at the Silverbridge site, adjacent to the N11 dual-carriageway:
Back in November 2014, we observed bank stabilisation works here involving excavation, repair and building of a support wall structure -- carried out by JONS Construction on behalf of the National Roads Authority.
We would occasionally catch sight of this work in the distance. Quite an impressive little piece of structural engineering.
Having built a retaining concave wall, backfilled for solidity, they were also drilling, fixing and sealing ground anchors to pin the entire structure together.
Now we see that further works are being undertaken.
Word has it that extra ‘stabilisation work’ has to be done to protect the integrity of the riverbank. At the section here we can see that there’s not much space between the edge of the rock face and the Armco at the side of the dual-carriageway.
Have yet to determine what precisely that will entail. Serious work to reinforce the side access ramp down to the river.
The N11 carriageway runs adjacent to this sunken side of the riverbank -- barely 2 (large) paces divide the two. Even with twin strips of Armco along the roadside, it's perilously close. Traffic speeds along this stretch (maximum speed 100 kmp). Only needs a touch from a heavy vehicle to cause secondary impact, which (worst possible scenario) could result in something going airborne.
Working in these confined spaces puts a premium of safety and communication.
The guys have hard-filled a working shelf on the riverbed, to allow machinery access to the rockface. Obviously some serious drilling is called for before a form of extra 'pinning' is put in place.
They have sunk a series of hollowed tubes/casings -- obviously to form the foundations of a more extensive structure.
And some investigative work around the transverse buttress of the access bridge, parallel to the heavy-duty pipeline carrying water down from the Vartry reservoir.
At a (rough) guess -- I'd say the foundations were sunk to a depth of approx 4+m.
With such secure foundations in place, they would then look to construct a substantial bank of material, and/or retaining wall (similar to that in place further along the roadside bank).
=================================================
Previously the guys drilled and sunk 4+metre deep reinforced tubing and rods along a newly laid concrete base. Those stubs were then used to attach steel rod cradles -- which, in turn, were filled with poured concrete. Result - the wall quickly rises. Variation on the method they've used elsewhere along this stretch of the river.
A continuous stretch of protective wall has now been poured, and joined up with the section originally erected back in 2014.
As we can see from the side-on shot, the base of the wall has pre-cut openings for the retaining pins that have been driven into the side wall of the roadside cliff. These have been sealed and capped.
Progress has been rapid, the full stretch of wall is completed, and the guys are now working on back-filling the empty space between the protective wall and the roadside rock face. You don't just throw in a few trucks loads of soil and hope for the best. You load, layer, level and compress.
Chiaroscuro (English: /kiˌɑːrəˈskjʊəroʊ/; Italian: [ˌkjaroˈskuːro] (light-dark)) is an artistic technique, developed during the Renaissance, that uses strong tonal contrasts between light and dark to model three-dimensional forms, often to dramatic effect.[1] It is one of the four canonical painting modes of Renaissance art (alongside cangiante, sfumato, and unione).
The underlying principle is that solidity of form is best achieved by the light falling against it. Artists known for developing the technique include Leonardo da Vinci, Caravaggio, and Rembrandt. It is a mainstay of black and white and low-key photography.
River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
These images were taken on the last day of January 2017.
These are the critical stabilisation works at the Silverbridge site, adjacent to the N11 dual-carriageway:
Back in November 2014, we observed bank stabilisation works here involving excavation, repair and building of a support wall structure -- carried out by JONS Construction on behalf of the National Roads Authority.
We would occasionally catch sight of this work in the distance. Quite an impressive little piece of structural engineering.
Having built a retaining concave wall, backfilled for solidity, they were also drilling, fixing and sealing ground anchors to pin the entire structure together.
Now we see that further works are being undertaken.
Word has it that extra ‘stabilisation work’ has to be done to protect the integrity of the riverbank. At the section here we can see that there’s not much space between the edge of the rock face and the Armco at the side of the dual-carriageway.
Have yet to determine what precisely that will entail. Serious work to reinforce the side access ramp down to the river.
The N11 carriageway runs adjacent to this sunken side of the riverbank -- barely 2 (large) paces divide the two. Even with twin strips of Armco along the roadside, it's perilously close. Traffic speeds along this stretch (maximum speed 100 kmp). Only needs a touch from a heavy vehicle to cause secondary impact, which (worst possible scenario) could result in something going airborne.
Working in these confined spaces puts a premium of safety and communication.
The guys have hard-filled a working shelf on the riverbed, to allow machinery access to the rockface. Obviously some serious drilling is called for before a form of extra 'pinning' is put in place.
They have sunk a series of hollowed tubes/casings -- obviously to form the foundations of a more extensive structure.
And some investigative work around the transverse buttress of the access bridge, parallel to the heavy-duty pipeline carrying water down from the Vartry reservoir.
At a (rough) guess -- I'd say the foundations were sunk to a depth of approx 4+m.
With such secure foundations in place, they would then look to construct a substantial bank of material, and/or retaining wall (similar to that in place further along the roadside bank).
=================================================
Previously the guys drilled and sunk 4+metre deep reinforced tubing and rods along a newly laid concrete base. Those stubs were then used to attach steel rod cradles -- which, in turn, were filled with poured concrete. Result - the wall quickly rises. Variation on the method they've used elsewhere along this stretch of the river.
A continuous stretch of protective wall has now been poured, and joined up with the section originally erected back in 2014.
As we can see from the side-on shot, the base of the wall has pre-cut openings for the retaining pins that have been driven into the side wall of the roadside cliff. These have been sealed and capped.
Progress has been rapid, the full stretch of wall is completed, and the guys are now working on back-filling the empty space between the protective wall and the roadside rock face. You don't just throw in a few trucks loads of soil and hope for the best. You load, layer, level and compress.
Myths and legends of India : Human Gods or Theyyams
Theyyam (Theyyattam or Thira) is a popular Hindu ritual form of worship of North Malabar in Kerala, India. As a living cult with several thousand-year-old traditions, rituals and customs, it embraces almost all the castes and classes of the Hindu religion in this region. People of this region consider Theyyam itself as a God and they seek blessings from Theyyam.
Theyyam is a form of worship where man dons the guise of God and propitiates the Gods through possessed dancing; Theyyam is also known by the name Kaliyaattom. The performance of Theyyam is supposed to make life prosperous and remove all hazards. The staging area of Theyyam is known as kaavu. Kazhakam, Muchilottu, Mundiya, Sthhaanam, Kottam, are the other names for the staging area. There are various Theyyam forms like Vishnumoorthy, Puthiyabhagawathi, Pottan, Kathivanoor Veeran, Gulikan, Rakthachaamunnddi, Madayilchaamunnddi, Vayanaattu Kulavan, Kutty Shaashsthan, are the popular Theyyam forms. It is estimated that there are about 450 Theyyam forms. Theyyam is performed between the 10th day of Thulam (mid-October /mid-November) and middle of Idavam ( mid-May/mid-June). This is the period between the completion of the year’s harvest and preparations for the next year’s harvest. This period for Theyyam is the time for prayers for a good harvest, prosperity and general social solidity. Theyyam usually considered as ritual art and the only members of particular communities like Vannan, Malayan are allowed to perform these rituals. The headgear and other ornaments that are clad on the performers body are huge in size and appearance. Different costumes like leaf dress, headdress, breastplates, bangles, arm ornaments and other body decorations are to be prepared in advance before the performance.
The costumes of Theyyam are made out of cutting and painting coconut sheaths in black, white and red patterns, fresh coconut fronds form skirts, fashioning breasts out of dry coconut shells and tying a red cloth around the waist. The facial decorations are intricately designed with enriched symbolism. Theyyam is performed in the courtyard of a house or village temple, as the artist gets ready and the spirit of the deity is evoked during the nighttime. The hood, headdress, face painting, breastplate, bracelets, garlands and fabric of attire of each theyyam are distinct and meticulously crafted. Also called Thirayattam, (Because every thira or village performed this ritualistic art at the village temple) this primitive ritualistic ritualistic art demands long hours of preparation before the performance.
Theyyam’ performers belong to one of the Hindu communities (Malayan, Vannan, Velan (Thuzhuvelan), Koppalan, Mavilan, Chingatthan, Panan, Parayan, Pampatharavan, anhuttan, Munnuttan etc.). Each individual caste has the right to perform certain deities and all performers must poses a wide range of extraordinary skills. They must know the ritual and character of every deity. They have the inherited right to perform, know-how to sing, dance with the drum, do the complicated make-up and dress their costumes. Theyyam artistes are male. It is not a profession or calling that can be adopted. The artist's shrine rights are always inherited from the mother's family and when he marries, he also acquires the shrine rights of his wife's family. The artistes share a common training and tradition in which the process of becoming the deity is achieved after intense mental, physical and spiritual preparation. All Theyyam artistes must be able to do much more than just perform. Every deity's physical appearance conforms to an image envisaged centuries ago in the dream or vision of a respected guru. An artist must know how to make the headdresses and costumes of all the deities, how to apply the face and body makeup in all the different styles and designs, how to sing, play the drums, and know the stories, songs, and character of each deity.
River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
These images were taken towards the end of the third week of February 2017.
These are the critical stabilisation works at the Silverbridge site, adjacent to the N11 dual-carriageway:
Back in November 2014, we'd observed bank stabilisation works here involving excavation, repair and building of a support wall structure -- carried out by JONS Construction on behalf of the National Roads Authority.
We would occasionally catch sight of this work in the distance. Quite an impressive little piece of structural engineering.
Having built a retaining concave wall, backfilled for solidity, they were also drilling, fixing and sealing ground anchors to pin the entire structure together.
Now we see that further works are being undertaken.
Word has it that extra ‘stabilisation work’ had to be done to protect the integrity of the riverbank.
At the section here we can see that there’s not much space between the edge of the rock face and the Armco at the side of the dual-carriageway.
Have yet to determine what precisely that will entail. Serious work to reinforce the side access ramp down to the river.
The N11 carriageway runs adjacent to this sunken side of the riverbank -- barely 2 (large) paces divide the two. Even with twin strips of Armco along the roadside, it's perilously close. Traffic speeds along this stretch (maximum speed 100 kmp). Only needs a touch from a heavy vehicle to cause secondary impact, which (worst possible scenario) could result in something going airborne.
Working in these confined spaces puts a premium of safety and communication.
The guys have hard-filled a working shelf on the riverbed, to allow machinery access to the rockface. Obviously some serious drilling is called for before a form of extra 'pinning' is put in place.
They have sunk a series of hollowed tubes/casings -- obviously to form the foundations of a more extensive structure.
And some investigative work around the transverse buttress of the access bridge, parallel to the heavy-duty pipeline carrying water down from the Vartry reservoir.
At a (rough) guess -- I'd say the foundations were sunk to a depth of approx 4+m.
With such secure foundations in place, they would then look to construct a substantial bank of material, and/or retaining wall (similar to that in place further along the roadside bank).
=================================================
Previously the guys drilled and sunk 4+metre deep reinforced tubing and rods along a newly laid concrete base. Those stubs were then used to attach steel rod cradles -- which, in turn, were filled with poured concrete. Result - the wall quickly rises. Variation on the method they've used elsewhere along this stretch of the river.
A continuous stretch of protective wall has now been poured, and joined up with the section originally erected back in 2014.
As we can see from the side-on shot, the base of the wall has pre-cut openings for the retaining pins that have been driven into the side wall of the roadside cliff. These have been sealed and capped.
Progress has been rapid, the full stretch of wall is completed, and the guys are now working on back-filling the empty space between the protective wall and the roadside rock face. You don't just throw in a few trucks loads of soil and hope for the best. You load, layer, level and compress.
And, at the same time, the guys are clearing away material used to build access ramps down into the riverbed.
The thought crossed my mind -- in doing so (removing the stone-filled gabions etc,) are they potentially exposing the river bank on that side to erosion, slippage etc?
We know the destructive force of fast running waters. Hell, this is precisely why the protective works have been carried out along the rest of the stretch, down to the Bray Harbour. Unless they have other plans to stabilise it, what is going to be left here is loose soil -- very close to the access road into the halting site itself.
Some repair/reinforcing work is going on here to protect the (old) buttress that supports the pipework carrying water to the Bray region.
River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
These images were taken towards the end of the second week of February 2017.
These are the critical stabilisation works at the Silverbridge site, adjacent to the N11 dual-carriageway:
Back in November 2014, we'd observed bank stabilisation works here involving excavation, repair and building of a support wall structure -- carried out by JONS Construction on behalf of the National Roads Authority.
We would occasionally catch sight of this work in the distance. Quite an impressive little piece of structural engineering.
Having built a retaining concave wall, backfilled for solidity, they were also drilling, fixing and sealing ground anchors to pin the entire structure together.
Now we see that further works are being undertaken.
Word has it that extra ‘stabilisation work’ had to be done to protect the integrity of the riverbank.
At the section here we can see that there’s not much space between the edge of the rock face and the Armco at the side of the dual-carriageway.
Have yet to determine what precisely that will entail. Serious work to reinforce the side access ramp down to the river.
The N11 carriageway runs adjacent to this sunken side of the riverbank -- barely 2 (large) paces divide the two. Even with twin strips of Armco along the roadside, it's perilously close. Traffic speeds along this stretch (maximum speed 100 kmp). Only needs a touch from a heavy vehicle to cause secondary impact, which (worst possible scenario) could result in something going airborne.
Working in these confined spaces puts a premium of safety and communication.
The guys have hard-filled a working shelf on the riverbed, to allow machinery access to the rockface. Obviously some serious drilling is called for before a form of extra 'pinning' is put in place.
They have sunk a series of hollowed tubes/casings -- obviously to form the foundations of a more extensive structure.
And some investigative work around the transverse buttress of the access bridge, parallel to the heavy-duty pipeline carrying water down from the Vartry reservoir.
At a (rough) guess -- I'd say the foundations were sunk to a depth of approx 4+m.
With such secure foundations in place, they would then look to construct a substantial bank of material, and/or retaining wall (similar to that in place further along the roadside bank).
=================================================
Previously the guys drilled and sunk 4+metre deep reinforced tubing and rods along a newly laid concrete base. Those stubs were then used to attach steel rod cradles -- which, in turn, were filled with poured concrete. Result - the wall quickly rises. Variation on the method they've used elsewhere along this stretch of the river.
A continuous stretch of protective wall has now been poured, and joined up with the section originally erected back in 2014.
As we can see from the side-on shot, the base of the wall has pre-cut openings for the retaining pins that have been driven into the side wall of the roadside cliff. These have been sealed and capped.
Progress has been rapid, the full stretch of wall is completed, and the guys are now working on back-filling the empty space between the protective wall and the roadside rock face. You don't just throw in a few trucks loads of soil and hope for the best. You load, layer, level and compress.
And, at the same time, the guys are clearing away material used to build access ramps down into the riverbed.
The thought crossed my mind -- in doing so (removing the stone-filled gabions etc,) are they potentially exposing the river bank on that side to erosion, slippage etc?
We know the destructive force of fast running waters. Hell, this is precisely why the protective works have been carried out along the rest of the stretch, down to the Bray Harbour. Unless they have other plans to stabilise it, what is going to be left here is loose soil -- very close to the access road into the halting site itself.
Some repair/reinforcing work is going on here to protect the (old) buttress that supports the pipework carrying water to the Bray region.
I'd consider this the most interesting architectural feature of the apartment building I'm currently living in. It's an intersitial space between two fairly nondescript areas; you sense that it is cantilevered out from the structural rigidity of the garage behind you and then one ascends into the living space ahead of you.
This is a space of hesitation, where one briefly challenges and questions tectonics. One hesitates to challenge the builder: will I fall, will this bridge fall, does the industrial machine operate correctly? There is supreme disconnect -- or is it synthesis! -- between the solidity of the mass behind you, and the fakery of the mass in front. This is where you question -- you question solidity on the basis of the signifier in front. Colliding signifiers, perhaps.
One stands at the precipice of two realms -- the machine and the machine for living. One feels this through tectonic uncertainty. Unplanned architectural thought races through one's mind. Simply put, it is as the building was -- ruthlessly unplanned by any architect.
PAOLO ALDERIGHI and STEPHANIE TRICK DOUBLE TRIO @ JazzAscona 2016, 1.7 - 3.7, 2016. Photo Credits: Massimo Pedrazzini - JazzAscona
From: I-USA
Style: Stride Piano, Swing
Un superlativo show a quattro mani con una magica coppia del piano
Milanese, nato nel 1980, Paolo Alderighi è un autentico virtuoso del piano jazz, epigono di Fats Waller, il mitico pianista nero famoso per il gioco delle mani: la sinistra come unâintera sezione ritmica, la destra come un brillantissimo strumento solista. Accolto con ovazioni dal pubblico di Ascona durante la scorsa edizione, Alderighi si ripresenta col suo trio e soprattutto con la talentuosa e versatile pianista americana, nonche moglie, Stephanie Trick. Quello di Paolo Alderighi e Stephanie Trick uno show pianistico a quattro mani fresco ed inebriante. I due hanno registrato lâanno scorso l album a Sentimental Journey.
A superlative four-handed show with the magic piano duo
A Milan native, born in 1980: Paolo Alderighi is a true jazz-piano virtuoso with a style reminiscent of Fats Waller, the incredible black pianist famous for the solidity of his left hand and the endless melodic variations of his right hand. Alderighi's performances during last year's edition were met with standing ovations and this year he is back with his trio and with the talented and versatile American pianist and his wife Stephanie Trick. Their four-hands piano show is fresh and intoxicating. Together the two have also worked on two albums, one of which â âSentimental Journeyâ â was recorded last year.
Eine grossartige Show zu vier Händen mit dem magischen Klavier-Duo
Der 1980 geborene Mailänder Paolo Alderighi ist ein wahrer Virtuose des Pianojazz. Sein Stil erinnert an Fats Waller den mythischen schwarzen Pianisten, der dafür bekannt war, dass er seine linke Hand als komplette Rhythmussektion einsetzte und seine rechte wie ein brillantes Soloinstrument. Letztes Jahr in Ascona frenetisch gefeiert, präsentiert sich Alderighi erneut, mit seinem Trio und vor allem mit der talentierten, vielseitigen amerikanischen Pianistin Stephanie Trick, seiner Ehefrau. Frisch und berauschend ist die Pianoshow zu vier Händen von Paolo Alderighi und Stephanie Trick. Letztes Jahr haben die beiden das Album "Sentimental Journey" aufgenommen.
Bréton brut had as a style been established for a short while prior to this buildings inception, but it was its somewhat trend setting architect that gave widespread acceptability and validity to the movement. It captured the imagination of architects reacting against the recoil of New Humanism and restricted by the economics of the time.
The Unité d'Habitation built in Marseille, France in 1952 is absolutely of its time. Every tower block in the immediate vacinity appears to pay homage to the Unité, They are unashamed of their debt, aesthetic or otherwise, and yet even with benefit hindsight do not appear to be 'better buildings', mere pale imitations.
Steel being consumed in the war effort and the lack of skilled labour in France lead to the choice of concrete, with a more honest and rough finish. Banham says it is ever the more successful due to Corbusiers abandonment of the “pre-war fiction that reinforced concrete was a precise, ‘machine-age’ material”. This notion which had been maintained by extravagant and un-necessary means, such as “lavishing on it skilled labour and specialised equipment beyond anything the economics of the building industry normally permitted”. That is equipment that would give rise to the exacting edges and if these were not achieved then the “roughness and inaccuracies” were plastered over to give a more crisp image, hardly accepting the ‘realities of the situation’. The situation was firmly one of a “messy soup” with “dust, grits and slumpy aggregates, mixed and poured under conditions subject to the vagaries of weather and human fallibility”, hardly an image of high-technology.
The war had also changed Corbusiers perspective of technology’s place in architecture, compare for example the machine for living in, the Ville Savoye (Paris, 1929), compared with schemes such as (although later than the Unité) Notre Dame du Haut built at Ronchamp in 1954. The Unité had been described as “the first modern building that has room for cockroaches”, retort to Le Corbusier stating in a letter to Madame Savoye that “‘Home life today is being paralysed by the deplorable notion that we must have furniture” and that “This notion should be rooted out and replaced by that of equipment”. Banham in his book ‘The New Brutalism’ notes the Unité’s “originalities in sectional organisation”, with its rue Intérieure, apartments with double height spaces all of which in section span the entire width of the block. He also suggests “few buildings anywhere in the world had such a hold on the imagination of young architects especially in England”. Corbusier described his rough concrete style as béton brut, words which (rightly or wrongly) would come to be misinterpreted as representing the New Brutalist style as well as that of béton brut. The solidity of the Unité is furthered from mere concrete security by the setting back of “user-scale elements such as windows and doors” into the concrete frame of the building, giving a sense of a secondary boundary further to the superstructure of the building. As Banham describes it, a building where “word and building stand together in the psychological history of post-war architecture” . He attributes further its success to the “hard glare of the Mediterranean sun” . Something which does not quite translate so well in the greyer skies of Britain, something of the disappointment of driving a new car out of a showroom and home, notwithstanding your home being an equally apt setting.
1992 Tetsuo HARADA
LE 38ème PARALLÈLE
Hauteur 4 m, l’axe 20 m, dallage 25 m2
Granit rose de la Clarté
Kajigawa, Niigata, Japon
La ville de Kajigawa, au Japon, est située sur le 38ème parallèle (latitude). Cette ligne sépare la Corée du Nord de la Corée du Sud.
Tetsuo Harada a réalisé cette sculpture pour la paix et la réconciliation entre les deux Corée. Les deux blocs de la pyramide se rejoignent exactement au niveau du 38ème parallèle et sont unis par une spère.
Le Tricot de la Terre, porteur de paix et d’union, est également présent dans cette sculpture.
Comme Tetsuo Harada, la ville de Kajigawa et le Ministère de l’Equipement qui ont commandé cette sculpture, souhaitent exprimer ce message de paix. Ils invitent les autres villes du monde situées également sur le 38ème parallèle à exprimer cet espoir par la culture, l'art ou le sport.
La ville d’Athènes, également située sur le 38ème parallèle, a adopté ce thème “38ème parallèle, horizon” pour le programme artistique et culturel des Jeux olympiques de 2004. Le 38ème traverse : Italie, Espagne, Portugal, Turquie, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Chine, Corée, Japon, Californie, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia.
1992
THE 38th PARALLEL
Height 4 m, axis 20 m, paving 25 m2
Pink Granite of Clarity
Kajigawa, Niigata, Japan
The city of Kajigawa, Japan, is located on the 38th parallel (latitude). This line separates North Korea from South Korea.
Tetsuo Harada created this sculpture for peace and reconciliation between the two Koreas. The two blocks of the pyramid meet exactly at the level of the 38th parallel and are joined by a marker.
The Knit of the Earth, bearer of peace and union, is also present in this sculpture.
As Tetsuo Harada, the city of Kajigawa and the Ministry of Equipment who commissioned this sculpture, wish to express this message of peace. They invite the other cities of the world also located on the 38th parallel to express this hope through culture, art or sport.
The city of Athens, also located on the 38th parallel, has adopted this theme "38th parallel, horizon" for the artistic and cultural programme of the 2004 Olympic Games. The 38th parallel runs through: Italy, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, China, Korea, Japan, California, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia.
1992 KAGIGAWA-NIIGATA (JAPON)
ASSOCIATION DE VILLE ET DE L’EQUIPEMENT
Le 38ème parallèle sépare la Corée de nord de celle du Sud. Ce lieu particulier devient dans la ville de Kagigawa le symbole de la Paix. Tetsuo HARADA semble tout à fait indiqué en y installant le Tricot de la Terre. Les liens du Tricot de la Terre se tournent vers cette sculpture, forte, pyramidale, rehaussée d’une très belle colonne de granit. La solidité et le temps semble imposer leur sérénité. On y vient à pied, en vélo, en voiture sur cet air destiné à la rencontre et au dialogue. Du train on l’aperçoit petite et de plus en plus grande avant de disparaître dans son écrin de verdure et de rizières. Plus qu’une simple destination le 38ème parallèle entoure la terre et se veut réunir les hommes de Paix. Athènes contribue à donner une suite ...
Sur le 38ème le programme est ouvert pour Hamonten (Chine), San Fransisco (USA), Sado (Japon).
1992 KAGIGAWA-NIIGATA (JAPAN)
CITY AND EQUIPMENT ASSOCIATION
The 38th parallel separates North and South Korea. This particular place becomes in the city of Kagigawa the symbol of Peace. Tetsuo HARADA seems quite appropriate by installing there the Knitting of the Earth. The links of the Knitwear of the Earth turn towards this sculpture, strong, pyramidal, raised by a very beautiful granite column. Solidity and time seem to impose their serenity. One comes there on foot, by bicycle, by car on this air intended for the meeting and the dialogue. From the train you can see it small and getting bigger and bigger before disappearing into its green and rice fields. More than a simple destination, the 38th parallel surrounds the earth and is intended to bring together men of Peace. Athens contributes to give a continuation ...
On the 38th the program is open for Hamonten (China), San Fransisco (USA), Sado (Japan) ...
Ferstel
(Pictures you can see by clicking on the link at the end of page!)
Ferstel and Café Central, by Rudolf von Alt, left the men's alley (Herrengasse - Street of the Lords), right Strauchgasse
Danube mermaid fountain in a courtyard of the Palais Ferstel
Shopping arcade of the Freyung to Herrengasse
Entrance to Ferstel of the Freyung, right the Palais Harrach, left the palace Hardegg
The Ferstel is a building in the first district of Vienna, Inner City, with the addresses Strauchgasse 2-4, 14 Lord Street (Herrengasse) and Freyung 2. It was established as a national bank and stock exchange building, the denomination Palais is unhistoric.
History
In 1855, the entire estate between Freyung, Strauchgasse and Herrengasse was by Franz Xaver Imperial Count von Abensperg and Traun to the k.k. Privileged Austrian National Bank sold. This banking institution was previously domiciled in the Herrengasse 17/ Bankgasse. The progressive industrialization and the with it associated economic expansion also implied a rapid development of monetary transactions and banking, so that the current premises soon no longer have been sufficient. This problem could only be solved by a new building, in which also should be housed a stock exchange hall.
According to the desire of the then Governor of the National Bank, Franz von Pipitz, the new building was supposed to be carried out with strict observance of the economy and avoiding a worthless luxury with solidity and artistic as well as technical completion. The building should offer room for the National Bank, the stock market, a cafe and - a novel idea for Vienna - a bazaar.
The commissioned architect, Heinrich von Ferstel, demonstrated in the coping with the irregular surface area with highest conceivable effective use of space his state-of-the art talent. The practical requirements combine themselves with the actually artistic to a masterful composition. Ferstel has been able to lay out the rooms of the issuing bank, the two trading floors, the passage with the bazar and the coffee house in accordance with their intended purpose and at the same time to maintain a consistent style.
He was an advocate of the "Materialbaues" (material building) as it clearly is reflected in the ashlar building of the banking institution. Base, pillars and stairs were fashioned of Wöllersdorfer stone, façade elements such as balconies, cornices, structurings as well as stone banisters of the hard white stone of Emperor Kaiser quarry (Kaisersteinbruch), while the walls were made of -Sankt Margarethen limestone. The inner rooms have been luxuriously formed, with wood paneling, leather wallpaper, Stuccolustro and rich ornamental painting.
The facade of the corner front Strauchgasse/Herrengasse received twelve sculptures by Hanns Gasser as decoration, they symbolized the peoples of the monarchy. The mighty round arch at the exit Freyung were closed with wrought-iron bare gates, because the first used locksmith could not meet the demands of Ferstel, the work was transferred to a silversmith.
1860 the National Bank and the stock exchange could move into the in 1859 completed construction. The following year was placed in the glass-covered passage the Danube mermaid fountain, whose design stems also of Ferstel. Anton von Fernkorn has created the sculptural decoration with an artistic sensitivity. Above the marble fountain basin rises a column crowned by a bronze statue, the Danube female with flowing hair, holding a fish in its hand. Below are arranged around the column three also in bronze cast figures: merchant, fisherman and shipbuilder, so those professions that have to do with the water. The total cost of the building, the interior included, amounted to the enormous sum of 1.897.600 guilders.
The originally planned use of the building remained only a few years preserved. The Stock Exchange with the premises no longer had sufficient space: in 1872 it moved to a provisional solution, 1877 at Schottenring a new Stock Exchange building opened. The National Bank moved 1925 into a yet 1913 planned, spacious new building.
The building was in Second World War battered gravely particularly on the main facade. In the 1960s was located in the former Stock Exchange a basketball training hall, the entire building appeared neglected.
1971 dealt the President of the Federal Monuments Office, Walter Frodl, with the severely war damaged banking and stock exchange building in Vienna. The Office for Technical Geology of Otto Casensky furnished an opinion on the stone facade. On the facade Freyung 2 a balcony was originally attached over the entire 15.4 m long front of hard Kaiserstein.
(Usage of Leith lime: Dependent from the consistence and structure of the Leitha lime the usage differed from „Reibsand“ till building material. The Leitha lime stone is a natural stone which can be formed easily and was desired als beautiful stone for buildings in Roman times. The usage of lime stone from Eggenburg in the Bronze age already was verified. This special attribute is the reason why the Leitha lime was taken from sculptors and masons.
The source of lime stone in the Leitha Mountains was important for Austria and especially for Vienna from the cultur historical point of view during the Renaissance and Baroque. At the 19th century the up to 150 stone quarries of the Leitha mountains got many orders form the construction work of the Vienna „Ring road“.
At many buildings of Graz, such as the castle at the Grazer castle hill, the old Joanneum and the Cottage, the Leitha lime stone was used.
Due to the fact that Leitha lime is bond on carbonate in the texture, the alteration through the actual sour rain is heavy. www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC2HKZ9_leithagebirge-leithak...)
This balcony was no longer present and only close to the facade were remnants of the tread plates and the supporting brackets recognizable. In July 1975, followed the reconstruction of the balcony and master stonemason Friedrich Opferkuh received the order to restore the old state am Leithagebirge received the order the old state - of Mannersdorfer stone, armoured concrete or artificial stone.
1975-1982, the building was renovated and re-opened the Café Central. Since then, the privately owned building is called Palais Ferstel. In the former stock exchange halls now meetings and presentations take place; the Café Central is utilizing one of the courtyards.
In 1917 Picasso traveled to Rome to design sets and costumes for Sergei Diaghilev’s famed Ballets Russes. Deeply impressed by the ancient and Renaissance art of that city, he began painting monumental figures inspired by antiquity. His new classical style was influenced by the finely modeled odalisques of Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres and the late, oddly proportioned female nudes of Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Mother and Child was also inspired by Picasso’s own life. Just three years earlier he had married Russian dancer Olga Khokhlova, and in 1921 their son Paolo was born. Between 1921 and 1923 he produced at least twelve works on the subject of mothers and children, returning to a theme that he had explored during his Blue Period. But whereas those figures are frail and anguished, his classical-period figures, with their sculptural modeling and solidity, are majestic in proportion and feeling. Here an infant sits on the mother’s lap and reaches up to touch her. The woman, dressed in a Grecian gown, gazes intently at her child. Behind them stretches a simplified background of sand, water, and sky. Picasso’s treatment of the pair is not sentimental, but the relationship expresses a serenity and stability that characterized his own life at this time.
Albi Cathedral is one of the most unique, awe-inspiring churches ever concieved, quite simply one of the wonders of the medieval world.
Although contemporary with the great gothic cathedrals of Northern France, this largely 13th century structure is radically different, being constructed almost entirely of brick and built like a mighty fortress; mostly unadorned walls rise uninterrupted from the ground like sheer cliff-faces of brick. The simplicity of the design gives it an almost modern appearance, and the massive scale gives it a quite overpowering presence.
The cathedral's powerful fortified appearance is largely down to two factors, the shape of the building is consistent with local forms of gothic churches in southern France and northern Spain, whilst thr fortified solidity can be associated with the supression of the Cathars in this area during the Albigensian Crusades, the building serving a lesson in strength and permanence as a warning to any rebellious locals.
The plain exterior was relieved in the more stable climate of the 16th century by the huge flamboyant porch on the south side of the nave, more like an enormous spikey canopy open on three sides. It remains the main entrance to the cathedral, the base of the enormous tower being so massively constructed as to leave no room for a traditional west entrance.
On entering this vast edifice one's senses are overwhelmed yet again, this time by the profusion of decoration in the cavernous interior. The walls and ceilings are entirely covered by frescoes dating from the early 16th century (mostly in Renaissance style, much of it colourful geometric patterns. The most memorable sections are the earliest frescoes at the west end from an enormous Last Judgement; the central section was sadly removed in the 18th century but the extensive and graphic depiction of the torments of Hell remains.
In addition this cathedral is rare in preserving it's 'jube' or choir screen), a late medieval masterpiece of decoration an sculpture which extends into a lavishly sculpted choir enclosure adorned with a riot of angels and saints.
All in all this unforgettable cathedral is a monument that defies description alone and bombards the senses!
River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
These images were taken in the last full week of January 2017.
These are the critical stabilisation works at the Silverbridge site, adjacent to the N11 dual-carriageway:
Back in November 2014, we observed bank stabilisation works here involving excavation, repair and building of a support wall structure -- carried out by JONS Construction on behalf of the National Roads Authority.
We would occasionally catch sight of this work in the distance. Quite an impressive little piece of structural engineering.
Having built a retaining concave wall, backfilled for solidity, they were also drilling, fixing and sealing ground anchors to pin the entire structure together.
Now we see that further works are being undertaken.
Word has it that extra ‘stabilisation work’ has to be done to protect the integrity of the riverbank. At the section here we can see that there’s not much space between the edge of the rock face and the Armco at the side of the dual-carriageway.
Have yet to determine what precisely that will entail. Serious work to reinforce the side access ramp down to the river.
The N11 carriageway runs adjacent to this sunken side of the riverbank -- barely 2 (large) paces divide the two. Even with twin strips of Armco along the roadside, it's perilously close. Traffic speeds along this stretch (maximum speed 100 kmp). Only needs a touch from a heavy vehicle to cause secondary impact, which (worst possible scenario) could result in something going airborne.
Working in these confined spaces puts a premium of safety and communication.
The guys have hard-filled a working shelf on the riverbed, to allow machinery access to the rockface. Obviously some serious drilling is called for before a form of extra 'pinning' is put in place.
They have sunk a series of hollowed tubes/casings -- obviously to form the foundations of a more extensive structure.
And some investigative work around the transverse buttress of the access bridge, parallel to the heavy-duty pipeline carrying water down from the Vartry reservoir.
At a (rough) guess -- I'd say the foundations were sunk to a depth of approx 4+m.
With such secure foundations in place, they would then look to construct a substantial bank of material, and/or retaining wall (similar to that in place further along the roadside bank).
=================================================
Previously the guys drilled and sunk 4+metre deep reinforced tubing and rods along a newly laid concrete base. Those stubs were then used to attach steel rod cradles -- which, in turn, were filled with poured concrete. Result - the wall quickly rises. Variation on the method they've used elsewhere along this stretch of the river.
A continuous stretch of protective wall has now been poured, and joined up with the section originally erected back in 2014.
As we can see from the side-on shot, the base of the wall has pre-cut openings for the retaining pins that have been driven into the side wall of the roadside cliff. These will be sealed and capped.
The attractive town of Tewkesbury has been dominated by its superb abbey church since the beginning of the 12th century, and we can be forever grateful to its townspeople for purchasing the monastic church in 1540 for £453 for use as their parish church, saving it from the fate that befell countless similar great churches across the land during the turmoil of the Dissolution. It reminds us both how lucky we are to still marvel at it today, yet also how great a loss to our heritage the period wrought when many more such buildings were so utterly plundered as to have gone without trace (the fate of the monastic buildings here and even the lady chapel of the church whose footings are laid out in the grass at the east end).
Tewkesbury Abbey is thus rightly celebrated as one of our greatest non-cathedral churches, and remarkably much of the original Norman church remains substantially intact, most apparently in the great central tower, a fine example of Romanesque architecture adorned with rows of blind-arcading. The west front is dominated by a massive Norman-arched recess (enclosing the somewhat later west window) and the nave and transepts remain largely as originally built, though this is less clear externally owing to the changes made to the windows, nearly all of which were enlarged in the 14th century in the Decorated Gothic style. This century also saw the complete rebuilding of the eastern limb of the church, of a form less common in England with radiating chapels surrounding the eastern apse of the choir (the central lady chapel sadly missing since 1540).
The interior reveals far more of the Romanesque structure with mighty columns supporting the round Norman arches of the nave arcades giving the building a great sense of solidity. The space is further enlivened by the changes made during the 14th century by the stunning vault over the nave (adorned with a rewarding series of figurative bosses) which sits surprisingly well with the Norman work below. Beyond the apsidal choir beckons, and both this and the space below the tower are enriched with stunningly complex vaulted ceilings (replete with further bosses and gilded metal stars), all ablaze with colour and gilding.
There is much to enjoy in glass here, most remarkably a complete set of 14th century glazing in the clerestorey of the choir, seven windows filled with saints and prophets (and most memorably two groups of knights in the westernmost windows on each side). A few of the figures have fared less well over the centuries but on the whole this is a wonderfully rare and well preserved scheme. There is much glass from the 19th century too, with an extensive scheme in the nave of good quality work by Hardman's, and more recently a pair of rich windows by Tom Denny were added in one of the polygonal chapels around the east end.
Some of the most memorable features are the monuments with many medieval tombs of note, primarily the effigies and chantry chapels of members of the Despenser family around the choir (two of the chantries being miniature architectural gems in their own right with exquisite fan-vaulting). In one of the apsidal chapels is the unusual cenotaph to Abbot Wakeman with his grisly cadaver effigy, a late medieval reminder of earthly mortality.
Tewkesbury Abbey is not to be missed and is every bit as rewarding as many of our cathedrals (superior in fact to all but the best). It is normally kept open and welcoming to visitors on a daily basis. I have also had the privilege of working on this great building several times over the years (as part of the team at the studio I once worked for), and have left my mark in glass in a few discreet places.
I was looking for a cheap second-hand lens for my wife for Xmas and ended up trying a couple of older lenses. This Nikkor 35-135mm f/3.5-4.5 AF lens immediately impressed me with its sharpness and solidity. When the shop agreed to go from NT$3200 to NT$3000 (US$100), I snapped it up. These shots are from standing in front of the shop and seeing what the lens would do, and then fiddling with it while waiting for my lunch to come.
The Old Cambridge Baptist Church is an historic American Baptist church at 398 Harvard Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
The congregation was founded in 1844 when several members of First Baptist Church in Cambridge decided to start a new church. The original meeting house was sold to the Congregationalists and became North Avenue Congregational Church. In 1869 the church constructed the current meeting house, a larger Gothic revival stone building, designed by architect Alexander Rice Esty. Old Cambridge Baptist Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Built of local fieldstone and granite quarried in Somerville, Massachusetts, the building is a notable example of the muscular use of stone, typical of American Gothic Revival architecture. This solidity, coupled with Esty’s display of structural strength in the asymmetrical massing of forms, is further accentuated by the contrast between heavy gray stone and large, graceful, delicate stained glass windows, which the stone walls simultaneously reveal and protect.
In 1897, the original Parrish Hall was lost in a fire. The rebuild was under the direction of noted Boston Theater Architect, Clarence Blackall. The most notable feature of the reconstruction is an 1890 Tiffany & Company Window. This early Tiffany window bridges the gothic stained glass tradition and emerging art nouveau movement.
The church is currently home to various organizations and ministries, such as the Homeless Empowerment Project which publishes the Spare Change News street newspaper, the José Mateo Ballet Theatre, the Adbar Ethiopian Women's Alliance, the Cambridge Child and Family Associates, and others.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Cambridge_Baptist_Church
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_Creative_Commons_...
Entrance foyer, the Plaza Theatre, which was below the Regent, Collins Street, Melbourne, opened on 10 May, 1929. It seated 1235 in its single-level Spanish-style auditorium, with its entrance adjacent to that of the Regent.
"Seating only twelve hundred people, and furnished in true old-world Spanish style, the Plaza provides the acme of comfort for every patron. Every seat is a luxurious lounge armchair. The entire floor space is covered with deep rich carpets. At every turn an objet d'art, never obtrusive but bringing a dash of old-world adventure and romance to the new world masterpiece of theatre construction." [Plaza Theatre advertisement (full-page), The Herald, 10 May, 1929, p. 11].
"Following the recent practice of designing theatres in accordance with the style of some particular period, the Plaza is Spanish in its decorative scheme. Entrance from Collins Street is by way of stairs leading to a court constructed after the manner of a Spanish close. the floor simulates the rough paving of a courtyard, and on one side a fountain pays. Through archways to the right is a rockery with orange trees, and here furniture of the appropriate Spanish period has been placed.
The auditorium also is decorated in a Spanish scheme, in which atmosphere rather than any particular period is suggested. On the roof a variegated design in which red, yellow and green are prominent, gives an appearance of solidity, and the scheme is extended to the leather chairs...
The 'talkies' provide their own accompaniment, and consequently an orchestra is unnecessary. An organ had been installed, however, to supplement the pictures when that is called for, and for solo items." [The Argus, 11 May, 1929]
In February, 1959, a new Cinerama screen and projection system were installed in the Plaza. The Regent Plaza Theatre is cited as one of the few cinemas adapted for Cinerama outside of North America.
The Cinerama screen was well forward of the proscenium, in front of the pit and the organ chambers. Although the organ was no longer able to be played in public, it was still operable, and was used by organists playing at the Regent for practice between the Cinerama sessions.
The Plaza closed in November, 1970. In December that year an auction was held at the theatre where everything that was not bolted down was auctioned off, raising a few thousand dollars.
Entrepreneur David Marinner earmarked the Regent for restoration when he established a revival movement for classical performing arts theatres in Melbourne during 1991. The Plaza Theatre was also fully and magnificently restored to its original ballroom format and reopened in 1996.
Ceiling of the main auditorium, the Plaza Theatre, which was below the Regent, Collins Street, Melbourne, opened on 10 May, 1929. It seated 1235 in its single-level Spanish-style auditorium, with its entrance adjacent to that of the Regent.
"Seating only twelve hundred people, and furnished in true old-world Spanish style, the Plaza provides the acme of comfort for every patron. Every seat is a luxurious lounge armchair. The entire floor space is covered with deep rich carpets. At every turn an objet d'art, never obtrusive but bringing a dash of old-world adventure and romance to the new world masterpiece of theatre construction." [Plaza Theatre advertisement (full-page), The Herald, 10 May, 1929, p. 11].
"Following the recent practice of designing theatres in accordance with the style of some particular period, the Plaza is Spanish in its decorative scheme. Entrance from Collins Street is by way of stairs leading to a court constructed after the manner of a Spanish close. the floor simulates the rough paving of a courtyard, and on one side a fountain pays. Through archways to the right is a rockery with orange trees, and here furniture of the appropriate Spanish period has been placed.
The auditorium also is decorated in a Spanish scheme, in which atmosphere rather than any particular period is suggested. On the roof a variegated design in which red, yellow and green are prominent, gives an appearance of solidity, and the scheme is extended to the leather chairs...
The 'talkies' provide their own accompaniment, and consequently an orchestra is unnecessary. An organ had been installed, however, to supplement the pictures when that is called for, and for solo items." [The Argus, 11 May, 1929]
Gustav Michael Pillig was in entire charge of the designing of decoration and the figure modelling for the Plaza Theatre.
In February, 1959, a new Cinerama screen and projection system were installed in the Plaza. The Regent Plaza Theatre is cited as one of the few cinemas adapted for Cinerama outside of North America.
The Cinerama screen was well forward of the proscenium, in front of the pit and the organ chambers. Although the organ was no longer able to be played in public, it was still operable, and was used by organists playing at the Regent for practice between the Cinerama sessions.
The Plaza closed in November, 1970. In December that year an auction was held at the theatre where everything that was not bolted down was auctioned off, raising a few thousand dollars.
Entrepreneur David Marinner earmarked the Regent for restoration when he established a revival movement for classical performing arts theatres in Melbourne during 1991. The Plaza Theatre was also fully and magnificently restored to its original ballroom format and reopened in 1996.
Bréton brut had as a style been established for a short while prior to this buildings inception, but it was its somewhat trend setting architect that gave widespread acceptability and validity to the movement. It captured the imagination of architects reacting against the recoil of New Humanism and restricted by the economics of the time.
The Unité d'Habitation built in Marseille, France in 1952 is absolutely of its time. Every tower block in the immediate vacinity appears to pay homage to the Unité, They are unashamed of their debt, aesthetic or otherwise, and yet even with benefit hindsight do not appear to be 'better buildings', mere pale imitations.
Steel being consumed in the war effort and the lack of skilled labour in France lead to the choice of concrete, with a more honest and rough finish. Banham says it is ever the more successful due to Corbusiers abandonment of the “pre-war fiction that reinforced concrete was a precise, ‘machine-age’ material”. This notion which had been maintained by extravagant and un-necessary means, such as “lavishing on it skilled labour and specialised equipment beyond anything the economics of the building industry normally permitted”. That is equipment that would give rise to the exacting edges and if these were not achieved then the “roughness and inaccuracies” were plastered over to give a more crisp image, hardly accepting the ‘realities of the situation’. The situation was firmly one of a “messy soup” with “dust, grits and slumpy aggregates, mixed and poured under conditions subject to the vagaries of weather and human fallibility”, hardly an image of high-technology.
The war had also changed Corbusiers perspective of technology’s place in architecture, compare for example the machine for living in, the Ville Savoye (Paris, 1929), compared with schemes such as (although later than the Unité) Notre Dame du Haut built at Ronchamp in 1954. The Unité had been described as “the first modern building that has room for cockroaches”, retort to Le Corbusier stating in a letter to Madame Savoye that “‘Home life today is being paralysed by the deplorable notion that we must have furniture” and that “This notion should be rooted out and replaced by that of equipment”. Banham in his book ‘The New Brutalism’ notes the Unité’s “originalities in sectional organisation”, with its rue Intérieure, apartments with double height spaces all of which in section span the entire width of the block. He also suggests “few buildings anywhere in the world had such a hold on the imagination of young architects especially in England”. Corbusier described his rough concrete style as béton brut, words which (rightly or wrongly) would come to be misinterpreted as representing the New Brutalist style as well as that of béton brut. The solidity of the Unité is furthered from mere concrete security by the setting back of “user-scale elements such as windows and doors” into the concrete frame of the building, giving a sense of a secondary boundary further to the superstructure of the building. As Banham describes it, a building where “word and building stand together in the psychological history of post-war architecture” . He attributes further its success to the “hard glare of the Mediterranean sun” . Something which does not quite translate so well in the greyer skies of Britain, something of the disappointment of driving a new car out of a showroom and home, notwithstanding your home being an equally apt setting.
www.lissongallery.com/exhibitions/anish-kapoor-f45a2ea5-2...
For his latest exhibition, Anish Kapoor presents a new series of paintings, an element of his practice that has rarely been seen, exploring the intimate and ritualistic nature of his work. Created over the past year, the show provides a poetic view of the artist's recent preoccupations. While painting has always been an integral part of Kapoor’s practice, this radical new body of work is both spiritual and ecstatic, showing Kapoor working in more vivid and urgent form than ever. Alongside this exhibition, a solo show dedicated to Kapoor's paintings will run at Modern Art Oxford from 2 October 2021 - 13 February 2022, and both shows precede Kapoor’s major retrospective at Gallerie dell'Accademia di Venezia, opening April 2022 to coincide with the Venice Biennale.
Through painting, Kapoor delves into the deep inner world of our mind and body, from the physical exploration of the flesh and blood, to investigating psychological concepts as primal and nameless as origin and obliteration. Since the 1980s, Kapoor has been celebrated largely as a sculptor, yet painting, and its rawest composition, colour and form, have been a fundamental element of his practice-. The presentation will feature a selection of new and recent paintings, created between 2019 and 2021, the majority in the artist’s London-based studio during the pandemic. Like the artist’s wider oeuvre, these paintings are rooted in a drive to grasp the unknown, to awaken consciousness and experiment with the phenomenology of space.
Kapoor’s work has been characterized by an intense encounter with colour and matter – manifest either through refined, reflective surfaces such as metal or mirrors, or through the tactile, sensual quality of the blankets of impasto. The magnetism of the colour red is evident in these new paintings, manifesting the elemental force that flows through us all, yet now accompanied by a new palette of telluric greys and yellows, as if witnessing a surge from the depths of the earth. Some works appear volcanic, with an intense, fiery energy, while others are more primitive and abstract, with layers of dense pigment and resin forming a sculpted solidity. Many of the paintings have a visceral outpouring where a canvas within a canvas rotates and evolves in space, seeming to defy gravity, with brushstrokes cascading over the edges like a waterfall. In others we see distorted, polymorphic figures emerging from a deep, radiant void, with a ghostly aura.
Kapoor achieves a coherence of mind and body, of interior and exterior in two of the series of works, illustrating a mythic landscape with a turbulent, ominous atmosphere that differentiates land from sky, body from space. These whirling landscapes evoke the extraordinary, eerie Romanticism of JMW Turner, a worship of nature marked through an expressive, dramatic scene. Similar in disposition are two works where we imagine the moon rising over the peak – a symbolic narrative of a new cycle, of origins and menstruation.
The wall-based paintings recall some of Kapoor’s most ambitious, distinguished works, including Svayambhu (2007), My Red Homeland (2003) and Symphony for a Beloved Sun (2013). In these floor-based works we see a more ritualistic, visceral language, where Kapoor unashamedly delves into depicting the very blood and flesh from which we are all born. Artists from Leonardo di Vinci to Francis Bacon have been fascinated with the innards of the body, be it our anatomy or the surrealist beauty in violence. The work also stands in a powerful tradition of artists exploring the human body’s expression of divine matters, yet through the unique vision of Kapoor’s Eastern and Western influences, and ---– considering the year in which they were created --– taking on new meaning highlighting the fragility of the body and self.
Bauhaus Museum Weimar, Germany
German architect Heike Hanada designed a minimalist concrete museum to celebrate the Bauhaus in Weimar, where the design school was founded 100 years ago. The building is dedicated to the design school creates a physical cultural presence for the Bauhaus in the German city where it was based between 1919 and 1925. Located near the Nazi-era Gauforum square and the Neue Museum Weimar, the Bauhaus Museum is a simple five-storey concrete box broken only with its entrance and a couple of windows. The enclosing shell of light-grey concrete lends the cube stability and dynamic solidity. Equally spaced horizontal grooves run around the facades of the museum, with the words "bauhaus museum" repeated in a band near the top of the building. Hanada designed the museum to be a public building for the city and has attempted to clearly connect it to the neighbouring park. With elements such as plinths, fasciae, portals, stairways and a terrace to the park, the architecture incorporates classical themes that underscore its public character.
The museum contains 2,000 m2 of exhibition space, which will be used to display around 1,000 items from the Weimar Bauhaus collection. A shop and entrance hall is located on the ground floor, with a cafe and toilets below, and three floors dedicated to telling the story of the Bauhaus above. Each of the galleries overlooks double-height spaces and are accessed from a long ceremonial staircase that stretches the height of the building. The visitors ascend a succession of interchanging open spaces and staircases until they finally arrive at the top floor where they are presented with an unobstructed view of the park. The cascading staircases are encased by ceiling-high walls and function as free-standing, enclosed bodies in the interior space. The collection is arranged to inform visitors about the history of the design school, with the gallery on the first floor dedicated to its origins in Weimar and the Bauhaus manifesto that Walter Gropius wrote in 1919. The second floor has exhibits that show how these ideas were implemented, with galleries dedicated to each of the Bauhaus directors – Gropius, Hannes Meyer and Mies van der Rohe – at the top of the building.
The museum in Weimar has opened to coincide with the centenary of the Bauhaus, which was established in the city in 1919. The school was forced to relocate from Weimar to Dessau in 1925, where Gropius designed a new school building for the institution. Following a short time based in Berlin the school closed for good in 1933. Although only open for just over a decade, the Bauhaus is the most influential art and design school in history. The ideas and people associated with the school had an incredible impact on design and architecture, and to mark its centenary we created a series exploring its key works and figures.
Organ grilles, main auditorium, the Plaza Theatre, which was below the Regent, Collins Street, Melbourne, opened on 10 May, 1929. It seated 1235 in its single-level Spanish-style auditorium, with its entrance adjacent to that of the Regent on Collins St.
An organ was installed in two chambers, behind very elaborate grilles, at either side of the proscenium, with the console in the centre of the "orchestra pit":
"Seating only twelve hundred people, and furnished in true old-world Spanish style, the Plaza provides the acme of comfort for every patron. Every seat is a luxurious lounge armchair. The entire floor space is covered with deep rich carpets. At every turn an objet d'art, never obtrusive but bringing a dash of old-world adventure and romance to the new world masterpiece of theatre construction." [Plaza Theatre advertisement (full-page), The Herald, 10 May, 1929, p. 11].
"Following the recent practice of designing theatres in accordance with the style of some particular period, the Plaza is Spanish in its decorative scheme. Entrance from Collins Street is by way of stairs leading to a court constructed after the manner of a Spanish close. the floor simulates the rough paving of a courtyard, and on one side a fountain pays. Through archways to the right is a rockery with orange trees, and here furniture of the appropriate Spanish period has been placed.
The auditorium also is decorated in a Spanish scheme, in which atmosphere rather than any particular period is suggested. On the roof a variegated design in which red, yellow and green are prominent, gives an appearance of solidity, and the scheme is extended to the leather chairs...
The 'talkies' provide their own accompaniment, and consequently an orchestra is unnecessary. An organ had been installed, however, to supplement the pictures when that is called for, and for solo items." [The Argus, 11 May, 1929]
In February, 1959, a new Cinerama screen and projection system were installed in the Plaza. The Regent Plaza Theatre is cited as one of the few cinemas adapted for Cinerama outside of North America.
The Cinerama screen was well forward of the proscenium, in front of the pit and the organ chambers. Although the organ was no longer able to be played in public, it was still operable, and was used by organists playing at the Regent for practice between the Cinerama sessions.
The Plaza closed in November, 1970. In December that year an auction was held at the theatre where everything that was not bolted down was auctioned off, raising a few thousand dollars.
Entrepreneur David Marinner earmarked the Regent for restoration when he established a revival movement for classical performing arts theatres in Melbourne during 1991. The Plaza Theatre was also fully and magnificently restored to its original ballroom format and reopened in 1996.
River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
These images were taken on the last day of January 2017.
These are the critical stabilisation works at the Silverbridge site, adjacent to the N11 dual-carriageway:
Back in November 2014, we observed bank stabilisation works here involving excavation, repair and building of a support wall structure -- carried out by JONS Construction on behalf of the National Roads Authority.
We would occasionally catch sight of this work in the distance. Quite an impressive little piece of structural engineering.
Having built a retaining concave wall, backfilled for solidity, they were also drilling, fixing and sealing ground anchors to pin the entire structure together.
Now we see that further works are being undertaken.
Word has it that extra ‘stabilisation work’ has to be done to protect the integrity of the riverbank. At the section here we can see that there’s not much space between the edge of the rock face and the Armco at the side of the dual-carriageway.
Have yet to determine what precisely that will entail. Serious work to reinforce the side access ramp down to the river.
The N11 carriageway runs adjacent to this sunken side of the riverbank -- barely 2 (large) paces divide the two. Even with twin strips of Armco along the roadside, it's perilously close. Traffic speeds along this stretch (maximum speed 100 kmp). Only needs a touch from a heavy vehicle to cause secondary impact, which (worst possible scenario) could result in something going airborne.
Working in these confined spaces puts a premium of safety and communication.
The guys have hard-filled a working shelf on the riverbed, to allow machinery access to the rockface. Obviously some serious drilling is called for before a form of extra 'pinning' is put in place.
They have sunk a series of hollowed tubes/casings -- obviously to form the foundations of a more extensive structure.
And some investigative work around the transverse buttress of the access bridge, parallel to the heavy-duty pipeline carrying water down from the Vartry reservoir.
At a (rough) guess -- I'd say the foundations were sunk to a depth of approx 4+m.
With such secure foundations in place, they would then look to construct a substantial bank of material, and/or retaining wall (similar to that in place further along the roadside bank).
=================================================
Previously the guys drilled and sunk 4+metre deep reinforced tubing and rods along a newly laid concrete base. Those stubs were then used to attach steel rod cradles -- which, in turn, were filled with poured concrete. Result - the wall quickly rises. Variation on the method they've used elsewhere along this stretch of the river.
A continuous stretch of protective wall has now been poured, and joined up with the section originally erected back in 2014.
As we can see from the side-on shot, the base of the wall has pre-cut openings for the retaining pins that have been driven into the side wall of the roadside cliff. These have been sealed and capped.
Progress has been rapid, the full stretch of wall is completed, and the guys are now working on back-filling the empty space between the protective wall and the roadside rock face. You don't just throw in a few trucks loads of soil and hope for the best. You load, layer, level and compress.
Ferstel
(Pictures you can see by clicking on the link at the end of page!)
Ferstel and Café Central, by Rudolf von Alt, left the men's alley (Herrengasse - Street of the Lords), right Strauchgasse
Danube mermaid fountain in a courtyard of the Palais Ferstel
Shopping arcade of the Freyung to Herrengasse
Entrance to Ferstel of the Freyung, right the Palais Harrach, left the palace Hardegg
The Ferstel is a building in the first district of Vienna, Inner City, with the addresses Strauchgasse 2-4, 14 Lord Street (Herrengasse) and Freyung 2. It was established as a national bank and stock exchange building, the denomination Palais is unhistoric.
History
In 1855, the entire estate between Freyung, Strauchgasse and Herrengasse was by Franz Xaver Imperial Count von Abensperg and Traun to the k.k. Privileged Austrian National Bank sold. This banking institution was previously domiciled in the Herrengasse 17/ Bankgasse. The progressive industrialization and the with it associated economic expansion also implied a rapid development of monetary transactions and banking, so that the current premises soon no longer have been sufficient. This problem could only be solved by a new building, in which also should be housed a stock exchange hall.
According to the desire of the then Governor of the National Bank, Franz von Pipitz, the new building was supposed to be carried out with strict observance of the economy and avoiding a worthless luxury with solidity and artistic as well as technical completion. The building should offer room for the National Bank, the stock market, a cafe and - a novel idea for Vienna - a bazaar.
The commissioned architect, Heinrich von Ferstel, demonstrated in the coping with the irregular surface area with highest conceivable effective use of space his state-of-the art talent. The practical requirements combine themselves with the actually artistic to a masterful composition. Ferstel has been able to lay out the rooms of the issuing bank, the two trading floors, the passage with the bazar and the coffee house in accordance with their intended purpose and at the same time to maintain a consistent style.
He was an advocate of the "Materialbaues" (material building) as it clearly is reflected in the ashlar building of the banking institution. Base, pillars and stairs were fashioned of Wöllersdorfer stone, façade elements such as balconies, cornices, structurings as well as stone banisters of the hard white stone of Emperor Kaiser quarry (Kaisersteinbruch), while the walls were made of -Sankt Margarethen limestone. The inner rooms have been luxuriously formed, with wood paneling, leather wallpaper, Stuccolustro and rich ornamental painting.
The facade of the corner front Strauchgasse/Herrengasse received twelve sculptures by Hanns Gasser as decoration, they symbolized the peoples of the monarchy. The mighty round arch at the exit Freyung were closed with wrought-iron bare gates, because the first used locksmith could not meet the demands of Ferstel, the work was transferred to a silversmith.
1860 the National Bank and the stock exchange could move into the in 1859 completed construction. The following year was placed in the glass-covered passage the Danube mermaid fountain, whose design stems also of Ferstel. Anton von Fernkorn has created the sculptural decoration with an artistic sensitivity. Above the marble fountain basin rises a column crowned by a bronze statue, the Danube female with flowing hair, holding a fish in its hand. Below are arranged around the column three also in bronze cast figures: merchant, fisherman and shipbuilder, so those professions that have to do with the water. The total cost of the building, the interior included, amounted to the enormous sum of 1.897.600 guilders.
The originally planned use of the building remained only a few years preserved. The Stock Exchange with the premises no longer had sufficient space: in 1872 it moved to a provisional solution, 1877 at Schottenring a new Stock Exchange building opened. The National Bank moved 1925 into a yet 1913 planned, spacious new building.
The building was in Second World War battered gravely particularly on the main facade. In the 1960s was located in the former Stock Exchange a basketball training hall, the entire building appeared neglected.
1971 dealt the President of the Federal Monuments Office, Walter Frodl, with the severely war damaged banking and stock exchange building in Vienna. The Office for Technical Geology of Otto Casensky furnished an opinion on the stone facade. On the facade Freyung 2 a balcony was originally attached over the entire 15.4 m long front of hard Kaiserstein.
(Usage of Leith lime: Dependent from the consistence and structure of the Leitha lime the usage differed from „Reibsand“ till building material. The Leitha lime stone is a natural stone which can be formed easily and was desired als beautiful stone for buildings in Roman times. The usage of lime stone from Eggenburg in the Bronze age already was verified. This special attribute is the reason why the Leitha lime was taken from sculptors and masons.
The source of lime stone in the Leitha Mountains was important for Austria and especially for Vienna from the cultur historical point of view during the Renaissance and Baroque. At the 19th century the up to 150 stone quarries of the Leitha mountains got many orders form the construction work of the Vienna „Ring road“.
At many buildings of Graz, such as the castle at the Grazer castle hill, the old Joanneum and the Cottage, the Leitha lime stone was used.
Due to the fact that Leitha lime is bond on carbonate in the texture, the alteration through the actual sour rain is heavy. www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC2HKZ9_leithagebirge-leithak...)
This balcony was no longer present and only close to the facade were remnants of the tread plates and the supporting brackets recognizable. In July 1975, followed the reconstruction of the balcony and master stonemason Friedrich Opferkuh received the order to restore the old state am Leithagebirge received the order the old state - of Mannersdorfer stone, armoured concrete or artificial stone.
1975-1982, the building was renovated and re-opened the Café Central. Since then, the privately owned building is called Palais Ferstel. In the former stock exchange halls now meetings and presentations take place; the Café Central is utilizing one of the courtyards.
photographer's notes and text borrowings-
"mutual building", cape town. art deco, deluxe. finished in 1939. architect, fred glennis
inspiration maybe from the "met tower", NYC"?, chicago board of trade", "chrysler building, NYC"?
stone mason, ivan mitford-barberton (south african)
most of the building was changed into residential units
beautiful friezes by miftord-barberton
some nine (only?) african tribes depicted in stunning granite carvings on one facade of the building. it's unclear why only nine tribes were depicted
the tribes being-
matabele
basuto
barotse
kikuyu
zulu
bushman
xosa (xhosa)
pedi
masai
the building has three street facades, darling, parliament and long market streets, cape town CBD
much more to be explored and to be pixed. the building itself is exquisite
***********************
Mutual Building
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Mutual Building (Afrikaans: Mutual Gebou), in Cape Town, South Africa, was built as the headquarters of the South African Mutual Life Assurance Society, now the "Old Mutual" insurance and financial services company. It was opened in 1940, but before the end of the 1950s—less than 20 years later—business operations were already moving to another new office at Mutual Park in Pinelands (north east of the city centre); since then Old Mutual has become an international business and their present head office is in London.
The building is a fine example of art deco architecture and design, and it has many interesting internal features such as the banking hall, assembly room, directors' board room; external features include a dramatic ziggurat structure, prismoid (triangular) windows, and one of the longest carved stone friezes in the world. It has been said that it provides evidence of the colonial attitudes of the time, and the "ideals of colonial government promulgated
by Rhodes in the late nineteenth century".[1]
The Mutual Building is now converted to residential use, although some parts of the building are used commercially. For example, the Banking Hall (which is now an events venue) and the retail shops that operate outside on the ground level.
Coordinates: 33°55ʹ27.45ʺS 18°25ʹ20.25ʺE
Mutual Building
Mutual Gebou
The front of the building, in Darling Street, Cape Town
Location in central Cape Town Alternative Mutual Heights, Old Mutual
names Building
General information
Contents
1 History
1.1 The business
1.2 The "new" (1940) Head Office in Darling Street
1.3 Search for inspiration
1.4 Completion
1.5 Vacating and conversion
2 Structure of the building
3 Design elements
4 Features of the building
4.1 The Entrance Hall 4.2 The Banking Hall
4.3 The lifts (elevators) 4.4 The Assembly Room 4.5 The Directors' Rooms 4.6 The atrium
4.7 The windows
4.8 Granite cladding 4.9 The Tribal Figures 4.10 The frieze
5 Views of (and from) the building 6 References
7 Other external links
Type
Architectural style
Address Town or city Country Coordinates Completed Inaugurated Renovated Owner Height
Structural system
Floor count Lifts/elevators
Commercial converted to residential
Art Deco
14 Darling Street
Cape Town
South Africa
33°55ʹ27.45ʺS 18°25ʹ20.25ʺE 1939
1940
2005
Mutual Heights Body Corporate 84 metres (276 ft)
Technical details
Reinforced concrete, granite cladding
12 plus 3 levels basement parking
7
Architect
Architecture firm
Architect
Renovating firm
Structural engineer
Awards and prizes
Fred Glennie Louw & Louw
Renovating team
Robert Silke Louis Karol
Murray & Roberts
South African Institute of Architects, Presidents Award 2008
Website
Design and construction
www.mutualheights.net (www.mutualheights.net)
History The business
The Old Mutual business has a long history. In 1845 John Fairbairn (a Scot) founded "The Mutual Life Assurance Society of the Cape of Good Hope" in Cape Town. Over the next 100 years the business was to evolve significantly, changing its name in 1885 to the "South Africa Mutual Life Assurance Society", but becoming familiarly known simply as "The Old Mutual", so as to distinguish it from newer businesses of the same kind.
The company employed women as early as 1901, expanded into Namibia in 1920 and into Zimbabwe (then
Rhodesia) in 1927.[2] Old Mutual is now an international business with offices all over the world, and its portfolio
of financial services continues to evolve to meet market needs.
It is now some years since the business "de-mutualised" in order to issue shares and fund its operations using conventional investment markets.
The "new" (1940) Head Office in Darling Street
The name of the building in English and in Afrikaans ("Mutual Gebou"): The interesting frieze shown here is described in the text
Some comparisons with earlier inspirational buildings
In the 1930s it became clear that a new headquarters building was needed and very ambitious targets were set for the building: it was to be the tallest building in South Africa (possibly in the whole continent of Africa, with the exception of the pyramids in Egypt), it was to have the fastest lifts, it was to have the largest windows. At the same time it was to epitomise the values of the business: "Strength, Security and Confidence in the Future"; this demanded a combination of traditional
and contemporary design.[1]
Although it is clearly identified on the exterior as the "Mutual Building" (or "Mutual Gebou" in Afrikaans) it is often familiarly referred to as "The Old Mutual Building". Here, in the body of this article, it will be referred to as the "Mutual Building", thereby acknowledging the
nomenclature on the exterior of the building itself.
Search for inspiration
The figure here (adapted from www.skycrapers.com) compares the building with some of the other contemporaneous tall buildings in the world. Those involved in the design of the building travelled widely to study inspirational examples of corporate buildings elsewhere in the world. They learnt about the latest approaches to lighting, ventilation and fire protection in the USA, South America, England
and Sweden.[3] In the USA, the Eastern Columbia Building in Los Angeles is one example of the genre of building design that captured their attention: this building was completed in 1930 and has also since been
converted to residential occupation.[1]
The art deco style was chosen. However, the building is embellished with features in other styles (such as neo-classicist in the case of the banking hall) intended to reinforce the long- standing and traditional values of the Old Mutual business.
Completion
The building was completed in 1939 and opened
early in 1940 with a great fanfare. The local paper provided a 16 page supplement,[4] and South African architects and dignitaries enthused about it. In his definitive examination of the design of the building, Federico Freschi summarises the status of the building thus:
"Ultimately, the consensus suggests that the Old Mutual Building is at once a worthy monument to modern design principles and the consolidation of an important corporate and public image."[1]
The building is listed elsewhere as a notable building,[5] and it is regarded as an important example of the social values of the time and of the economic state of the nation, but all as seen from a European or
"colonial" perspective, as explained by Freschi.[1]
Vacating and conversion
Within 20 years (in the late 1950s) the Old Mutual began to vacate the building, moving in stages to new offices at Mutual Park in Pinelands, Cape Town. By the 1990s, only assorted tenants remained, the last of
which departed in May 2003.[3]
At this time, conversion to residential occupation began under the direction of Robert Silke at Louis Karol
Architects.[6] The name of the building was changed by the developers to Mutual Heights (www.mutualheights.net), a decision that did not find favour with all owners and residents involved in
the new community.[7] Despite scepticism about the name, it is generally agreed that the conversion was the first in a series of projects that re-invigorated the central business district of Cape Town. The conversion has
been the subject of a number of architecture and design awards.[8]
In February 2012, the large "Old Mutual" sign on the east side of the building was removed, leaving little external evidence of the commercial origins of the building; in 2015 Old Mutual Properties finally disposed of the remaining portions of the interior that had not been sold previously, including the banking hall, the directors suite and the fresco room.
Structure of the building
The building is constructed using reinforced concrete, filled in internally with bricks and plaster, and clad on the outside with granite. At first sight, the building is a striking example of the Art Deco style and many of its features epitomize this genre - however, some interior features deviate from true Art Deco and probably reflect the desire of the company to demonstrate solidity and traditional values at the same time as
contemporaneous, forward-looking values.[1]
It is 276 feet (85 metres) high, as measured from the ground floor to the top of the tower,[3] but the building is often listed as being more than 90 metres high (even as high as 96.8 metres on the Old Mutual web
site[2]); this probably takes account of the "spire" at the top.
Having only 10 levels ("storeys") above ground level in the main part of this tall building (excluding the three levels of basement car parking, and the additional levels in the tower), it is evident that the spacing between floors is generous — generally each floor is about 5 metres above (or below) the next. In one of the meeting rooms on the eighth level (the Assembly Hall - see below), the curtains alone are more than six metres long. This generous spacing between floors was intended to achieve the greatest possible overall height for the building without exceeding the city planning limitation of 10 storeys, and it was allowed only
in view of the "set back" design of the exterior structure.[1]
Design elements
The original design of the building is attributed to Louw & Louw (Cape Town architects), working with Fred Glennie (best known at the time as a mentor to architectural students) – Mr Glennie is personally
credited with most of the detailed work[9] but Ivan Mitford-Barberton[10] was also involved with some
internal details as well as with the external granite decorations.
It is pleasing that the principal areas of the building have been so little changed over the years, especially the entrance, the banking hall, the assembly room, the directors' room, the atrium, and the windows. Even the original door handles (including the Old Mutual "logo") and the original banisters (on the staircases) are all still intact, and the atrium is largely unchanged although it is now protected from the weather by a translucent roof.
The original light fittings in the "public" areas are largely still intact, and in most parts of the building there are beautiful block-wood (parquet) floors.
Here is a selection of interior design details that exemplify the quality and attention to detail that was applied to this project by the architects, artists and designers.
Marble from the columns in the banking hall
As you use the stairs, you are reminded which storey you are on
Bulkhead lights on the 9th level
White-veined Onyx from the entrance hall
Hardwood block floors are still in place in many parts of the building
An original door handle (of which many remain)
The entrance hall has a gold leaf ceiling
Detail of a banister on one of the stairs
Original fire doors, with distinctive handles
Detail of the rail at the gallery of the Assembly Room
Some interior design details
The paragraphs below now visit each of the significant areas and features of the building in turn.
An original light fitting
The light fittings in the Assembly Room
The entrance lobby
Features of the building
The building incorporates a range of significant features.
The Entrance Hall
Black, gold-veined onyx is used in the Darling Street foyer, the ceiling of which is over 15 metres high and finished with gold leaf, laid by Italian workmen. The view of the glass window over the door to the banking hall (above) shows the iconic ziggurat shape of the building etched into the glass. Visitors must climb 17 steps to gain access to the banking hall, and towards the top they are met by the original "pill box" where security staff can observe who (and what) is entering and leaving the building. On either side of the pill box are the entrances to the main lifts – two on the left and two on the right (there are two "staff" lifts and one "service" lift elsewhere in the building).
Characteristic stainless steel trim and light fittings, such as can be seen here, are used extensively throughout the building.
The Banking Hall
Given its tall marble-clad colonnades, the magnificent banking hall would be more properly described as an example of "neo-classicism" although the light fittings echo the art deco theme that prevails elsewhere in the building, and again we see that the glass over the doors (at the far end in the photograph below) are etched with the iconic ziggurat form that is taken by the whole building.
The two service counters that can be seen in the banking hall look identical, but only the one on the right is original—the one on the left is a later, somewhat inferior, copy.
The banking hall
Between the columns of the banking hall the coats of arms are presented for each of the many provinces and countries within Southern Africa in which the South African Mutual Life Assurance Society had a presence.
The crests that appear between the columns in the banking hall
Northern Rhodesia Cape Colony Durban Rhodesia
Natal Petermaritzburg Port Elizabeth Orange Free State
Johannesburg Pretoria Kenya Colony Bloemfontein
Cape Town Union of South Africa Potchefstroom Windhoek The banking hall is now owned privately and is available for hire as an events venue.
The lifts (elevators)
The main lifts in the building are fast ("the fastest in Africa" it was claimed when the building opened) and no expense was spared – even in the basement parking area, the lifts are trimmed with black marble. Each door has an etched representation of an indigenous bird or animal from South Africa, with significant plants as additional decoration, or in some cases the corporate logo of the time.
There are seven lifts in the building, four of them "principal" lifts (as here)
The individual etchings in detail (click on the images to see the full-size version):
Springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis), with a king protea (Protea cynaroides), the national flower
Kudu (Tragelaphus), with veltheimia (Veltheimia bracteata) at the lower right
Giraffe, with a succulent (Crassula)
Zebra (Equus quagga), with a prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica)
The individual etchings on the lift doors
Ostrich (Struthio camelus australus), with prickly pear (lower left) and "century plant" (Agave americana)
Leopard (Panthera pardus pardus), with spekboom (Portulacaria afra) at the lower right and candelabra lily (Brunsvigia josephinae) at the lower left
Crane (Balearica regulorm) with reeds behind (Phragmites australis)
Lion, with lion's tail (or wild dagga - Leonotis leonuris) at lower left, violet painted petals (Freesia laxa) lower right and coral tree (Erythrina lysistemon) at the top
Secretary bird (Sagittarius serpentarius), with unidentifiable tree
The corporate "logo" (three entwined anchors), with Strelitzia reginae (bottom right), Disa uniflora (bottom left) and proteas (Protea repens) at the top
Vulture
These designs are attributed to Ivan Mitford-Barberton.
The Assembly Room
Perhaps the best known feature of the building (in artistic circles at least) is the Assembly Room, sometimes referred to as the "Fresco Room"; Freschi indicates that this was originally intended as a facility for policy
holders.[1] Here there are striking frescoes depicting some of the history of the nation of South Africa,
undertaken by Le Roux Smith Le Roux two years after the completion of the building.
Le Roux was supported in his early career by the famous British architect Herbert Baker, who provided bursaries so that Le Roux could spend time in
London and elsewhere. In London he
undertook a mural in South Africa House with
Eleanor Esmonde-White. An acquaintance (still living) of Le Roux and Esmonde-White recalls that Baker insisted that Eleanor Esmonde-White be awarded a bursary, despite gender-related objections from elsewhere; in the event she got to go to London with Le Roux, with the bursary. Following their years in London, Le Roux was awarded this commission to work on the Mutual Building and he therefore returned to Cape Town, but only after the main building work was done - it was not sensible to undertake this meticulous work while building operations were still in progress.
These frescoes are considered elsewhere as good examples of the genre—see for example
"Decopix - the Art Deco Architecture Site"[11] where the Mutual Building itself is well
represented.[12] The five frescoes on the end
walls and over the entrance depict more than
100 years of the history of the nation,
including industrial development, the Great
Trek, mining following the discovery of gold,
the growth of industry and agriculture, and a
hint of international travel and trade. Freschi considers that ".. in contemporary terms, Le Roux's work was seen to be distinctly progressive and very much in keeping with the ostensibly liberal party line of Jan
Smuts' coalition government".[1]
The panels are reproduced below, and selected portions from them are provided in the images that follow.
The five panels are presented left to right, in a clockwise direction when standing in the Assembly Room, back to the windows. The first and fifth are on the side walls, the second, third and fourth are on the long wall that includes the main entrance.
The fresco panels in the Assembly Room
The Assembly Room
Engineering water, The Great Trek building industry and
railroads
Trade and international travel
The discovery of gold
Railroads in service, productive farms
The fifth image includes a representation of the Mutual Building itself, the tallest building in what is known as the "City Bowl", below the slopes of Table Mountain. This did not remain true for long, it was only one year later that the General Post Office was built on the other (seaward side) of Darling Street, and a large number of larger more modern buildings have been built since (see the views from and of the building, shown further down this page).
Some details from the panels:
Some selected portions of the fresco panels in the Assembly Room
Mixing concrete, Wind-powered water working with the plans pumps provide
irrigation
The Great Trek - ladies Farm produce at last - a in their bonnets, men on smile on his face
horses
The Directors' Board Room
A detail - laying railway The image of the track Mutual Building under
Table Mountain
The Directors' Rooms
On the fourth level, at the front of the building, is the Directors' Board Room. As well as the board room there are two side rooms, one of which was a sitting room for Directors.
In the board room there is a continuous carved stinkwood frieze above the dado rail that incorporates animal and floral motifs (14 different species of birds and animals are represented). Ivan Mitford-Barberton is credited with this carving and it is probably the last work that he did in the building. Above the carved frieze is a mural designed and executed by Joyce Ord-Brown using stain on pale sycamore panelling. It represents
Cape Town as the "Tavern of the Seas" in a light hearted way.[1]
The selections below show some portions of the mural and the frieze, followed by some other details of the directors' rooms. The sea plane (second picture) is probably a Martin M-130, which is not recorded as having serviced South Africa (it worked the pacific routes). This is probably "artistic licence" on the part of Ord-Browne.
Portions of the Joyce Ord-Browne decorations
The Southern hemisphere, with route from Cape Town to London
Blue cranes flying
A sea plane
A portion of the Northern hemisphere, with King Neptune
Penguins and whales
A mermaid
Portions of the Mitford-Barberton stinkwood frieze
Some features of the directors' board room and sitting room
Entrance to the board room (see note below)
Easy chairs in the sitting room - unused in a long time
Marble at the door to the board room
Another original light fitting in the sitting room
Directors had their own storage drawers in the board room
An original light fitting in the board room that (seemingly) doubles as a ventilation device
It is of note that the etched ziggurat icon on the glass over the entrance to the board room (see the enlarged version of the first image above) is not the same as that which is used elsewhere.
The Directors' suite has great heritage value but in 2015 it was re-finished as a private apartment.
The atrium
The atrium extends from the roof of the banking hall to the very top of the main building. It was originally open to the weather, but it is now protected by a translucent roof, through which the tower can be seen extending even higher.
The circular windows visible here are incorporated into the apartments that now occupy the front of the building.
The windows
On entering the residential area of the building, one is struck by this extraordinary "top to bottom" atrium
The windows compared
The rising nature of the ziggurat mass of the exterior of the building is reinforced by the prismoid (triangular) windows, which extend up and down the height of the building. These windows are of note because they set the Mutual Building apart from some of the buildings that inspired it, for example the Eastern Columbia Building in Los Angeles. They are also functional, because they allow light to enter the building more effectively than would otherwise be the case (using the reflective properties of the inside face of the glass), and by opening and closing blinds on the one side or the other it is possible on sunny days to manage the heat entering the building as the sun traverses the sky.
Water-cooled air conditioning was another innovative feature of the original building, that avoided the need for extensive natural ventilation and allowed more freedom for the design of the windows and granite spaces between; the same water-cooled air conditioning design is in use today.
As Freschi notes in his paper, the prismoid windows make for much more visual interest than the conventional windows in the General Post Office building. Here the image juxtaposes the Mutual building (foreground) with the General Post Office built the following year (behind).
Granite cladding
The granite cladding of the building was hewn from a single boulder on the Paarl Mountain, north east of the
city of Cape Town.[1] The cladding incorporates decorative baboon, elephant and tribal heads that project from the upper facades of the Darling Street elevation (the front of the building).
The granite decorations
The decorations Elephant (6th level) Baboon (8th level) Tribal head (tower)
Tower with tribal head
The Tribal Figures
On the Parliament Street facade there are carved granite figures representing nine ethnic African groups (not just South African) labelled thus: "Xosa", "Pedi", "Maasai", "Matabele", "Basuto", "Barotse", "Kikuyu", "Zulu", and "Bushman". Note that the identification of the tribes does not necessarily follow current practice.
The nine tribal figures looking over Parliament Street.
The individual figures in detail (remember you can click on the images to see the full-size version):
The individual tribal figures
"Xosa" "Pedi" "Masai" "Matabele"
"Basuto" "Barotse" "Kikuyu" "Zulu"
"Bushman"
Recently Sanford S. Shaman has written a critique of these figures, and other features of the building [13] partly based on interviews with pedestrians walking around the building.
The frieze
Around the three sides of the building facing Darling Street, Parliament Street and Longmarket Street there is a 386 feet (118 metre) frieze depicting scenes from the colonial history of South Africa, reported at its
completion to be the longest such frieze in the world.[4]
A portion of the 386 feet frieze that traverses three sides of the building, showing the 1820 settlers landing
It is of interest that, at the time, it was proclaimed that the building was built by South Africans, using South African materials; while the frieze was itself designed by South African, Ivan Mitford Barberton (born in Somerset East, Eastern Cape, in 1896), the work was executed by a team of Italian immigrants led by Adolfo Lorenzi. It has recently come to light that, in the course of the work, Lorenzi's team of masons were incarcerated when the Second World War broke out in 1939, being Italian and therefore regarded as "the
enemy" at that time. They were obliged to finish their work under an armed guard.[14]
A composite view of the frieze can be seen at the right; unfortunately in this version some portions are missing or obscured by trees in leaf.
The sections of the frieze are as follows:
The landing of Jan van Riebeeck
The arrival of the 1820 Settlers
The "Post Office Stone"
The building of the Castle of Good Hope
The emancipation of the slaves
Negotiations with Chaka (also known as "King Shaka)" The Great Trek
The dream of Nongqawuse (other spellings are sometimes used) Discovery of diamonds at Kimberley
Erection of a cross by Bartholomew Dias
Rhodes negotiating with the Matabele
David Livingstone preaching, healing and freeing slaves The opening up of Tanganyika Territory
The defence of Fort Jesus depicting Arab inhabitants
A second version of this collage of the complete frieze can be found elsewhere[15]
A composite showing almost all of the frieze in its 15 sections – some portions are missing in this version – click to see a readable version and then choose the "Full resolution" option under the image (but be patient, this is a large file – 1Mb)
Seen from Darling Street, the Mutual Building today stands proud as the day it was built.
Views of (and from) the building
The busy city works around the building. The Mutual Building can claim that its restoration and conversion to residential use brought new life to the city centre, and started a five year programme of re- invigoration and rapid improvement. The large green "Old Mutual" sign and logo were removed from the building in February 2012.
The skyline of the city of Cape Town has changed significantly since the Mutual Building was constructed. Even from its highest point of easy access, the Mutual Building View is now dwarfed by the more modern buildings in the Cape Town central business district.
In the modern skyline the Mutual Building is lost in a maze of tall buildings. Here the sea mist swirls around the central business district and the small coloured arrow picks out the Mutual Building, at the left. This photograph is taken from District Six, on the slopes of Devil's peak to the east of Table Mountain. Click to see the full size version of this photograph, when the outline of the building can be more easily discerned.
The view of the harbour from the middle levels of the Mutual Building in Darling Street in Cape Town, once uninterrupted, is now obscured by the General Post Office constructed shortly afterwards (seen here at the extreme left).
Table Mountain and its "table cloth" seen from the upper levels of the building.
Looking in the other direction, the City Hall, the Grand Parade and the Castle can all be seen clearly. In the distance are the Hottentots Holland Mountains.
References
The learned article by Federico Freschi is particularly recommended to all who are interested in this building and its context.
1. Freschi, F (1994). "Big Business Beautility: The Old Mutual Building, Cape Town, South Africa". Journal of Decorative and Propaganda Arts, Vol 20, pp.39-57
2. "Old Mutual - Our heritage". Old Mutual Web Site. Retrieved 27 December 2010.
3. CSD, (2003). "Mutual Heights Heritage Impact Assessment Report", CS Design Architects and Heritage
Consultants, Cape Town, South Africa (August)
4. Cape Times (1940). "Old Mutual in New Home", The Cape Times (special supplement) (30 January)
5. "Mutual Heights". Emporis - The world's building website. Retrieved 27 December 2010.
6. "Cocktails over the Grand Parade". Cape Times online. 25 July 2003. Retrieved 27 December 2010.
7. Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the Body Corporate, Mutual Heights, 2008
8. "Louis Karol awards". Louis Karol web site. Retrieved 27 December 2010.
9. "SA Mutual Life Assr Soc (Old Mutual)". Artefacts web site. Retrieved 27 December 2010.
10. "Ivan Mitford-Barberton". Biographical web site by Margaret C Manning. Retrieved 27 December 2010.
11. "Decopix - the Art Deco Architecture Web site". Randy Juster's Art Deco web site. Retrieved 27 December 2010.
12. "The Mutual Building featured on Randy Juster's art deco web site". Randy Juster's Art Deco web site. Retrieved
27 December 2010.
13. "Art South Africa web site". "The Heights of Contradiction" by Sanford S. Shaman. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
14. Correspondence by email, Giovanni Adolfo Camerada to Andy Bytheway, 2008
15. "The Mutual Building Frieze". Web site of the Mutual Heights community.
Other external links
Website for the Mutual Heights Community (www.mutualheights.net)
Louis Karol Architects website (www.louiskarol.com/index.html)
Randy Juster's art deco web site (www.decopix.com)
David Thompson's art deco buildings web site (artdecobuildings.blogspot.com/) City of Cape Town web site (www.capetown.gov.za)
Stewart Harris' flikr photographs include some images of Fred Glennie and Le Roux Smith Le Roux at work on the building, and other interesting images of the building (www.flickr.com/groups/1615104@N21/)
Confirmation of the Bloemfontein crest that defied identification for several years (www.ngw.nl/heraldrywiki/index.php?title=Bloemfontein)
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mutual_Building&oldid=700901155" Categories: Art Deco skyscrapers Buildings and structures in Cape Town Skyscrapers in Cape Town
This page was last modified on 21 January 2016, at 09:03.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
One of the real pleasures of Flickr is finding out so much more about the areas you thought you knew.
I have been to Wymondham a few times, delivered beer to a hotel (more of that another time) and a friend used to run the Railway Inn near the station, but I hadn't really explored the town.
But having seen a friend's shots, I really thought I should go back and look at it anew. And then there was this building, the Abbey Church with two towers, ruins and all the associated history.
Whatever you think of the works inside, it is as a complete building, something to leave me, at least, in awe at the beauty. Of course, it might not please everyone, but it does me.
Many thanks to Sarah and Richard for taking me here.
--------------------------------------------
This massive church and its famous twin towers will be familiar to anyone who has ever been within five miles of Wymondham, pronounced Win-d'm; its presence always there above the roof tops, and still there on the horizon when the rooftops can no longer be seen. Closer to, it is like a mighty city on a hill. It is often referred to as Wymondham Abbey, which isn't entirely correct; but there was an Abbey here, and you can see a scattering of remains in the fields between the church and the river, gradually reduced over the centuries as the stone and rubble were taken away for use elsewhere.
We came to Wymondham on a day that was breathtakingly cold; although the temperature was hovering around freezing, there was a biting east wind that made it feel colder still. Hence, the clarity of the light in the photographs above. The top photograph, taken from the south on the far bank of the river, is worth a second glance, because it provides a number of clues as to how this extraordinary and magnificent building came to be the way it is today.
In the beginning, there was a Benedictine Priory, an offshoot of the Abbey of St Albans. It was founded here because, after the Conquest, William I granted the lands of Wymondham to the Duc d'Albini, and the Duke's brother was Abbot of St Albans. Part of the project consisted of building a massive Priory church, much bigger than the one you see today. In style, it was like the Abbey church of Bury St Edmund, or Ely Cathedral. It was a cruciform church about 70 metres long, and had twin west towers - you can see something similar today at Kings Lynn St Margaret. As at St Margaret, there was a third tower above the central crossing, the chancel extending a long way eastwards, and transepts that were as tall as the nave roof. It was completed during the 12th century.
You can see a surviving trace of the south-west tower in the photograph above. The base of its northern wall rises above the roofline at the western end of the clerestory, just beside the current west tower. The central crossing tower, however, was built to the east of the current east tower, the chancel extending eastwards beyond it.
D'Albini intended the church to serve the parish as well as the Priory, but this was not managed without recourse to the advice of Pope Innocent IV, who granted the people use of the nave and the north aisle, the Priory retaining the south aisle, transepts and chancel.
However, when the central crossing tower became unsafe in the late 14th century and had to be taken down, the Priory rebuilt it to the west of the crossing, actually within the nave. This is the east tower that you see today, now a shell. In turn, the parish extended the church further west, demolishing the two west towers and replacing them with the massive structure you see today. It really is huge; although it is not as tall as the church tower at Cromer, its solidity lends it a vastness not sensed there.
When the new east tower was built, the western face of it cut off the nave from the chancel, creating two separate spaces. When the west tower was built, it blocked off the former west window between the old towers. Because of this, Wymondham is the only medieval parish church in Norfolk, and one of the few in England, that has no window at either end.
Wymondham Priory became an Abbey in 1448, and seems to have lived its final century peaceably enough before being closed and asset-stripped by Henry VIII in the 1530s. The church then became solely the charge of the parish; the eastern parts, apart from the tower, were demolished.
Still without parapet or panelling, the west tower was never finished; but it features in the turbulent history of mid 16th century England because William Kett, one of the leaders of Kett's Rebellion, was hung from the top of it by Edward VI's thought police, a reminder of just how closely church and state became allied during the Reformation. It did give me pause for thought - hanging your enemy from a church tower seems such an obvious thing to do when you want to make a point. I wonder just how many more times it happened to less notable victims over the centuries, on church towers up and down the land?
You enter today through the great north porch, which is similar to that nearby at Hethersett, even to the extent of having an almost identical series of bosses. They depict rosary scenes in the life of Christ and the Blessed Virgin.
As I said, we came here on a spectacularly cold day, but I was delighted to discover that the interior of the church was heated, even on a Saturday. The church attracts a considerable number of visitors, as you might expect; but I still thought this was a nice gesture.
Wymondham church is above all else an architectural wonder; but in many ways this is a simple building, easy to explore and satisfying to visit. It has the feel of a small Anglican cathedral in that there is a pleasing mix of ancient Norman architecture and modern Anglican triumphalism; as in a cathedral, there are open spaces, and the old pews have been replaced with modern chairs, which almost always seems to work well. The glorious arcading, triforium and clerestory create a sense of great height; this, coupled with the lack of east or west windows, can make you feel rather boxed in, but I found I quite liked that; it made the place seem more intimate, despite its size.
The modern, triumphant feel to the place is largely owing to the vast reredos by Ninian Comper. This is generally considered to be his finest single work, and forms the parish war memorial. It was built and gilded during the 1920s and 1930s, and you have to say it is magnificent. It consists of three tiers of saints, with a glorious Christ in Majesty topping the tiers under the great tester. It was never completed; the space where the retable should be is now hidden by curtains.
The rood and beam, a bay to the west, is also Comper's work, and it is hard to conceive that work of this kind and to this scale will ever again be installed in an English church. The low sun, slanting through the south windows of the clerestory, picked out the gilding, and clever lighting from underneath helped to put Comper's vision of Heaven into practice. The row of candlesticks on the altar leaves you in no doubt in which wing of the Church of England Wymondham finds itself.
Comper's glory shouldn't distract you from the early 16th century facade above the sedilia. It is terracotta, and probably from the same workshop as the Bedingfield tombs at Oxborough. Here you see what might have happened to English church architecture if theReformation hadn't intervened. Looking west from the sanctuary, the original west window is clearly discernible, now home to the organ.
If Comper's work is a little rich for you, you may prefer the north aisle, which is wide enough to be a church in itself. Cleared of clutter, a few rows of chairs face a gorgeous early 20th century triptych depicting Mary and John at the foot of the cross. The Madonna and child towards the west is also Comper's, but the 1930s towering font cover on the typical East Anglian 15th century font is not; it is by Cecil Upcher. The south aisle is truncated, the eastern bays now curtained off; but here are the few medieval survivals in glass. From slightly later, but the other side of the Reformation divide, is an Elizabethan text on the arcade. It probably marks the point to which the pulpit was moved by the Anglicans in the 16th century.
St Mary and St Thomas of Canterbury is a church that it is easy to admire, and it certainly impressed me. Perhaps, it is not so easy a building to love. Inevitably, there is something rather urban in its grandeur, and even the warmth of the heating couldn't take the edge off the remoteness and anonymity you inevitably find in such a space.
However, the friendliness of the people on duty helped to make up for this. The area beneath the west tower has been converted into a shop, and the nice lady working there was very chatty and helpful. I have to say that I think it would concentrate my mind a bit, knowing that mighty weight was above me. The shop itself is good of its kind, selling books and religious items rather than just souvenirs, and more icons and rosaries than you would normally expect to find in an establishment of the Church of England.
The lady said that she was a Methodist really, and found the services rather formal, but she'd started coming to the Abbey because her daughter went there. "You ought to come, Mum, we're just like real Catholics!", she giggled, as she recalled her daughter's words. As a 'real Catholic' myself, I couldn't help thinking that we would have stripped out Comper's reredos long ago, and Masses would be accompanied by guitars and percussion, possibly with a modicum of clapping and the help of an overhead projector screen; but I kept my counsel.
Simon Knott, January 2006
I counted more than 100 vessels, mostly privateers in smallish open boats, fishing the run. Taken from Bodega Head, a granite outcrop connected underground / underwater with Pt. Reyes, Montaro Mountain, and Point Lobos, all a single member of the southern Sierra range, moved north along the San Andreas fault this past few million years. The solidity of this granite is responsible for Bodega Bay and harbor.
The bay, harbor and surrounding land was occupied by Russians (furthest southern settlement) on the California coast until the 1840's to grow food and have a large safe port for their sea otter taking endeavors all along the west coast. General Vallejo's fort in Petaluma not that far away (50 miles as the crow flies?) was established in part to prevent further expansion into territory claimed by Spain. The Russians left mostly because they almost completely exterminated the sea otter, whose pelts were shipped primarily to China.
The altarpiece of the Virgo inter Virgines was donated in 1509 to the convent of the Carmelites of Sion in Bruges.
Mary, enthroned between two musical angels, holds the Baby Jesus, who is picking grapes off a bunch – a symbol of the Eucharist. She is receiving the homage of a gathering of martyrs with a child-like charm, recognizable by their attributes, each depicted in the manner of precious ornaments. From left to right : Dorothy with her basket of roses (the lawyer Theophilus had promised to convert to Christianity if she sent him roses and apples from the Garden of Christ), Catherine of Alexandria with a crown adorned with the Catherine Wheel (which miraculously broke instead of killing her), Agnes, with a lamb at her feet (the saint was killed aged 14 because she refused to marry a pagan), behind her, an anonymous woman, then Fausta with a saw (the instrument of her martyrdom), Apollonia with a set of tongs (which were used to pull out her teeth), Godelina with a scarf (which her husband used to have her strangled), Cecilia beside an organ (she sang praises to the Lord until her dying breath), Barbara, whose headdress is adorned with a tower (her father had her locked away there) and Lucy holding her eyes (which some maintain were gouged out while others assert that she gouged them out herself). The man, in the upper left corner is the painter Gérard David himself, and the woman on the right in the white cornet is most probably his wife, Cornelia.
The saints stand out against a neutral background with a visual force reminiscent of a bas-relief, but which is animated by the faces and the beauty of the materials. In this dense ensemble, the unusually accentuated upright stance of the Virgin, in its almost statuesque solidity, seems to echo the Madonna of Bruges of Michelangelo, who arrived in the city in 1506.
Bréton brut had as a style been established for a short while prior to this buildings inception, but it was its somewhat trend setting architect that gave widespread acceptability and validity to the movement. It captured the imagination of architects reacting against the recoil of New Humanism and restricted by the economics of the time.
The Unité d'Habitation built in Marseille, France in 1952 is absolutely of its time. Every tower block in the immediate vacinity appears to pay homage to the Unité, They are unashamed of their debt, aesthetic or otherwise, and yet even with benefit hindsight do not appear to be 'better buildings', mere pale imitations.
Steel being consumed in the war effort and the lack of skilled labour in France lead to the choice of concrete, with a more honest and rough finish. Banham says it is ever the more successful due to Corbusiers abandonment of the “pre-war fiction that reinforced concrete was a precise, ‘machine-age’ material”. This notion which had been maintained by extravagant and un-necessary means, such as “lavishing on it skilled labour and specialised equipment beyond anything the economics of the building industry normally permitted”. That is equipment that would give rise to the exacting edges and if these were not achieved then the “roughness and inaccuracies” were plastered over to give a more crisp image, hardly accepting the ‘realities of the situation’. The situation was firmly one of a “messy soup” with “dust, grits and slumpy aggregates, mixed and poured under conditions subject to the vagaries of weather and human fallibility”, hardly an image of high-technology.
The war had also changed Corbusiers perspective of technology’s place in architecture, compare for example the machine for living in, the Ville Savoye (Paris, 1929), compared with schemes such as (although later than the Unité) Notre Dame du Haut built at Ronchamp in 1954. The Unité had been described as “the first modern building that has room for cockroaches”, retort to Le Corbusier stating in a letter to Madame Savoye that “‘Home life today is being paralysed by the deplorable notion that we must have furniture” and that “This notion should be rooted out and replaced by that of equipment”. Banham in his book ‘The New Brutalism’ notes the Unité’s “originalities in sectional organisation”, with its rue Intérieure, apartments with double height spaces all of which in section span the entire width of the block. He also suggests “few buildings anywhere in the world had such a hold on the imagination of young architects especially in England”. Corbusier described his rough concrete style as béton brut, words which (rightly or wrongly) would come to be misinterpreted as representing the New Brutalist style as well as that of béton brut. The solidity of the Unité is furthered from mere concrete security by the setting back of “user-scale elements such as windows and doors” into the concrete frame of the building, giving a sense of a secondary boundary further to the superstructure of the building. As Banham describes it, a building where “word and building stand together in the psychological history of post-war architecture” . He attributes further its success to the “hard glare of the Mediterranean sun” . Something which does not quite translate so well in the greyer skies of Britain, something of the disappointment of driving a new car out of a showroom and home, notwithstanding your home being an equally apt setting.
River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme.
These images were taken towards the end of the second week of February 2017.
These are the critical stabilisation works at the Silverbridge site, adjacent to the N11 dual-carriageway:
Back in November 2014, we'd observed bank stabilisation works here involving excavation, repair and building of a support wall structure -- carried out by JONS Construction on behalf of the National Roads Authority.
We would occasionally catch sight of this work in the distance. Quite an impressive little piece of structural engineering.
Having built a retaining concave wall, backfilled for solidity, they were also drilling, fixing and sealing ground anchors to pin the entire structure together.
Now we see that further works are being undertaken.
Word has it that extra ‘stabilisation work’ had to be done to protect the integrity of the riverbank.
At the section here we can see that there’s not much space between the edge of the rock face and the Armco at the side of the dual-carriageway.
Have yet to determine what precisely that will entail. Serious work to reinforce the side access ramp down to the river.
The N11 carriageway runs adjacent to this sunken side of the riverbank -- barely 2 (large) paces divide the two. Even with twin strips of Armco along the roadside, it's perilously close. Traffic speeds along this stretch (maximum speed 100 kmp). Only needs a touch from a heavy vehicle to cause secondary impact, which (worst possible scenario) could result in something going airborne.
Working in these confined spaces puts a premium of safety and communication.
The guys have hard-filled a working shelf on the riverbed, to allow machinery access to the rockface. Obviously some serious drilling is called for before a form of extra 'pinning' is put in place.
They have sunk a series of hollowed tubes/casings -- obviously to form the foundations of a more extensive structure.
And some investigative work around the transverse buttress of the access bridge, parallel to the heavy-duty pipeline carrying water down from the Vartry reservoir.
At a (rough) guess -- I'd say the foundations were sunk to a depth of approx 4+m.
With such secure foundations in place, they would then look to construct a substantial bank of material, and/or retaining wall (similar to that in place further along the roadside bank).
=================================================
Previously the guys drilled and sunk 4+metre deep reinforced tubing and rods along a newly laid concrete base. Those stubs were then used to attach steel rod cradles -- which, in turn, were filled with poured concrete. Result - the wall quickly rises. Variation on the method they've used elsewhere along this stretch of the river.
A continuous stretch of protective wall has now been poured, and joined up with the section originally erected back in 2014.
As we can see from the side-on shot, the base of the wall has pre-cut openings for the retaining pins that have been driven into the side wall of the roadside cliff. These have been sealed and capped.
Progress has been rapid, the full stretch of wall is completed, and the guys are now working on back-filling the empty space between the protective wall and the roadside rock face. You don't just throw in a few trucks loads of soil and hope for the best. You load, layer, level and compress.
And, at the same time, the guys are clearing away material used to build access ramps down into the riverbed.
The thought crossed my mind -- in doing so (removing the stone-filled gabions etc,) are they potentially exposing the river bank on that side to erosion, slippage etc?
We know the destructive force of fast running waters. Hell, this is precisely why the protective works have been carried out along the rest of the stretch, down to the Bray Harbour. Unless they have other plans to stabilise it, what is going to be left here is loose soil -- very close to the access road into the halting site itself.
Some repair/reinforcing work is going on here to protect the (old) buttress that supports the pipework carrying water to the Bray region.
This is not a gloat
This post might not impress everybody so I'm calling this an interesting find instead of a gloat.
I've always been fond of the smaller tool makers. So when I spotted an Aussie hand plane on a "Online auction site near you™, I had to make a run for it.
After a btalle with another curious yet uncertain buyer, I won the auction and a few days later arrived a Turner no 4 smoothing plane.
I won't show you any pictures before you have read far enough, as some of you might turn your eyes away in disgust. But I can assure you, there's no need for parental guiding the woodworking style.
Yes, it has plastic handles. Yes, it has a frog made of aluminum.
While you let tho sink in I will tell you the plane also has a very solid and well made body, the handles are translucent (á la MF permaloid) and that the plane is fitted with a Erik Anton Berg cutter made specifically for the Turner tool company.
I will not try to steal the show as all I know about this company is borrowed from the Village Woodworker down under:
thevillagewoodworker.blogspot.com/2012/11/turner-hand-pla...
What I can add is that I agree with his review. This is a very well made hand plane. The celluloid acetate handles feels good in my hands and bring a light smile to my face, much needed in the dark era of Finnish autumn awaiting the even worse. The aluminum frog is of course a slight concern. Will it hold up against had use? But as long as remember not to tighten either the lever cap or the frog screws too much I ought to be OK. And I just love having a Berg cutter made specifically for metal hand planes which can be used not in only in this plane but also my MF no 9.
This plane was purchased from an Englishman who says his father worked in Australia for a few years and who thinks his dad must have bought the plane during his stay. From what I know it hasn't been used for a long time. It's not unused but the scar tissue on the surface has more to do with being stored away improperly than from hard use. The plane has some shallow pitting on both sole and cheeks and I discovered rust on the handle bolts as well as the bolt housing. By the look of the bleached and very tatty box and the mildew stench coming from it, I would guess the plane has been stored in a outside shed but succumbed to sunshine and varying temperatures, which would very well explain why the plane has been corroded.
The handles are intact and I hope that adding some wax might help them to stay sound. Luckily the handles have not been subjected to direct sunlight.
There's a very nice addition t the fastening of the front knob. The raised housing on the body has a recess cut into it at the front side. The knob has a mating little toe which fits into the recess. This feature will keep the front knob from rotating and prevent the user from over tightening the knob. An ingenious invention which would be welcomed on other planes as well.
The plane has only been taken for a short spin on some ash, but it does feel promising. The cutter had been resharpened but not across its full edge so it needs a proper resharpening before I can provide a verdict.
What I can say is that I have compared the weight of this plane with a MF no 9 (Type 2) and a Stanley low knob no 4.
The Turner is the decidedly heaviest of them all, even considering this plane has plastic handles and a frog made of aluminum. It weighs in at 1750 grams.
The MF no 9 weighs 1680 grams and the Stanley no 4 a mer 1610 grams.
The difference are not mind blowing and might be moot for most users, but it does say something about the solidity of this plane.
The triple-dot motif in western Art
in the front of the capital 'The Wedding'.
On the right site of the capital; Birds drinking from a cup symbolizes the souls to drink from the source memory. This is a reference to the Eucharist. (Isaiah 12-3). ''You will joyfully draw water, the wells of salvation.'' This iconography is derived from the Roman tradition
Religious heritage: the Saint-Gervais-Saint-Protais church
The church is one of the oldest in France.
The cult of Saint Gervais and Saint Protais appears to have quickly developed after the discovery of relics in Milan in 386.
Front
The front has the shape of a quadrilateral surmounted by an imposing triangular gable. The decor is limited to the cornice that defines the sprocket. It consists of small arches resting on carved corbels. The facade is, moreover, supported by strong buttresses. The northern one was rebuilt in the fourteenth or fifteenth century.
In the center, the portal is no eardrum. It is decorated with a simple roll. It is topped with a bay semicircular arches and crowned with a thin cord that is based on sculpted caps.
Bedside
The polygonal sanctuary was built around the year 400. It is small cubic apparatus thick joints, resulting directly from the Roman tradition. It is associated with long blocks. Everything is arranged in regular courses. The angles are formed cut stones at each sitting.
Belfry
The bell tower is placed above the choir, which is a rare positioning. It was necessary to ensure the solidity of the building, cluttering the choir by huge piles.
The three upper levels of the tower are represented by cornices. The first level is blind and massive. At the corners, powerful buttresses consolidate all. The last two levels are lit by free bays. These second stages are part of a flat wall, while on the third floor, they are equipped with two rows of arch stones down along the legs and topped with a continuous molded cord on four faces.
The bell tower is topped by a pyramidal cover elegant stone.
Choir
The choir is from the Merovingian period. It is lit by three windows with arches are semicircular. The bows are made of thin archstones extradossed a cordon of tiles that extends back angle at the transom. Other tiles separate the quoins. The decoration is complemented by two diamond patterns placed on both sides of the axial window.
An early Christian monument is preserved in the choir (dated around 400), representing a chrism and an epitaph: "Aeternalis and Servilla Vivatis in Deo" is "Live in God." This stele is one of the oldest evidence of the presence of a Christian community in Poitou. It is contemporary of Saint Hilaire, Bishop of Poitiers from 342 to 368 and Saint Martin, founder of the Abbey of Ligugé (360-370).
Nef
The nave walls and the bell tower date from the eleventh century.
The walls of the nave consist of small irregular stones. They are punctuated by alternating flat buttresses and high windows. The berries are narrow. They are surmounted by a carved lintel semicircular thin lines that simulate a bow paired in a style popular before 1000, but tends to disappear when the construction of the building.
In the twelfth century, are implanted batteries in the nave to the stoop. The capitals that adorn it are from the same era, specifically the beginning of the twelfth century. They are reminiscent of Saint Pierre de Chauvigny but also clumsy. However, two capitals are exceptional: he says of marriage, and that of the Temptation. The other capitals are decorated with stylized floral or geometric patterns or fantastic beasts or birds drinking from a cup.
This image of birds drinking from a cup symbolizes the souls who drink from the source of the memory. This is a reference to the Eucharist. "You will draw water with joy the wells of salvation" (Isaiah 12-3). This is an iconography borrowed from the Roman tradition. It is found in many area churches: the Church of St. Peter Chauvigny, the priory of Villesalem, church Bonneuil-Matours or that of Liniers or to the Church of Our Lady of Lencloître .
Vaults and painted plaster date from the nineteenth century. The decor combines foliage and decorative motifs in false appliances. In 1886, Honoré Hivonnait painted at the entrance of the choir Saint Gervais and Saint Protais holding a palm, symbol of martyrdom.
Baptismal pool
During archaeological excavations directed by François Eygun in 1960, a baptismal pool Merovingian was unearthed. It is very rare to find outside of the episcopal see. Its discovery highlights the importance of Civaux at that time.
The baptismal pool has a similar type of construction of the church bedside is a polygonal structure with the use of an elongated device, process characteristic Merovingian poitevines constructions.
According to Brigitte Boissavit-Camus, head archaeologist of the excavations in the late 1980s, the entire building may have been surrounded by walls legacy of an ancient temple, which remains the foundation. these walls have delineated a circulation space reserved for worship.
wp
Ferstel
(Pictures you can see by clicking on the link at the end of page!)
Ferstel and Café Central, by Rudolf von Alt, left the men's alley (Herrengasse - Street of the Lords), right Strauchgasse
Danube mermaid fountain in a courtyard of the Palais Ferstel
Shopping arcade of the Freyung to Herrengasse
Entrance to Ferstel of the Freyung, right the Palais Harrach, left the palace Hardegg
The Ferstel is a building in the first district of Vienna, Inner City, with the addresses Strauchgasse 2-4, 14 Lord Street (Herrengasse) and Freyung 2. It was established as a national bank and stock exchange building, the denomination Palais is unhistoric.
History
In 1855, the entire estate between Freyung, Strauchgasse and Herrengasse was by Franz Xaver Imperial Count von Abensperg and Traun to the k.k. Privileged Austrian National Bank sold. This banking institution was previously domiciled in the Herrengasse 17/ Bankgasse. The progressive industrialization and the with it associated economic expansion also implied a rapid development of monetary transactions and banking, so that the current premises soon no longer have been sufficient. This problem could only be solved by a new building, in which also should be housed a stock exchange hall.
According to the desire of the then Governor of the National Bank, Franz von Pipitz, the new building was supposed to be carried out with strict observance of the economy and avoiding a worthless luxury with solidity and artistic as well as technical completion. The building should offer room for the National Bank, the stock market, a cafe and - a novel idea for Vienna - a bazaar.
The commissioned architect, Heinrich von Ferstel, demonstrated in the coping with the irregular surface area with highest conceivable effective use of space his state-of-the art talent. The practical requirements combine themselves with the actually artistic to a masterful composition. Ferstel has been able to lay out the rooms of the issuing bank, the two trading floors, the passage with the bazar and the coffee house in accordance with their intended purpose and at the same time to maintain a consistent style.
He was an advocate of the "Materialbaues" (material building) as it clearly is reflected in the ashlar building of the banking institution. Base, pillars and stairs were fashioned of Wöllersdorfer stone, façade elements such as balconies, cornices, structurings as well as stone banisters of the hard white stone of Emperor Kaiser quarry (Kaisersteinbruch), while the walls were made of -Sankt Margarethen limestone. The inner rooms have been luxuriously formed, with wood paneling, leather wallpaper, Stuccolustro and rich ornamental painting.
The facade of the corner front Strauchgasse/Herrengasse received twelve sculptures by Hanns Gasser as decoration, they symbolized the peoples of the monarchy. The mighty round arch at the exit Freyung were closed with wrought-iron bare gates, because the first used locksmith could not meet the demands of Ferstel, the work was transferred to a silversmith.
1860 the National Bank and the stock exchange could move into the in 1859 completed construction. The following year was placed in the glass-covered passage the Danube mermaid fountain, whose design stems also of Ferstel. Anton von Fernkorn has created the sculptural decoration with an artistic sensitivity. Above the marble fountain basin rises a column crowned by a bronze statue, the Danube female with flowing hair, holding a fish in its hand. Below are arranged around the column three also in bronze cast figures: merchant, fisherman and shipbuilder, so those professions that have to do with the water. The total cost of the building, the interior included, amounted to the enormous sum of 1.897.600 guilders.
The originally planned use of the building remained only a few years preserved. The Stock Exchange with the premises no longer had sufficient space: in 1872 it moved to a provisional solution, 1877 at Schottenring a new Stock Exchange building opened. The National Bank moved 1925 into a yet 1913 planned, spacious new building.
The building was in Second World War battered gravely particularly on the main facade. In the 1960s was located in the former Stock Exchange a basketball training hall, the entire building appeared neglected.
1971 dealt the President of the Federal Monuments Office, Walter Frodl, with the severely war damaged banking and stock exchange building in Vienna. The Office for Technical Geology of Otto Casensky furnished an opinion on the stone facade. On the facade Freyung 2 a balcony was originally attached over the entire 15.4 m long front of hard Kaiserstein.
(Usage of Leith lime: Dependent from the consistence and structure of the Leitha lime the usage differed from „Reibsand“ till building material. The Leitha lime stone is a natural stone which can be formed easily and was desired als beautiful stone for buildings in Roman times. The usage of lime stone from Eggenburg in the Bronze age already was verified. This special attribute is the reason why the Leitha lime was taken from sculptors and masons.
The source of lime stone in the Leitha Mountains was important for Austria and especially for Vienna from the cultur historical point of view during the Renaissance and Baroque. At the 19th century the up to 150 stone quarries of the Leitha mountains got many orders form the construction work of the Vienna „Ring road“.
At many buildings of Graz, such as the castle at the Grazer castle hill, the old Joanneum and the Cottage, the Leitha lime stone was used.
Due to the fact that Leitha lime is bond on carbonate in the texture, the alteration through the actual sour rain is heavy. www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC2HKZ9_leithagebirge-leithak...)
This balcony was no longer present and only close to the facade were remnants of the tread plates and the supporting brackets recognizable. In July 1975, followed the reconstruction of the balcony and master stonemason Friedrich Opferkuh received the order to restore the old state am Leithagebirge received the order the old state - of Mannersdorfer stone, armoured concrete or artificial stone.
1975-1982, the building was renovated and re-opened the Café Central. Since then, the privately owned building is called Palais Ferstel. In the former stock exchange halls now meetings and presentations take place; the Café Central is utilizing one of the courtyards.
Entrance foyer, the Plaza Theatre, which was below the Regent, Collins Street, Melbourne, opened on 10 May, 1929. It seated 1235 in its single-level Spanish-style auditorium, with its entrance adjacent to that of the Regent.
"Seating only twelve hundred people, and furnished in true old-world Spanish style, the Plaza provides the acme of comfort for every patron. Every seat is a luxurious lounge armchair. The entire floor space is covered with deep rich carpets. At every turn an objet d'art, never obtrusive but bringing a dash of old-world adventure and romance to the new world masterpiece of theatre construction." [Plaza Theatre advertisement (full-page), The Herald, 10 May, 1929, p. 11].
"Following the recent practice of designing theatres in accordance with the style of some particular period, the Plaza is Spanish in its decorative scheme. Entrance from Collins Street is by way of stairs leading to a court constructed after the manner of a Spanish close. the floor simulates the rough paving of a courtyard, and on one side a fountain pays. Through archways to the right is a rockery with orange trees, and here furniture of the appropriate Spanish period has been placed.
The auditorium also is decorated in a Spanish scheme, in which atmosphere rather than any particular period is suggested. On the roof a variegated design in which red, yellow and green are prominent, gives an appearance of solidity, and the scheme is extended to the leather chairs...
The 'talkies' provide their own accompaniment, and consequently an orchestra is unnecessary. An organ had been installed, however, to supplement the pictures when that is called for, and for solo items." [The Argus, 11 May, 1929]
In February, 1959, a new Cinerama screen and projection system were installed in the Plaza. The Regent Plaza Theatre is cited as one of the few cinemas adapted for Cinerama outside of North America.
The Cinerama screen was well forward of the proscenium, in front of the pit and the organ chambers. Although the organ was no longer able to be played in public, it was still operable, and was used by organists playing at the Regent for practice between the Cinerama sessions.
The Plaza closed in November, 1970. In December that year an auction was held at the theatre where everything that was not bolted down was auctioned off, raising a few thousand dollars.
Entrepreneur David Marinner earmarked the Regent for restoration when he established a revival movement for classical performing arts theatres in Melbourne during 1991. The Plaza Theatre was also fully and magnificently restored to its original ballroom format and reopened in 1996.