William Stanley Moore according to his official police record was an “opium dealer/ Operates with large quantities of faked opium and cocaine./ A wharf labourer; associates with water front thieves and drug traders.” Mugshot by New South Wales Police Department (1925). He reminds me of one of the brothers in Peaky Blinders, not toContinue reading “Every Picture Tells A Story: William Stanley Moore (1925)”
Category Archives: History
Travel: Poking around the Mynydd Carningli neolithic hillfort
In 2010 I stayed for a while by the Welsh seaside in Newport, Pembrokeshire, Wales. I loved the wild waves and sea air, dramatic black cliffs and bright green hillside dotted with sleepy sheep. But most of all I loved the hill walks there, particularly Myndd Carningli, a splendid 347 meter tall mountain that holdsContinue reading “Travel: Poking around the Mynydd Carningli neolithic hillfort”
The Strandbeest and its glittering seaside evolution
Theo Jansen’s strandbeests are composed of spindly plastic organs that take elephantine strides. They have guts that store energy and are powered by wind. They are sensitive mechanical beasts that can even detect water. Each of Jansen’s ingenious strandbeests are miracles in motion. They may very well be the next stages of natural selection. JansenContinue reading “The Strandbeest and its glittering seaside evolution”
Eerie and Glorious Fake Cities Left Empty in China
“Entire townships and villages appear to have been airlifted from their historical and geographical foundations in England, France, Greece, the United States, and Canada and spot-welded to the margins of Chinese cities,” according to Bianca Bosker, author of Original Copies: Architectural Mimicry in Contemporary China. Tianducheng: A Fake Parisian Wonder Originally conceived as an homageContinue reading “Eerie and Glorious Fake Cities Left Empty in China”
Tiny building sites: It’s a small world after all
Readers of this blog will understand and share my obsession with small-scale buildings, tiny books, paper towns and jewelry boxes and boudoir ornaments for mermaids. These quirky art forms are uncannily beautiful in their falseness. They also make Mini Materials now offers lovers of miniature the unprecedented opportunity to build their own life-like models ofContinue reading “Tiny building sites: It’s a small world after all”
Dreamy Art of Sublime Fantasy: Odilon Reddon
Odilon Redon’s art is the kind of mystical haze of colour and composition that you would find in the corner of your consciousness as you emerge from sleep. I love his art because of this reason, it hints at hidden worlds of emotion and depth that are located deep within us all. Odilon RedonContinue reading “Dreamy Art of Sublime Fantasy: Odilon Reddon”
Life on an Edwardian Farm
In this series by the BBC, a group of historians and archaeologists recreate the running of a farm during the Edwardian era. This is a fascinating series that was originally aired in 2011 and now resides on countless Youtube channels – for better or worse with regards to copyright. Still, these issues aside this isContinue reading “Life on an Edwardian Farm”
Travel: Yarchen Gar, Tibet
Yarchen Gar also known as the Yaqên Orgyän Temple is located in the Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province, China Geographically remote and nestled in a valley some 4,000 metres above sea level, the temple rarely sees tourists or visitors. The monastery is associated with the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism . At Yarchen Gar there is a concentration ofContinue reading “Travel: Yarchen Gar, Tibet”
Every Picture Tells A Story: King George Military Hospital Chapel, 1915.
A still, melancholy and hushed photo of a vacant military hospital chapel in 1915, prior to the outbreak of the Great War. The King George Military Hospital opened in October 1915 in London. At the height of the Great War, in October 1917, it was said to be the largest military hospital in Britain with 1900Continue reading “Every Picture Tells A Story: King George Military Hospital Chapel, 1915.”

You must be logged in to post a comment.