The photographers Gallery

  The Workshop in The Photographers Gallery was yesterday, 17th of June.

We met in the gallery's café at 10:30h. I arrived late ( only a little), so M and some of the others were having breakfast. Fortunately, I had enough time to drink a coffee and eat a croissant. I really needed it, because my fly from Spain landed at night day before, my fridge was empty so my stomach too. 
I was excited and at the same time worried, because my poem wasn't finished. Always writing about me has been really difficult.
The appointment was at 11h, the lady came to us few minutes late...it did M  started feeling nervous.

 

First, the lady showed us the room where you went to work. It was a big and bright room, with white walls and big windows.

 

 In the middle there was a big table covered with a red and white tablecloth. On the table, you could see papers, scissors and glues.

 

On the right hand, another huge table had ours self-portraits, others vintages portraits, needles and threads, blue-tack, tools for pierce the photos and at the end of the table, thousands of magazines and newspapers.

 

We kept our belongings in the room to visit the exhibition down stairs. Crossing the shop, we found a small room with some portraits.

 

 

   

 Some of them had been cut and glued again disordered, others had been sewed covering the faces. Another artist scratch the photos, he scratches new elements or emphasizes details of it.

Maud chose as favourite one photo of a train station in black and white. Everything in there was quite: the trains stopped in the platforms, the signals, the iron structure of the roof. Everything is stopped except the people. The photographer has used a kind of shoot that transforms the people in a flow, so you can see the movement.

 

My favourite portrait is one photo  in black and white of a girl. She is wearing  classic  clothes. The author has cut the photo in some places and has covered it with fluor colours papers. The author also has painted over the photo, only the back and the dress, so doesn't look like a photo unless a picture. This mixed has a incredible result, it's quite original.

 

After the visit, with new ideas in our mind, we wen back to the room to start the proper workshop.

We were excited like children, all of us went and came checking the magazines, the colour pens..

 

When we were focused in the work, nobody said anything.

When we finished, all ours photos were put on the floor. In this way we could see the works of the classmates.

 To finish, the lady showed us the camera obscure. It is a hole in the wall of the building, with  one lens and one mirror. You can  turn it 360 degrees. The mirror reflects the images from the exterior over one white screen. It is very curious, we could see the workers of the front built, the people in the street...
The experience has been quite nice. I'm surprise because my dad did a collage with our photos few years a go and it was our Christmas gifts. Some people arrived at home and asked us ' what is it?' We explained them, my dad did for us. In general people didn't like it, maybe because was something unusual. Now... Is my dad a pioneer? Of course he is ;)

Hidde Park

In this moment my memory can not remember when I went to Hidde Park. It was one of my days off a few weeks ago, when the weather started to improve.

I didn't have any plan so decided to take advantage of the good day and walking around Hidde Park.

It was few years ago when I knew the Park, I didn´t remember to huge. People who live around it are very lucky, it should be amazing get up and see through the windows it, or running in it.

Lake

 There were a lot of people walking or drinking something in the terraces. People are waiting excited for the Spring. Me too, I miss the sun or more that it, the long light days.

Some trees have started to bear flowers.

The lake is plenty of ducks, gooses and swans that follow you to feed them. They are use to people do it, so when you get close to the edge, they come to you.

I thought Hide Park was lovely,but I was wrong. Holland Park is near my job and one collegue always tells me it is wonderful. One day she took me there and I have to say she is right. In this moment is my favourite park in London. The corner where is the Japanese Garden is quite beautiful. And the gardens with the tulips. I couldn´t take photos becouse forgot my mobile at work, but I´ll go back there.

New discoveries in the huge city

East Dulwich:

Few months ago and for a short time, my neighbourhood was Peckam Rye. I really didn´t like it. The journey to work was long, it took more of one hour, sometimes one hour and a half.
The train station was in a main street with a lot african hairdresser´s, fishmonger´s  and butcher´s. In the evening, when these shops close, thow the waste and hairs to the street. When I arrived home at night, the smell was awful and big balls of hair ran to me doing me jump.
It is true, that the park is quite nice. You can find one Japanese garden, and others spots very pleasant to read or enjoy the a relax time.
However, from the station, walking around fifteen minutes towards Brixton , you can find a long street is full of wellcoming shops and pubs. At weekend, the enviroment is very warm, it is plenty of joung people and families.This is East Dulwich.

Marco Polo

Marco Polo:
Marco Polo (13th century) was an Italian merchant traveler who wrote his travels trough Central Asia  and China in the book Livres des merveilles du monde.

His father and his uncle decided to set out on a journey to deal jewels with Mongols. They had success in their business, but different wars started in Asia doing difficult their return to Venice.
During the journey, they met  Grand Kan, Kublai Kan.Who request them walk with his diplomatic to visit the Papa.When they came back, Kublai Kan offer them a paiza; one gold tablet that allow who have it, use the mongol´s stages.
It took them around nine years before Marco could see his father again.

  

Few years after, father and uncle started the return to Kublai Court, this time with Marco, who was seventeen years old.
Quickly, Kan´s favor was won for Marco. Kublai made him his adviser,and shortly after, his emissary
.After seventeen years of service to Kan,Marco decided return to Venecie.

 When they arrived to Venecie,it was in war against Genove. Marco was imprisoned and during his imprisionment he wrote his journeys. 
When he was released he became in a rich merchant. 
Marco was not the first traveler, but he was the first that wrote with details his journeys. 

Abney Park

Last week we had holidays in the college.We had free those mornings so we decided do something together. We checked the weather and we saw that on Wednesday it didn't rain so Alex proposed go to know Abney Park.
At the end, only Noelia and me went ( but it was enough).  The morning was sunny, in the afternoon the day become cloudy, but days before were raining so there was a lot of mud in all of paths. Our boots finished completely cover for mud.
The park is a garden cemetery that was opened in 1840. There are over 200,000 graves and one chapel in the middle of the park. Unfortunately, the chapel is very damaged by vandalism and it is considered like build at risk.

 

 

My profile

A few words about me :

 

I’m 31 years old Spanish girl is living in London for three months now. I’m geologist although my currently work is as sales associate for a Switzerland International Company since seven years ago. My proposition is improve my English and use it  like tool to change of kind of work.

I consider myself an extrovert person and enthusiastic,  activities outdoor are my favourites, including photography, sport, walk...I also enjoy learning new languages and cultures.

National Portrait Gallery and more photos

We have visited  The National Portrait Gallery in Trafalgar Square. I had visited the National Gallery but Portrait Gallery was unknown for me. The exhibition that we saw had sixty portrait of different international photographers.
It is forbidden taking  photos so I have looked for internet some of them to show you and speak about them.Unfortunately, my favorite photo is not available in internet, so I'm going to try to describe it you.

It was a portrait of a mid-age women with long brown hair.She is wearing a orange dress, the dress is a kind of sari.Her chest is naked, so you can see that she lost one breast for the cancer. She is sitting in a empty room. The photo must be sad, but her face give you so calm and the color of her dress give you energy. It's like she wants to show us :"look at me , I'm alive, this is the most important".

Now I attach some portrait of the exhibition that I could take of internet:

This portrait is of one of the most popular jockey player of England...if my memory doesn't fail.
I saw this photo before in the tube, every morning in the aisle to go the platform.
She looks like sad or tired, may be both of them. It is curios for me, because this picture remember me when I ride a mountain bike. Normally this is the way to finish, you are completely cover by mud...but my face is not this, include when I don't have a good day to ride (it's mean that I've fallen down, or I've had to carry on my bike for technical problems...)

 Others photos....

This photo is really fascinating. Colors of the bird and the movement of the water. The photographer was lucky to be in the right place and doing the shot in the accurate second.