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Patch, Pot & Print
Taking a cue from Spitalfields’ textile history, Townhouse in Fournier St has brought together three contemporary makers for this year’s Shoreditch Design Triangle who each take inspiration from cloth,...
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The Crow Stone & The London Stone
I am delighted to publish this extract from A London Inheritance – written by a graduate of my blog course who is celebrating over five years of publishing posts online. Follow A LONDON INHERITANCE, A...
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At Malplaquet House
Celebrating our tenth anniversary with favourite stories from the first decade Photographer Philippe Debeerst sent me these splendid pictures which are accompanied by my own account of a visit to...
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Why Facadism Is Happening
In today’s extract from my forthcoming book THE CREEPING PLAGUE OF GHASTLY FACADISM I explore the reasons behind the recent proliferation of facadism in the capital. I still need to raise another...
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The Subtle Art Of Glynn Boyd Harte
Who remembers Glynn Boyd Harte (1948-2003)? Doreen Fletcher told me that it was his superlative coloured pencil drawings that inspired her essays in this medium. I remember seeing his work at the...
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Eleanor Crow’s Fish Shops
An exhibition of Eleanor Crow’s watercolours of classic London shopfronts featuring many paintings from her book SHOPFRONTS OF LONDON, In Praise Of Small Neighbourhood Shops is at Townhouse in Fournier...
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Autumn In Spitalfields
The rain is falling on Spitalfields, upon the church and the market, and on the streets, yards and gardens. Dripping off the roofs and splashing onto the pavements, filling the gutters and coursing...
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Origins Of Facadism
In today’s extract from my forthcoming book THE CREEPING PLAGUE OF GHASTLY FACADISM I explore the origins of facadism, the bizarre architectural fad that is currently blighting the capital. I now at...
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The Pearly Kings & Queens’ Harvest Festival
Tomorrow is the annual Pearly Kings & Queens’ Harvest Festival, gathering in Guildhall Yard at 12:30pm followed by a service at St Mary-le-Bow in Cheapside On the last Sunday afternoon in...
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Eleanor Crow’s Butchers
An exhibition of Eleanor Crow’s watercolours of classic London shopfronts featuring many paintings from her book SHOPFRONTS OF LONDON, In Praise Of Small Neighbourhood Shops is at Townhouse in Fournier...
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Philippa Stockley’s Restoration Stories
After reporting on London homes and their owners in the Evening Standard for twenty years, Philippa Stockley has written RESTORATION STORIES, a book about old, mainly Georgian, houses and the heroic...
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On Photographing Facades
I write about the experience of photographing facades in today’s excerpt from THE CREEPING PLAGUE OF GHASTLY FACADISM We only have to raise the last £1000 now to publish this book on 31st October....
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Ruth Franklin At House Mill
I first came across artist Ruth Franklin‘s work in Whitechapel in 2015, when she displayed her cardboard sculptures of sewing machines and hairdressing tools, reflecting her family’s history in these...
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Ben Hur In Stepney
The Palaseum Cinema (also known as the Ben Hur) painted by Doreen Fletcher, 1985 Ian Ben Hur, grandson of Ben Hur who was both projectionist and proprietor at the Palaseum Cinema in White Horse Rd,...
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John Player’s Cries Of London 1913
In this set of John Player’s Cries of London from 1913 an appealing pantomime aesthetic prevails. These crudely printed cards portray an idealised old London in which the cats’ meat is as pink as the...
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In Old Stepney
Albert Gardens In spite of the bombing, the slum clearances and redevelopments, the East End is still with us. In Stepney, there is an entire quarter of early nineteenth century terraces and squares...
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Tim Hunkin’s Fulfilment Center Machine
Tim Hunkin contemplates a zero hours contract It is always an event when creative mastermind Tim Hunkin unveils a new satirical slot machine and ‘The Fulfilment Center’ – which can be played at...
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My Ghastly Facadism Lecture
Cover design by David Pearson To celebrate the forthcoming publication of my new book THE CREEPING PLAGUE OF GHASTLY FACADISM, I am giving an illustrated lecture showing some of London’s worst cases...
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Maintenance Announcement
We are doing some work on the site this week and we hope it will proceed without disruption, but please be patient if it gets a little bumpy and normal service will be resumed shortly
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My Ghastly Facadism Lecture
Cover design by David Pearson To celebrate the forthcoming publication of my new book THE CREEPING PLAGUE OF GHASTLY FACADISM, I am giving an illustrated lecture showing some of London’s worst cases...
View Article