Brief notes & thoughts about matters artistical, gastronomical, philosophical, photographical, poetical, political, vaguely controversial and other stuff … just as life throws us the ball …
The Völklingen Iron Works, a giant monument of 19th century industry, dominating the skyline of Völklingen, is now a World Cultural Heritage Site and a place for major exhibitions. The last exhibition – The Celts. Druids. Princes. Warriors – has just closed, attracting nearly 200.000 visitors.
The Völklingen Iron Works, starting with its first smelter operation in 1883. The works closed in 1986 and are now a museum. Here seen from the railway station.Section of the exhibition among turbines, generators in the furnace blast hall. 500 years B.C. the Celts worked iron ore at this very place.Celtic war helmetsA Celtic warrior, having killed his wife (?), committing suicide rather than becoming a captive. Late Roman Art. Second century A.D./CE.Burial object of a Celtic princess.
Further sections of the plant – blower shed and works locker rooms – were opened up to make use of these generous industrial spaces for contemporary art exhibitions.
Colleen, Anni, Walter (and Leo) exploring the exhibition space.
Change. Street artist Shepard Fairey, *1970 Charleston, South Carolina, USA. Silk screen print. 2008. Shephard Fairey operates his street art project worldwide. Without title. Os Geméos. *1974 Sao Paulo, Brazil. Spraypaint on Wood. 2008. The works of the Brazilian twins have appeared on numerous walls around the world. Their yellow figures take over entire facades of houses. Without title. unknown artist.
Art and industry. Two sides of the spirit of mankind. Inspiring each other.
With love
Colleen & Walter
Bremen, Sunday September 4, 2011
The holy miracle workers Boris and Gleb, sons of Grand Duke Wladimir, patron saints of the Russian people (1200), murdered by their half-brother.
This icon and most of the other icons on display at the House of Icons in Traben-Trarbach were written by Alexej Alexandrowitch Saweljew (1920 Kiev – 1996 Traben-Trarbach). Saweljew re-discovered and used the Byzantine technique of icon writing taking the recipes to his grave. His icons are referred to as “modern icons” according to the Novgorod school of icon writing. Icons are, however, part of the sacramentals, intrinsically bound to the liturgy of the Eastern Church and as such never “modern”.
The holy martyr George - Roman Officer at the time of Diocletian - dragon slayer.One of the 19th century icons on display which Colleen particularly loves.
With love
Colleen & Walter
Völklingen Saturday 27 August 2011
An astonishing site – the Buddha Museum in Traben Trarbach on the banks of the river Mosel with a permanent exhibition of thousands of priceless Buddha statues on a space of over 4000 square metres. Nearby the Parkschlösschen Bad Wildstein advertises itself as the no. 1 Ayurvedic treatment centre in Germany.
What then is happiness and what is suffering? Since nothing is ever lost in this world, you might as well be prepared to find both.
KhmerCambodia/Laos
17th century Chinese
The Buddha says: “To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one’s family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one’s own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him.”
This blog is dedicated to Paul Cilliers, philosopher, musician, culinary companion, dear friend – missed by many.
(Paul died Sunday 31st July, the day we left for Europe.)
Paul
Walter & Colleen
Völklingen/Saarland
Thursday 18 August 2011
An unusual encounter on a market - yet, an expression of the phantasy and vision of a handful of people who turned an industrial place into a living space for people to enjoy.
Globalized marketing has made shopping easy but has also taken the fun out of it. The loss of individuality is the price paid for convenience. You can pick and choose virtually anything anytime anywhere at your leisure from supermarket shelves. Humans do, however, need to have that casual social interaction – something that till operators can hardly provide. And that is where markets have a place in communities such as Cape Town, Stellenbosch and now Hout Bay – bringing fun back into shopping.
A typical French weekend market, here in Tourette-sur-Loup near Grasse.
Well, not exactly. These new “markets” must not be compared with the old-fashioned ones still so very common in France and much loved by tourists. Bay Harbour Market serves different needs. A fish processing plant was turned into a social space to serve the community at large. A re-birth of community spirit through community projects and products, that is what we experienced as core element of this space when we visited it yesterday.
Faces of South Africa. Having prepared rosterbrood and halaal breedies.Zoë & Dave Brocklebank's smithy from "Rust and Roses" - very much part of the market and cornerstone of turning the industrial elements into aesthetically pleasing works of art.Integrating the industrial - pipes from a fish processing plant - into ...... something ... pleasing ... ... and giving it a newly defined commercial ...... habitable ... ... sociable ... ... and aesthetically pleasing functionality.Approach road to the market - entrance on the right.Very much on the seaward end of the harbour. Here looking back toward Hout Bay.This is how we were greeted on entering ...The Rastafarian component.Industriousness of a different kind ... pilchards where processed here ... before
shapes, colours, beads, heads … all counted …
... celebrating tea ...
... from China with love ...
… free-range flame roasted …
... or sunshine organic ... ... inviting ...... an open hearted beautiful space ...... with a peaceful mind ...
... on the home run.... and a joyful spirit ...Dave Brocklebank from "Rust and Roses" - one of the initiators - a gentle giant, blacksmithing things into shape.
An old factory space, creatively adapted to serve the community of the Cape at large and the traditional fishing community of Hout Bay in particular – bringing together the spirit of fresh enterprise, of good commercial sense and community feel – for all to enjoy and eventually to profit from.
With love
Walter & Colleen
Betty’s Bay, Sunday 17 July 2011
The very word “development” fills one with misgivings where and when big money is invested in a scheme to uplift a utilitarian area such as an old harbour with nothing more than a slip-way for small fishing boats, an abalone breeding factory, a row of funky shops and run-of-the-mill eateries to service the tourist trade in the summer season.
As a matter of course, structures grown and kept alive over many years, familiarities, individual quirks and quaintnesses are changed if not destroyed – all with good intentions, yet, no architect or town planner can put back the patina of things, their quality of touch to the eye, their shine and good feel. New developments tend to be straight with hard edges. Add to that the often drastic increases in rent to follow which will drive out some if not most of the old shop-owners and you have the perfect recipe for economic growth and loss of quality of life.
We will follow the “development” of the Kleinmond harbour and will report back. For now, a few pics of how it looks presently, all dug up.
Kleinmond harbour development, July 2011.Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.
Kleinmond harbour, July 2011.An exquisite winter's Sunday in Betty's Bay.
With love from
Colleen & Walter
Betty’s Bay, Sunday 10 July, 2011
One has a general idea of what it means to visit a game reserve. You get up early. Shortly before dawn. On one of the open Safari vehicles you need to dress warmly or you freeze your butt off even with lots of blankets provided. The driver/ranger is a trained and knowledgeable person, spotting game and pointing out the smaller things on the road to give you some context of where you are.
And where are you?
Steenbok (Raphicerus campestris). Kruger National Park.
You are “in the wild”. Really? You are in an area which looks as if it was “the wild”. It is an area set aside for conserving what we believe to have been the wild – once upon a time.
African Elephant (Loxodonta africana). Kruger National Park.
Dream-time …
Your presence here makes “the wild” un-wild. It tries to hide from you, but cannot. You are the great spotter of spotty things.
Red-billed Francolin (Francolinus adspersus) or Red-billed Spurfowl. Kruger National Park.
On the ground or aloft.
Giant Eagle Owl (Bubo lacteus). Kruger National Park.
Time to roost while others spot.
Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis). Kruger National Park.
Who is the tallest of us all?
Red-crested Bustard or red-crested Korhaan (Eupodotis ruficrista). Kruger National Park.
And who the speediest of the lot.
Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus). Kruger National Park.
End of dream-time.
Nyala, female (Tragelaphus angasii). Kruger National Park.
Our way of seeing calls this a “harem” in the wild.
A harem of Impala (Aepyceros melampis). Kruger National Park.
Downtime. – Submerged they graze – ill-tempered guardians of the subliminal.
Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius). Kruger National Park.African buffalo (Syncerus caffer). Kruger National Park.
The keepers of all our memories of the wild. Without them we would be orphaned in this world.
African Elephant (Loxodonta africana)
A game drive converts your awareness of where and who you are.
We are the lost children of a world once wild. And all our memories, faint as they are, become true and real again in observing animals in the wild, their expressions of integrity. They are what they are and we are not any longer. We were driven out of paradise once and for all and have every intention to make this world a hellish place to be in. A drive in a game park can be a truly revealing and healing process. Looking in from the outside. Seeing us from where we have come and cannot return.
Kruger National Park.
On guard.
Giant kingfisher (Megaceryle maxima). Kruger National Park.
With love from
Colleen & Walter
Betty’s Bay, Sunday 3 July 2011
The fruit on its bush.The line of pickers.The pickers.The weighing of individual pickings.Separating the beans from their flesh.Washing the beans.Drying the beans on open-air trays.
Flesh of the de-pipped fruit.
Seasonal workers waiting to be paid for their days's picking.
Dear Darryl who had invited us to his house in Margate, showed us among other places of interest, the Beaver Creek Coffee plantation in Port Edward. It was too late for a guided tour, so we tasted their various blends of coffee, bought a packet of the finest for our daughter Thekla, the gourmet fundi, and snooped around the yard to see what was happening.
Darryl Dale and Colleen.
Just then the seasonal pickers were arriving with their bags of fruit, lining up to have their pickings weighed and be paid for it – R 2,50 a kg. From what we could see and from further enquiries, they averaged between 20 and 25 kg this day. The season lasts from June to August and at the height of the season some pickers bring in as much as 100 kg on a good day. It does not make for any form of living, but brings the much needed extra money. We had not seen a coffee fruit, plant or plantation before and enjoyed the outing to Beaver Creek, one of the few coffee plantations in South Africa, enormously.
The weather was mild and balmy – quite different from what we had had at the Cape a few days before. So we felt privileged as so often. Thank you, Darryl. We’ll show pics of your lovely house in our next blog.
The flesh of the fruit - to be composted.
With love from
Colleen & Walter
Mt Edgecombe, Natal
Saturday June 18, 2011
Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), The Starry Night (1889), oil on canvas, 73 x 92 cm, Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Bipolarity is another name for a condition that has been with mankind since we left the tree-scape, entered the land-scape and began to roam the world.
It is a name for a condition within the conditio humana we all are subjected to and most of us have more or less under control.
It too is a condition prevalent in highly creative people.
It is, in fact, the stuff of creativity itself, of greatness, of mediocrity or, in the extreme of insanity.
It is also the stuff of gravity against which we have to negotiate our balancing act throughout life at all times.
What now, then?
Why is it a tricky subject to approach within one’s own circle of family and friends?
Because no-one wants to be seen or pointed out as potentially mad.
We are, however, not speaking of clinical madness.
We are looking at a human condition that is common to all of us.
That is in us.
And many of us, come to think of it, are just lucky to have it under control.
Others are less fortunate, be it for genetic reasons, or through illness or traumatic life experiences.
I am so strong
I am multi-tasking
better than anyone around
I am creative
I feel good
Others must get out of my way
These fools
No-one sees
like me
I am cool
I am in control
Must I then go through life
Drugged to dull the pain
With love for now Walter & Colleen Betty’s Bay, Election Day, Wednesday, 18 May 2011
The Mood Disorder Questionnaire: http://www.dbsalliance.org/pdfs/MDQ.pdf
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