The Shadow of Oppression

These powerful pieces come from The Peace Museum in Salts Mill, Saltaire. Prisoner of Conscience is a three part work by Malcolm Brocklesby. This is what he says about the image above:

Then there is a second piece:

This illustrates …

The third image is simply a locked padlock, keeping a small heavy door irrevocably shut. We imagine, behind it, a prisoner the world has forgotten.

A sombre piece for an increasingly sombre world.

For Becky’s NovemberShadows.

Parc del Laberint d’Horta

Exactly two years ago, staying with Team Catalonia, I took myself off to Parc del Labirint d’Horta in the outskirts of Barcelona, and wrote about it here. I remember a balmy day, even though it was November, with tree-lined avenues casting shadows before me as I walked.

Oh, and there was a maze too. But I wrote about it in that post I’ve just mentioned.

For Becky’s NovemberShadows.

PS. I’ve just had a birthday card from WordPress. I’ve been blogging for sixteen years! Apparently. Thanks to all of you who’ve been ‘blogging pals’ for much of that time. You’re the ones who make it all such fun.

A Ghost Sign is a Shadow of its Former Self

I love a ghost sign. Advertising from way-back-when that simply took the form of the product’s name painted on the wall of a house or shop. Faded now, they’re a reminder of simpler times, and are merely a shadow of their former selves.

Non-Brits may not know that Courage is a British beer. This sign I spotted yesterday near Borough Market was sited near where the brewery began in 1787, founded by one – John Courage.

For Becky’s November Shadows.

A Bench by the Thames

On Thursday I walked the Thames Path from Woolwich via the Thames Barrier and the Millennium Dome to Cutty Sark in Greenwich. A story for another day. Today I’ll just show a view across the Thames, as enjoyed by two picnickers on a bench in the gentle shadow of the buildings near the Dome, especially selected for Jude’s Bench Challenge, and Becky’s NovemberShadows.

Ready to Defend: Ready to Attack

Woolwich, which these days comes over as Greenwich’s poor relation, was a critically important military base in the 18th and 19th centuries, serving as the centre for the British government’s armaments manufacturing and the headquarters for the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It housed the Royal Arsenal. It had barracks. It had a military academy. It was a garrison town. No wonder then that it feared being attacked. There were cannons at the ready, as it often felt under the shadow of war. Above, you can see one still poised for a prompt response, on the banks of the Thames.

And below, here is your intrepid reporter, camera at the ready, to record any possible action.

For Becky’s NovemberShadows.