Aachen the German border town that straddles Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium is probably best known for its Cathedral – the oldest in Northern Europe and the burial site of Charlemagne. The ‘Imperial Cathedral’ is a magnificent structure, composed of several distinct buildings constructed at various stages in its long history. But my interest in a brief visit to Aachen during a wet and cloudy January was to explore another history that lies in it’s pavements. This history is marked by small brass plaques that stand as memorials to those who were evicted, deported and murdered by the Nazis.
Düsseldorfer Weihnachtsmarkt
For the past 12 years I have spent Christmas in Düsseldorf – and each year I head to the Weihnachtsmarkt, the traditional Christmas market. For a month a little rural village arises on the streets of Düsseldorf. Spread across the Altstadt are lines of stalls selling traditional wooden toys, socks, crystals, and candles – the perfect solution for those last minute presents. Yet the true heart of the market is the food and glühwein stalls, which create a meeting place in the public square.
Garden barge square – an oasis on the thames
Reeds wharf on the southern side of the thames near Tower bridge is home to a floating garden – formed from a series of barges at the 200 year old Downings road moorings. The garden square is home to 70 residents with the gardens literally sitting on the barge roofs. Its a green oasis surrounded by the steel and glass of luxury apartments – all vying for their riverside space.
Lanzarote
César Manrique’s enduring impact on Lanzarote is impossible to avoid. An artist and architect, he recognised the potential of tourism but also its dangers. It led him to impose strict guidelines on development, aimed at preserving the integrity of the local architecture and community. As a consequence Lanzarote is not blighted by high-rise resorts – which helps to attract tourists beyond the beaches to the island’s interior and its lava seas.
Les murs de Paris encore
A recent trip to Paris in November 2011 encouraged me to re-trace some of the steps I had taken when I first created the series, ‘Les Murs de Paris’. I wanted to see what had changed and what had remained the same over the five years that had passed from my initial walks around the city. Many of the things I photographed in 2006 have long since gone; the wall murals at Abbesses metro station (all nice and white now), the prowling tigers at Ville de L’Ermitage and the cat at rue de cascades – replaced by sperm. But it was nice to see that the tigers in rue des rosiers are still there – though someone has added ‘nature strikes back’ over the original mural.
We are the 99% – Occupy London Stock Exchange
‘We are the 99%’ is the refrain from Wall Street to London, from Oakland to Tel Aviv. A growing chorus of international resistance to the maintenance of the status quo following the impact of the financial crisis on individuals and societies across the developed world. As the 99% suggests the frustration lies with growing income inequality and the fashion for austerity that is eroding the broad social benefits that in many ways are the key to the social compact that binds societies together.
Jerusalem – old city
The old city of Jerusalem is an intense experience with the competing forces of so many gods and religions – all vying for supremacy. The disputed sites, memorials and interpretations create a bizarre overlay on an ancient city of the ghosts of past civilizations. Yet there is also a continuum, such as the ancient Armenian Cathedral, St James, which seems to fuse the Arab and Christian traditions.
Tel Aviv
A recent wedding took le flaneur to Tel Aviv, a city which in many ways embodies the vision of the founders of modern Israel, reflected in its Bauhaus inspired architecture, signalling a modernist drive to create a new urban ideal. The city follows the contours of the coast and was built on the sand dunes to the north of the old port city of Jaffa. Exploring the city le-flaneur walked along the beach to Jaffa – and then north again to the Carmel market and Sheinkin Street, lined with fashion shops.
London series – Harringay Green Lanes food festival
The Green Lanes Food Festival celebrates the diverse mix of communities that live in and around Green Lanes. On 18 September 2011 almost 20,000 people walked down Green Lanes – just one month after the London riots. Green Lanes itself is an ancient London thoroughfare that was originally a cattle route from Hertfordshire to the Smithfield market just outside the city gates.
Kings Cross central
Continuing the theme of the London Street Photography festival I took the opportunity to join a guided walk by Alan Dein around the KIngs Cross area. The walk, part of a programme of events planned as part of the festival, took us behind KIngs Cross and St Pancras stations – a vast re-development site.
London series – Kings Cross
Behind the glorious facade of St Pancras station and the newly renovated platforms that deliver us to exotic European destinations lies a post industrial landscape. The district north of St Pancras and KIngs Cross rail stations is an area in re-generation – one of the largest areas of re-development in central London. But also behind these modern facades lies one of the oldest christian sites in England, dating back to the 12th century – the old St Pancras churchyard.