#glitz grandeur too
pete g. allinson spends four days to a week trying to photograph the sperm whales off the coast of dominica. there are about 150 whales living in the area, and allinson uses a hydrophone to find their general location, and then waits patiently for the whales come to the surface to breathe and socialize.
allinson, giving the whales plenty of space and using a snorkel so as not disturb the animals with the bubbles of a scuba tanks, then gets into the water in the hopes that they will approach him.
notes allison, “when they interact with us they approach us very closely, rolling over again and again, trying to get us to rub their abdomens and bodies. when you start getting close to them you feel nervous and intimidated, and then as they interact with you feel intense pleasure. you realise they are intelligent.”
he adds, “they are truly beautiful creatures and i photograph them in the hopes of helping to save the whales. the more people who understand these wonderful animals the better”
sperm whales have been hunted for the last three hundred years by those seeking the oily white spermeceti found in its head, which has been used in everything from lamp oil to cosmetics to pharmaceutical compounds, and which gives the whales their name.
currently listed as a vulnerable species, sperm whale numbers have rebounded thanks to hunting bans, though this still puts them at a fraction of their pre whaling numbers.
Post link
The Black Friar pub, London EC4 - Art Nouveau interior - Window
The Black Friar at 174 Queen Victoria Street, EC4 is a narrow ‘flat-iron’ wedge shaped pub, built in 1875 near the site of a thirteenth century Dominican Priory. A masterpiece of Art-Nouveau styling and the only pub of it’s type in London, it was saved from the 1960s bulldozers only by an outcry led by Sir John Betjeman, who later became the Poet Laureate.
The outside was decorated by Royal Academy sculpror Henry Poole (1873-1928) in 1903 and the pub’s name is proudly displayed in mosaic tiles. Though unusual and pleasing, the exterior does not prepare you for the extraordinary interior. The ground floor interior was remodelled in 1905 by H. Fuller Clark, using multi-coloured marble, mosaics, bronze reliefs of jolly-looking monks, and decorative touches such as the elaborate fire-basket with goblin ends. Above the fireplace, a large bas-relief bronze depicts frolicking friars singing carols and playing instruments. Another called ‘Saturday Afternoon’ shows them gathering grapes and harvesting apples. More monks are collecting fish and eels for their meatless days, while one is just about to boil an egg!
Three low arches lead into a smaller bar, added after the First World War. Below a beautiful arched mosaic ceiling, are mottos of wisdom, such as, ‘finery is foolery’ and ‘don’t advertise, tell a gossip’ together with .’haste is slow’ and ‘industry is all’.
Even the light fittings are carved wooden monks carrying yokes on their shoulders, from which the lights hang.
The Black Friar’s interior is literally a work of art. It was begun in 1904, with sculptors Nathaniel Hitch, Frederick T. Callcott and Henry Poole contributing to its glory.(bygarethr1)
Post link
Located in India’s Thar Desert in Rajasthan, the “Golden City” of Jaisalmer gets its colour from buildings made of yellow sandstone.
Post link
We have these two oak trees in our back yard. They have been a source of some issues, being planted so close to the patio, cutting off our decently sized yard. Second, towards late-mid, to the end of summer the neighborhood squirrels all come to try to strip the tree of acorns. Rather than wait for them to fall, they climb out on the branches and gnaw all the tips off. Then they scurry down and pick the acorns off the fallen branches, but leave behind a mess of leaves and branches. It looks like autumn is in full force, but with green leaves, only under two trees, and in August.
I just recently came to notice though, a bonus of having to clean up this mess, that in the wee hours of the night and early sunrise hours, the neighborhood deer come to feast on this leaf buffet.
It’s quite a site to see just out the kitchen window. I couldn’t snap really good pics as they are soooo alert and quick.
Post link
In 2011, Dutch photographer Charlotte Dumas embarked on a quest to locate the last surviving 9/11 search and rescue dogs who had worked so tirelessly ten years earlier. Retrieved is a collection of their portraits, a moving tribute to these heroic dogs and their handlers.
Post link
A monument in Novosibirsk, Russia, dedicated to all the lab rats who were sacrificed for DNA research.
Post link
Sometimes you have an itch you just have to scratch - in this elephant’s case on a conveniently parked car. The VW Polo and its two terrified occupants found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time as the giant ellie stooped down to rub itself against the vehicle’s roof and bonnet. The incredible images were taken by Armand Grobler, 21, a field guide and lodge manager, in Pilanesburg National Park, South Africa. The two passengers were shaken up, but escaped without injury - although the same could not be said for their car. But after giving itself a good scratch, the elephant continued on it’s way itch free.
Picture: Armand Grobler/Barcroft Media (via Pictures of the day: 6 August 2014 - Telegraph)
Post link
Church, Pittsburgh PA - March 2014
Founded in 1863. Current Building 1901. This church is attached to an active Capuchin-Franciscan monestary.
The five altars are from the original 1863 building.
Windows by the Tyrolese Art Glass Company, Innsbruck, Austria (1899)
Post link
