"The essential happens in the pictures. The irrelevant in reality."

(Luigi Ghirri)

7 luglio 2012

Milan l'è un grand Milan

Milan is the second largest city in Italy and the capital of Lombardy as well as of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area is the 5th largest in EU and the largest in Italy with an estimated population of approximately 4.4 million. The growth of many suburbs and satellite settlements around the city proper, following the Italian economic miracle of 1950s–60s and massive commuting flows, suggest that socioeconomic linkages have expanded well beyond the boundaries of its administrative limits and its agglomeration, creating a region of approximately 9.3 million people. 
It has been suggested that the Milan metropolitan area is part of the so-called Blue Banana, the area of Europe with the highest population and industrial density. Its health care and education system is considered one of the best of Europe.


4 aprile 2012

Bicocca district

In 1985, Pirelli started a project to redevelop the area. The resulting "Progetto Bicocca" (Bicocca Project), which affected an area of 960.000 m2, was the largest urban transformation project in the history of Italy, and the second in Europe, after that of Berlin. 
The prominent results of this project were the construction of a large university district (called University of Milan Bicocca) and of the Teatro degli Arcimboldi, a large theatre that has also been used to house La Scala shows while the historic La Scala theatre was undergoing restoration. 
Other main buildings realized by the project were a seat of the CNR (National Council of Research) and the Istituto Neurologico Besta, a major neurological hospital. Several companies now have their Milanese headquarters in Bicocca, including Pirelli, Siemens, Deutsche Bank, Reuters, Fastweb, Johnson & Johnson, and Hachette-Rusconi.


5 febbraio 2012

Cornwall

Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of 537,400 and covers an area of 3,563 km2. The administrative centre and only city is Truro.
Cornwall is the traditional homeland of the Cornish people and is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, retaining a distinct cultural identity that reflects its history. Some people question the present constitutional status of Cornwall, and a nationalist movementseeks greater autonomy within the United Kingdom in the form of a devolved legislative assembly, and greater recognition of the Cornish people as a national minority.


20 agosto 2011

Frank's Cafe and Campari Bar

Frank's Cafe and Campari Bar is part of the Bold Tendencies Sculpture Project in Peckham.
Founded in 2007, Bold Tendencies has welcomed over 45,000 visitors in 2010 (30,000 in 2009).
15 large-scale new works by international artists have been commissioned for 2011 by a specially appointed Curatorial Council and will be exhibited for three months.
Bold Tendencies is free to visit and has welcomed audiences from local residents to international tourists. Press feedback has been universally positive, and leading figures from the art world have offered their praise.
The popular Frank’s Cafe & Campari Bar designed by Practice Architecture (Paloma Gormley & Lettice Drake) occupies a temporary building alongside the sculptures on the roof.
For 2011 They have commissioned two new structures for the space.


4 agosto 2011

Hackney Wick railway station

Hackney Wick railway station is on the North London Line in the London Borough of Hackney, on the northern side of the boundary between Hackney and the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in east London. It is in Travelcard Zone 2. The station and all trains serving it are operated by London Overground. It opened on 12 May 1980 on the re-routed line which bypassed the site of the former Victoria Park station as part of the CrossTown Link line between North Woolwich and Camden Road stations.
On 29 December 1985, the station was the scene of one of the murders of the serial rapists John Duffy and David Mulcahy.


17 luglio 2011

Rooms 26: Sculpture 1300–1600

Victoria & Albert Museum.
Rooms 26 and 27 feature a selection of religious sculpture from Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Spain and England, dating from around 1300 to 1600. The V&A’s collection is particularly rich in religious sculpture from this period, as can also be seen in the Medieval and Renaissance Galleries.
Religious imagery was found everywhere in medieval Europe, in cathedrals, parish churches and monasteries, but also at home and in the street. Sculptures were designed specifically to have a three-dimensional, life-like appearance to evoke the presence of Christ, the Virgin and the saints in everyday life.
The sculptures are accompanied by vivid German stained glass panels of the early 16th century showing scenes from the life of Christ as well as charming donor portraits. Stained glass often had a complementary role to sculpture in ecclesiastical settings. It offered a wider canvas for the familiar biblical stories, with extended narratives, bright colours and carefully observed contemporary detail.


6 luglio 2011

The "Red One"

The prancing horse logo of this leading Italian car manufacturer has long been recognized throughout the industrialized world, with victories in countless automobile racing championships culminating with successive victories in the Formula 1 Championship in the early 21st century. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in Modena for the production of sports cars, the company's cars have subsequently exuded style and eroticism, commencing with the Type 125 of 1947. Amongst the eminent designers who worked for Ferrari were Bertone, who designed the Dino 308 GT4, and Pininfarina, whose work for the company included the GTB4 Daytona of 1968, the exuberant Testarossa of 1984, the 328 GTB of 1985, and the Mythos of 1989. Other designers who helped to sustain the Ferrari aura of luxury included Iosa Ghini, who designed showrooms for the company in 1994.


1 luglio 2011

V&A museum

The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A), set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects. Named after Prince Albert and Queen Victoria, it was founded in 1852, and has since grown to now cover 12.5 acres (51,000 mq) and 145 galleries. Its collection spans 5,000 years of art, from ancient times to the present day, in virtually every medium, from the cultures of Europe, North America, Asia and North Africa. The museum is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.


25 giugno 2011

Somerset House

Somerset House is a large building situated on the south side of the Strand in central London, England, overlooking the River Thames, just east of Waterloo Bridge. The central block of the Neoclassical building, the outstanding project of the architect Sir William Chambers, dates from 1776–96. It was extended by classical Victorian wings to north and south. A building of the same name was first built on the site more than two centuries earlier. The East Wing of Somerset House forms part of King's College London.


7 giugno 2011

London Docklands

Docklands is the semi-official name for an area in northeast and southeast London, England. It forms part of the boroughs of Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Newham and Greenwich. The docks were formerly part of the Port of London, at one time the world's largest port. They have now been redeveloped principally for commercial and residential use. The name London Docklands was used for the first time in a government report on redevelopment plans in 1971 but has since become virtually universally adopted. It also created conflict between the new and old communities of the London Docklands.


25 maggio 2011

Brown Sugar

Brown sugar is a sucrose sugar product with a distinctive brown color due to the presence of molasses. It is either an unrefined or partially refined soft sugar consisting of sugar crystals with some residual molasses content, or it is produced by the addition of molasses to refined white sugar.
Brown sugar contains from 3.5% molasses (light brown sugar) to 6.5% molasses (dark brown sugar). The product is naturally moist from the hygroscopic nature of the molasses and is often labelled as "soft." The product may undergo processing to give a product that flows better for industrial handling. The addition of dyes and/or other chemicals may be permitted in some areas or for industrial products.
Particle size is variable but generally less than granulated white sugar. Products for industrial use (e.g., the industrial production of cakes) may be based on caster sugar which has crystals of approximately 0.35 mm.


16 maggio 2011

Battersea Power Station

Battersea Power Station is a decommissioned coal-fired power station located on the south bank of the River Thames, in Battersea, South London. The station comprises two individual power stations, built in two stages in the form of a single building. Battersea A Power Station was built first in the 1930s, with Battersea B Power Station to its east in the 1950s. The two stations were built to an identical design, providing the well known four-chimney layout. The station ceased generating electricity in 1983, but over the past 50 years it has become one of the best known landmarks in London and is Grade II* listed. The station's celebrity owes to numerous cultural appearances, which include a shot in The Beatles' 1965 movie Help! and being used in the cover art of Pink Floyd's 1977 album Animals.

Since closure the site has remained largely unused, with numerous failed redevelopment plans from successive site owners. The site is currently owned by Irish company Real Estate Opportunities (REO), who purchased it for £400 million in November 2006. In November 2010, REO were granted permission to refurbish the station for public use and build 3,400 homes across the site.

The station is the largest brick building in Europe and is notable for its original, lavish Art Deco interior fittings and decor. However, the building's condition has been described as "very bad" by English Heritage, who include the power station on its Buildings at Risk Register. In 2004, while the redevelopment project was stalled, and the building remained derelict, the site was listed on the 2004 World Monuments Watch by the World Monuments Fund.


20 aprile 2011

FuoriSalone 2011

Fuorisalone is the term used to define the events group that during the Salone del Mobile week animate the entire city of Milan. It is not an exhibition, but a spontaneous event where companies are free to decide to participate, realizing an event in a location in the city.


10 aprile 2011

St Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral dedicated to Paul the Apostle. It sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The present building dates from the 17th century and was designed by Sir Christopher Wren. It is generally reckoned to be London's fifth St Paul's Cathedral, all having been built on the same site since AD 604. The cathedral is one of London's most famous and most recognisable sights. At 365 feet (111m) high, it was the tallest building in London from 1710 to 1962, and its dome is also among the highest in the world. In terms of area, St Paul's is the second largest church building in the United Kingdom after Liverpool Cathedral.


4 aprile 2011

Burning Sky

Burning Sky is a collective of skydivers who want to explore new possibilities in aerial art over the unique venue of Burning Man. Any skydiver is welcome to participate.  The idea behind Burning Sky, like Burning Man itself, is difficult to sum up in a sound bite. It's like explaining what skydiving is like to someone who has never jumped.  "Radical Self Expression" is what Larry Harvey, credited founder of Burning Man, uses to describe the event.



31 marzo 2011

The British Museum

The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its beginnings to the present.
The British Museum was established in 1753, largely based on the collections of the physician and scientist Sir Hans Sloane. The museum first opened to the public on 15 January 1759 in Montagu House in Bloomsbury, on the site of the current museum building. Its expansion over the following two and a half centuries was largely a result of an expanding British colonial footprint and has resulted in the creation of several branch institutions, the first being the British Museum (Natural History) in South Kensington in 1887. Some objects in the collection, most notably the Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon, are the objects of intense controversy and calls for restitution to their countries of origin.



28 marzo 2011

Brockwell Lido


Brockwell Lido, nestled in the corner of Brockwell Park, is a much-loved local landmark. It's been at the heart of the local community since 1937.
The Art Deco Grade II listed building has been extended and transformed and now offers fantastic health and fitness facilities all year round.
The Lido is managed in partnership with Fusion. As a registered charity, Fusion Lifestyle are continually reinvesting to improve and develop what's on offer in your community.
So when you visit the Lido, you'll be helping to keep one of London's few remaining open-air pools open for future generations.




13 marzo 2011

Faro Station, Portugal

Particularly attractive is the old part of the city surrounded still by the Roman walls which date back to the 9th. Inside a spacious open square that was once the site of the Roman Forum is a 13th Century Cathedral that faces the 18th Century Episcopal palace. An interesting building is the neighbouring 16th Century Convent that is now turned into the home of the city’s archaeological museum. Within it is a section devoted to the Arab occupation. The "golden" church of Nossa Senhora do Carmo is claimed to be the best example of gold-leaf woodwork in southern Portugal. It also contains the macabre spectacle of a chapel lined with the bones from over 1.200 monks! There is also the Faro Jewish Heritage Centre which consists of a cemetery and a small museum. Faro is the home of the Ria Formosa lagoon, a nature reserve of over 17.000 hectares and a stopping place for hundreds of different birds during the spring and autumn migratory periods.