God rays

We didn't get a proper sunset last night as there was too much cloud, but I loved the 'god rays' that appeared for about a quarter of an hour around 8.30 pm. Properly called crespuscular rays, they are formed when sunlight is scattered by particles in the atmosphere.

Google tells me they are most noticeable when the sun is low on the horizon, such as during sunrise or sunset, because the light travels through a greater amount of atmosphere, increasing the scattering effect. While crepuscular rays appear to converge at a point, they are actually parallel, like railway lines, according to the laws of perspective. The convergence is an optical illusion caused by the way our eyes perceive parallel lines receding into the distance. So, now we know!

I sat on my balcony with a mug of rooibos tea and just enjoyed the light show. It was so peaceful; a few birds flying overhead, still trying to decide on their roost for the night; the gentle murmur of someone's TV in another flat, not intrusive but strangely comforting. 

H.A.P.P.Y

I went to Harrogate recently to do some shopping and meet a friend. Annoyingly, the car park I usually use has suddenly changed its charging system, so that now you have to pay on arrival rather than on departure, which means estimating how much time you'll need. (I wondered why what is normally a packed multi-storey was virtually empty.) Anyway, I erred on the safe side when paying and had time to spare, which gave me long enough to pop in to Harrogate's civic art gallery, The Mercer Gallery.  

The current exhibition is H.A.P.P.Y by Liz West, created as a counterbalance to the Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D) which troubles her - and many others - in the darker winter months. She 'experiments with colour and light to create environments that inspire joy and curiosity'. She has filled the main gallery space with a vibrant installation of coloured acrylic circles that shimmered in the light from the windows and chandeliers. It was fun, though I felt I'd have liked a winding path through the middle, to better immerse myself in it, rather than tiptoeing around the edges. 

Elsewhere there were various colourful paintings in ink, felt marker pen and paint. Many of these were maquettes (smaller mock-ups of planned larger works). I thought them reminiscent of Bridget Riley's Op-Art work from the mid to late 20th century, though much less precise. West's work is primarily about colour, whereas Riley was exploring the dynamic potentialities of optical phenomena.

As well as paper-based creations, there were smaller experiments with acrylic and acetate panels and sheets, which allow the light to pass through like stained glass. Have a look at her website to see the larger site installations based on these. They're rather wonderful - HERE.

I enjoyed all these pieces. They made me want to get out my paints; I love colour, as you know - so, yes, they left me feeling happy! 

The new Darley Street Market

As part of the reimagining and rezoning of Bradford's city centre, the council have closed the large, covered markets and brought them all together in a new, purpose-built building lower down in the town, on a site that used to hold a Marks and Spencer store. It opened a couple of weeks ago so I went down to have a look. It's not as big as I was expecting, to be honest, but it's clearly an improvement on the sprawling old markets, though what happened to the majority of previous traders I have no idea. 

They have rescued some of the old market gates, which date back to Victorian times. Inside, it spreads over three floors, connected by escalators and stairs. 

The middle floor has fresh food: fruit and veg, fresh fish, meat, bakery products and a host of delicatessen style outlets. Being such a multi-cultural city, as you'd expect there's a wide variety of food, some of which I wouldn't know what to do with!

The top floor is entirely devoted to a food court, with many different outlets selling food and drink with a variety of ethnic cuisines. 

The lower floor is a conventional market selling clothes, jewellery and household goods, the kind of place you can buy anything from a bucket to a shopping trolley, baby items, a sun hat, a bedsheet or a lipstick. Outside at street level there's a large area available for events and pop-up markets.

It was all buzzing, with a lot of folks about, perhaps because it is a novelty and people were, like me, just having a look. I don't tend to buy much stuff from markets. It seems like a labour-intensive kind of shopping trip, having to select from a number of stalls and pay a number of times, compared to a supermarket where you just throw everything in a trolley and pay once. I don't think it's any cheaper either, though to be fair everything is loose so you can buy just a couple of carrots rather than a whole bag, which appeals to some. I would, however, use the fish stall, which had a wider variety of fish than you'd get elsewhere, all on ice and brought in fresh from the docks, unlike the plastic wrapped supermarket offerings.

I have to say I was favourably impressed, and I do like what the planners are attempting in redeveloping the city centre. 

Making music

My picture above seemed at the same time happy and sad, a typical Bradford city centre scene. The young man was trying his best to brighten things (and make a bit of cash I guess) with some music. Some of the guys cheering him on looked like the kind you often see staggering around with cans or bottles in their hand, arguing among themselves or wandering around aimlessly - but they seemed to be enjoying the music. 

Just on the corner here, there's a unit that shows some of the developers' vision for this area, what used to be the heart of the shopping centre in Bradford. The city council are managing a wide-scale reorientation of the city centre. Many of the shops have relocated to the Broadway Shopping Centre, lower down the town. The markets, higher up, have been closed and relocated to a new building on Darley Street. The Council has been undertaking a consultation on their plans for a 'City Village': a 'vibrant, inclusive neighbourhood in the heart of Bradford' which will be a key part of Bradford's wider regeneration story, with plans for new homes, jobs, retail spaces and public realm improvements. Whether I shall ever see this in my lifetime, who knows? And whether it will be any more successful than attempts to similarly revamp the city's historic Little Germany area... who knows? At least they are trying. 

Double trouble

The view of Salts Mill on a calm day is doubled in the reflections in the canal and that's no trouble; I think it is an iconic and unique scene. 

But... Trouble #1: The very dry spring and summer, leading to water shortages, has resulted in lock closures and restrictions on boat movements along the canal. This, in turn, is leading to the rapid growth of water plants along the navigation, as you can see here. Though it looks quite pretty, by the time the canal is opened again, I think it will be impassable! 

Trouble #2: This little family of swans, who managed to raise four cygnets this year, have had a tragic bereavement. About a month ago, one of the adult pair was found injured on the railway line, having been hit by a train. Although concerned people managed to get it into the care of the local swan rescue charity, sadly it couldn't be saved and died from its injuries. Swans bond for life, so the bereaved partner must still be wondering what happened to his or her soulmate. Nevertheless, s/he continues to keep the growing cygnets close and safe. 

Island of....

What's going on in Centenary Square, outside Bradford's City Hall?  

Lots of Bradford 2025 volunteers, with a circle made of rope...

Oh gosh! Foam exploding from tubes...

Spreading out to fill the circle...

Children began to play in the edges, coming out covered in bubbles and colour...

The Island of Foam got bigger and bigger...

When the wind blew, the bubbles went everywhere. 

And then... they lifted up the barrier and everyone rushed in! It was a lot of fun! 

It was a creative art concept by Stephanie Luening, part of the Bradford City of Culture 2025. The foam is 94% water, 5% food colouring and 1% soap, pretty harmless unless it went right in your eye (and there were cleaning stations and first aid staff on hand). 

I wasn't brave enough to get close and get covered in colour, as it was strongly staining. I stood on a wall but then it was hard to get pictures of the whole thing. I needed to be higher; I needed a drone! There were a few flying overhead. 

For better pictures (taken by a press photographer from a large stepladder!) see HERE. 

 

Ullswater

Here's another in my series documenting the artworks I have on display in my home.  This is a painting on silk, of Ullswater in the Lake District, by Chris Pollard. I've had it many years. I bought it, on a whim, from the artist's pop-up stall in the White Rose shopping centre in Leeds. At the time I was replacing my kitchen (in my previous house) and had chosen light wood effect units and green and blue tiles, so the colours seemed to fit well. I liked that it is a real place - and not so far from here really - but also that it was rather an abstract and representational image. 

I've always loved the colours and, despite the piece being about 25 years old, they still sing vibrantly. When I moved to my flat last year and decided to paint myself a blue wall in the sitting room, it became obvious that this was the place for this picture. I love it! 

Kites, acrobats and dinosaurs

Some of the performances I saw at the BD Festival were more appealing to me than others. 'One Sky' was a vibrant dance spectacle inspired by India's kite festivals, performed by Pagrav Dance Company. In a nearby tent, children were making their own kites.  

Near St Georges' Hall, a trio of acrobats performed Weightless, 'dismantling big problems into moments of laughter'. They were very good! 

Finally, the market area was invaded by dinosaurs, 'Saurus', towering over our heads and searching for food. At one point they nearly ate me! These performers were balanced, impossibly, on stilts tapering to points, whilst manipulating those massive costumes and long necks. Amazing! (I always thought I was quite clever, in my younger days, to manage high heeled shoes, never mind stilts.)

BD Festival

The BD Festival in Bradford is a free, annual event over two days, featuring street theatre, music, dance, creative workshops and a host of performers around the city centre. I've never been before. I find such things a bit overwhelming and I get a serious case of FOMO! You can wander around and miss everything, if you're not careful, because the performances tend to begin at the same times, on the hour and half hour, in different areas so either there is nothing much going on or everything happening at once! It's also a bit tricky to photograph, trying where possible not to show children's faces and always dodging people walking across and photo-bombing! However, I enjoyed wandering round and I did catch a few good little pieces of action. 

The lively singer was Sinead Campbell with her backing musicians. The Jamaican-Irish, northern powerhouse soul singer 'delivers uplifting catchy grooves with emotion-infused vocals and vintage touch'. She had a great voice. 

I think the dancer below was Dorine Mugisha - very expressive! 

There were various giant puppets, including 'Giant Baby Gareth' whose 'Norbert Nannies' had trouble keeping the pram on the straight and narrow. (They are, of course, a reference to the famed Norland nannies, one of whom looks after the royal grandchildren.)

In the Norfolk Gardens there were various interactive wooden games that were keeping lots of families amused. 

Urban Safari had a comedic act that encouraged the children to participate - lots of roaring! 

This was just a small selection of what was happening. If it all got too much, you could lie back on a beanbag and watch Cloudscapes, a 'sonic art installation'. I'd have enjoyed that but I can't wear a headset with my hearing aids, sadly.   

 

Waxing crescent

 

As the sun set earlier this week, the moon rose, neatly placed between the trees. 

The waxing moon, when the illuminated portion of the moon is increasing, generally symbolises growth, new beginnings and the manifestation of intentions. It's a time for setting goals, taking action, and building momentum towards desired outcomes. (So says AI anyway!) 

'Be the moon and inspire people, even when you're far from full.'     K. Tolnoe

'Don't worry if you're making waves just by being yourself. The moon does it all the time.'     Scott Stabile

'Those are the same stars, and that is the same moon, that look down upon your brothers and sisters, and which they see as they look up to them, though they are ever so far away from us, and each other.'   Sojourner Truth

I find there's something really inspiring and strangely comforting about the fact that the moon that I can see is the same moon that you can see, wherever in the world you are. 

My dad

I just wanted to record that my dad, Ralph, would have been 100 years old today. I find that a little hard to believe - and quite honestly I'm glad he didn't live that long! He was a lovely, truly gentle, man but in his later years he had Parkinson's Disease, which progressively diminished his quality of life. He died in 2002 aged 76. The photo above, one of my favourites, was taken on his 70th birthday. The one below was in 1947, shortly after he and my mum started dating, when he was 22 and doing National Service. I don't seem to have any photos of him on his own and that, I think, is in itself significant. He was truly a devoted family man and loved nothing better than to be with my mother, my sister and me, and among his wider family and friends. 

He trained as a telephone engineer, a career he pursued all of his working life, from apprenticeship to being in charge of a telephone exchange and, towards the end of his career, a specialist troubleshooter trusted with sorting out the most complicated faults and problems. He retired just as digital technology was coming in, something for which I think he was thankful as I don't think he'd have enjoyed having to start to learn new systems. 

As a father, he was loving and generous, even if not terribly demonstrative. He was pretty soft-hearted too. It was usually my mother who enforced the boundaries. I've many good memories of him, especially the times he and I shared together, just us. (Gentle reminder to dads to make sure to have some one-to-one time with your daughters!) He drove me up and down the country to various interviews at various universities before I left home, and made sure we did some exploring and enjoying of whatever city we were in. He had a great sense of humour and used to make us laugh by reciting 'Albert and the Lion' and other such funny monologues, as well as having the usual repertoire of 'dad' jokes. He was aspirational for us and worked hard all his life to provide us with security and a comfortable life. When my daughter was born he proved himself a fantastic grandpa: patient, kind and thoughtful and a wonderful support.  

It's easy, isn't it, to take one's parents for granted? I count myself very fortunate to have had a loving, stable and responsible father, whose love for me I never doubted because it never wavered.

Happy 100th birthday, dad! 

Show pieces

The centre of Bradford has some lovely and historic old buildings that they are working hard to keep in good shape and in use. It would have had more if it weren't for the mass destruction of Victoriana that took place in the 1970s, replacing some lovely old buildings, including the Kirkgate market, with Brutalist concrete monstrosities. In recent years many of those have been demolished in their turn, creating the spaces that are now part of another radical plan to transform and update the city. 

The Alhambra Theatre, above left, opened in 1914 and has since had several adaptations, the most recent being in the 1980s, when the 'glass box' was added to the front to increase the useable space 'front of house'. I think it was a very successful refurbishment and the theatre is a lovely place to go to see a show (though pricey, of course!) 

What is now Bradford Live, above right, was once the Odeon cinema (where I spent many happy hours in my student days). The art deco building opened in 1930 as a cinema and was one of the first to show 'talkies', finally closing in 2000. It then lay derelict and in increasingly bad shape until a visionary plan arose to revamp it as a live music venue. The progress was bumpy and the Council, who put a lot of money into it, looked on shaky ground when the original developer pulled out. Thankfully it has been taken over and just reopened. I don't know if it will host any shows I'd like to see but it looks fabulous inside, from pictures I've seen. 

The other jewel in Bradford's crown since the early 1980s is the Science and Media Museum, one of the few national museums not situated in London. Sadly, the wonderful photographic archive it originally held when it was opened, which led to some truly memorable photography exhibitions, has been hived off to the V&A in London, leaving the Media Museum to concentrate more on the technical aspects of photography, film and TV.  

 

The Tower of Now

'The Tower of Now' is a public artwork recently installed in the newly landscaped Norfolk Gardens as part of Bradford UK City of Culture 2025. The soaring sculpture is by the internationally acclaimed artist Saad Qureshi, who was born in Pakistan and grew up in Bradford. 'Inspired by memory and place and how our sense of who we are can be shaped by the buildings we see around us', its intricate woodwork takes inspiration from Bradford's historic buildings with their towers, domes, ornate windows and mill chimneys, as well as temples, mosques, synagogues and Chinese pagodas. It represents communities coming together, which is something we really celebrate in Bradford. I liked it, in real life, rather more than I expected to from seeing pictures of it in the local press. 

It really needs to be appreciated from the angle from which I took the photo above. It's juxtaposition with Bradford's City Hall, for me, puts it into context. Seen from the other direction, all there is in the background is the shabby gable end of a building on a building site. (They might at least have temporarily covered that in a sheet or some plywood to disguise it!) 

Alongside, they have made some attempt to clad a fence, using mirrored sheeting that reminded me of those Halls Of Mirrors you get in a funfair. Cue for me looking rather shorter and fatter than I think I do for real! 

 

Norfolk Gardens

For many months, the centre of Bradford around City Hall has been a mess of roadworks. The transformation is finally complete, so I went along to see what they'd done. They have, rather boldly, closed a large area to traffic, making it safe and accessible for pedestrians and cyclists. They've landscaped it, turfed it and planted it with nearly 8000 plants, including 57 new trees: birch, rowan, maple, lime and juneberry, with cherry trees to form a blossom boulevard.

Joining up with the mirror pool in City Park, on the other side of City Hall, this central area of town is now largely focused on the civic and cultural life of Bradford. Newly pedestrianised streets from here down to the Broadway Shopping centre are all part of a bold vision to 'zone' the city centre, reduce the sprawling and mostly empty former shopping areas and make it a more pleasant, safer and more compact city centre. Buses and traffic have largely been diverted to a circular route around the centre, with the exception of vehicles necessary to service the central area. 

One of the claims is that it will increase biodiversity in the city and, judging by the number of bees, butterflies and other insects on the plants, it certainly looks to have attracted wildlife. Money came from from the Transforming Cities Fund, awarded by the Government in 2020. I think, personally, it has been well spent and will make the city more attractive for visitors, both local and from further afield. 

All aboard for 'The Railway Children'

I had an exciting adventure with my daughter and grandies the other day, when we went to see a production of 'The Railway Children', one of the Bradford City of Culture 2025 events. Closely modelled on the original 1906 novel by Edith Nesbit, and the film that was made in 1970 (rather than the more recent sequel), it all took place on the Keighley and Worth Valley heritage railway, where both films were made. The story is of a family who have to move from London to the countryside when their father is (wrongfully) imprisoned as a spy. 

We boarded a steam train at Keighley station (all part of the show) and were transported up to Oxenhope. The girls were excited to spot deer from the train windows, animals that I imagine are quite used to the steam trains passing regularly along the line. There was plenty of time to look around Oxenhope station and buy merchandise and refreshments before the actual performance began. 

My youngest granddaughter was invited to climb into the loco's cab and the engine driver explained what everything was and how it all worked. 

Then we went into the engine shed, which had been turned into a theatre with seats along both sides. The performance took place on moveable staging along the tracks in the centre, which doubled as both rooms and trains, depending on the narrative. It was hugely imaginative and very well done. There were even subtitles on an app on my phone so that I could actually follow the dialogue, which added a great deal to how much I enjoyed it. 

We weren't allowed to take photos during the performance, of course, but I did snap a couple when the cast first came in. They walked up the side stages and chatted to the audience, even singing 'happy birthday' to one little boy! 

The story was faithful to the original, and included the most dramatic episodes. At the end of Act One, the landslide on the railway line was recreated using a massive pile of suitcases and trunks (instead of rocks!) that crashed down with a roar. Then came the famous scene where Roberta (Bobbie) and Phyllis take off their red flannel petticoats and wave them to stop the oncoming train crashing... at which point a REAL steam train came chuffing into the theatre! 

The same train returned at the end, bringing home the children's father: 'Daddy, my Daddy!'  And yes, I did cry... as I always do when I watch the film - much to the amusement of my grandies.  

It was a wonderful evening, memorable and magical. I'm so glad we went - and I recommend it to anyone local (if you can afford it, anyway; these productions are not cheap). It's on until 7 September.