art street art the fine line...........

street art is something that i have been interested in for a long time....in particular fly posted walls.....that have a layered history....many years ago i did a digital peice based on walls in manchester....hiding serious information in the imagery.... the title of the work was "urban palimpsest" and was exhibited in digital summer in manchester.......in the past year i have been busy painting murals here in portugal...based on stories by jose saramago and i am interested in their connections ...if any?    questions like why do we paint?....is one form better than another?........i have been photographing bits of walls....graffitti......quirky things....in manchester....barcelona....tangier.....madrid.......chennai.......london.....lisbon....ever since.......and now quarteira.......i am interested in the fine line between images that communicate in a pictorial sense.......the use of tags.......and urban scrawl....are they cries of look at me?....the walls always seem to be in rundown enviroments....is there and what if ...is the reason for this?.....at the moment i am not reading any texts about the whys and wherefores of this art form....,i am keeping an open mind.....when i go walking in quarteira every morning i see some really amazing images by pixal parazit........here are a few to look @.........we also have the wall on facebook????????

trichy by ricklshaw....probably the shortest journey....

left by ricshaw to make the short trip to trichi...and the ashby hotel........a place that is faded at the edges.....in the garden is a huge palm roofed gazebo like structure...under which are cane tables and chairs.....very collonial......our room was dark wood panelled with a stuttering fan and a tv........lunch uner the palm terrace....wow..........deep fried shredded vegetables in a light batter and green pea marsala....this is some of the best food i have ever eaten....with a subtle chinese influence..........headed of out in search of an internet cafe for our daily dose....culture in the morning.....pixels and e mails in the afternoon........i went off to the bus station just for a look....it was total mayhem...bodies everywhere...every shape and size.....people sitting on bags.....sleeping....people begging......street sellers.......wonderful food smeels....pakora....samosas....indian sweets.... jelabis what a collage of life and the noise  and the bustle and the bus horns honking.......returned to the ashby for another meal this time with giger tea......the place might look a bit worn out and faded but what a good atmosphere and friendly staff........we finished the day with a nightcap....not what you think.......a lemon soda with a pinch of salt.....wat will tomorrow bring???? the ashby is close by the bus station....our first impression of trichi is its a bit of a dump......but heh! lets give it a chance.....today has been one of the most memorable in my life.....they the memoriews have been filed away.....the priest and the holy water......the elephant blessing....they will act as triggers to recontruct these events.....i  have a new hobby....asking shopkeepers for old news posters....mad eh! ....who cares...certainly not me....what next?

trichi

more india

november 20 friday trichi....

up....then followed by a shower.....coooooold!!!!!!!........out....negotiate a rickshaw to tghe fort........we are talking 7am here!!!!!! yep 7am........the rock is impressive it has temple perched at the very summit.....457 steps we are told...im sure if im going to count them though....they are painted red and white......the last 30 or so are much steeper probably something to do with more effort needed to reach the temple.....the entrance to the temple is via a bustling market selling shiva...ganesha nik naks......first shoes of and in

rickshaw to trichy

as it says rickshaw to trichi.....

shrirengham

a good nights sleep awoke early 6am and out just before 7am.....standing on the balcony      the view from all sides are temples and archways its absolutely breathtaking...we are staying on the main thoroughfare to the temples....some of the biggest in india...there is a constant stgream of pilgrims on their way to pujas.......before we set out the elderly ;ady of the hotel got us some strong tea....it was strong stuff...it would set us up for the morning....a delightful smiling lady very gentle in her manner.....we were up and away into the throng joining the tidal wave of pilgrims....we really felt part of it....not a tourist in site...apart from us....this wave of humanity was going in various directions because there so many temples....we were weaving our way through archways which are the entrances to the temples....the streets are bulging with people and the shops were starting to open up for the day ahead....no hassle this early the streetwise sellers were still in bed....the only word that i have to describe the scene is ...gobsmacked by the sheer size and beauty and atmosphere of the temples standind all around an imposing presense that dwarfed the small town....the photos that we take will only show a glimpse of what we emotionally felt...awe....we were entranced .......finding hidden corners.....tiny roadside shrines...a priest that we talked too who gave us holy water....a privelidge....no hassle ....a general hum of pilgrims praying...giving offerings...they to wre excited...people from different parts of india.....lots of groups of men dressed in similar coloured lungis...their heads decorated bwith bindy marks and colours....all smiling ....pleased to be at this holy place just like us......in the temple i was blessed by an elephant after putting a small denomination coin in his trunk....he gently touched my head with his trunk..........a very special moment in my life...we walked around the temples soaking up the atmosphere...often sitting quietly watching and listening....the temptation is to use the camera.....then you can miss the total experience to easily .....i dont want to only see india through a lens.....even the words dont do the visit justice ... i hope that they at least convey our state of mind in that few hours....the rest of the world did not exist......we were in another world........................back to a different reality....looking for a bank....not as easy as you think......finally the hotel keeper arranged  for a money changer to come from trichi by rickshaw.........this can only happen in india....this event was followed by lots of laughter ....hand shaking and tips all round.......what a friendly bunch of people........then it was time to move on....