RGS: Enduring Eye: The Antarctic Legacy of Sir Ernest Shackleton and Frank Hurley

-

This exhibition describes itself as 'one of the greatest ever photographic records of human survival' and this is not an oversell. 

From the expedition's planning, where one is given the impression of a rather humble but comfortable Edwardian office, one is led by crystal-clear, black and photography through an experience which is bordering on immersion. In close up detail one can look at the food on the men's plates as they share meals and marvel at the strangely incongruous decorative tiling of the ship's floor as the crew clean it. What follows is a true story of endurance, succinctly and concisely described by Meredith Hooper, the exhibition's curator, the photographs portray both a stark beauty and the horror of desolation and peril. At one stage lost in an image, I became aware of the soundscape around me, the 'white noise' of Antarctica, shifting plates and cracking ice, it literally sends a chill right through you. 

Runs until the end of February. More information here. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Holy Trinity: Perfumes Made by Monks

-
Image
The rarefied aura that surrounds fragrance dates back to the remotest times of antiquity, when incense and fragrant oils would be offered up to the gods and deities of the ancient world. The Arab world is credited with introducing modern perfumery to the West, having preserved the ancient arts of distillation, evaporation, and filtration that had been lost to Christian society, and in turn heralding great advancements not only in the field of fragrance but of chemistry and science too. In passing this tradition on, Christian monks began to adopt the practice of creating fragrances as an expression of faith, before eventually the art form became available to the wider public, for a price. Today, most perfume is manufactured on a grand commercial scale; a far cry from the artisanal monastic traditions that gave birth to modern fragrance! However, some perfume houses still survive from this bygone age and serve to remind us of our industry’s history while continui...
Read more

Bâtard Folding Picnic Knife by Lamson & Goodnow

-
Image
As author of The Best Bread Ever; Charles Van Over is expected to show everywhere up with an armful of bread. Whilst Charles enjoys breaking bread with friends; he does insist that the bread is properly sliced with a breadknife, not just ripped apart. The problem here is that bread knives are very long and with their serrated edges they are not the easiest of things to carry around. Charles wondered why a folding bread knife could not be produced and took his idea for a pocket bread knife to Lamson & Goodnow, American manufacturers of the LamsonSharp range. The Bâtard Folding Picnic knife is the result of this collaboration. At Roullier White we believe this may possibly be the best picnic knife ever made. The French word bâtard – and yes it does translate how you think it does – is a shorter and thicker type of baguette. The knife, of course, will cut everything including cheese, fruit, vegetables and as you cannot have a picnic without wine it also has an integral corkscrew. Rou...
Read more

L’Édition Française: French Style File

-
Image
ICON: Leslie Caron ICON: Catherine Deneuve ICON: Alain Delon The Middle Ages: Serge de Nîmes AKA Denim | 1926: Coco Chanel: LBD | 1930: Elsa Schiaparelli: The Wrap Dress | 1933: René Lacoste : The Polo Shirt | 1946: Louis Réard: The Bikini  | 1954: Roger Vivier: The Stiletto Heel | 1955: Christian Dior: The A Line | 1955: Coco Chanel: The Strapped Handbag | 1966: Yves Saint Laurent: Le Smoking |  Selvedge Jean A.P.C Paris Mr Porter Hawsorn Shoe Aigle, Paris Sweatshirt BWGH Paris Carven Paris Roullier White Work Jacket Le Laboureur Digoin The Shopkeeper Store Sweatershirt Maison Kitsuné Paris Hat Le Slip Francais x Jean Paul Gaultier Colette, Paris Vuarnet Meaux, Paris French Roast coffee is a dark roast where the beans are almost charred at a high temperature of 240 degrees. The beans crack twice, once as they release steam and then again as they release their oils. The resulting toasted, smokey ground...
Read more