exploring eating capturing
I am on a bit of a tour around the country during August catching up with friends. This weekend I was in deepest Dorset with some friends who have all the same interests as me including food! As it was Friday night they were keen …
Once upon a time Winchester was the capital of Britain (9th – 11th century). In 1079 the construction of the Cathedral was started but it took about 500 years to end up as it is today. It is a very magical building full of atmosphere …
La Maison de la Photographie is about a 5/10 minute walk north from Jemaa el-Fnaa square. It is a rambling old riad hidden away down a back street that is full of wonderful old photographs of the daily life and people of Morocco from 1870 to 1950. It is a calm and serene space which can be a welcome haven from the cacophony of activity, heat and smells outside.
Up on the roof it has a delightful terrace cafe that serves lunch. It is a simple no frills affair that usually serves about three classic options at great prices. It is small so often you will have to wait for a space but in my mind that means its good! I have eaten lamb and prune tagine as well as preserved lemon and olive tagine which came still sizzling to my table. They do really good mint tea and a fruit and yogurt dessert as well.
There is a panoramic view of the old medina from the terrace a lovely place to while away an afternoon.
I love this word. It encapsulates so much about how I think and work. It is the Japanese concept of giving respect and reverence for the marks of experience and age that create exquisite patina’s and clues to histories and past stories an embracing of …
For many years now I have been visiting Morocco. Marrakesh is an amazing place which I will write about another time. I wanted to start with Essaouira. I have a particular fondness for this place for many reasons. It is an ancient North African town …
For the last few days I’ve been sorting through my photos, sketchbook and drawings from India. It has made me need a good curry. I was on cooking duty a couple of days ago and was also skint so needed to make something from what was in the house, and this curry recipe was born. I always have a good store of spices in and the rest was what was in the cupboard and fridge. The only problem was that it was really good and we were all really hungry so ate it before I remembered to take any photos!
So this week I am staying with some friends and thought I would try it out on them and remember to take some pictures this time.
First things first I recommend a large gin & tonic at any point you are cooking, or to be honest just at any point.
Left overs quick curry
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Chitra Shala is part of the palace in Bundi and is full of turquoise, blue and gold gently disintegrating wall paintings. It is magical. There are no words really it literally took my breath away. These paintings belong to The Bundi School of painting which …
Bundi Palace in Rajasthan was by far my favourite palace I visited in India. I could have stayed for a very long time just looking and absorbing the crumbling, fading, colourful aesthetic. I love that it hasn’t been messed about with (yet). There is such …
Once I was home from India my head was buzzing with ideas and possibilities. I just felt like I needed to make big drawings. There is something very physical and all encompassing about working on a large scale, the simple movement and gestural mark making creates a real tangible connection with ones soul. Anyway suffice as to say I enjoyed the process so much eleven large drawings emerged.
A problem I always have is titles. These drawings were going to be exhibited and needed names. In the end I went with some poetry that I read whilst in India (which is actually chinese) but for me the connection was there through the descriptive words and the place I discovered it, it just seemed to work. Each drawing has a line of poetry written in pencil somewhere on its surface. The whole series is called ‘Openings’ which represents both the physical imagery as well as what happened in my head while in India.
It was such a delightful pleasure to draw as I traveled around India. Everywhere you turn there is something interesting. The shapes, colours, patterns and people all provided a wealth of material. SaveSave