Photography | The Daily Norm

Jul 13

ITALIA Season – Rome: My Photographs

Rome: City of passion, where waves of heat flow ruggedly through bustling streets, where raised Italian voices and sustained hooting from haphazardly driven cars are the harmony and the melody, where painted church ceilings bring heaven to its closest interaction with the earth, and the Roman ruins all around remind the current thriving generation that on this same soil, a grand imperial history is sewn deep into the rich tapestry of Rome’s foundations. In Rome you can take a coffee in the shade of the Borghese gardens, or a people-watching cocktail by the Spanish steps. You can join the throng of tourists strolling around the Piazza Navona and the Coliseum, and you can tread the steps of Emperors as you gaze upwards to an almost fully intact Pantheon temple. Rome is living history – a city struggling to move forward while treading on the cherished egg shells of its past, but one which prioritises the Joie de Vivre, the good times, the passion of life. Rome: city of art, of colour, of culture, of style, of religious fervour, of architectural heritage, or pure Italian gastronomic brilliance. Rome – a city so unique that words alone will not suffice, and only photos, now, will do.

: The magnificent roof of the Pantheon

: Piazza della Rotonda

: Piazza della Rotonda

: Fountain in the Piazza della Rotonda

: Check out this for a hotel view

: The fact that the Pantheon has lasted since the Roman Empire is wonderfully evident

: Doors swing open to reveal the perfect interior of the Pantheon

: I loved this odd little courtyard I spotted off one Roman street

: Majestic St Peter’s Basilica

: The incredible fountain on the Piazza della Rotonda

: The Capitoline museum

: Paradise preserved – Rome’s ancient forum

: The Ponte Sant’ Angelo

: Cleaning the fountain in the Piazza della Rotonda before the tourist hoards arrive

: Senatus Populus Que Romanus

: The glorious Piazza Navona

: Colonnades of Bernini’s St Peter’s Square

: The Campo de Fiori

: Piazza Navona

: The glorious roof of the Pantheon

: Ice cream sundaes in the Borghese gardens

: The essence of Roman street life

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Jul 11

4 Comments

ITALIA Season – Florence and San Gimignano: My photographs

I have no qualms in declaring that Italy was the making of me. When I embarked upon a Gap Year trip studying art history across the main focus points of artistic Italy in 2001, it opened my eyes to a realm of creativity that I had never before imagined could exist in such abundance. Growing up in Sussex, the limits of my art education had been trips to see recreated plastic Victorian seaside scenes in the local Worthing museum, and a Monet exhibition at the Royal Academy which, having been hyped up on TV, I dragged my parents up to London to see.

Italy changed all of that, and the city which really began my love affair with Italia was the city of Firenze. It is a city so richly overflowing with beautiful cobbled streets, consistently charming buildings, stunning architectural gems such as the Duomo and the Ponte Vecchio, and a wealth of artistic treasures, that it is hard not to become utterly seduced, not to mention that it sits at the centre of a vast plain of equally lovely Tuscan countryside.

When I returned to Florence some years later, my visit was brief, but the city had lost none of its charm. Staying only a few days, old sights were revisited as I tried to recreate those carefree days of 2001, trying to stumble upon those once-loved haunts while following my mental recollected map of the city (which did not always prove to be correct!). But my time in Florence was short, as the nearby city of San Gimignano beckoned, a city which is so complete in its preserved medieval heritage that UNESCO has ring-fenced the whole town and marked it with its rubber stamp of protective approval. No wonder the place was so overloaded with tourists.

In the mood of Italia Season here on The Daily Norm, I enclose some of my favourite shots from that trip. They’re not your typical photos of the cities, but small, detail shots of little items of life that amused or interested me. Enjoy!

: Sunset over the Mediterranean viewed from Castagneto Carducci

: San Miniato al Monte

: Florence, from the grounds of San Miniato

: San Gimignano

: A very beautiful lizard near San Miniato

: The famous River Arno

: Is it me or is this Saint literally glowing?

: We had a chance to stop at Volterra on the way back from San Gimignano

: The Duomo of Firenze

: A market in the seaside town of Donoratico

: The towers of San Gimignano

: Look carefully and you can see Santo Spirito in his eyes

: The Duomo in a puddle

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

No Tea with Mussolini in San Gimignano (bagnidilucca.wordpress.com)
San Gimignano,Tuscany (leggotunglei808.wordpress.com)

Jul 5

171 Comments

My urban balcony garden

When you live in a city, like I do, here in the big smoke of London, every inch of greenery becomes important. When I travelled down to Glyndebourne the other day, surrounded by all of those lush green hills, and the conspicuous silence interrupted only by the occasional sheep cry, it made me realise just how lucky rural dwellers are to be surrounded by that constant beauty and tranquility. Yet it is only human nature not to appreciate what we have when we’ve got it. For all I know, the residents of those sussex country manners probably envy we Londoners who have the whole cultural world right on our doorstep.

I do like to count my blessings however, and I actually think writing a blog, which encourages one to reflect more on one’s life, making the most of occasions, events and opportunities for the sake of sharing and recollecting interesting and unique snapshots of life, makes us bloggers appreciate life with a renewed vitality and a very sharp focus. And one thing that I have always appreciated, albeit perhaps more so as my time living in London grows longer and my hours of work increase, is the green space around me.

The centre of this flower looks like little dancing aliens

My favourite photo – looks like the ant has cottoned on to my presence

I may only have a balcony to exhaust my green fingers, but that balcony, which runs along the front of my entire flat, is my pride and joy. There is much to be said for the urban balcony. Not only does it help to make urban life more bearable, more colourful, and more sensorily enriched, but also helps to give nature a bit of a kickstart – there have, for example, been reports of huge rises in the numbers of urban dwellers keeping beehives, so many in fact that there are now a surplus of bees for the numbers of suitably pollinating flowers available across the city. I don’t have bees, but what I have created on my balcony is my own piece of tropical paradise. I’ve surrounded my small table and chairs and my all important sun lounger with my own little slice of Spain. There I have a large brugmansia (whose flowers are spectacular bell-shaped blooms which smell glorious at night – they’re not out yet but rest assured, I will share on The Daily Norm once they are), a passion flower, an olive tree, grasses and plenty of geraniums. I’ve also encouraged honeysuckle to grow up the wall, and this year, for the first time, introduced some strawberries into the mix.

Because my urban balcony garden is a natural extension of my lounge which has a very contemporary red, black and white colour scheme, I have attempted to continue that out onto the balcony, with modern galvanised steel planters, and plenty of vivid red geraniums, which mark a wonderful contrast against the building’s crisp white washed walls and the black and grey grasses I have planted intermittently amidst blood-red cala lillies and those red-burst strawberries.

So without further ado, here are some focused shots of the plants which are currently thriving on my urban balcony garden.

: Black grass

: Sumptuous red geraniums

: My first strawberry (looking a bit dried up, but at least the fruit’s ok!)

: Minuscule olive flowers

: The almost alien forms of the passion flower

: Olive tree flowers

: Honeysuckle buds

: Don’t miss the little ant on the leaf of my olive

: My favourite photo – looks like the ant has cottoned on to my presence

: The centre of this flower looks like little dancing aliens

: White wash and red geranium – the colours of a Spanish patio garden

: My balcony on a wider view – a lounger to enjoy the sun and geraniums aplenty

Whether you’re a city-dweller or otherwise, I strongly recommend you import some plants into your life – even if it’s only a window box hanging out of the window. The introduction of plants always creates a new geometric mix into any design scheme, bringing curves and floral bursts into often boring square buildings, which are enhanced further as day turns into night, and interesting plant-shaped shadows dance across the surfaces of your home. Whats more, as a plant grows and changes with the seasons, your home too will adapt to the altering cycle of the year, and as the plants rise and fall, you will find a great sense of achievement in tracking their story and progress in your home (just remember to water them, occasionally!)

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

The Tiny Urban Balcony (radhagarima.wordpress.com)
Balcony Gardening (dayreturn.wordpress.com)
Celebrating all things radiant in RED – a photographic homage to Louboutin (normsonline.wordpress.com)

Jun 28

6 Comments

Celebrating all things radiant in RED – a photographic homage to Louboutin

It was only yesterday that I was extolling the virtues of all things red. That vibrant, rich colour, instantly attractive to the human eye, seducer of souls, seller of sex, and now the renowned glossy seller of stilettos in the form of Louboutin’s red-soled masterpieces. And it is in homage to that said innovative shoe-maker-to-the-chic that I have taken inspiration from the rosiest, most ravishing reds I could find, scanning through my photos and picking out some of my favourite photos which all have that rich, vibrant colour in common. Welcome to my world of Red…

: My painting of Segovia, in Spain (oil on canvas, 2010)

: The emblematic London telephone box

: That’s my mummy!

: Red bar in Madrid

: Coca-cola has made red its own – café in Toledo

: Candles in Barcelona Cathedral

: Complex stamen of the Hibiscus

: Blood red cala lily

: Gates of the bull ring – Granda, Spain

: Juicy strawberries aplenty, at the Mercado San Miguel in Madrid

: Autumn leaves – Richmond (London)

: Sun-dappled hibiscus

: Red, red rose

: Chairs (looking like red blood cells) in the Fundacio Juan MIro in Mallorca

: Paris’ chic art nouveau Metro

: A beef tomato

: Red roses, the epitome of romance

: Red stained glass, in Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia, Barcelona

: Pillar box and a phone box – red, the colour of London

: Plenty of red (and a bit of blue) – Plaza Mayor, Madrid

: Poppy

: Pharmacy sign in Volterra, Italy

: An abundance of tomatoes, Borough Market, London

: Marbella’s Almeda park fountain

: Mini pavlovas and my ceramic Las Meninas souvenir

: Vibrant geraniums

: More geraniums

: The red lights of Amsterdam

: Big red boat in the Albert Docks, Liverpool

: That perfect red rose

: Autumn berries in Richmond

: Just in case… fire bucket in the Port Vell, Barcelona

: Victorian post box, Wandsworth

: And again

: Seeing in the New Year with a burst of red

: Red autumn leaves, Richmond

: Red cocktail, with a zingy lime twirl

: Red walls on the Passeig del Born, Mallorca

: Cherries aplenty at the Mercado San Miguel in Madrid

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

It’s all in the Sole: Christian Louboutin celebrates 25 years at London’s Design Museum (normsonline.wordpress.com)

Jun 14

2 Comments

My Muse, the Lily

There’s nothing new about an artist being inspired by nature. It’s the main source of inspiration for most artists, particularly those who prefer the aesthetic merits of the lush and diverse countryside, the wide expanses of ocean and the changing effect of light and seasons. But what struck me today, as I sat on my sofa taking more than a momentary glance at a vase of supermarket-bought lilies next to me, was that in just a humble flower, there is so much incredibly complex beauty. Captured on camera, you have the opportunity to focus in on the individual features of the flower, its stamen, its stems, as well as the flower’s relationship with its surroundings – exit from the water, and entry into the water, as a suction bubble forms around the stem, whose angles are in turn distorted and multiplied by the effect of glass and water. When framed by a camera lens, stamen become complex, furry organisms, worthy of intense interest and query. In the same way simple stems become stripy, complex sculptures, criss-crossing like the motif from a Japanese silk screen. On the leaves, intense ribbing creates a delightful landscape of rise and fall, light and shade, while each petal resonates with different shades of white, as the delicate edge comes into focus, and the centre of the flower softens into shadow.

For me, it only takes a vase of flowers to inspire, and with a camera, I can seize upon this ripe source of inspiration, creating a hundred different photographic canvases from this one group of four lily stems, as each photo in turn proffers an abstract dance of white, green and orange, and the humble flower becomes artistically abundant, deconstructed and captured forever in art’s two dimensions.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Salamanca – My photographs (normsonline.wordpress.com)
Out and about with my iPhone (ii) (normsonline.wordpress.com)
Madrid – My photographs (normsonline.wordpress.com)

Jun 1

6 Comments

Out and about with my iPhone – Part II

It was William Blake who wrote of England’s green and pleasant lands, words which have since been transposed into the rousing melody of “Jerusalem” by Hubert Parry.

I will not cease from mental fight,
Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand,
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England’s green and pleasant land

Now, as I walk around my surroundings, down in suburban South London, I find the final bars of that great hymn circling relentlessly inside my head, as all around me, after a month of unseasonably consistent rainfall, England has literally burst into the most pleasant, lusciously green landscape I have seen in recent memory. The tree boughs are so heavily weighted by a cornucopia of vivid green leaves and fresh, unfurling buds that they almost touch the ground. The grass is rich and thick, full of daisies and dandelions, betraying not a single batch of earth in between its lustrous verdant carpet. And all around the air is full of blossom, as it is gently warmed by a balmy early-summer sun, bringing with it ripe rememberings of childhood summers past, when with my family I would enjoy effortless evenings amongst the thickly sheltered forests of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, picking bunches of wild flowers, and going to bed with a head full of fresh summer air and the imaginings of a Midsummer Night’s Dream.

All this comes to mind as I revel in this newly revitalised greenery surrounding me, even here, on the outskirts of London. And freshly inspired, with an excellent camera phone in my pocket, I have roistered the benefits of having a camera continuously by my side, so that for every scene of early-summer beauty before me, I can capture it like the work of art it is, a still life framed forever, to share with you on The Daily Norm.

These photos are just a few from a mass I have taken while enjoying the unseasonably warm weather we have had recently in the UK, as finally we were given a break from months of rainy monotony, and gave the summer a brief chance to shine through. I hope you enjoy them.

: And one for luck: HRH Queen Elizabeth II traveling to the opening of Parliament, seen through my window from work!

: Dining en plein air at my favourite local French eatery

: Long shadows end the day on Clapham Common

: Saw these in a neighbour’s garden

: Secret garden, seen through a swirl

: Just a park, but the colours are so alive

: This place looks like a fairytale – but its in central London’s St James’ Park

: Late evening over Clapham Common

: Green grass, blue shadow, pink and lime fallen tree trunk

: Trees, bursting with blossom, a sweet scent, filling the air

: Lying in the grass, without worries on my mind

: A melody of mushrooms – Borough Market

: Geraniums and strawberries

: An inviting sun-dappled pathway in Wandsworth common

: Blood-red cala lilies, seen from above

: A stunning Stag Beetle, with a rich chestnut shell

: Evening glow on the long grasses of Clapham

: The vibrancy and variety of the humble tomato – at Borough Market

: Unfurling Fern

: Sunset over Clapham Common’s victorian bandstand

: Verdant grasslands

: I adore this jug, and even more the wine served within it

: We found these mirrored stumps in Wandsworth Common

: Never a more perfect flower

: A sun soaked stripe of green

: The bandstand at Clapham Common

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Out and about with my iPhone (normsonline.wordpress.com)

May 29

3 Comments

Never judge a Sweet William by its prickly little cover

When I walked into Marks and Spencer the other day, I stumbled upon a bucket of flowers which captivated me for their sheer ugliness. Next to all the perfectly grouped roses and the pure white long-leaved lilies, these were like little monsters, wrapped in a flower bag. It seemed peculiar that what looked like sea urchins on asparagus sticks should be marketed as flowers, but always seduced by something different, I decided to pick up a few bunches to place amongst my previously selected bunch of red roses – at least this way I could flesh out the vase and not spend so much on the roses. Once home I arranged my red roses with these strange prickly flowers between them, looking contemporary and chic with their varied prickles of deep green and pale sage, grouped in old pickle jars (minus the pickles) for an extra contemporary touch.

The next morning I came into the room and couldn’t believe my eyes – the tiny little buds grouped amidst the pulp of little prickles had exploded open into the most amazing floral show. Bursting with shades of scarlet and fuchsia, bright cadium, pale lavender and dainty white, these moss-resembling creatures had given life to the most beautiful range of flowers which now placed even the perfect red roses in the shade. And as the days have gone by, the flowers have got better and better, with groups of up to 30 little flowers opening on each spiky outcrop.

I am a man converted. The flowers, for no apparent reason but clearly with some very important although long-since forgotten historical reason, are named Sweet Williams, and I will be sure to make them a regular feature of my vases whenever they are in season. It all just goes to show, never judge a Sweet William by its prickly little cover – As the following photos will hopefully demonstrate. Enjoy.

Apr 25

7 Comments

Salamanca – My photographs

You’ve read all about my trip around beauty-suffused golden-hued Salamanca, and now I’m sharing a few of the vastly numbered photographs (around 750 in total!) which flew out of my camera in response to the sensational sights which pleasured my eyes at every turn of this aureate city. From sun drenched cloisters and intricate stone masonry, to the city’s modern day junctions and its glowing facade at sunrise, these photos are testament to my adoration and admiration for a city which inspires from every elegantly carved facet of its kaledescopic cultural, historical and aesthetic offerings.

Once you’ve indulged on the visual delights which Salamanca’s offers aplenty, come back to The Daily Norm tomorrow, when the gastronomic delights and inexorable strengths of both Madrid and Salamanca will be my focus. Until then, enjoy…

: Arches of the Plaza Mayor

: Frequently vandalised Franco

: La Casa de Las Conchas

: Detail of the Plaza Nueva’s stunning platereque facade

: Saint Sebastian, lampooned by pigeons

: Plaza Mayor – illuminated to stunning effect

: The golden glow of an early morning sunrise in Salamanca

: Astronomy globe in Salamanca’s University library

: Typical street writing of Salamanca (originally written in big’s blood and olive oil)

: Dome interior in the Catedral Nueva

: Tables to the ready – Salamanca’s Plaza Mayor

: Typical backstreet behind the University

: Salamanca’s villamayor sandstone, showing signs of erosion

: Casa de las Conchas

: The stunning facade of the Convento de San Esteban

: San Esteban himself

: Park life

: Freaky photo – me reflected in an old convent mirror

: Cloisters in the Convento de San Esteban

: Mediterranean colours

: Clock on the tower of the Catedral Nueva

: That art deco coffee

: Stunning masonry in the Convento de las Dueñas

: City style junction, but almost deserted

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2005-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Madrid – My photographs (normsonline.wordpress.com)
Madrid-Salamanca Part II: Whose Plaza Mayor is mejor? (normsonline.wordpress.com)
Madrid-Salamanca Part IV: Not so new – Art nouveau and the towers of the Catedral Nueva (normsonline.wordpress.com)
Madrid-Salamanca Part III: A frog, an astronaut, and a very cold ice cream (normsonline.wordpress.com)
Madrid-Salamanca Part I: Silk-scarf Chagall’s and perfect palmeras – Thyssen, Prado and a well-needed Retiro (normsonline.wordpress.com)

Apr 22

6 Comments

Madrid – My photographs

In a welcome intermission from the account of my epic travels from Madrid to Salamanca, I am taking the opportunity to share with all the readers of The Daily Norm a first raft of photographs from the trip, starting with Madrid. From the grandeur of the Gran Via and the Plaza Mayor, to the quotidian offerings of the bustling Mercado San Miguel, Madrid has so much offer both the visitor and the budding photographer. Stunning architectural details and daily city life combine to inspire me with my camera, and despite a short stay in the city, I’ve collected a good few pictures to show you. Enjoy!

: Frescoes in the Plaza Mayor

: Madrid’s grand Plaza Mayor

: Novelty bread in the Mercado San Miguel

: Mercado San Miguel

: Multicoloured offerings in the Mercado San Miguel

: Gardens of the Plaza de Oriente

: Fading grandeur

: Fairytale trees in the Parque del Buen Retiro

: Pleasure pond in the Retiro

: A Retiro park resident

: Plaza de Santa Ana

: The outstretched hand of Federico Garcia Lorca (statue in the Plaza de Santa Ana)

: Giant bubbles keep the children entertained

: Mercado San Miguel

: I love cracking buildings…

: You could almost miss these small elaborate architectural detailings

: Sunday morning on the Plaza Mayor

: Bold colours of the Plaza Mayor

: An accordion player delights one of many tourists in the Plaza Mayor

: Resting in the Plaza Mayor

: The Gran Via

: These stunning elephants are on the side of a magnificent bank building

: The magnificent Gran Via

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2005-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork in any form, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Madrid-Salamanca Part I: Silk-scarf Chagall’s and perfect palmeras – Thyssen, Prado and a well-needed Retiro (normsonline.wordpress.com)
Madrid-Salamanca Part II: Whose Plaza Mayor is mejor? (normsonline.wordpress.com)

Mar 23

6 Comments

Out and about with my iPhone

We live in an age of instantaneous photography. Most of us now have a mobile phone complete with camera. I’ve been used to an iPhone 3GS and the results have been ok. But with the new iPhone 4GS camera, the results I can achieve are every bit as good as the photographs I am used to taking with my pocketable Sony cybershot. The upshot of all this is that we can now capture the unexpected sights and sensations which we come across on an ordinary day. Below I am posting a few photographs which I have taken over the last few months, just off the cuff, when I saw something beautiful and unexpected. Some are iphone 3, some are iphone 4, but all of them capture something instantaneously discovered during every day life.