Urban | The Daily Norm

Mar 23

Solidarity for London

22.3.17 – just another number to add to a growing series of dates which mark terrorist atrocities. The trend begun with 9.11, and those images so ghastly that none of us could believe our eyes. The dates which have followed each add a further horror to this incredible trend of evil, senseless murder in countries known for their civility. Today, London was hit again, and we must once again reflect how unsafe we really are; how, owing to the despicable ignorance of an unconscionable few, we must live life on a knife edge, gambling with our existence when we simply walk over a bridge, or take the tube in the mornings.

Yet we British are famous for our resolve. The show will go on – how could it be otherwise. But that does not mean that we should indulge too far in the English “stiff upper lip”. This is a time to reflect and show emotion. To be shocked and to react. To fight against terror and stand up for our free-thinking democratic society. There is always a bastard in every group of innocents.We must just do everything we can to stop them in their tracks.

So doing my bit for London solidarity, I´m posting a few of my recent shots of London, taken on the go. Their desaturated, grey tonality is beautiful, but also rather appropriate for this sombre day. But while London is today shrouded in the black of mourning, its soul is deeply, strongly, diversely coloured. Centre of the world, standing stronger whatever the adversity.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2017. 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. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacybrown.com

Aug 24

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Ocho Balcones (No.2): Cables in the Calle

Another week has begun, time continues to traverse its fleeting path through the year, and it’s time for me to present this week’s second addition to my new Ocho Balcones collection: a series of small gouache paintings illustrating the views which I am lucky enough to enjoy from the 8 balconies of my Palma de Mallorca flat.

Today’s view is has a much more narrow field of vision than the first. The balcony from which the aspect is seen is not even in view. Instead, the painting focuses in on a particular aspect of this view from our dining table, namely the electricity (or are they telephone?) cables which are so characteristic of the old town of Palma, and which hang directly outside our apartment.

Ocho Balcones No. 2: Cables in the Calle (2015 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, gouache on paper)

From the first day we moved into this flat last autumn, I have been fascinated by these cables which hang at the same level as our apartment, and which provide a divertingly original aspect to an otherwise colourful view of pastel houses and the typical Mallorquin green shutters. Enveloped in some kind of striped cloth, they almost look like a complex form of flag pole suspended midair over the street. In reality I have no idea what the cables are for, nor what function the striped material has. I only know that I love to look at these structures each day, and thoroughly enjoyed capturing them in this second sunny scene from my new gouache collection.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown 2000-2015. Unauthorised use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included on this website without express and written permission from Nicholas de Lacy-Brown is strictly prohibited. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Aug 19

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Musings on Málaga: Southernmost City

The beautiful city of Malaga in Southern Spain is not only the 6th largest city in Spain, but also the southernmost large city in Europe. Located alongside the sparkling Mediterranean sea just south of the sun-roasted mountain plains of Andalucia, Malaga is an ancient city whose streets, style and very essence seem to reflect the baking heat of this most southern of European suns. And while its beating heart may run volcanically hot, the city has recently shown itself to be a hot pick for visitors too, boasting some of the best historical sights and cultural highlights in all of Spain.

Its ancient historical centre is crowned by a magnificent cathedral, unique thanks to its unfinished second tower which has led the monument to become known as “the one-armed lady”. Its eastern hills are topped by the even older Castle of Gibralfaro and the Alcazaba fortress, a potent reminder of the region’s moorish heritage, heavily reminiscent of similar treasures in nearby Granada and Seville. Its newly renovated port and seaside front-line is fringed by stunning botanical gardens which sway gently alongside baroque palaces. And amongst its fantastic collection of impressive museums, the city can count the Picasso Museum, the Carmen Thyssen Museum, the new Russian Museum, the CAC Málaga Contemporary Art Museum and the recently opened Pompidou Centre Málaga amongst its collection.

it was largely because of the opening of this new branch of Paris’ Pompidou Centre that I strayed back to Malaga this month as part of my annual trip to my family home in Marbella, the smaller seaside town nestling on Malaga’s infamous Costa del Sol. Not only was I desperate to see the new Pompidou, but equally attracted by a temporary exhibition of Louise Bourgeois at the Picasso Museum and an exhibition of Summer-inspired works at the Thyssen. While I could easily fill this post with my reactions from those shows, I decided instead to be more visual in expressing my Malaga experience by sharing a few of the photos I took in the city. There aren’t many mind you… we were there only 24 hours after all, much of which was spent within art galleries. But I think this little collection pretty much sums up the heat, the colour and the spirit of this southernmost city.

Aug 14

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Discovering Mallorca: Palma’s secret city

Regular readers of The Daily Norm will remember that I am utterly captivated by the charms of a cemetery. It’s not a morbid fascination – far from it. For me, cemeteries are amongst the most beautiful and thought-provoking places you can visit. Somewhere to escape the noise of life, to reflect on the emotional strength of people’s devotion to their families, and to admire some of the most startling sculptures you are likely to see in a small compact space. I have been to many cemeteries in my time, not least here in Spain where the mix of sunshine strained through shady cypress trees is particularly poetic. But if the cemeteries I have seen here before were works of poetry, the municipal cemetery in Palma de Mallorca was nothing short of a masterpiece of theatre.

Located close to the outer ring road, the cemetery is not exactly walkable from the centre of town, and as a result, it was not until now, with a hire care at our disposal, that we were able to pass by. But this cemetery was worth the wait. Never in all my life have I ever seen such a vast collection of intricately crafted, magnificently devotional sculpture and stunning architecture in such a compact space. The cemetery is probably the biggest I have ever been in, but it is also amongst the most crowded, and row after row and row after row of tombstones are loaded not with simple flat graves, but elegantly and theatrically decorated with stone crosses, angels and other elaborate sculptures so that the result is a veritable forest of ancient stone.

And most magnificently of all are the series of lavish little side chapels which line the perimeters of the cemetery. Utterly elaborate, constructed in a number of styles from baroque to classical and even 20th century modernist, this collection of buildings looks like an ancient empire, resembling the kind of spectacle which may have been found when entering a roman forum lined with temples.

But that was not all. For beneath ground level, a secret staircase led down into what was probably the most spectacular aspect of the whole cemetery – a vast double horseshoe-shaped catacomb itself lined with tombs from floor to ceiling, flooded with light from holes in the ceiling, and slowly sprinkled with dust gently falling in the rays of sunshine. It was like something from Indiana Jones, and with road names engraved in latin we felt like we have been catapulted centuries back to an ancient civilisation.

It was only when we emerged back into the heat of the Mallorca day, the sounds of the nearby ring-road resounding nearby, that we realised we had just found Palma’s secret city.

All photos and written content are strictly the copyright of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown © 2015 and The Daily Norm. All rights are reserved. 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.

Jul 27

The Honeymoon Chronicles, Part IX: Barcelona

The Honeymoon Chronicles have been long and mighty: 4 weeks of photographic reportage of an 8 day holiday which could so easily have gone on for longer, before the blissful bubble of our own private paradise was burst by the onset of reality. Nonetheless, we were given a small opportunity to extend our trip just a little longer, when the necessary flight change from Nice to Mallorca presented us with the idea to stay two more nights in the place of that change: Barcelona.

Barcelona is not new to either of us, but it remains one of our favourite of all cities. Exhibiting all of the modernist charm and coastal advantages of Palma de Mallorca, coupled with the cosmopolitan buzz of London, Barcelona is for me probably the most perfect city in the world, and certainly in Europe. And while our time there this time was short, it gave us ample opportunity to stroll the iconic streets of the gothic and Eixample districts, to attend the controversial Beasts and Sovereign exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary art, and to seek out the shade in the roasting sun of the beach.

The photo collection which follows is something of a miscellany, with shots taken from our perambulations and from the highlights of our visit: the assault of multi-coloured produce at Santa Catalina Market; the elegant facades of the Plaça Reial and the gothic quarter; the magical atmosphere which diffused the Plaça de Sant Felip Neri; and the modernist brilliance of the Exiample. A small selection of photos offering just a hint of the many fantastical faces of one of my favourite cities, and the perfect ending to our honeymoon.

All photos and written content are strictly the copyright of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown ©2015 and The Daily Norm. All rights are reserved. 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.

Jan 30

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Natale Italiano | Naples – Photography Focus: Grime beneath the Gloss

Walking through the elegant marble floored glass and steel shopping arcade of the Galleria Umberto I, past the sweeping facade of the Palazzo Reale or along the hotel-lined coastal path , you’d be excused for thinking that Naples is a city as extravagantly wealthy and elegant as Vienna or London or Paris. But Naples is a tale of two cities; a metropolis of two very irreconcilable extremes of wealth and poverty.

And you don’t need to wander far from the Mediterranean facade to encounter the results of this cultural conflict. Tour guides are careful in warning tourists away from the tightly packed Quartieri Spagnoli district which sits bang in the centre of Naples, but is neverthelss renowned for cramped living conditions, narrow hilly streets and the poverty of its residents. Strung with laundry and dense with local shops and businesses, the area is among the most characterful of the city; but pretty scary, especially after dusk. Meanwhile, even in the areas where tourism is encouraged and the masterpieces of the city are to be found in their multitudes such as the Spaccanapoli and the Decumano Maggiore, the streets and shops and doorways and houses are covered from head to toe with layer upon layer of ugly graffiti, while further up the facades, the distinct evidence of decay, even on the most palatial of residences, is plain to be seen.

But beyond the extremes of rich versus poor, which has no doubt contributed to the miserable living conditions in which many Neapolitans live, Naples appears to be a city which has given up on itself, and lost control of its appearance, and perhaps also its pride. For me it felt like an instance in my own home – when a few things need cleaning up, I’m keen to do the job and have my home sparkling again. But when the dirt and mess mounts up, my energy fails me, and the situation only becomes worse as an inertia takes over any enthusiasm to clean up the mess. In Naples, the same kind of inertia appears to have crept in a long time ago. And it’s a shame – a real shame. For looking upwards in all of the areas mentioned above, you can see palaces and churches which more than rival the architectural gems of the cities further North in Italy, and yet those same beautiful buildings have been gradually covered in graffiti; their pavements covered with rubbish spilling from the bins; and the distinct smell of urine left to stagnate against their walls.

Even in the sunshine (when let’s face it, everywhere looks better), you cannot help but notice these defects which are gradually turning Naples into the kind of dump it does not deserve to be. I’m not sure what the answer is – after all, where would you begin in the mammoth clean-up operation required by this city? But I really hope that one day soon, the Italian government, if not the Naples one, sits up and recognises that in Naples’ decline, they are losing a real, historically important, artistically significant treasure.

All photos and written content are strictly the copyright of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown © 2014 and The Daily Norm. All rights are reserved. 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.

Dec 10

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Paris | Photography Focus – Rues and Rooftops

There’s no denying that Paris exudes charm around every corner, in every cobbled street (or rue), across its extensive grant Haussmann boulevards and in the intricate details of its architecture. And of course, on my recent visit to Paris I was moved to capture, as I have done so many times before, all of those beautiful little details. For no matter how many times you visit Paris, it is still abundantly generous in providing picture after picture of incredible angles and tantalising sights. I suppose in a way it’s akin to my daily walk to work through the grand streets of Westminster – where even on my 600th journey I might find a new architectural detail to tempt my camera into action.

But I would be lying if I said that Paris’ charm resides exclusively in its streets. For one of the defining sights of Paris for me, and the one which makes me gasp more than any other, is the city viewed from the rooftops. Whether it be from atop the Tour Eiffel, at the climax of the external escalator of the Centre Pompidou, up the spiral stone staircase of the Notre Dame, or at the summit of the romantic Butte de Montmartre, the view of Paris’ almost uniform tapestry of silver slate roofs punctuated by the gilded domes and gargoyle-covered spires of its monuments and churches is always breathtaking. On this trip, we were therefore especially lucky to be given a room in our fantastic Citadines hotel which boasted superb views not only over the Palais Royal immediately adjacent to the hotel, but also across the 3rd and 4th arrondissements towards the Notre Dame and beyond.

So in this third set of photos from my recent Paris trip, a collection which focuses on the architectural details which characterise Paris, do not be surprised to find a whole host of different roof-top shots; under grey skies and pink, close up and far away, but always, distinctively, Parisian.

Paris | Photography Focus – Les Jardins et les chaises (daily-norm.com)
Paris | Photography Focus – The city by night (daily-norm.com)

Sep 12

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A weekend in Kraków | Photography Focus 1 – Urban details

As regulars of The Daily Norm will know, when I visit a new country, and all the more so when I visit a city, my eyes are alive taking in all of the brilliant details which so often cluster abundantly, ripe for the picking, before me. I love photographing the places I visit, and not just the postcard views or the tourist hot-points where visitors gather for poses. Rather, in my photographic contemplation of a newly discovered urban space, my eye looks for all of the little details; often the ones which many a superficial glance may miss, or dismiss as ugly or unimportant. As my adventures in Lisbon demonstrated last Autumn, I love nothing more than a city which exudes character not through glossy renovations, but rather through tired dilapidation, through cracking walls which ooze history; through the empty bottle telling a half tale of the drinker who abandoned it on a windowsill; through the electricity wires which hang haphazardly across a street, feeding electric life into the many households around them.

For sure, Kraków simply dazzled with its array of picture-perfect charm-filled streets, with its gleaming gold domes and impressively baroque copper cupolas – and my many photos exploring those gems are still to come. But there’s another half of Kraków too, away from the tourist heart; the city which tells of its residents and its more recent past, which exudes something of the hard-edged spirit of a city which has fought through invasion and suppression to remain a centre of enlightenment and education, and which simply charms through the sheer character of its dilapidation.

These are my photos which focus on those urban details which can so often be missed. I hope you enjoy them.

All photos and written content are strictly the copyright of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown © 2013 and The Daily Norm. All rights are reserved. 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.

A weekend in Kraków | Day 1 – Jewellery box city (daily-norm.com)
A Weekend in Kraków | Mariacki Sunrise (daily-norm.com)
A weekend in Kraków | Day 2 – Kings, Communists and the Kazimierz Ghetto (daily-norm.com)

Jul 5

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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.