A real rush to get these doors out – 10 minutes between finishing work and going off to play 5-a-side football… so not much of a story here, simply some more doors from a trip to Dorset some three weeks ago.
Door, Dorchester, June 2019Door, Dorchester, June 2019Door, Dorchester, June 2019Door, Dorchester, June 2019
Sorry for rushing it, but nothing gets between me and my weekly football. Please go take a look at the Norm 2.0 blog – the originator of Thursday Doors where there are links to yet more doors in the comments section at the end.
I went to a meeting in Dorchester last week and had quite a lot of time to kill either side of the meeting and my train journeys. I have never been to the town before, so there was an obvious doorscursion opportunity, and what an appropriately named place for such a thing.
The town left me a little puzzled. Compared to Bristol it is a rather sleepy and sedate place although both share an extraordinary history and abominable post-war architecture. The most striking thing was the abundance of retirees as a proportion of the total population. Maybe this was an artifact of the time of day I was visiting, I don’t know.
Because of its Roman heritage I had imagined ancient doors all over the place, but instead there was a curious mix of old, new, weird and beautiful doors. You’ll be glad to hear there were no graffiti doors in Dorchester.
Here we go:
Dorset museum. Shame about the hoarding and door in front of the door. Dorchester, June 2019Shop door, Dorchester, June 2019Rather old and redundant? Shop door, Dorchester, June 2019Charming blue door, Dorchester, June 2019Pair of doors – I particularly like the worn step, Dorchester, June 2019This dwelling is appropriately named ‘Lilliput House’, the door was about 5ft 6 and I would have struggled to get in. Dorchester, June 2019
So there we have it for another week – there will be more from Dorchester in due course. Meanwhile why not go and check out the Norm 2.0 blog – the originator of Thursday Doors where there are links to yet more doors in the comments section at the end.
Exploring new parts of Bristol always has its rewards, and I found this piece by Andy Council completely by accident when I went on a pilgrimage to see the My Dog Sighs and Curtis Hylton collaboration up on Windmill Hill.
Andy Council, Porlock Road, Bristol, April 2019
It seems that Andy Council’s pieces are dotted all over Bristol, and after five years of writing posts like this one, I still have several more to find. The reason that his work is so dispersed is that he does a lot of private commissions and so he is not confined to the few ‘legal’ spots in Bristol to show off his fabulous work.
Andy Council, Porlock Road, Bristol, April 2019
This splendid peacock is a great example of Andy Council at his very best in which the whole creation is made up of buildings typical of the area in Bristol. The blue colour scheme suits this piece and the wall superbly. A great find, and good to know that there are still these hidden gems all over the place.
Flaine is a very high ski resort in the French Alps conceived in 1960 and completed in 1969. The brutalist style of concrete apartment blocks sets up a synergy or contrast with the Alpine landscape, depending on your point of view. An excellent essay on the development of Flaine by Alastair Philip Wiper can be found here and is worth a read if you are interested in architecture.
So my photographs are perhaps not what you’d expect from a skiing trip in the Alps… sorry. There are however doors, you get them everywhere, perhaps just not so quaint.
Enjoy if you can…
Double doors, funicular railway, Flaine, France, March 2019Ordinary door, Flaine, France, March 2019Door, Flaine, France, March 2019Mountain hut – what is it with the petrol? Flaine, March 2019Piste basher door, Flaine, France, March 2019Piste basher door, Flaine, France, March 2019
So there it is. Flaine doors (part one).
Access to more superb doors can be found at the inspired Norm 2.0 blog (check out the comments section for links)
I’m not sure how often Andy Council participates in paint jams (I can’t recall any recent occasions) but he certainly joined in the spirit of this one down on the M32 roundabout between St Agnes and Easton.
Andy Council, M32 Roundabout, Bristol, November 2018
Andy Council is well-known for creating pictures of animals or birds that are composed of natural of built features. He has excelled himself with this beautiful duck-billed platypus swimming through a watery scene. This is a wall that just keeps on giving and will continue to do so until its next makeover and then its next.
This is the second instalment of doors from Citta di Castello in Umbria and a nice reminder for me of our recent summer break – I must try to hang on to that holiday feeling for as long as possible to see me through the winter. Some nice ones here, I hope you enjoy them.
OK, so it’s a window pretending to be a door, Citta di Castello, Umbria, ItalyGraffiti and tags door, Citta di Castello, Umbria, ItalyDoor with plenty of character, Citta di Castello, Umbria, ItalyDouble door, Citta di Castello, Umbria, ItalyDouble door, Citta di Castello, Umbria, ItalyMain door of the Cathedral of St Florido and Amanzio, Citta di Castello, Umbria, Italy
This week I offer you another little gallery of doors from a recent trip to Umbria Italy. This set of doors are from a small hilltop town called Monte Santa Maria Tiberina, nestled between Arezzo to the west and Citta di Castello to the east.
We used to visit this area quite frequently in the 1980s and 1990s and I recall the town forever playing host to a couple of large cranes. These were lovingly (and slowly) restoring the whole town and some of its buildings. The cranes have gone now, thank goodness.
Some doors are the originals, but you might notice that the feature image, for example, is a faithful reproduction. I love the way this little town has retained its heritage without giving in to the trappings of modern urbanisation (apart from the rather unnecessarily ugly interpretation board below).
Door, Palazzo Marchesi Bourbon del Monte, Monte Santa Maria Tiberina, Umbria, August 2018Door, Monte Santa Maria Tiberina, Umbria, August 2018Door, Monte Santa Maria Tiberina, Umbria, August 2018Door, Monte Santa Maria Tiberina, Umbria, August 2018
What a fine addition to the main drag of North Street from Andy Council. A fresh piece, which I hope will remain for Upfest 2018 from one of the most identifiable Bristol street artists. I understand the artist whose work previously occupied this spot was not overjoyed, but I think I know whose work I’d rather see.
Andy Council, King William Street, Bristol, June 2018
This piece is similar in shape and size to one of his that I posted a few weeks ago on West Street. The subject is of a dinosaur although I’m not exactly sure which one – it looks like one of the ones with a bird-like tail. Typical of his work, we see the whole creation is composed of architectural building blocks and common with Andy Council’s pieces, there is the inclusion of the Clifton suspension bridge. The red billowing smoke adds movement to the whole piece. More fine work from Andy.
Andy Council, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2023Andy Council, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2023Andy Council, East Street, Bristol, August 2023Andy Council, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023Andy Council, Weston-super-Mare, May 2023Acer One and Andy Council, Chatterton Square, Bristol, December 2023Acer One and Andy Council, Temple Way, Bristol, December 2022Acer One and Andy Council, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2022Andy Council, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2022Acer One and Andy Council, Chatterton Square, Bristol, September 2022Andy Council, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2022Andy Council, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2022Andy Council, Brunel Way, Bristol, July 2022Andy Council, Brunel Way, Bristol, July 2022Andy Council, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2022Andy Council, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2022Andy Council, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2022Andy Council, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, June 2022Andy Council, Waterloo Street, Bristol, April 2022Andy Council and Paul Monsters, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022Andy Council, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2022Andy Council, Garnet Street, Bristol, July 2021Andy Council, Garnet Street, Bristol, July 2021Andy Council, Chessel Street, Bristol, July 2021Andy Council and Acer One, South Road, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 21Andy Council and Acer One, South Road, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 21Andy Council and Acer One, South Road, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 21Andy Council, Soker and Paul Monsters, Waterloo Place, Bristol, June 2021Andy Council, Soker and Paul Monsters, Waterloo Place, Bristol, June 2021Andy Council, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2021Acer One and Andy Council, Chatterton Square, Bristol, April 2021Andy Council, St Werburghs, Bristol February b2021Andy Council and Soker, North Street, Bristol, July 2020Andy Council, North Street, Bristol, July 2020Andy Council, North Street, Bristol, July 2020Andy Council, Avonvale Road, Bristol, February 2020Andy Council, Avonvale Road, Bristol, February 2020Andy Council, Gloucester Road CoLAB, Bristol, FebruaryAndy Council, Sevier Street, Bristol, July 2019Andy Council, North Street, Bristol, June 2019Andy Council, North Street, Bristol, June 2019Andy Council, Porlock Road, Bristol, April 2019Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018Andy Council, M32 Roundabout, Bristol, November 2018Andy Council, King William Street, Bristol, June 2018Andy Council, West Street, Bristol, April 2018Andy Council, Newfoundland Street, Bristol, March 2018Andy Council, North Street Green, Bristol, February 2018Andy Council, Chalk Farm Estate, London, November 2017Andy Council and Hemp, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2017Andy Council, Chalks Road, Bristol, July 2017Andy Council, Bedminster, Bristol, July 2017Andy Council, Bedminster, Bristol, July 2017Andy Council, Greville Road, Bristol, April 2017Andy Council, Stapleton Road, Bristol, January 2017Andy Council, North Street Green, Bristol, February 2017Andy Council, North Street, Bristol, January 2017Andy Council, West Street, Bristol, September 2016Andy Council, Nelson Street, Bristol, October 2015Andy Council, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2016Andy Council, Hotwell Road, Bristol, August 2015Andy Council, Hurle Road, Bristol
Back to Barcelona again (a rich source of doorage) and a little look at a couple of the enormous appartment doors that can be found in the more affluent commercial areas of the city. This door was sandwiched between two rather exclusive shops, and was typical of the rather imposing entrances in the area. I particularly liked it because of its Tolkeinesque design – elves live here.
However, this door is not the main event of this post. Much of the attraction I have for doors is imagining what lies on the other side – does the door provide any insight or is it a barrier to discovery?
One of these large doors happened to be open when my daughter and I strolled past, and oh my! what an incredible lobby area lay on the other side. I was utterly overwhelmed by the decoration and detail to this entry way.
Beyond the Barcelona door, Thursday doors
So we stepped closer to get a better look…
Beyond the Barcelona door, Thursday doors
From the ceiling to the floor, this lobby oozes class. Stunning ornate plasterwork on the ceiling draws you in past the beautiful tiled walls and marble steps. and on either side of the steps metalwork rails (which appear to have no purpose other than decoration) lead you a second interior set of doors.
Doors beyond the Barcelona door, Thursday doors
The beautiful inner set of doors are worthy of a Thursday doors post in their own right, and the crazy lampshade seems to be utterly at home in this visual feast. Now I don’t know if this is typical of Barcelona appartments, but I think it is amazing that so much effort has gone into something that will be seen by so few people. This is a city that seems to be proud of putting on displays, and for the visitor it is awe inspiring.
Natural adventures 