Lions and photographers

This is the lion called Peace, one of four outside the Victoria Hall in Saltaire. (For more info about the lions and pictures of all four, click here.)  The photo would be improved by using a camera that would blur the background a bit, but mine (not a DSLR) doesn't, apart from in very specific lighting conditions.  However, I'm using it to illustrate an interesting little story....

I was coming home from work last Tuesday evening, and the daylight was beginning to fade.  As I walked up Victoria Road, I kept seeing flashes of light, and as I got nearer I realised it was a photographer taking pictures of one of the stone lions.  Not just any old photographer... you could tell this one was a Pro, kitted out with a stepladder and two assistants, one holding aloft an umbrella reflector.  I was mildly interested - but, living in a World Heritage Site, you do get used to seeing folks with big cameras.  Frankly, I was tired and in a grumpy mood as well (!) so, although I vaguely considered going and having a closer look and maybe even chatting to and photographing the photographer, I decided that - all things considered - I couldn't be bothered.

I was interested to see, the very next day, via Google Alerts for Saltaire, a whole new set of 31 photos of Saltaire on the Web (including, of course, the lion - War).  The photographer was Christopher Furlong, Senior Staff Photographer, Getty Images Europe.  It is always interesting to me to see other photographers' interpretations of Saltaire: what catches their eye, how they view the scene, how they tell the story of the village.  There are some evocative photos within this set.  Have a look and tell me what you think....

Heritage Trail 19 - Victoria Hall

Back on our virtual walk round the World Heritage Site of Saltaire, walking down Victoria Road:
'You will soon reach two of the finest buildings in Saltaire - the School on the left and the Institute on the right'   I have shown several photos of The Saltaire Club and Institute, now known as the Victoria Hall, on my blog before - click the 'Victoria Hall' label for other views.  It's a solid building, but beautiful in its own way, being pleasingly symmetrical and with some attractive stonework.  It was designed by Saltaire's architects, Lockwood and Mawson, commissioned by Sir Titus Salt to provide a social club and educational institute for adults.  When it opened in 1871, it had amazing facilities including a library, laboratory, billiard room, lecture halls, a gym and a rifle drill room (used by the 39th West Riding Rifle Volunteers).  Even today it continues to be a well-used local facility (though karate has replaced rifle drill!)

The post box, one of two in Saltaire, has a plain GR cipher which relates to King George V (reigned 1910-1936).  Apparently he chose not to have the V included in the cipher.  The box is very tatty and could do with a coat of paint!

[No 6 on street plan]

Towering majesty

This was taken in Saltaire a week or two ago, and the trees are showing more autumn colour since then.  I was enjoying the effect that a telephoto lens has in pulling things together so that everything looks connected.  Saltaire's Victoria Hall tower isn't really as close to those houses as it looks here.  But I like the combination of shapes.

(If you're new to my blog or haven't visited for a few days, please look back to Saturday's post - I need your votes!)

Lady in red

The annual Saltaire Festival offers a rich variety of things to see and do. I had a hugely enjoyable evening on Friday at the Fashion Show Spectacular in the Victoria Hall. Arranged by The House of Rose and Brown, the vintage boutique in Saltaire, it featured 25 models showing a gorgeous array of vintage clothes - from the 1920s to the 1980s (eek, I still have some of those in my own wardrobe!). Lingerie, day dresses, tailored costumes, evening wear, beautiful couture outfits and cheeky 1960s mini dresses were modelled with great style by the local girls - none of them professional models, as far as I know, but you might not have guessed.

By the time I'd downed my amaretto cocktail (mmm!) and dealt with the tricky lighting and fast moving action, I only managed blurred photos - but in the case of the lady in red shown above, I think the blur doesn't matter too much. In fact, I shouldn't have mentioned it and you might think I'd made it soft focus on purpose! The model is Amy and she was wearing "a 1950s scarlet taffeta strapless ballgown with padded hips". (Oh, to need padded hips....!)

The clothes modelled, and others too, were all on sale along with accessories and jewellery. A veritable treasure trove and a wonderful evening.

Saltaire Festival 2010

Back in Saltaire just in time for this year's Saltaire Festival. The sun shone (well, in between the rain showers anyway!) and the Festival kicked off with much colour and music. These dancers, in front of the Victoria Hall, Saltaire, are our local team of Morris Dancers - Rainbow Morris. (So local in fact that my closest colleague at work is one of the team). They were joined this year by Clogarhythm, a team of dancers from Harrogate.

It was interesting to see the huge difference in the dances of the two traditions. Rainbow Morris dance in the North-West tradition, their dances originating in towns and villages in the north-west of England. They dance to music, with much weaving, swirling and making patterns. They wave sticks (they use bobbins from Salts Mill), hankies and sometimes garlands. (See video). Clogarhythm's dances are from Lancashire and the north-east - clog step or 'heel and toe' dancing, a bit more like tap-dancing. It reminded me of Irish dancing (not surprisingly, as the dances originated in the cotton mills and there were many Irish immigrants in those mills). The dances are mostly danced in line, arms by their sides with lots of intricate footwork (see video). Their clogs are different too, designed to clatter out a rhythm on the ground, emulating the sounds of the machinery in the cotton mills.

I find it all quite fascinating and I'm so glad people are working hard to keep these traditions alive. It's a fun way to keep fit too (and you have to be fit!). I once tried it ... but found I have no sense of ryhthm at all.

Entrance, Victoria Hall

A bright, sunny day shows off the front entrance to Saltaire's Victoria Hall at its best. The Victoria Hall is one of the most important public buildings in Saltaire village. Completed in June 1871, it was originally known as the Saltaire Club and Institute, designed to be a social club and an educational facility at the heart of Sir Titus Salt's model village. It is still well-used by the local community for concerts, exhibitions, craft fairs and sales, weddings and all sorts of meetings and evening classes.
Click the tag 'Victoria Hall' below to see more photos of the building.

Evening sun

Saltaire's Victoria Hall, formerly known as The Saltaire Club and Institute (see also my post of 8 July 2009) catches the evening sun quite beautifully.

The Institute was opened in 1871, as Sir Titus Salt wished to provide a social club and educational facility for the residents of his village of Saltaire (most of whom worked for him in Salts Mill). Like other buildings in the village, it was designed by the architects Lockwood and Mawson, in the Italianate style that was popular at the time. It is still used for the benefit of the local community - for meetings, evening classes, concerts, weddings, vintage and craft sales and all manner of other activities.

Click on the 'Victoria Hall' tag below to see other related pictures.

BBC Antiques Roadshow in Saltaire

(Click the pic to make it bigger)
The BBC Antiques Roadshow came to Saltaire's Victoria Hall on Thursday, causing great excitement and long queues of people, clutching all manner of boxes and bags containing their treasures. The Roadshow has been running for 33 years on BBC TV and has become a much-loved treasure in itself. The format is that members of the public bring their family heirlooms to be appraised and valued by antiques experts, with the hope that every so often some real 'find' is unearthed or somebody realises they're richer than they thought. The programme is hosted now by the popular Fiona Bruce, and many of the experts have become household names through their appearances on the show.

As always, your intrepid reporter jennyfreckles was on the spot to record the event (with grateful thanks to Pamela and Julie for providing me with a pass that meant I didn't have to join the queue.) It was a fascinating day, and opened my eyes to the amount of work needed to arrange and record the programme - there were staff and stewards everywhere. What you'd describe as organised chaos!

Images from top left, clockwise: a fraction of the queue to get into Victoria Hall; ceramics expert Lars Tharp casts an experienced eye over a piece of a dinner service used by Titus Salt Jnr at Milner Field; Fiona Bruce discusses teddy bears with a young collector; Hilary Kay gets enthusiastic about a carriage; 'sshh' says the sound man; make-up; George Archdale (I think) values a poster - and in the centre, one of the big trucks parked beside the Victoria Hall.

For a different view of the event, the Telegraph & Argus local paper has some articles and video.

Vintage Fair

"The House of Rose & Brown" on Victoria Road in Saltaire is an absolute treasure trove of vintage clothing, jewellery and articles for the home. Every now and again they hold a Vintage Fair in the Victoria Hall. I've never been to one before, but I had a wander round last weekend and was amazed by the vast array of interesting things on display. I was tempted to give a good home to the teddy bear. In the end I bought myself a beautiful silk scarf for £4 - I have a very similar one in different colours that was a gift and cost at least six times that! So if you have an eye for a bargain or want something different, this is the place to go. (Lili, you'd like this!)

As well as clothing, there were some stalls selling lovely things for the home: crockery, lampshades, quirky vintage radios, kitchen paraphernalia, fabrics, cushions and all manner of patchwork and lacy things. Some of the vendors were selling articles hand-made from recycled fabric and buttons. I spotted some gorgeous cushion covers beautifully made from old sweaters, and artfully trimmed with lace and buttons. Each had an attractive label with a photo of the original sweater it was made from, which I thought was a nice touch.

Almost as interesting as the stalls were the people looking round, some in the most creative of outfits, lovingly and stylishly put together from the fruits of their previous vintage trawls. There were some wonderful hats too! There's something about vintage that chimes in with the times - recycling, good stewardship and honouring our collective history - and it's a venture that fits very well within the spirit of Saltaire. The only slightly upsetting thing is that I'm getting old enough to remember when some of those things were new and groovy!

[NB: The shop is currently closed for a refit, reopening in April , but they have an online boutique too.]

Female face

Last year I posted a photograph of one of the carved stone faces that decorate the front of Saltaire's Victoria Hall. That was a god-like male figure; here is a female face. There are more than a dozen carvings above the windows along the front and sides - all different. I often wonder if they were modelled on real people and, if so, who this lady is.

Victoria Hall, framed

I need a weekend of decent weather so that I can replenish my stock of photos. I am now picking out some that I took last year - when the trees had leaves and the sun shone! This is another view of the Saltaire Club and Institute, now known as the Victoria Hall. It's one of the most important public buildings in Saltaire, built by Titus Salt to provide a social club and educational facility for his workers and tenants. Finished in June 1871, it was designed by Saltaire's architects Lockwood and Mawson in the same Italianate style as the rest of the major buildings. It was built by John Barry of Scarborough at a cost of £18,366. I think it's a most attractive and imposing building. It still provides a lively focal point for the village, hosting meetings, groups and regular events of all kinds.
(I hear that the BBC's Antiques Roadshow will be filmed here in April - so dig out those family treasures. You may be sitting on a fortune!).