York Hall Baths

A favourite Saturday afternoon haunt in 1980s. 

Sadly all changed - basic but characterful municipal facility now a would be trendy treatment spa. 

MASP Poussin

Such a wonderful surprise to find this massive painting by Poussin in Sao Paolo. 

Museum of Classical Archeology, Camvridge

This museum of classical casts is such a wonderful collection.

Full scale replicas of many of the great artistic achievements of antiquity but always quiet and a great place to draw. 

New Fran's in SP

A new look to Fran's in Rua Haddock Lobo but thankfully food and staff quality are the same. Suppose the Starbuck's next door demanded that they spruce up a bit. Still my favourite cafe there. 

 

Highgate Men's Pond

Saturday at the Ponds. Hard to think this was a regular summer haunt for Josh and me. Seems to have hardly changed in those 25 years except for the ticket machine.

Russell Sq

Another day another park. Slight breeze shaking dust from the trees..

Tavistock Gardens

The small parks in central London are really wonderful. Particularly like Tavistock Sq and Russell Sq gardens on a sunny afternoon.

Spitfire

Went to see the opening night of Mathew Bourne's Early Adventures at Sadlers Well. Wonderful performance which brought back memories of seeing Spitfire when it was first performed and a long bus trek from Brixton to see our friend Keith Brazil dance in it.

Location:Sadlers Wells

Contrition in the grass

Just realised how long it has been since I last posted. I stumbled on this today. I love the title and the skin tones. Wish I could get shadow to work like this.

Also a beautiful nude after this morning at the Lucian Freud Portraits exhibition at the NPG. Those were painful to look at - so brutal and unforgiving.

Antinous Stele

Images of Antinous, the Roman Emperor Hadrian's lover who drowned in the Nile, are well known. I like this Stele found in the ruins of Antinopolis, the city Hadrian built in memory of Antinous. It is now in a Berlin museum. It isn't one of the beautiful cultic statues most people have in mind when they think of Antinous and the religion Hadrian created when he deified Antinous as an incarnation of Osiris. It shows a much more primitive image confusing of the cult of Antinous and Christianity.

The nude figure holds a cross in one hand and the grapes of Dionysus in the other.

The cult of Antinous was criticised and mocked by early Christian writers an indication perhaps of the threat its popularity posed to the early church - both religions focus on death and resurrection. Images of Antinous were popular until pagan symbols were prohibited by Emperor Theodosius in AD 391.

Location:Antinopolis/Berlin