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Posts Tagged ‘urban’


Palazzo della Civilta Italiana, EUR, Rome : photographed August 26th 2012

The EUR district of Rome is often overlooked by most tourists, which is probably just as well, since this crumbling collection of monolithic concrete buildings are slowly decaying and apparently empty, testament to the insanely grandiose designs of Mussolini who created them in the 1930′s. The whole mad experiment is redeemed, however, by the wonderful Palazzo della Civilta Italiana, an imposing cubist makeover of the colosseum. I was there on a stormy day, but got lucky when a ray of sunlight illuminated the edifice against a backdrop of threatening clouds.

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“Colours of Tokyo” : 20th March 2012

One way of overcoming urban ugliness is to get out some vivid paint and splash it all over the walls in the hope that it will somehow hide the myriad pipes, wires and meters stuck there. You can also go the extra mile and add a dog statue, too ;-)

In the back streets of Harajuku, Tokyo…

Click on the image to be magically transported to a larger version.

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“Tokyo Tower” : 19th March 2012

The view from reclaimed Odaiba back into the heart of Tokyo with the old iconic tower bisected by the new bridge across the bay…

You should really look at the larger version of this photograph on display here.

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“Tokyo Skylight” : Tokyo, 16th March 2012

It always pays to look up once in a while – otherwise you might be missing out on some fabulous views…

See a larger version of this photo here.

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“Lego Monolith” : Tokyo, 16th March 2012

OK, so I know this particular skyscraper isn’t really made of lego, but it just looks so blocky and ugly that it is suggestive of that.

Whatever it’s made of, it’s impressive in its dimensions and stark commanding appearance. No beauty, but you are in certainly in awe of it.

I can’t quite remember where this was in Tokyo, but an ultra wide angle lens tends to make many buildings a bit more sinister, almost as if they’re leaning over you…

Click here for a larger version.

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“Porto Afternoon” : Porto, 10th September 2011

The clouds and rain having withdrawn, I was granted a couple of hours in the late afternoon to get out and record the last parts of Porto I hadn’t yet photographed.

Here, with my back to the river, I could survey the entire town between the two large church spires on the horizon.

Right at my feet were a charming row of tiled Portuguese houses, a little worn at the edges, and home to some colourful characters, with the dying sunlight striking the most attractive building…

Not a perfect composition by any means, and none too revolutionary, but I’m very pleased with how it turned out.

You can see a larger version of this photo here.

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“Green Girders” : Tokyo, 16th March 2012

Somewhere in central Tokyo, between Ginza and the central station area, and I was slightly lost, trying to make my way to the Imperial Palace gardens when I just happened to look up as I walked beneath a flyover. What beauty to behold in both the lines and the interesting two-tone scheme the local authorities had decided to paint the thing in. Why green? Well, perhaps it was an unconscious attempt to in some tiny way make up for the ubiquitous concrete grey so much in evidence throughout the city…

You can see a larger version of this photo here. And you should!

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“Dead House” : Porto, 10th September 2011

Sad to say, but from what I saw, there are many abandoned buildings like this one all over the urban areas of Portugal. Some, as we have seen, have been transformed into interesting and cheerful street art, but this forlorn shell in the centre of Porto has had no such treatment.

Despite this, however, the building retains a certain proud grandeur and is resplendent in its gorgeous facade of green tiles (it is a feature of traditional Portuguese architecture to have a tiled frontage, though more often than not this is blue or patterned rather than green).

I hope the money can be found to rescue this once grand residence before it crumbles into dust…

You can see a larger version of this photo here.

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“Urban Carapace” : Hamamatsucho, Tokyo, 16th March 2012

Just back from a week-long trip to Tokyo where I immersed myself in photographing the urban architecture of this great metropolis.

It was a great trip – I saw a lot of new stuff, despite having been there many times before, and now I’m home again with about 800 shots to wade through and process – and I’m still not done with the ones from last September’s trip to Europe!!!

Here’s a little opener – I just loved this smeared transparent shell over the staircase on the long walkway to Hamamatsucho station from my hotel on the first morning of my holiday, all excited to be free and let loose in the Big City with only a map and a camera for companionship…

A deceptively simple and low-key beginning that is just the tip of the iceberg…

See a larger version of this picture here.

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“Porto Street Art 1″ : Porto, Portugal, 9th September 2011

Porto, like Lisbon was found to be host to a lot of interesting and experimental street art that was way beyond the standard spray can type stuff found elsewhere.

“Porto Street Art 2″ : Porto, Portugal, 9th September 2011

Being a cloudy and dull day, I was really lucky to bump into all these gems on what I’m assuming is an unoccupied or condemned building.

“Porto Street Art 3″ : Porto, Portugal, 9th September 2011

Good to see some people not so downhearted at the effects of the economic recession that they can’t still attempt to inject a bit of mirth into sometimes bleak urban environments…

“Porto Street Art 4″ : Porto, Portugal, 9th September 2011

You can see larger versions of these pictures here, here, here and here.

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