manchester

We missed the first snow of the season this weekend, instead dodging sleet and hail on our first visit to Manchester.

We stayed with an old colleague of mine in the lovely village in a suburb of Chorley. We packed a fair bit in on Saturday, with a visit to the new architecture at Salford Docks as well as the highlights of the city centre, including the beautiful John Ryland library – a great secular temple.

The new stuff was generally pretty bland (though better than anything Scottish) as my preparatory reading of the relevant chapter of The New Ruins of Great Britain had made out.

On Sunday after an adventurous evening that ended up in an eclectic Cuban cafe we pottered around the lovely Whitworth Museum, whose luminous red brick was quite striking against the grey.

Monday we spent exploring the fantastic Northern Quarter in more detail, with great warehouses and fire escapes, along narrow streets combined with the requisite cafes and vintage shops creating our natural habitat 😉

dazza dazzles

A quick trip to the Captain’s Rest last night for some classic antipodean singer songwriting courtesy of our favourite man from Gympie – Darren Hanlon.

He was great as always, the gig was ned free, lots of old friends present and correct, and he played lots of our old faves as well as a couple more rootsy tracks from his new albumn.

fringe activities

Word up for the Glasgow crews slogging it out on the other side of the country. Especially our favourite actor Judith Williams who is earning rave reviews in the excellent if a little overwraught Orlando. Chhay is working at a couple of productions and spent four days hanging out last week to properly soak up the vibe. We are back tomorrow for some high class festival proper actions with the premier of the adaptation of Murakami’s Wind Up Bird Chronicles.

allotment update


Our good life attemps have been limited by the awful summer we have had so far. We did enjoy the brief return of former allotmenteer Mike for a brief visit last weekend, photos courtesy of him!

battles battle the arches

Last minute gig decision last night – gotta love living in the heart of town. Without their frontman they were a little less entertaining although their fantastically talented musicianship was still on display. The acoustics and shape of the Arches didin’t help either, it was a much less crisp sound compared to when we saw them at ABC a few years ago

Is this a job for a lady?

Is this a job for a lady?

Exhibited at Loop – a celebration of the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day

The recognition of 100 significant female architects.
How many [female] architects can you name?

E-1027 is a modernist house that sits on the edge of the sea in Roquebrune Cap-Martin, France; completed in 1929, up until recently its design was attributed to Jean Badovici, a contemporary and friend of Le Corbusier. In actual fact the house was predominantly the work of Eileen Gray, his partner at the time. Gray was generally more renown for her furniture design, less known for her contribution to architecture. This is not an isolated incident – female architects often struggle for recognition and commissions within the industry.

Architecture as a profession has been around for centuries however women have only been allowed to practice architecture for less than a century. Following the passing of the 1919 Sex Discrimination Act women were first allowed to become architects. Prior to that women had found it necessary to practice in secret, as was the case with Elizabeth Wilbraham (1632-1705) who may have designed many notable buildings in the seventeenth century but without the records to establish proper attribution for her designs, her name lies in obscurity. Even the Bauhaus design school which was reputed for it’s forward thinking and embracing of modern ideas still would not admit women into it’s architecture school when opened in 1927. The school had defined roles for the “beautiful sex” most female students restricted to the textile crafts, few permitted into sculpture or other areas deemed for the “stronger sex”.

Women are now able to make a name for themselves in architecture these days, and the recognition of their contribution increasing with high profile names such as Zaha Hadid and Kazuyo Sejima of SANAA. However inequalities do exist in the architectural profession today, and it is still regarded as a male dominated profession, with very few women reaching high managerial roles, the glass ceiling within the profession is still a serious concern. Studies have shown the number of women that stay in architecture are relatively low. Women make up 38% of the architectural student population however only 13% of the practicing profession. The long hours and family commitments, and general pressures of a “macho” industry are considered to be reasons for the lack of progression of women architects. This work acknowledges the numerous women and their contribution to the built environment, not satisfied in just taking up the traditional crafts.

03-beach classic

Garter Stitch 100 – Centenary of International Women's Day

D-Day is approaching rapidly, knitting is popping up in all sorts of unexpected places across Glasgow , and indeed the world.

My work – one of the 100 events showcased at Loop at the Tramway on the 8th of March is getting there if a little behind schedule – knitting machines are complex beast and Hermione and I are only just getting to know each other properly 😉

Check out the event website for more details and hippy love

pianist envy strikes glasgow

We caught a magnificent set from Chilly Gonzales last night at a very intimate ABC2. He was on brilliant form, relentlessly entertaining yet showing true mastery of his piano. Riffing on rap, minority keys and classic show tunes there were definite echos of Flight of the Choncords, with an overlay of a  more sophisticated musical palette. It was the sort of school night outing that makes living in the city so great.  Next some classical piano – he has hetted our appetites.