Courtauld: second campaign

Lat week I followed up the first Courtauld campaign, noticed at reference 1, with a second, more successful campaign.

The record

An overcast morning, with a strong possibility of rain. Storm Dennis was on its way. Past lots of fly posting by the heritage people about the proposal to convert two houses at the top of Clayhill Green into a housing estate.

The site of the proposed housing estate

The two houses being the large one top centre in the snap from gmaps above and the small one, built at the bottom of the garden of the large one, bottom centre. The very heritage, leaning brick wall just visible to the left. A wall so old that the bricks crumble under the attacks of the weather and the mortar falls out. With the jumble top right now part of the flats noticed, for example, at reference 3. I wondered how much had been spent to get the proposal to a state in which it could be looked at by our planning committee - which led to the estimate of some tens of thousands of pounds. But who carries the risk that it will all come to nothing? Whose money is being speculated? A speculation which earned the front page headline 'conservation consternation' in our free newspaper.

I captured the trolleys I had spotted the evening before, as noticed at reference 2. Pausing to admire the fine new raised terrace being laid outside Wetherspoon's. A regular explained that it was all being paid for by Wetherspoon's and that it would make a fine place to sit out on on a summer's evening. Pint and perhaps fag in hand. Maybe fags will be banned from the new terrace, and one will have to decamp to one of the other benches being scattered about the market place?

Manufacturing

On the platform, I was pleased to see from this sticker on the bottom of a camera pole that we were still able to make things. In this case in a former coal town in west Wales called Ammanford, presumably an anglicisation of something Welsh.

HSBC on message

I was also pleased to see that HSBC is spending a lot of money to promote a more inclusive attitude to origins.

Somewhere along the way to Waterloo, I was able to admire a track-side shed, built in brick with a corrugated asbestos roof and a substantial chimney, about the size of a large garden shed and graffitied on one side. From the days when coal was a free-good with British Rail with great piles of the stuff everywhere. And I remember once, seeing a much smaller track-side shed, about the size of an outdoor privy - but still including a substantial chimney. Never worked out what the point of it was, stuck out in what seemed to be the middle of nowhere.

From Waterloo to Shorts Gardens to stock up on cheese. The usual couple of pounds of Lincolnshire Poacher, plus a spot of something called Durras. In the shop, as on the website at reference 5, it looked a bit holey, which to me is a good sign.

Wheel cakes from Bing

Over the road to visit Wheel Cake Island in Seven Dials Market, a newish and new to me venture, where I bought three of their cakes, three different flavours (of perhaps fillings), hot off the stand, not unlike but rather smaller than that above. I wasn't sure about their durability so I ate one on the spot, and rather good it was too. The other two survived to be enjoyed by BH later in the day.

From down to the Aldwych and the Courtauld Institute. Where the first thing to report was fashion week, seemingly being celebrated in or in the vicinity of King's College. Swarms of press people, fashion people, young and old. Lots of very peculiar clothes. All right on top of the very stand where I wanted to park my Bullingdon, which I proceeded to do, to amused glances from all and sundry.

Tried to get into the Insitute through the main entrance to King's, the quickest route to its temporary home in the basement, but a zealous security guard wasn't having it. A mere member of the public was not allowed on the grounds of the college - so I had to walk around through the Somerset House entrance, which perhaps added fifty yards to my journey. By way of a contrast, the Institute was very welcoming and I found myself in the right part of their basement stacks without having to leave my name, my passport or anything else. And do please free to photograph anything that takes your fancy. Light might be better over there.

The first page of the article of interest

A view of the stacks

A traditional specialist library, with all sorts of stuff about art. Including what I wanted. Read on the spot and photographed for future reference. Another tranche of data about the Barbarossaleuchter, including the fact that the copy at Buckfast was more a replica of what it was, than what it is, a lot of the original decoration having been lost over the years. Confirmation that the hanging and placement of the corona was deeply significant - and the perhaps they had been a bit careless with that side of things at Buckfast. Maybe a next step is to see what the people at Buckfast can tell me about the replication.

Wind was getting up from the wrong side of Waterloo Bridge, but I made it across without incident. Visited Smith's for the Guardian (and the regular Friday checkout girl) and M&S for a spot of festive fare and so home to a St. Valentine's Day dinner, taken in our case at 1800 sharp. I might say that M&S Waterloo Station seemed to have a better selection of wine that M&S Epsom.

The wine, from M&S

Haggis with boiled vegetables, Durras with biscuits, a little chocolate. All good. And washed down with a Pouilly-Fumé, possibly an M&S own brand, but entirely acceptable. Possibly rounded off with a spot of Bells.

Reference 1: http://psmv4.blogspot.com/2020/02/courtauld-first-campaign.html.

Reference 2: http://psmv4.blogspot.com/2020/02/trolleys-391-and-392.html.

Reference 3: https://psmv4.blogspot.com/2019/12/zestan-rules.html.

Reference 4: https://www.altron.co.uk/index.html.

Reference 5: http://www.durruscheese.com/.