January 2022 Archives

Today, I am bringing to you my first ever visit to National Trust's Bateman's, the home of author Rudyard Kipling and his family. I made my visit in early November last year. Bateman's is located in East Sussex, surrounded by the Sussex Weald, an attractive and wooded area of southern England. The house dates from the 17th century (built in the 1630s), and it was lived in by Kipling from 1902 to 1936 and given to the National Trust after the death of his wife in 1939.

When Kipling purchased the house, it was acting as a modest farmhouse that needed to be repaired. It was bought with 33 acres of land; at the time, Kipling was the most famous author in England and the house was well within his means. Bateman's enchanted and inspired the author, and some of his work was penned in the house and is set in the house and grounds.

The interior of the house is retained as though the Kiplings are still living in it, and many items belonging to the family are on display. The study is one of the gems; Kipling would spend a lot of his time in the room and lock the doors as he was worried that someone would steal his ideas. He did have his work stolen before, so he only employed one person who was allowed to go into the room. His Nobel Prize and Rolls-Royce Phantom I is on display. Kipling also had a love for touring the East, so many items in the house relate to the lands of India and Asia.

There is a short walk down a gentle hill to the house. On the left is a vegetable garden with views over the house and the surrounding hills. The tearoom is located in a courtyard and working buildings in front of the house.

After the entrance, we arrived in a central room or hall. We were explained that the Kiplings had restored the house and bought furnishings to restore it to how it would have looked with wood panelling and other appropriate finishings.

Upstairs are a couple of additional rooms, including one bedroom that was shut (I'll have to return to visit), another bedroom, a room filled with a "museum" of items important to Kipling's life, and Kipling's office.

Kipling's only son, John, was killed in the Battle of Loos. One of the rooms was mocked up to be his bedroom. It contains an early example of an en-suite with chamber pot and a jug and sponge for washing and towels.

Kipling's office was a nice space. The office was a good place to work in the morning as the sun enters through the windows, and he spent his mornings in the room. He had a large collection of books and often made notes in his books.

A small room off to the side of the "museum" room contains a model of "The Jungle Book" and several prints as an ode to his famous novel. The prints are called "The Detmold Pictures", and information in the room explains that these were created by two brothers and printed by Macmillan along with the story. 

An oast house is joined onto the original house, which you may have noticed from an earlier photograph. This was an area used as a kitchen and used by the dogs and staff.

The flowers had nearly all died in the garden, but the autumn colours on the trees in the garden were showing off. There is a small rose garden and groves of ornamental trees.  

Located a short stroll through the gardens is the water mill, which is powered by the River Dudwell. It was restored by the National Trust in 1975. The mill was not used in Kipling's time; it contained an electric turbine to provide power for the house. The mill was open, so I had a quick look inside.

At the entrance to Bateman's was a colourful display of autumn harvest - pumpkins, squash, and gourds. They always look so colourful.

I hope to visit Bateman's again in the future to see how the property looks in the summer months and to see if the full house is open. I know National Trust have been having problems finding volunteers. Keep checking back. 

I am behind on uploading photographs of street art as there's quite a lot being placed up or a lot of it gets tagged over very quickly anymore. French street artist Zabou (who is based in London), has been painting a lot on London's streets from sometime around 2015 when I saw her first pieces. Her work has evolved over the years and keeps getting better and better, and I always love seeing her artwork. I discovered a couple of murals from 2016 and 2018.

"Gold and Hop" was painted in 2016 on Helmsley Place underneath the rail bridge by London Fields overground station. It shows a portrait of a girl with a floral garland in her hair and holding a pint of beer. Around the corner from this and on the same railway line is an additional mural spanning two archways. 

This mural features two figures facing each other with the male figure blowing a kiss to the female figure in the next archway, depicted with a floral garland in her hair. The mural is named "Romeo and Juliet". Unfortunately, there was a parked van in front of the mural, so I wasn't able to get a very good photograph of the whole thing. 

The other mural is one taken on Brick Lane at a cafe. The shutters are closed on this particular cafe early in the morning or later in the day normally, but it is a shutter that gets tagged over quickly, and I've failed to capture some of the other murals on this same shutter in the past due to the frequency of tagging and the shutter being open when I happen to be in the area. (It was much easier to get photographs when I worked daily on Brick Lane!)

Keep following this blog for more artwork by Zabou. Previous Zabou murals that have appeared on this blog include:

Zabou Refreshes Brick Lane and Salvador Dali Artwork Zabou Paints "Good Vibes"
Zabou Paints "Sisters" on Kingsland Road
Zabou Paints Audrey Hepburn on Brick Lane
Zabou: "Jack the Ripper" Street Art
Zabou: 'Racism is a Virus' Street Art
New Murals by Zabou in East London (Clockwork Orange, Sherlock, David Bowie)
Zabou "The Shining" and Refresh of Salvador Dali in Spitalfields
Villana and Zabou Collaborate on Amy Winehouse Street Art
Zabou paints Sid Vicious from 'The Sex Pistols'
Zabou Paints Freda #2 at Broadway Market
Zabou Paints Salvador Dali on Commercial Road
Koeone and Zabou Collaborate
"Keep Out!" Street Art by Zabou
Zabou's 'Cabinet of Curiosity' Street Art
Leake Street Tunnels Street Art, Spring 2016
Recent Street Art by Zabou
Street Art: Zabou

House of Cinn is a bakery business with a community message mission. The sale of each home made cinnamon bun enables the company to donate some of the profit to help rough sleepers. House of Cinn has a partnership with Street Cafe charity which enables rough sleepers to get back into the community. Currently, their cinnamon buns are sold at Selfridges Food Hall. Cinnamon buns are delicious, and these are so good! It's definitely worth buying one, and part of the profit goes to a great cause!

Located three miles north of Leicester's city centre is Belgrave Hall, a mansion built in the early 18th century in Belgrave village, which has now been consumed by the city of Leicester. The hall was built by merchant Edmund Cradock and had several owners, including John Ellis. John Ellis was the most famous of the owners, and he helped bring the railroads to Leicester. The gardens are open to explore on various days, and the hall itself is typically closed except for a few days a year when visitors can arrange a guided tour. I visited on a Wednesday at the end of August.

Leicester City Council bought the hall in 1936 and opened it as a museum. Today, it is used as a heritage site instead of a museum, and the hall is primarily used for weddings and paranormal events.

In 1999, Belgrave Hall became famous for a video of a ghostly figure recorded on security cameras outside the hall. Today, it retains interest among those wishing to experience the paranormal events.

I was able to walk through the entrance hall of the hall, but the rooms and stairs were roped off due to the pandemic, though it is listed as it should normally be open on Wednesdays. It may only be open for guided tours now. One room on the left (upon entering) is set up for weddings.

The garden is located at the back of the house and features separate areas of interest and glass houses, a pond, and formal gardens. 

Next to the hall is a church, which was recommended to visit, but it was unfortunately not open during my visit.

Overall, the Belgrave area of Leicester seems to be a pleasant place with older buildings and riverside walks. 

A mural of racing driver Lewis Hamilton appeared at Silverstone along the racing circuit at the end of 2019. The mural celebrates the world champion. I was able to glimpse the mural from an angle from the new Silverstone Musuem. The mural is located underneath one of the bridges that goes over the track. It was painted by street artist JimmyC, who has created a lot of much-loved street art across the world from David Bowie in Brixton to Usain Bolt off Brick Lane during the Olympics.

More artwork by JimmyC that I have posted about in this blog are:

JimmyC Paints "Vaccine Nation" Street Art in Shoreditch
London Cityscape at Blackfriars by JimmyC
JimmyC Swan Street Art by Borough Market
JimmyC Updates South Bank Shakespeare Mural
JimmyC Paints Wall of Hearts to Honour Victims of Borough Market Attack
JimmyC Paints "Royal Wedding" Mural for St. Christopher's Place
Mick's Hands
'Open the Mind'
JimmyC Redchurch Street Heart
JimmyC Paints Shakespeare on South Bank
Street Artist JimmyC Paints Caledonian Road
RIP David Bowie & An Afternoon in Brixton
New Mural in Ever-Changing Shoreditch by JimmyC
New 'Spring Offering' Mural by Bailon and Sliks (JimmyC, Zadok Sonar Uno)
New JimmyC Mural on Joe's Kid (Cafe), Fashion Street
JimmyC Street Art - New Inn Yard, Brick Lane, Hackney Road
New Street Art by JimmyC
Street Art: JimmyC

Leicester hosted a street art festival called Bring the Paint Festival in 2017 and then two years later in 2019. I discovered some of the murals when I visited the city this summer. Graffwerk is a collective of street artists, and they worked with the council on the festival. 

The below photographs are from 2017.

One of my personal favourite murals from Bring the Paint Festival in 2017 is this mural by SMUG on LCB Depot, Rutland Street. SMUG has paintd a bearded man with a rat poking out of a pocket.

Also from 2017 is this floral mural with pink, white, and green floral imagery that brightens this dull wall in a parking lot at Midland Street. The mural has been created by Philth.

Core246 painted abstract portraits in 2017 on a vacant overgrown wall.

Bates painted a huge mural on Southampton Street, adding some colour to this boring part of Leicester in 2017. It is a yellow wall with a Smurf character poking out.

Said Kinos also created a black and white mural on a boring wall in a parking lot at Southampton Street, and it is located on the side of a building. On the other wall is a portrait by Voyder, which I covered in a previous post.

The below photographs are from 2019 Bring the Paint.

Gent painted a character on a wall next to the SMUG mural that was painted in 2017.

A few buildings down from the Gent character, Philph returned to create a floral column on one of the walls in 2019.

Street artist ZINER created a mural near Burley's Way. It's looking a little worse for wear for only being painted in 2019.

The 1UP Crew from Berlin completed a new mural in the Midland/Southampton Street area in 2019.

I was also pleased to see a mural from well-known Bristol street artist Inkie in the same area painted in 2019.

Unfortunately, this striking mural across two shutters on a building on Midland Street was not fully visible. The mural was painted in 2019 and is by Tasso.

Artist SkyHigh, which I've covered before on this blog, painted a shutter in 2019 around the Midland Street area featuring a parrot and grafitti text, which are both common subjects of the artist.

The below mural is from an artist called DOES and peeks out from a wall on Belgrave Gate. It was painted in 2019.

WON ABC painted a mural along the side of a building on Belgrave Gate street in 2019, and it is difficult to photograph but seems to display a green dragon-like character made of marijuana leaves holding a spray can. 

Hombre (you can read more here) painted for 2019.

Street artist Ruelo created the below magpie street art in 2017 for "Bring the Paint".

Calais Hill was the location for a work by Voyder in 2019, and it's in an unlikely place void of any other street art. You can read more about that work here.

A lot of street art was also painted in an area of new development around Soar Street. There are several hoardings here as construction teams are building in this area of Leicester, and there's a lot of street art and grafitti around the canal here too. I walked by it, but I did not think much of it was too worthy of a photograph as it was difficult to take any with all of the construction around. I glimpsed one mural along the canal at Frog Island, but I couldn't work out how to get to it as the whole area was fenced off.

I also caught other glimpses of street art around Leicester, and these do not appear to be part of Bring the Paint.

I cannot remember this atist's name (the green face). The artist has painted in other cities before.

I am aso not sure who painted this image, which appears to be a sunflower.

Street artist Annatomix has painted a wall on Silver Walk in the middle of Leicester. It depicts a fox in her geometric style. I couldn't get a better photograph because there was a person sitting at the bottom of it, and it is a narrow walk-way.

There were a few frog-like characters painted onto some of the buildings in the middle of Leicester.

The Newark House Museum contained a wall with various different murals.

I also discovered some murals on the other side of Leicester, near the hospital and stadium area. These were all football-thrmed murals.

Another large mural features foxes fighting over a trophy in the vicinity of Walnut Street. The artwork was painted by SMUG and was painted in July of this year where the foxes team used to play. It was painted for the FA Cup win against Chelsea.

The Belgrave Road area of Leicester, on the other side of the city again, features a couple of murals of Bollywood actresses. These were painted to clean up the streets. There is a larger mural on the same street (Garfield Street) facing the back of the buildings, and you would have never known unless you walked down the street and looked back in this direction, so I missed seeing it. It was painted a few years ago.

Another group of street art is a floral and natural patterns painted on the columns holding up the ring road around Leicester. The ugly grey concrete has been painted with colourful flowers and trees.

The final place that I have seen street art in Leicester is in the centre near Belgrave Gate Road. It is a new street called Savoy Place and contains vintage typography. This street art appears to have also been painted this year.

That concludes my photographs of the street art seen in Leicester at the end of August. I did not realise, but Bring the Paint had actually returned this year and was held at the end of August during and after my visit to the city.

A collaboration of murals appeared in Shoreditch in the autumn last year that I liked, and I knew that these would not last long on the scaffolding that is in front of the former Chariots Roman Spa baths that had been demolished in recent years on Fairchild Street. The two murals feature portraits of women and are painted beautifully. The artwork is created by two artists - DMT Art (who also goes by Damitta) and BAOne (who also goes by baoneknldge).

Damitta (AMT Art) is a London-based street artist who was originally from Spain, and she has been creating artwork on walls since 2004 in a grafitti style, but she had been creating portraits of females to highlight the lack of female representation in street art. For a few years, she was also working in fashion and took a break from her murals, but she returned to the street art scene in 2019. The mural features a woman with red poppies; this was painted around Remembrance Day.

BAONE or baoneknldge (baone knldge) is an illustrator and street artist based in London who used a few different styles of more grafitti-based murals or portraits/illustrations of people and other subjects. The artist's styles are very different depending on the illiustrative style or the grafitti tag style. The collaboration includes a portrait of a female using blue, purple, yellow, and pink bold colours. Because the artist's style is so different, you probably would have seen their work before in London but not connected with this since the style is so diverse.

Keep checking back for more artwork by these artists.

Funfetti Bakes are a bakery company based in Manchester that sells items through the post. They specialise in cookies, but they also have cakes and brownies. I purchased cookie sandwiches from their shop on Etsy, and the cookies are sold in packets of six with a flavour of cookie and cream filling. I ordered six of the funfetti cookies with vanilla cream. They were tasty, though they are on the small side.

Each cookie is indivudually wrapped, and I guess this allows it to last longer via shipping. 

Annandale Distillery in south-western Scotland used to make whiskey for years until they closed in 1918. Closed for 90 years, the distillery reopened in 2007 making single malt Scotch whisky of the peated and non-peated varieties. Peated malt is the traditional style of whisky produced at the distillery with the malt cooked with peat (a type of soil found in marshy areas). The distillery produce two brands of whisky. Man O' Sword (un-peated) and Man O' Words (peated).

Annandale Distillery was owned by the Johnnie Walker company until they shut their doors in 1918. In 2007, the distillery was purchased by David Thomson and Teresa Church, and the whisky began production in 2014. Outside the visitor centre are the remains of the old distillery.

I went on the classic tour of the distillery to discover the history of the distillery and to see where and how it is produced. My visit was during the "silent" period when the distilleries shut temporarily, so I did not get to see anything being produced, but some was brewing in the huge copper vats. Tastings come as part of the tour with the award-winning 2015 Man O' Words and the Man O' Sword.

The distillery itself is photogenic with the stack, barrels, and brick buildings. In keeping with the local area in Galloway, Scotland, a Belted Galloway cow and calf sculpture encourages photographs.

Outside the visitor centre is a wagon of grain used in the distilling process. The spent grain is sent to local farms as animal feed. There is a cafe here too and plenty of benches to sit on outside.

We were shown where the grain comes in and then a room filled with wooden barrels with the grain brewing inside.

Another room contained the copper stills to purify the alcohol.

At the end, we went into the warehouse for the tasting. Hundreds of wooden barrels were stacked up in the warehouse and directly outside.

The tasting bottles are pictured below. I am not a whisky drinker, but I surprised myself because I preferred the peated (Man O' Words) this time, and I normally really dislike the peated variety. I had to water it down, though, to take the edge off it. 

At the end of the tour, I had a hot chocolate in the cafe. I had just eaten a large breakfast, so I was not too hungry.

Overall, this was a great tour with knowledgeable guides.

A few light installations have been placed in three areas around the square mile in the City of London this winter, and these light sculptures can be discovered until 22 January. The three areas are near Shoreditch High Street and Moorgate tube station in two locations (London Wall and near Moorgate station). There are five sculptures to see. Unfortunately, a couple of the installations were not completely working during my visit.

'Two Lamps' - Jeroen Henneman

The artist uses everyday objects to create illustrations, which are then illuminated. This installation features two desk lamps that are simplistic in form and illuminated with space around them. (The one in the background should have been illuminated, but it was not working.)

'Singularity' by Squidsoup

This sphere of light appears to be suspended in air. The installation uses light, colour, and different motion of patterns of light; it is all random.

'All the Light You See' by Alicia Eggert

The installation features a sentence that changes its meaning when all of the lights in the words or lit or when only some of the words are lit. This mimics the fact that light takes awhile to travel from one point to another, so "All You See Is Past" is the meaning as light travels through space. It is a reflection on everything having a time limit. 

"NEST" by Vikas Patil and Santosh Gujar

The word "nest" means shelter, and this art installation visually represents a nest. The colours of the lights change over time with multiple colours or the entire structure taking on solid singular colours.

"Butterfly Effect" by Masamichi Shimada

The square contained five or six illuminated butterflies, but not all of the butterflies were illuminated (some of them were not working). The theme of the artwork is the term "butterfly effect", which is global cause and effect.

The sculptures are on display until 22 January, and I hope that all of them are illuminated if you do go to visit them.

In December, Grosvenor Square contained an art installation of over 27,000 white roses illuminated in memory of lost friends and family. The art installation first took place in 2019 and 2020 at the same time, but it is larger this year; to read more about 2020's installation and to see photographs, click here.

The installation was created by artist Anya Hindmarch and writer Camilla Morton to remember a mutual friend. Roses can be donated with money going to support charity.

The art installation took place throughout December 2021.

I've been looking through my unblogged photographs of street art from 2019 until the present, and I've come across these pieces by street artist Hunto. Hunto has been painting in London for many years now. The artist is originally from Italy and has been painting on walls around the world since the late 1990s. His work is abstract with inspiration from Picasso, and his abstract characters are in conversation or intimate moments. He usually paints them as colourful geometric shapes. The below murals were discovered across east London.

When I was in Penge and Crystal Palace at the end of last year to see the street art, I discovered a few of Hunto's murals on the walls there too, and the below murals are from a couple of walks that I completed when I was in Penge.

More street art by Hunto on this blog can be seen on the following links:

Street Art Collaboraton with Hunto and Tizer
Camden Street Art Self-Guided Trail
Hunto and MisterThomas Collaborate on Connectivity Matters Mural
Street Art: Hunto
Hunto "Get Kissed Here"
Hunto Paints Wall off Brick Lane
Hunto on Sclater Street and Other Work

Located in Devon, England, Arlington Court is a country house built in the 1820s near Barnstaple. The house belonged to the Chichester family, and it replaced an earlier house for the family that was constructed at another location in the 1790s. In the mid-1800s, the new house was expanded to what it is today. Visitors can explore the house, many acres of park land, the Carriage Museum, the stables, and the walled garden.

The house and grounds at Arlington Court were donated to the National Trust in 1949 by the unmarried Rasalie Chichester. Rosalie Chichester was strong-willed and an artist, and she loved the natural world. Although her father kept hunting hounds and hunted, she forbid it on her land and had clashes with others in the community as most people in Devon did support hunting in those days.

I visited Arlington Court in mid-September, and the house was not fully open due to the pandemic and one-way systems. There were a couple of rooms open, so I could explore a little bit. The first room entered is the hall and the reception room with grand staircase. This large room was glimpsed and explored later due to the one-way system in place.

The dining room is located off the main room with the staircase. The walls were decorated with a green material pattern. We were told about some of the items in the house by the volunteer.

The dining room leads to an open area with table and display cabinet filled with items relating to ships and naval history. 

From here, the room opens into a small parlour.

The house contains a collection of antiques and family momentos, including a room for a "museum" of items collected by the family. Model ships, shells, and fossils seem to be popular items collected by the family. One item that caught me is an old manuscript with artwork.

One of the rooms that we could peek into is the Boudoir, a room for ladies to hang out in. The walls are covered with a red silk. The windows were not open, so it was difficult to see inside the room.

The museum room contains a lot of items collected by the family. The room is off the central hall the with staircase.

The central hall contains a lot of ship models, and the staircase has impressive wooden carvings.  

There was also a small library and office room to walk through.

After leaving the house, another attraction here in the grounds of Arlington Court is the Carriage Museum filled with horse-drawn vehicles and horse stables. The museum has vehicles for different occassions, such as state visits for different social statuses, horse-drawn hearses, horse-drawn carriages to help people with mobility concerns, and carriages for transport of people or goods. There are over fifty vehicles on display in the museum.

A short walk away from Arlington Court house is the walled garden with a conservatory that was rebuilt in 2012. Dahlias and late summer flowers were in full bloom.

Not far from the walled garden is a small church. I had a peek inside.

On the way to the Carriage Museum, I saw some ruin structure in the sheep pasture. When I looked at the map, it labels this as "1887 Jubilee Cairn". So, it looks like it was built in 1887 as a commemoration to the Jubilee for Queen Victoria.

I also passed by a building that was used to store grain. Lifting the building off the ground helped to keep the grain dry.

I decided not to walk around the park grounds, but I will do that on my next visit!

I hope to return to Arlington Court to see the full house and walk around the grounds.

Windsor Great Park Illuminated (or simply Windsor Illuminated) has now ended, but I visited it this past Saturday on its final weekend. Windsor Great Park hosted a winter light trail from the end of November last year until early January, bringing a light trail with light installations and music for visitors to experience. The trail took about a little over an hour to walk, though I prefer to take my time but was being rushed by the bloke who complained of it being too cold and damp; it was not raining, but it had rained earlier in the day. I like to experience the atmosphere of the immersive light trail, watch the displays set to soundscapes, and take photographs. Next time, I will leave him at home so that I can enjoy it!

The first part of the trail was probably the muddiest part through what looked like a temporary path that was drenched in mud. Around the first bend was a display of sparkling lights reflecting off of disco balls high in the air. The illuminated trees changed colour, and the small lights from these disco balls were projected onto the ground below.

Of course, music was being projected from speakers along the trail with various songs playing, but I think the Christmas music was largely replaced by classic pop music.

The illuminated trees with the disco lights was a small length of trail, and this came to the main pathway, bordered with illuminated hedges covered with white light nettings.

In front of me, was the lake, which contained beautiful illuminated trees on the other side of the lake, and these colours shifted onto the trees.

The path continued around with an impressive view of additional illuminated trees and an illuminated ship in the lake.

The path split here, but going onto the right would have skipped out the majority of the trail. So, we continued on and soon came across this beautiful display of patterned sequenced lights set to a soundscape. The lights changed colour and pattern and were also projected onto the trees, and it was a beautiful display.

After this, we walked past a giant gift with a blue ribbon, designed to be used as a prop for photographs, and some additional photograph props: an illuminated archway with mistletoe and an illuminated set of wings. There was also an illuminated tree and a couple parts of the trail decorated with large stars around some of the trees.

Another interesting display was on a beautiful giant tree, and it had a thunderstorm soundscape and lit up as if it were being illuminated by lightning. The colours of the light illumination changed, but I thought the standard white light mimicked the effect of the thunderstorm best. 

After this, there was a light tunnel that changed colour.

The trail led through a slightly muddy trail through the woods, which were illuminated with changing colours.

A really fun section of this trail were additional light displays with smoke machines and light projections, which really made a great experience to walk through. There were two of these, and they were both different.

The trail continued to loop around through another field of stars and some additional props to get photographs near.

The next art installation was a transparent screen suspended in the air between two trees, and there were different moving images projected onto it: an owl, a dancer, flowers with moths, and eyes.

There was a place to stop and get food and drink, and I had a hot chocolate and toasted marshmallow (which the bloke complained about because he did not want to wait around, though it actually does not take long to toast a marshmallow or drink a small hot chocolate, which I took around with me anyway) before continuing on. 

More stars and props were dotted along the path, which came out of the main wooded area. One of the props was an illuminated hot air balloon.

The trail came out on the other side of the lake with additional views over the illuminated trees on the opposite side with some illuminiated water lillies in the foreground.

The trail then led along the lake on a straight well-defined pathway lined with stars, lights, snowflakes, and other illuminations.

At the end of this, beside the bridge, was another display with illuminated flowers and birds in motion being projected onto a waterfall. 

The final part of the trail led over the bridge and down an illuminated rainbow path. The colours of the rainbow moved. At the end of this trail is the obelisk, which is also illuminated.

Right before the obelisk, the trees were lit up with soundscape and changing colours and lights on the trunk.

The end of the trail had a bar, carousel, and a couple of food kiosks. The bloke did not want to wait around, so we rushed off reluctantly. Next time, I will go on my own so that I am not rushed.

Toward the end of 2020, I discovered a new large-scale mural off Great Eastern Road in Shoreditch. The mural features a collaboration between street artists Hunto and Tizer. Tizer has been painting in London since the 1980s and is one of the longest-serving street artists in London. Tizer, originally from Nebraska but moved to London when young, paints regularly across London. His work is probably best described as true grafitti-style, and he often includes people or other characters in his work. Hunto is a street artist from Italy who lives in London, and he's been painting since the later 1990s. His work is inspired by abstract artists, sich as Picasso, and he paints abstract people in conversation or intimacy. The collaboration features the two different styles of artowrk that blend together. I always enjoy collaborations as they allow the different artists to create some great artwork with both styles.

More street art by Hunto on this blog can be seen on the following links:

Camden Street Art Self-Guided Trail
Hunto and MisterThomas Collaborate on Connectivity Matters Mural
Street Art: Hunto
Hunto "Get Kissed Here"
Hunto Paints Wall off Brick Lane
Hunto on Sclater Street and Other Work

More street art by Tizer on this blog can seen on the following links:

Fleur De Lis Street: Street Art Paint Jam
Meeting of the Styles 2017
Street Art Round-up: Winter 2015-2016
The Greenhouse Effect 2015
Street Art: Rodrigo Branco, Roger Malloy, Prozak, Tizer, and others

Wingstop is a chicken wing restaurant chain that was founded in America in 1994 in Texas, and they now have more than 1,400 restaurants globally in Mexico, Indonesia, Australia, Russia, Singapore, Columbia, United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom. The first branch in London opened at Cambridge Circus in 2018, and additional locations followed. There is a plan to open at least 200 Wingstop restaurants in the UK.

In addition to creating more restaursants and jobs across the UK, the company behind Wingstop are noted for putting money back into its communities. Chicken wings and boneless chicken wings are on the menu, and these are served cooked in one of the flavoured sauces and dips. Fries and refillable drinks are also on the menu. The flavours of sauce include Atomic, Hickory Smoked Barbeque, Spicy Korean Q, Lemon Pepper, Citrus Pepper, Lemon Garlic, and there are approximately fifteen different flavours to select from.

I visited their flagship Cambridge Circus branch this year to give the wings a try. I ordered eight bonless wings (the smallest amount that can be ordered), and these come with a choice of two flavours and a dip. I ordered the Atomic flavour, which is their hottest flavour, and the Hickory Smoked BBQ flavour.

I preferred the BBQ flavour as the sauce had a good flavour to it. The Atomic flavour had a strong taste of "preservatives" and just did not taste fresh. The heat was fine, but the flavour was not nice, and I didn't like the tone of the flavour.

Wingstop was extremely busy during my visit with constant walk-ins, even outside of the normal lunch and dinner hours. It is certainly a popular place and particularly popular with people in their teens and twenties, especially appealing to those who enjoy chicken and trying different flavours. Ultimately, this is "fast food" or "takeaway food", and I can see it being a popular late night meal after going out with friends and enjoying drinks.

While looking through my stash of unblogged street art, I came across these pieces by street artist 0707 that appeared in east London 2016 and 2017, and I discovered one in Penge at the end of last year. 0707 is a street artist and graphic designer from Italy who is now based in London and started doing street art in 2012. The subject is female portraits, which are painted in black and white. I recently covered the artist's work here: Street Art: 0707. 

The 0707 street art in Penge was captured at the end of last year.

To see more work by 0707 on this blog, see:

Street Art: 0707

Street artist Sr. X has returned to London to paint street art in an unlikely place - Paternoster Square next to St. Paul's Cathedral. The mural was meant to have been painted last year for London Mural Festival, but the artist just recently finished it in mid-September. The artwork features a male figure with outstretched hand, appearing to come out of a window painted onto the building. On the other side, a female figure appears to lean and look out of a window painted onto the building. The simplistic artwork adds dimension and interest to an otherwise boring wall.

Other artwork by Sr. X (Senor X) on this blog can be seen in the below posts:

Sr. X Summer 2020 Murals in Camden
"The Back of Your Mind", New Street Art by Sr. X
Camden Street Art Self-Guided Trail
Sr. X (Señor X) "The Rapture" Street Art on the Village Underground
Sr. X (Señor X) "The Itching" Street Art off Brick Lane
New Sr X Octopus on Hackney Road
Sr.X Paints Village Underground Wall
Sr.X "Buy Shit!" Sign on Village Underground
Sr X Collaborates with Zabou

I am a little behind in writing this and have managed to use up a lot of products over the summer and autumn last year. These are primarily beauty and skin-care products that were used up, despite working from home most of the time and not going out a lot. I decided to post these products to help me remember which products I would purchase again, and it may help others with deciding which products to purchase too.

Roger & Gallet Lait Pour Le Corps: This miniature bottle of hand cream was obtained from Sofitel hotel. It had a lovely scent and was absorbed into the skin without feeling heavy or looking oily. I do like this brand, and they have some fantastic fragrances. Would I buy it again? Yes.

Bath and Body Works Purrfect Pumpkin hand sanitizer: I used to carry hand sanitizer in my handbag before it was fashionable. This one dates from a few years ago when I went to the states and bought a few Halloween-themed miniature hand sanitizers. This one was their pumpkin scent, which is a sweet scent with a hint of pumpkin spice. I love this brand and find I cannot really go wrong with their sanitizers and love the fact that they release seasonal products. Would I buy it again? Yes.

Rimmel Sheer Temptation lipstick in 'Lust': This is a dark and muted pink shade of lipstick, which is probably best described as being a matte application. I found it to be a good application without being clumpy like some lipsticks, and it has moisturising ingredients. Would I buy it again? Yes.

Halo Fragrance Free Facial Wipes: These facial wipes are perfect for on the go or at music festivals. The wipes are prefect for sensitive skin and do not contain ingredients that are harmful. Would I buy it again? I wouldn't because I am unlikely to use all of them, and they dry out quickly once opened.

Urban Decay Big Fatty Mascara: This mascara from brand Urban Decay promises to lengthen lashes. Would I buy it again? No, as much as I do love the brand, I found the product clumped too much on my lashes. 

The Ivy Chelsea Hand Sanitizer: I received a bottle of this in 2020 when I went to visit The Ivy restaurant in London, and it smells herby and fruity and delicious.

Weleda Pomegranate foaming day cream: This foaming cream is made from pomegranate, which is a symbol of longevity. It is blended with other oils and ingredients to create an anti-aging cream. Would I buy it again? Yes, I thought it applied well and did not feel too oily on my skin.

Nuxe Insta-masque: This product promises to exfoliate and rejuvenate skin and offers a range of benefits for different concerns. The product has a nice fragrance. Would I buy it again? No, I found it a little too oily on my skin.

No7 liplicious Moisture Balm Sp15 in 'Angel Cake': This lip gloss is highly glossy and leaves a high shine; it promises to keep lips hydrated. Would I buy it again? No. The product felt too thick, and my hair often got stuck in it. The packaging was also frustrating because it would come out of the sides of the cap when I was squeezing it out.

BioEffect EGF Serum: This anti-aging solution promises to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and is perfect for any skin type. It only uses seven ingredients so that it is not harmful, and it's perfect for sensitive skin. Would I buy it again? No, only because I did not notice any difference after using it.

Chloe perfume sample: This perfume has a rose fragrance and is highly floral. Would I buy it again? Yes; I actually have a full-sized bottle, and this was my travel size sample. I absolutely love this brand of perfume.

Atelier Cologne - Bergamote Soleil: This is a musky and citrus fragrance that is actually very difficult to describe. Would I buy it again? Yes, I absolutely loved the scent.

Marks and Spencer Lip glosses and mini lipstick: I tried a variety of different Marks and Spencer lip glosses and lipsticks that I received as gifts in the past. Would I buy it again? No. They all felt too thick on my skin.

Bath and Body Works 'Crisp Morning Air' hand wash: I love this brand, and this scent was an autumn or winter one and left hands feeling soft and well-moisturised. Would I buy it again? Yes. I also loved the fragrance of this one.

Superdrug masks - Deep Cleansing Fruit mask and Fruit Sorbet Antioxidant Peel-off: Superdrug offer a range of different masks to help cleanse and purify skin. Would I buy it again? Yes, their masks are ok at a deep cleanse.

Nutriburst Hair, Skin and Nails Advanced Nutrition: These vitamins promise to help grow healthy hair, nails and skin quickly. This was a sample size of a couple of gummies. Would I buy it again? No, I think this is the type of product that takes too long to see results, if there are any results. I am always dubious of such products.

Clinique Liquid Facial Soap: This liquid facial soap promises to clean skin without being too harmful. Would I buy it again? No, I found that Clinique products were too hard on my skin awhile ago and it hadn't changed when I came across this to use it up. It is also painful if you do accidentally get it in the eyes.

Naobay Moisturising Peeling: This product promises to exfoliate and cleanse skin without being too harsh. Would I buy it again? No, I did not enjoy the product nor think it worked well.

Crabtree & Evelyn Home Comforts candle: I discovered Crabtree & Evelyn home fragrance products too late. I loved this Home Comforts scent, and I loved a few of their other scents, but the company were shutting its doors and the fragrances have been cut. It's since been bought by another company, but they are focusing on the skincare side. The candle was lovely and filled the room. Would I buy it again? Yes, if they revived these exact products, I would.

Bath and Body Works Hand Lotion in Cucumber Melon: This fragrance is a refreshing cucumber and melon, and the hand moisturiser is a size that fits in the handbag. Would I buy it again? I love this brand and the fragrance; it's my favourite fragrance. I have too many hand mositurisers to use.

Revlon ColorStay foundation: This is marketed as a long-life foundation that does not cake or clump or dry and claims to hydrate skin. Would I buy it again? I would purchase this again because it felt light on my skin and gave good coverage without looking too caked on.

Holika Holika Water Melon Soothing Gel: This face and body gel claims to hydrate, brighten and cool tired skin. The gel is cool to the touch, so it is a perfect product to use on a hot day. Would I buy it again? I am not blown away by the product. It felt good to use on the warm days that we had, and it is easily-absorbed, but I could not really see any claims to the benefits. On that basis, I would not buy it again.

Bath and Body Works Hand Soap in Merry Berry Kiss: This is a Christmas fragrance of the brand's hand soap. The soap has a fruity and fresh scent. Would I buy it again? I love the brand, and I enjoyed this fragrance, so I would buy it again.

Leighton Denny Miracle Mist for nails: This product is to be used on nails to decrease the time it takes the polish to dry, and it is perfect when you're in a hurry or have nail polish that takes awhile to dry. The product should be sprayed on the nails, and it cools them. Would I buy it again? I would have loved for the product to have actually worked, but it did not work that well. The nails were not dry, and it just left an oily residue on my fingers. The can also got very cold when using it. I would not buy it.

LA Tone Slim Gum: This gum contains green tea extract and other ingredients that claim to surpress appetite. Would I buy it again? I believe such products are a gimmick. Chewing on gum can have benefits, but I don't think it would have too much of an impact. The product's taste was not to my liking. I would not purchase it, and I couldn't even finish the sample.

Garnier BB Cream: This tinted BB cream adds moisture to skin and protects against the sun. It is meant to be worn as a foundation. Unfortunately, the product that I received was much too dark for my pale skin, so it did not suit me at all. Would I buy it again? I would have liked to have tried it with the correct foundation tone, but it did feel a little too oily.

Boots White Collection hand wash: This hand wash from Boots is supposed to mimic a luxury spa product. Would I buy it again? No, I prefer other brands and fragrances of hand wash. I would not go out of my way to repurchase this. 

Kiehl's Vital Skin-strengethening Super Serum: Skin-care brand Kiehl's have a few products that gain a lot of attention, and this super serum is one of those. The product promises many benefits, such as anti-aging and moisturising. It is absorbed into skin without feeling too heavy. Would I buy it again? I only tried a sample size, but I liked how the product felt on my skin. I would consider buying a full-sized bottle.

Anna Sui perfume in 'Night of Fancy': This perfume is the grown-up or night version to their "Flight of Fancy". "Night of Fancy" is an after-work and sophisticated version with the floral tones but less fruity and less sweet. Would I buy it again? I bought this as I love "Flight of Fancy", and this was an alternative for the evening. I like it, but I probably wouldn't wear it again.

Imperial Leather shower gel in 'Cosmic Unicorn': This scent is formed of grapefruit and citrus with floral tones. It is not too sweet, and I'd consider it a perfumed "grown up" scent. It was launched three or four years ago when unicorns became the rage. The product lathers up well, and a little bit goes a long way. Would I buy it again? I would consider purchasing from this brand again because I was impressed with the fragrance and the quality of the product. It also lasted a long time.

Clinique 'Take The Day Off' make-up remover: This is Clinique's make-up remover solution. Would I buy it again? No, I find the brand's products too harsh for my skin. It also was not a delicate product, and it stung if you accidentally got it in your eyes. I would not buy this again.

Crabtree & Evelyn Evelyn Rose Soft Touch Facial Foam: As mentioned earlier, Crabtree & Evelyn were bought by another company and created some new formulas to focus on the skin-care range. I received a sample of their facial cleanser in one of their scents, which was one of the scents of the original brand (and my niece's name!). It's a delicate cleanser and removed make-up. Would I buy it again? Yes, the product was really good at cleaning away make-up, and it was kind to my skin.

The Body Shop perfume in 'Moroccan Rose': I purchased this rose-scent perfume from "The Body Shop" to use a voucher. Would I buy it again? No, there are other rose-scented perfumes that I prefer, and they last longer than this one. It's not a bad brand or fragrance, but I'd rather spend the money on the other product.

Balance Me Tinted Wonder eye cream: This product promises to get rid of fine lines and also provides a tint to the skin. Would I buy it again? No, the product felt too dry and cakey. The packaging also failed. 

REN Satin Perfection BB Cream: This sample-size of BB cream promises to hydrate skin and keep it smooth. The cream is tinted so that makeup is not required. Unfortunately, the make-up tone was too dark for my skin tone. Would I buy it again? No, the product was too dark for my skin, and it only suits certain skin tones.

Trifle Cosmetics Lip Parfait in 'Guilty Pug': I love the branding of Trifle Cosmetics, and their Lip Parfait products come with a different design per colour. 'Guilty Pug' is an orange-brown colour with an illustration of a pug. It's got a high tint and is moisturising. Would I buy it again? No, I found the product was too clumpy and cake-y on my lips. 

This is the second winter now for a new light artwork installation to take place at Southbank, named "Winter Light" in an attempt to copy the success of the light installations at Canary Wharf to bring more people to the location during the winter darkness. This winter, there seem to be fewer artworks, but I headed down to have a look.

Jakob Kvist: Dichroic Sphere

This light sculpture uses multi-faceted semi-transparent coloured panels that encourage the viewer to interact with the artwork through the different shapes and colours created by the illumination.

Lis Rhodes: Dresden Dynamo

This art installation is projected onto the side of the building, and it dates from 1979. It represents the relationship between sound and light, although the sound was not working. The stills were coloured geometric shapes that moved in different motions.

David Batchelor: Sixty Minute Spectrum

Over the course of an hour, the colours change along the rooftops of the buildings at Southbank, gradually changing from red to orange to yellow and completing the colour spectrum in that hour. This light installation has been a part of Southbank for a few years now and was showcased in the installation trail last year too.

Anne Roininen: Car Show

This installation is dotted in two different areas of Southbank with four cars to see. The cars have the appearance of being run down and abandoned and are fit with coloured lights inside to make them glow. The installation focuses on these vehicles as they are seen as a luxury item but contribute to environmental and health issues. The relationship between machines and humans are a part of the theme of this work.  

Zarah Hussain: Submission and Breath and Aath

The artwork under the bridge appeared last year, and additional artworks (though not illuminated) appeared this year. The artwork uses patterns with traditions in Islamic art.

Teemu Määttänen: Noste

These light columns appear on the balcony of the building at South Bank, and they were part of the installation last year but were not working. The word "noste" means "to lift". The colours of light pulsate and lift up the columns.

Tim Noble and Sue Webster: Forever

This is one of the first light sculptures created by the artists, and the word contains its own meaning. The neon sign has a vintage feeling to it, which adds additional meaning to suggest the word "forever" with using feelings of the past to convey the word. 

Oskar Fischinger: Radio Dynamics

This video is projected onto the side of the building, and it dates from 1942. It is an abstract film with different patterns of colour and graphic that move. He helped to influence Disney's 'Fantasia', and his work was distributed worldwide. The film studies colour and rhythm, and it does not need the use of sound.

David Ogle: Loomin

This installation was launched along Southbank in 2020 and was part of the installation trail last year. It uses the natural trees along the Thames to illuminate them, and they take on different forms in neon light. This transforms the public space.

Southbank's Winter Light is free to view until 9 January. Previous posts about Southbank's Winter Light installation can be seen below:

London Southbank Winter Light 2021

In mid-December, the immersive artistic experience "Borealis" by Dan Acher appeared at the Guildhall in the City of London. The installation is inspired by aurora borealis (the northern lights) and turned the yard around the Guildhall into a spectacular viewing point to watch different colours and shapes appear above, taking different shapes and forms. A soundscape helped to bring the experience to life.

"Borealis" was held last year and ended just before Christmas. However, it has been installed in a couple of locations last year and will probably make a come-back to London or elsewhere at some point.

Last year's Pantone® "colour of the year" was a combination of two colours, a grey (Ultimate Gray) and a yellow shade (Illuminating). These colours were set to be positive and uplifting. This year, the colour of the year is a brand new colour, PANTONE 17-3938 "Very Peri". It is a purple or periwinkle shade. It is said to be an creative and innovating colour, and this will allow us to find our new direction in the changing world.

Pantone® helps to set the colour trends. Expect to see this colour used in the world of fashion, interior design, home furnishings, and graphic design over the next year. The past few years of Pantone® 'colours of the year' are listed below.

2021: Ultimate Gray and Illuminating
2020: Classic Blue
2019: Living Coral
2018: Ultra-Violet
2017: Greenery
2016: Serenity & Rose Quartz
2015: Marsala
2014: Radiant Orchid
2013: Emerald
2012: Tangerine Tango
2011: Honeysuckle

1) Pantone®. https://www.pantone.com/uk/en/color-of-the-year-2022 [12 December, 2021].

2021 has been the year of the sculpture trail. Nearly twenty charity sculpture trails have taken place on various streets in the United Kingdom this year, and many of them were delayed from 2020. The sculpture trails aim to raise money for charities, and they are always a fun day out to explore new areas and to see creative work by local artists. All of the sculptures are unique, and the designs are often a nod to the local area. Below is a list of some of the sculpture trails that I visited this year and others that I was unable to visit.

Elephant Parade in Southampton: Launched in the middle of March, this sculpture trail is run by Elephant Parade to raise awareness of the plight of the elephant in the environment. It consisted of nearly twenty sculptures dotted in and around West Quay shopping centre.

Derby Ram Trail: The Derby Ram trail made its way to Derby's streets in May for the summer and featured several ram sculptures that have been based on the famous Derby ram sculpture in the city. 

Elmer's Big Heart of Kent in Maidstone: The children's book character, an elephant named Elmer, came to Maidstone in Kent in the spring. The sculptures are located around the city and raise charity for local organisations.

Winchester Key Workers Otter Trail: Winchester had several otter sculptures in its shop windows in the spring to raise awareness for key workers. The sculptured were hard to discover and not easy to photograph.

Cows About Cambridge Sculpture Trail: Cambridge is known for its herd of cattle, and these painted cattle raise money for local charity and are fun to locate across the city. They launched in June.

Tusk Lion Trail in London: A pride of lions came to London during the summer months to raise awareness for the endangered lion. The sculptures were designed by celebrities and popular artists and located across London but mainly in west London.

'Hares About Town' at Southend-on-Sea: Over thirty large hare sculptures and several smaller ones were placed around Southend-on-Sea in the height of the summer to raise money for local charities. These were located in various parts of Southend and encouraged a trek around to explore.

GoGo Discover Dinosaurs in Norwich: Twenty T-Rex sculptures were placed in Norwich in the height of the summer. These were meant to be launched in 2020, but it was postponed. These sculptures will be returning next year with additional sculptures for a larger trail. The sculptures highlight the arrival of the dinosaur skeleton of "Dippy" on display in the cathedral.

Worcester's Big Elephant Parade: Another elephant trail featuring thirty elephants went on display in the height of the summer across the centre of Worcester, and this was a pleasant walk around the city with most of the sculptures being accessible easily in a loop walk.

Luton's Big Trunk Elephant Trail: More elephants...this time in Luton. Over thity sculptures are located in the town centre of Luton and in parks outside of the centre.

Hogs of Hampshire in Basingstoke: There were approximately thirty hogs across Basingstoke in the summer months to raise money for local charities.

Gratitude NHS Sculptures in Manchester, Birmingham and London: These human-like figures have been commissioned to raise charity for various NHS charities to benefit those that were on the front line for the pandemic. They were on display in one place for a weekend in London, Manchester, and Birmingham.

Rocket Round Leicester : Fourty rockets have been placed around the city of Leicester with several smaller ones to raise money for a local hospice. The rockets are a nod to Leicester's National Space Centre museum and its study of space through the university programmes. They were placed in the height of the summer.

Walking with the Snowman in Bromley, Swadlincote, Birmingham: I did not visit any of these trails, but the same sculpture designs were displayed in London along the south bank near London Bridge in 2019. The trails each feature twelve snowmen to coincide with the song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" with each sculpture decorated with one of the twelve themes in the song. 

In addition to the above, the following were some sculpture trails that I did not get to see this year:

Lincoln Imp Trail: Thirty statues of imps are scattered across the city of Lincoln. The imp is one of the statues of the cathedral that is known in the city. I had planned to see them, but I ran out of time.

North Notts Journeys: Nottingham had fourty book benches on display across the city to mark 400 years of the Mayflower, and millions of people can trace their ancestory back to 102 individuals who travelled on the ship. The trail aims to get people back to the high street.

Octopus Ahoy!: Thirty octopus sculptures were located around Essex with one at Liverpool Street Station. These octopuses mark the 400 anniversary of the Mayflower ship and Clacton-on-Sea. 

Light the North: Over 45 lighthouse sculptures have been placed around some of the northern Scotland islands: Orkney, Moray, and Shetland.

Eye Art Trail: The town in Suffolk has brought several tortoise and hare sculptures across the area to raise money for charity as the pandemic has caused a decrease in funding.

Kingfisher Trail: This Cotswolds trail brings over twenty sculptures to the area so people can get out to explore.

Bears of Sheffield: The city of Sheffield hosted bear sculptures over the summer to raise money for children's charities.

Gigantic Leap Stockport Frog Trail: In 2019, the city of Stockport hosted a frog trail. It has returned this year with more frogs to raise further charity for local hospice.

Winchester Gingerbread Trail: Several gingerbread sculptures have been placed in shop windows across the city of Winchester for visitors to find.