Learning to Paddle

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Kids learning to paddle
South Dock, Canary Wharf
London, September 2016

Torre del Filarete

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Torre del Filarete (Filarete Tower)
Castello Sforzesco (Sforza Castle)
Piazza Castello
Milan, November 2016

“In 1450, Francesco Sforza, once he shattered the republicans, began reconstruction of the castle to turn it into his princely residence. In 1452 he hired sculptor and architect Filarete to design and decorate the central tower, which is still known as Torre del Filarete. After Francesco's death, the construction was continued by his son Galeazzo Maria, under architect Benedetto Ferrini. The decoration was executed by local painters. In 1476, during the regency of Bona of Savoy, the tower with her name was built.” (Sforza Castle)

DC Tower 1

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DC Tower 1 by Dominique Perrault, 2013
Donaustadt (Donau City)
Vienna, September 2017

“DC Tower 1 is 220 metres high (250 metres including the antenna spire) which makes it the tallest skyscraper in Austria as it will be 18 metres higher than Millennium Tower, which was leading that ranking before. The DC Tower 1 was officially finished with an opening ceremony on Feb 26, 2014 by Buzz Aldrin. DC Tower 2 is expected to be 168 metres high which will make it Vienna's fourth tallest building. Due to the global financial crisis 2007, ground breaking had to be delayed several times. Eventually construction was started on 17 June 2010. After slightly more than three years, DC Tower 1 is outwardly complete, while works inside the building are on-going. Work will start on DC Tower 2 after DC Tower 1 has been fully completed. Most of the available floor space will be used for offices. Baxter International has been confirmed as one of the largest tenants at DC Towers. The upper floors will be used for sky lofts, while the first 15 floors will house a four-star hotel operated by the Spanish Sol Meliá Group. There will also be a restaurant in one of the top floors. As of June 2012 tenants have been confirmed for 50 percent of the floor space according to the owner WED (Wiener Entwicklungsgesellschaft für den Donauraum).” (DC Towers, Wikipedia)

World Trade Center Barcelona

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World Trade Center Barcelona, 1999
Moll de Barcelona
Barcelona, March 2017

“World Trade Center Barcelona is a business park located in Barcelona, opened on 22 July 1999. This business centre is located on the waterfront close to the city centre, and has 40,000 m2 of rented office and a conference centre, conventions and meeting spaces with 20 different rooms. WTCB building structure was inspired by the shape of a boat surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea, and created by American architect Henry N. Cobb. The arrangement of the four buildings in a circle creates a central plaza of 2,500 m2, where shops and restaurants provide services to the users of the complex. The four towers house offices for rent, a congress centre and the Hotel Grand Marina. Complex design allows to rent offices from 40 to 3,000 m2 in a single plant. The flexibility of space is also a feature of the convention centre, offering the possibility of organising meetings of 8 to large events with up to 1,500 attendees.” (World Trade Center Barcelona, Wikipedia)

Matteo Civitali

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Statue of Matteo Civitali by Arnaldo Fazzi, 1893
Palazzo Pretoriale
Piazza San Michele
Lucca, October 2017

“Matteo Civitali (1436–1502) was an Italian sculptor and architect, painter and engineer from Lucca. He was a leading artistic personality of the Early Renaissance in Lucca, where he was born and where most of his work remains. He was trained in Florence, where Antonio Rossellino and Mino da Fiesole influenced his mature style. He is known to have sculpted statues of Adam, Eve, Abraham, Saints Zacchariah and Elizabeth, and others for the chapel of San Giovanni Battista in Genoa Cathedral. He is mentioned with the name of Matteo Civitali by Vasari in his biography of Jacopo della Quercia, and appears to have taken up the art of sculpture at the age of 40 years, after years of practicing as a ‘barber’ (surgeon).” (Matteo Civitali, Wikipedia)

A Dunánál

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“A Dunánál” (By the Danube) by László Marton, 1980
Monument dedicated to the poet Attila József
Kossuth Lajos tér / Antall József rakpart
Budapest, September 2017

“Attila József, (1905-1937), one of the greatest Hungarian poets of the 20th century. Although his first poems were published when he was 17, real renown came only after his death. József was attracted by Marxist ideology and became a member of the then-illegal Communist Party. In 1932 he launched a short-lived literary periodical, Valóság, and in 1936 became one of the cofounders of the review Szép Szó. In his own poetry József presented intimate pictures of proletarian life. He immortalized his mother, a poor washerwoman, and made her a symbol of the working class. He created a style of melancholy realism, infused with irrationality, through which he was able to express the complex feelings of modern men and reveal his own faith in life’s essential beauty and harmony.” (Attila József, Encyclopædia Britannica)

Torrefazione Fratelli Boasi

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Torrefazione Fratelli Boasi (Boasi Brothers Coffee Roasting)
Vico Inferiore del Ferro
Genoa, April 2016

Church Street Surplus

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Church Street Surplus
Church Street
New York, September 2008

Old Fashioned Door Bells

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Old fashioned door bells
Borgo Santi Apostoli
Florence, May 2017

“K”

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“K” (Franz Kafka's Head) by David Černý, 2014
Quadrio Shopping Center
Spálená, Nové Město
Prague, September 2017

“This eleven-metre-tall statue is a technical marvel of the 21st century in Prague. Forty-two moving panels rotate to create the face of the famous Czech writer Franz Kafka. The statue created by the artist David Černý is installed near the Quadrio Shopping Centre and combines art with modern technology and the traditional ‘golden hands’ of Czech craftsmen. Watch ‘The Metamorphosis’. Wait for all of the panels to align and discover the face of Kafka!” (Franza Kafka Statue, Quadrio Shopping Center)

Palazzo della Mercanzia

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Palazzo della Mercanzia by Lorenzo da Bagnomarino and Antonio di Vincenzo, 1391
Piazza della Mercanzia
Bologna, June 2015

“Seat of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Agriculture and Crafts, Palazzo della Mercanzia has governed trading and business activities of Bologna since the late 14th century. In 1384 the building of Carrobbio open gallery (today's Mercanzia) was initiated under the direction of Antonio di Vincenzo and Lorenzo Bagnomarino in order to group together three buildings used as customs and toll house. For the gallery and the preparation of the hewn stone four stonecutters were called from Florence. The building was completed in 1391, but the elegant palace needed an extension in 1439 and restoration in 1484 following the fall of the de' Bianchi tower. In 1888 - 90 it was reintroduced, also in its polychrome traits, under the direction of Rubbiani and Tartarini. It was rebuilt in 1949 after a live bomb blasted nearby had made half of the façade collapse. Built in brick and Istrian stone, the façade shows two deep Gothic arches, uplifting it, as further highlighted by the raising of the level under the porch with the respect to the surrounding square. Over the arches, a small marble balcony juts out between the two mullioned windows, from which the judges of the merchants' court would read their sentences. An elegant spire rises above the balcony covering one of the dovetail merlons of the battlements on top of the building. According to local tradition at the stroke of the bell called ‘Lucardina’ bans and sentences of the merchant's court were read out-loud from this marble canopy. Instead the culprits of fraudulent bankruptcy were chained to a post placed before the central pillar of the gallery to be pilloried. The rooms and ambulatories of the building, despite the changes brought about with the passing of time, have kept the beauty of masterpieces untouched.”

(Palazzo della Mercanzia, Bologna Welcome)

Most SNP

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Most SNP (Bridge of the Slovak National Uprising)
Bratislava, September 2017

“Most SNP (Bridge of the Slovak National Uprising), commonly referred to as Most Slovenského národného povstania or the UFO Bridge, and named Nový most (New Bridge) from 1993 to 2012, is a road bridge over the Danube in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. It is the world's longest cable-stayed bridge to have one pylon and one cable-stayed plane. It is an asymmetrical cable-stayed bridge with a main span length of 303 m (994 ft). Its steel construction is suspended from steel cables, connected on the Petržalka side to two pillars. The total length of the bridge is 430.8 m (1,413 ft), its width 21 m (69 ft), and it weighs 537 t (592 short tons). A special attraction is the flying saucer-shaped structure housing a restaurant, which since 2005 has been called UFO (previously, Bystrica), on the bridge's 84.6 m (278 ft) pylon. The restaurant is reached using an elevator located in the east pillar, and offers a good view over Bratislava. The west pillar houses an emergency staircase with 430 stairs. Nový Most has four lanes for motor traffic on the upper level and lanes for bicycles and pedestrians on the lower level.” (Most SNP, Wikipedia)

San Michele in Foro

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San Michele in Foro
Piazza San Michele
Lucca, October 2017

“San Michele in Foro is a Roman Catholic basilica church in Lucca, Tuscany, central Italy, built over the ancient Roman forum. Until 1370 it was the seat of the Consiglio Maggiore (Major Council), the commune's most important assembly. It is dedicated to Archangel Michael. The church is mentioned for the first time in 795 as ad foro (in the forum). It was rebuilt after 1070 by will of Pope Alexander II. Notable is the façade, from the 13th century, with a large series of sculptures and inlays, numerous of which remade in the 19th century. The lower part has a series of blind arcades, the central of which includes the main portal. The upper part, built using plenty of iron materials to counter wind, has four orders of small loggias. On the summit, flanked by two other angels, is the 4 m-tall statue of St. Michael the Archangel. According to a legend, an angel's finger would have a huge diamond. On the lower right corner of the façade is a statue (1480) of the Madonna salutis portus, sculpted by Matteo Civitali to celebrate the end of the 1476 plague. The church interior has a nave and two aisles with transept and semicircular apse; the nave is supported by arcades on monolithic columns. From the southern transept rises the bell tower, built in the 12th-14th centuries, with a series of single, double and triple mullioned windows. The last floor was demolished during the rule of Giovanni dell'Agnello (1364-1368), Doge of Pisa.” (San Michele in Foro, Wikipedia)

Sign of the Times

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“Sign of the Times” by Steinbrener/Dempf & Huber, 2016
Hotel InterContinental Wien
Johannesgasse (facade on Lothringerstrasse)
Vienna, September 2017

“It is one of the iconic images of the silent film era: In the movie SAFETY LAST! (1923), the distinctive, stoic Harold Lloyd is dangling from the hand of a huge clock on the outside of a skyscraper in New York. He is turning to the viewer for help while the clock face is inevitably torn from its anchorage and slowly tilting forward. His double is currently dangling from a building in Vienna – not quite as high above the canyons of Manhattan as Harold Lloyd, but at least between the 7th and 8th floors of the Hotel InterContinental. His exact remake. As big as the movies. This creative and film-related intervention was conceived by the Viennese artist group Steinbrener/Dempf & Huber, who, in the past, have repeatedly attracted a great deal of attention with their actions in public spaces.” (Sign of the Times, Viennale)

Holy Apostles

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Bell tower of the church of the Santi Apostoli di Cristo
(Holy Apostles of Christ) by Alessandro Vittoria 1575
Campo Santi Apostoli, Cannaregio
Venice, September 2013

“The 7th Century campanile was destroyed by the fire of 1105. Rebuilt 1450, renovated 1601-09 by Francesco di Piero, brought down by a storm in 1659 and rebuilt 1672-1720 to a design by Andrea Tirali. Jan Morris says that an 'old and simple' sacristan fell from the campanile soon after its completion in 1672(?) but was caught by the minute hand on the clock, and so was slowly lowered to a parapet as time passed.” (Santi Apostoli, The Churches of Venice)

Zsolnay Tiling

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Colourful Zsolnay tiling from Pécs
Great Market Hall (Nagyvásárcsarnok) by Samu Pecz, 1897
Fővám tér
Budapest, September 2017

“Pyrogranite refers to a type of ornamental ceramics that were developed by Zsolnay and placed in production by 1886. Fired at high temperature, this durable material remains acid and frost-resistant making it suitable for use as roof tiles, indoor and outdoor decorative ceramics, and fireplaces. Architects that used the material in their buildings include Miklós Ybl, Ödön Lechner, Béla Lajta, Samu Pecz, and Imre Steindl. It can be seen in buildings such as Matthias Church, the Hungarian Parliament Building, the Museum of Applied Art, the Geological Institute, the Kőbánya Church, the Gellért Baths (all these buildings are in Budapest), the Town Hall in Kecskemét and many buildings, like the Post Office Palace, in Pécs.” (Zsolnay, Wikipedia)

Facade of San Miniato

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Facade of San Miniato al Monte (St. Minias on the Mountain)
Viale dei Colli
Florence, April 2015

“St. Miniato or Minas was an Armenian prince serving in the Roman army under Emperor Decius. He was denounced as a Christian after becoming a hermit and was brought before the Emperor who was camped outside the gates of Florence. The Emperor ordered him to be thrown to beasts in the Amphitheatre where a panther was called upon him but refused to devour him. Beheaded in the presence of the Emperor, he is alleged to have picked up his head, crossed the Arno and walked up the hill of Mons Fiorentinus to his hermitage. A shrine was later erected at this spot and there was a chapel there by the 8th century. Construction of the present church was begun in 1013 by Bishop Alibrando and it was endowed by the Emperor Henry II. The adjoining monastery began as a Benedictine community, then passed to the Cluniacs and then in 1373 to the Olivetans, who still run it. The monks make famous liqueurs, honey and herbal teas, which they sell from a shop next to the church.” (San Miniato al Monte, Wikipedia)

Industrial Palace

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Middle hall of the Průmyslový palác (Industrial Palace) by Bedřich Münzberger, 1891
Výstaviště Praha (Prague Exhibition Grounds)
Areál Výstaviště, Holešovice
Prague, September 2017

“The Industrial Palace (Czech: Průmyslový palác) is an Art Nouveau (or Historicism) building, built by Bedřich Münzberger in 1891, which is used for exhibition purposes, but also for various cultural events. It is a glass building with steel construction and is divided into 3 independent parts, left and right wing and a middle hall with 51 m high clock tower. In 2008 the Palace was engulfed in a fire and the left wing burned. The left wing is currently being rebuilt.” (Výstaviště Praha, Wikipedia)

The Dome and the Bell Tower

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The dome and the bell tower of the Duomo di Siena (Siena Cathedral)
Piazza del Duomo
Siena, April 2017

“The cathedral itself was originally designed and completed between 1215 and 1263 on the site of an earlier structure. It has the form of a Latin cross with a slightly projecting transept, a dome and a bell tower. The dome rises from a hexagonal base with supporting columns. The lantern atop the dome was added by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. The nave is separated from the two aisles by semicircular arches. The exterior and interior are constructed of white and greenish-black marble in alternating stripes, with addition of red marble on the façade. Black and white are the symbolic colors of Siena, etiologically linked to black and white horses of the legendary city's founders, Senius and Aschius.” (Siena Cathedral, Wikipedia)

Čumil

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“Čumil” (The Watcher) by Viktor Hulík, 1997
Rybárska Gate / Panská / Laurinská
Bratislava, September 2017

“The literal translation of the word Čumil is ‘the watcher’. There are two possible explanations for its name. The first rumour says that he is a typical communist era worker who is not bothered about the work he’s supposed to be doing. According to the second rumour, he's looking under the women’s skirts. Choose the one you like more... This most photographed statue of our city attracts tourists at the junction of Laurinská and Panská Streets. Since 1997, when it was first embedded in the ground, it has become one of the symbols of our Old Town. There is a story around this man sticking out of a manhole. The story says that a wish will come true for you if you touch the head of the man – if you keep it secret forever.” (Bratislava Statues, Welcome to Bratislava)

Villa Torrigiani

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South facade of Villa Torrigiani
Camigliano, Capannori
Lucca, October 2017

“The first mention of the villa dates back to 1593, as belonging to the Buonvisi family. It was bought later by Nicola Santini, into whose family it passed. Santini rebuilt the south facade in the Baroque style at the end of the seventeenth century, probably in imitation of the architecture of Versailles where he was ambassador to the Republic of Lucca. The rebuilding involved the addition of two wings to the villa, and the modification of the front by the addition of a massive scale range leading to a serliana, duplicated on the upper floor with two balconies, decorated with statues. He also laid out new gardens. At the front, parterres were arranged around two pools. At the rear, a fountain was built as the focus of the garden, and another sunken ‘garden of Flora’ was laid out to the east. In 1816 Victoria Santini married into the eponymous Torrigiani family, who uprooted the existing garden to make an ‘English style’ park. Only the garden of Flora survived. Now the villa is owned by Fabio Colonna di Stigliano.” (Villa Torrigiani, Wikipedia)

Library & Learning Center

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Library & Learning Center by Zaha Hadid Architects, 2013
Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien (Vienna University of Economics and Business)
Welthandelsplatz
Vienna, September 2017

“The external appearance of the building is characterized by contrasting sections of light and dark. Colored fiber-reinforced concrete was used to construct the façade. The two building segments are separated by a seam of glass. The main entrance of the building faces the campus' central square, the WU Stage. The cantilevered roof extending towards the square makes the entrance instantly recognizable. The building's massive exterior is furrowed with narrow, canyon-like divisions and made up of two sections. Once inside, the Forum and the entry area are made to feel like extensions of the square outside. The generously proportioned atrium also serves as WU's main reception area. Wide, spiral ramps and stairways lead from the entry area up through the OMV Central Library, which extends funnel-like through 6 stories of the building. The top two floors are dedicated entirely to the library, where the wide, glass-fronted student work area offers a breathtaking view of Prater Park. The building's interior consists of a mix of self-study zones and student service units on the lower floors, combined with library space and spectacular views of the campus on the upper stories.” (Library & Learning Center, Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien)

Pietro Metastasio

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Monument to Pietro Metastasio by Emilio Gallori, 1886
Piazza della Chiesa Nuova (Moved in 1910)
Rome, April 2013

Fisherman's Bastion

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Halászbástya (Fisherman's Bastion) by Frigyes Schulek, 1902
Szentháromság tér (Trinity Square)
Budapest, September 2017

“The Halászbástya or Fisherman's Bastion is a terrace in neo-Gothic and neo-Romanesque style situated on the Buda bank of the Danube, on the Castle hill in Budapest, around Matthias Church. It was designed and built between 1895 and 1902 on the plans of Frigyes Schulek. Construction of the bastion destabilised the foundations of the neighbouring 13th century Dominican Church which had to be pulled down. Between 1947–48, the son of Frigyes Schulek, János Schulek, conducted the other restoration project after its near destruction during World War II. Its seven towers represent the seven Magyar tribes that settled in the Carpathian Basin in 896. From the towers and the terrace a panoramic view exists of Danube, Margaret Island, Pest to the east and the Gellért Hill. The Buda side castle wall was protected by the fishermen's guild and this is the reason why it was called fishermen's Bastion. Other people say, it got the name from the part of the city, which lies beneath the tower. The guild of fishermen was responsible for defending this stretch of the city walls in the Middle Ages.” (Fisherman's Bastion, Wikipedia)

Torre di San Niccolò

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Torre di San Niccolò (St. Nicholas Tower)
Piazza Giuseppe Poggi
Florence, April 2015

“The Torre di San Niccolò used to be part of the old city walls that protected Florence. One of the entrance gates to the city as well as a watch station, San Niccolo is the tallest of the ancient city towers still standing today. From June to September this Medieval tower that goes back to 1324 is open for visits. Standing about 60 meters tall (about 200 feet) from the top of the crenellated terrace you get a 360° view of the city. From this unique vantage point along the river you can take in Piazzale Michelangelo's bronze David, the Florence Cathedral, Palazzo Vecchio, the town of Fiesole as well as the Ponte Vecchio and all the other bridges that span the Arno.” (An Ancient Tower and Old City Gate, Florence Web Guide)

Man Hanging Out

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“Zavěšený muž” (Man Hanging Out) by David Černý, 1996
Husova, Staré Město
Prague, September 2017

“Dangling above one of the cobblestone streets in Prague’s Old Town is a statue that has caused more than a few people to be concerned that a man is about to plummet to his death, but fear not, it is simply a fake Sigmund Freud. First created in 1996, the work known as ‘Zavěšený muž’ (Man Hanging Out) is the vision of Czech sculptor David Černý, whose work can actually be found all across Prague. Many of Cerny’s works are seen as somewhat deliberately provocative, and this one is no different. The dangling Freud is surprisingly lifelike at a distance, and a number of people have sincerely taken it for a person in danger. However, it is simply a sculptural statement about intellectualism in the 20th century and Černý’s uncertainty about it.” (Man Hanging Out, Atlas Obscura)

Scior Carera

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Scior Carera (Milanese for ‘Mister Carera’)
Corso Vittorio Emanuele
Milan, November 2016

“The name ‘Carera’ is a corruption of the first word ‘Carere’ of the epigraph found below the statue. The sculpture is a marble bas-relief dating back to the 3rd century. It depicts a man wearing a toga, with the right leg slightly put forward; it has lost its arms as well as its head. The latter was replaced in the middle ages, supposedly to represent archbishop Adelmanno Menclozzi. Under the relief there is an epigraph with a sentence credited to Cicero, Carere debet omni vitio qui in alterum dicere paratus est (‘Anybody who wants to criticise someone should be free from all faults’). Another inscription below this one remembers the former collocation of the statue in Via San Pietro all'Orto as well as the role this statue has played in the 19th century during the Austrian rule of Milan; at the time, in fact, there was the common habit of attaching satirical political messages to the statue, much like what happened in Rome with Pasquino and other ‘talking statues’. In particular, the so-called tobacco riots that started the Five Days of Milan (whereby the Milanese quit smoking to cause an economical damage to the Austrians) was possibly initiated on 31 December 1848 by a message attached to Scior Carera.” (Scior Carera, Wikipedia)

Slovak Radio Building

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Slovak Radio Building, 1983
Mýtna ulica
Bratislava, September 2017

“It is shaped like an inverted pyramid. Architects of this project were Štefan Svetko, Štefan Ďurkovič and Barnabáš Kissling and it was completed in 1983. The project began in 1967. The building is 80 metres high and has a concert hall with a large concert organ. The first test broadcast was made in 1984 and regular broadcasting began on 27 March 1985. The building was included in a list of the 30 ugliest buildings in the world, but has been defended by Slovak architects.” (Slovak Radio Building, Wikipedia)

Detail of Santa Croce

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Basilica di Santa Croce (Basilica of the Holy Cross)
Piazza Santa Croce
Florence, May 2017

“The Basilica is the largest Franciscan church in the world. Its most notable features are its sixteen chapels, many of them decorated with frescoes by Giotto and his pupils, and its tombs and cenotaphs. Legend says that Santa Croce was founded by St Francis himself. The construction of the current church, to replace an older building, was begun on 12 May 1294, possibly by Arnolfo di Cambio, and paid for by some of the city's wealthiest families. It was consecrated in 1442 by Pope Eugene IV. The building's design reflects the austere approach of the Franciscans. The floorplan is an Egyptian or Tau cross (a symbol of St Francis), 115 metres in length with a nave and two aisles separated by lines of octagonal columns. To the south of the church was a convent, some of whose buildings remain.” (Santa Croce, Wikipedia)

Pink Rabbit

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Giant 3D version of Durer's “Feldhase” (Young Hare) by Ottmar Hörl
Wiener Staatsoper (Vienna State Opera)
Opernring / Operngasse
Vienna, September 2017

“The German artist, Albrecht Dürer, who hailed from Nuremberg, painted his now famous ‘Young Hare’ in 1502; it is widely acknowledged as a masterpiece of observational art and is housed in the Albertina Museum in Vienna. The pink sculpture is a giant interpretation of that famous painting. It was created by Ottmar Hörl, the president of the Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg since 2005. In 2003, he created a large scale art installation of numerous hares in four shades of green, which were displayed in Nuremberg market square under the title ‘A large piece of hare’.” (Pink Rabbit!, Travel with Intent)

Il Navigatore

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“Il Navigatore” (The Navigator) by Antonio Maria Morera, 1938
Viale delle Brigate Partigiane
Genoa, April 2016