This series of pictures
is published in praise of the exceptional artists who have enlivened
Blackpool with their stunning work. When you consider the scale of
this art and the tools used, the skill of the artists is nothing
short of exceptional.
In producing a
photographic record of this work, it is customary to set the camera
both central and parallel to the murals to eliminate distortion. In
most cases I have taken a different approach, in an attempt to
simulate walking past the murals and being compelled to look at them.
Although some of the pictures are not square, for artistic and
dramatic effect, I have eliminated distortion where appropriate with
post production methods.
Most of these murals
can be found in the buildings adjoining the car park at the Church
Street end of Cookson Street, Blackpool, with the exception of the
last one which adjoins the car park at the Church Street end of
Topping Street.
I was amused by the
juxtaposition of the animal and the man, and have used a camera angle
to make the animal dominant, with a feint suggestion of cause and
effect.
The line separating the
car parking bays points directly towards the man and draws attention
to the mural.
This panel of three
murals leads the eye to an open car parking space with an abstract of
the distant buildings on the left, providing a suggestion of the
surrounding area.
This shot puts five of
the murals in context, with the strong female figure in the
foreground
A straight record of
two of the more colourful murals. It seems a travesty to park cars in
front of them and to obscure the impressive detail of the artwork.
An impressive and
dominant figure that literally fills the 'house end'. The shot was
taken very close to the image, looking up with a wide-angle lens to
deliberately emphasise the converging lines of the building for
dramatic effect
I've called this
picture the Word of Light. It is a complete mural that fills the end
of a property, but the three-d effect created by the artist is so
real that the figure appears to be looking at the building. This
dramatic angle was dictated by the available space of about three
metres between the properties and I waited for the sun to drop so
only the text was lit
This shot was taken at
a more severe angle than I would have chosen but a car was parked
close to the building. The solution was to shoot along the side of
the building with a wide-angle lens, increasing the relative size of
the fish and leaving the man looking on in amazement.
I'm told that some of
the artists responsible for this stunning urban art also worked on
the artwork in Manchester's Northern Quarter. Their exceptional
talent has been well coordinated to provide an interesting variation
of work that evokes joy and astonishment in passers-by. My admiration
is unlimited and I hope this short pictorial blog does them justice.
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