THE place to go to for a cracking cup of coffee when in Hong Kong.
Author: theoldmortuary.design
theoldmortuary has been a blog for about five years. It has evolved into an almost daily event. Pondering on the things that are inspired by my daily life. Often mundane, sometimes repetitive I swerve from hyperlocal activity to big and small thoughts without blinking an eye. I am an artist and writer. My hometown is Plymouth in South West England, part of me will always be connected to London and another part loves to travel.
Bliss #developingyoureye
Bliss is a big subject
Bliss is the subject of my current on-line blogging masterclass.
Blissful , even the word gives a frisson of pleasure.
Bliss..
Big subject and,for me ,this photograph represents just one of the crazy things that can produce momentary Bliss.
The serendipity of texture alongside incredulity at a sudden misplacement of items. In this case a beautifully crafted piece of wedding jewellery with some plastic roses.
Bliss is also my favourite cafe in Crystal Palace
Bliss is also Saltash on a sunny day.
Dungeness #developingyoureye
Scale is everything in life and art. Dungeness in Kent is a place to put both life and art into perspective. It’s shingle beach and wild flat landscape give the perfect landscape for getting things into perspective.
Hugo here, is letting the wind ruffle his fur whilst I sketch notes for the painting below.
Mortuary gets a makeover
The Old Mortuary was converted from a single story Chapel of Repose, where people viewed their loved, or not, one, and a back work room, to a two-story extension attached to our existing cottage. The dimensions and style of the mortuary are slightly different to those of the cottage. We decided to maintain the utilitarian/industrial, albeit on a small scale, nature of the conversion. We wanted to replicate a concrete finish on the walls. This can be hideously expensive but our builders, Superfit, worked creatively to give us the finish we wanted in a more economic way. The result is beautiful and very hard wearing.
The full story of the conversion will be a whole other story, one day.
Street #developingyoureye Tran Phu, Hoi An, Vietnam
Hoi An is a beautiful small city in Vietnam. I took this shot of Tran Phu last week, after rain and nightfall. Hoi An is famed for its tailors, Japanese merchant houses and tea warehouses. All of which are on this street. I spent happy hours drinking tea in the most peaceful tea house , Reaching Out on Tran Phu and had some amazing clothes made at AoBaBa on the same street.
Home #developingyoureye
theoldmortuary.design takes its name from our home. We recently redeveloped an old, unused undertakers building. We bought the building unseen as the keys to the back portion had been lost long ago. Before we actually got in the building I had a romantic notion that we would find artefacts not dissimilar to the beautiful bottle here, which I actually photographed at Petersham Nurseries, Surrey. The truth was somewhat different.
theoldmortuary.design
theoldmortuary. design has long existed in my mind. Blogging about it is one of the first steps to making it real. Intended as a gathering point for all things creative, it is both a real bricks and mortar place and a notional place of thoughts and creations. As creative projects mature into tangible objects they will be showcased here. Daily blogging will give me the chance to record and comment on the things that inspire or impress me.
The image above of Battersea Power station is a record of a moment. Commuting into Victoria every day there were often fabulous photo opportunities with this powerful architecture. However they were often obscured by other trains. This was a moment when I was heavy-lidded from a period of 24 hour on-call. Thankfully my iPhone captured a rare moment of quiet.
This image is precious because development has obscured this beautiful silhouette forever.
Reaching Out Tea House, Hoi An
We love serendipity. This cushion resting against a worn wall in the Reaching Out Teahouse in Hoi An, Vietnam, makes perfect harmony with its environment.
#reachingoutvietnam.com #interior design #Hoi An #Vietnam
Sunday morning with a Benjamin Moore colour chart. Too bad we’re only choosing a grey.
theoldmortuary.design 