Life

To All At Sea - Work by Anthony Garratt

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Last weekend I took a trip to Anglesey to meet with the artist Anthony Garratt and take some pictures of his latest installation and the accompanying performance piece.

The Royal Charter Storm scoured the West coast of Britain in 1859. The storm was named after a ship which was nearing the end of her journey from Melbourne to Liverpool but was wrecked off the coast of Anglesey. Including the 450 souls that lost their lives that night on Anglesey, another 350 or so were killed in various other wrecks and on land where roofing and masonry were torn from buildings. The church at Cwm yr Eglwys here in Pembrokeshire was also a victim of the storm and is the reason only the gable end remains standing. As a result of the storm, Robert Fitzroy, head of the Meteorological Office at the time, introduced the first gale warning service which was a precursor to today’s Shipping Forecast (which I often enjoy listening to late at night in the comfort of my bed).

The RNLI crew at Moelfre rescued 8 crew members from the cliffs but scores of bodies were recovered to the church of St Gallgo which acted as a temporary mortuary. The process took its toll on the vicar who had the task of identifying the bodies from their personal belongings and facial features. He died only three years after the event. In a tragic twist, the ship was full of prospectors returning from gold mines in Australia and for safe keeping many had their spoils sewn into their clothes; they drowned with their fortune only weighing them down.

160 years on from the tragedy, Anthony has produced a painted panel that sits on a weather vane positioned close to the site of the wreck near Moelfre. The panel has been collecting wind data over 2 months (the time it took the ship to sail from Melbourne) and this was then interpreted into a piece of music. On the night of the 160th anniversary, the piece was performed in St Gallgos church by the Hogia’r Ddwylan choir and violinist, Philippa Mo. It also featured a lyrical section from former National Poet for Wales, Gillian Clarke. As a final note, the ships bell from The Royal Charter was struck at the end of the piece.

It was an emotional night. The music produced from the wind was haunting and beautiful and it was strange to think that the sounds were echoing around the site where the bodies, still sodden and sandy, had been lain out upon the floor before sepulture. The music being generated by natural forces meant it was odd and abstract and the interpretation in strings and human voice had an ethereal quality. It was particularly eerie and poignant to hear the ships bell ringing in the church; the exact sound that would have been heard on the deck that fateful night before it was taken by the waves.

The day was filmed and once the footage is edited will appear here… https://www.toallatsea.co.uk/ Here are some of my pictures from the day. From rehearsals in the church to a visit to the installation before the final evening performance.

Extinction Rebellion

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A couple of weeks back I went to join the first days of the Extinction Rebellion demonstrations in London. Before you roll your eyes… I primarily went along to have a look at what was going on and try and take some pictures of people and things that are not my usual subject matter. Whilst I agree with the message I was concerned that direct action is a difficult thing to get right; the central message can often be hijacked by a minority with a simple anti establishment motivation or the whole thing can simply be misrepresented in the media as a nuisance rabble that disrupts the lives of everyday people without solving anything. As it was, I spoke to lots of people over the course of several days on the streets and the message was the same; they were simply people of all ages and backgrounds who understand the existential threat to the one planet we have and want to persuade those in power that now is the time to act and understand that failure to do so will be catastrophic. Many spoke about how they felt they had no choice but to get involved and at least try to force change to happen for the sake of the planet, their children and grandchildren. Several told me how they would prefer to be at home with their families rather than stood on the street but that they had an obligation to be there for the sake of the future of the planet. At the end of two weeks of demonstrations in London and around the world, attention has been focused on the movement and most importantly; the message. Time will tell if those with the power to do so will take meaningful action.

Some of the portraits here have accompanying text from short interviews I conducted… click on images for larger version then hover your cursor over the image to read.

Haverfordwest Skatepark

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I always try and get down to the Skatepark in Haverfordwest for the annual Summer Jam. It’s always a great event and brilliant to see a facility being so well used. It’s a tribute to the people who put the effort in to get it built that so many kids are using it and developing into great riders. I got there late this year but here’s a few pics that are better off here than on my hard drive never to see the light of day.