GOING TO CHURCH

 

Two examples of brickwork from my morning walk. What is it about modernity that strips the magic from everything? Is it just the drive to do more with less (aka efficiency)? Have we somehow lost our sense that every little detail of our lives is sacred? Is it the iron grip of economics upon our souls?

Bucket handle pointing, at least that's what we used to call it. There were numerous advantages touted, but I don't remember beauty being on that list.

Maybe you don't see the problem here. Perhaps it's just an old man indulging in nostalgia. The love of old things just because they remind me of my lost youth. Perhaps Flemish Bond is just more intriguing to our brain's pattern-recognition system. Stretcher bond is such a dull name after all.

On the other hand it's such a thrill to see this variety of texture, this depth of meaning all around. A hundred years and more of human history all around and living in harmony.

You've got to hand it to those soft orange bricks though. They warm my heart. Not to mention the thin delicacy of lime-mortar joints, speaking of days when bricklayers were loyal to their craft for fifty years or more.

 

 

Morning walk no 3 took me past a rather splendid Gothic Revival church. You can imagine Basingstoke expanding to the south as the industrial revolution kicks in, and the parish church of St Michael no longer being adequate to serve the whole community.

Temple Moore was an interesting architect, closely connected to the Scott dynasty. Pupil of "Middle Scott" who was the least prominent and had a drink problem. In turn he trained Giles who went on to design Liverpool cathedral, Battersea power station, the famous red telephone box, etc.

You can see the move towards abstraction and bold massing in Moore's own work. All Saints is dated to 1915, so Modernism was already on the horizon. His response was to simplify and extend while remaining within the tradition. Others made a complete break and doomed us to a future of endlessly "reinventing the wheel"

There is no going back of course. But I think it is useful to be aware of that history. Perhaps we can re-establish a measure of continuity and stability.

It won't be easy.

 

I went to church. Kind of an oxymoron (me going to church) , but it was good to experience the building in use. The bells as I walked down the street. The incense and the organ. The full monty.

I have great respect for the role that Christianity has played in the western tradition. Its power has faded terribly and I didn't feel any urge to start attending regularly or to "believe" in any literal sense. But the space inside is rather splendid and that was a good way to see it for the first time.

I'm talking about All Saints, Basingstoke by Temple Moore of course. Gothic Revival with just a hint of Arts and Crafts. Now just as soon as I get my broadband connection I can have a quick go at a massing model in Revit. The rest of the weekend was devoted mostly to grandchildren. Six months older and just as wondrous as ever.

 

 

A nice walk heading south this morning. Probably a 30 minute round trip, maybe a bit more. Grove Road parallel to the M3 has a couple of service stations with branded convenience stores.

I bought a couple of items just to try the M&S out. Some fairly posh detached houses along the way. Also well-kept allotments. Not the closest or the cheapest place to shop, but if I happen to be taking exercise in that direction, why not? 😁

I don't think I'm quite relaxed enough to enjoy the experience of settling in to a new environment to it's fullest. Too many little admin tasks along the way. But it is an enormous privilege to be transported from the desert, back into England's green and pleasant suburbs. If only for a few weeks, this time around.