PARIS SUPPLEMENT
Millie and Jim's Paris Photo Party
Bastille, Paris. Nov 13, 2008
It's always a delight to meet Millie and Jim Casper, and
lensculture is one of the best web
sites dealing with photography in an intelligent way - and showing a great
deal of fine work in the online magazine and blog. So it's hardly surprising
that their party during Paris Photo attracts a great crowd of very talented
people including photographers, film-makers, publishers, gallery owners and
others with an interest in the medium. I've decided not to caption these images
and I'm not going to name-drop, but if you are up with the photographic scene
there may be a few you recognise. On the linked pages they are presented in
the order that I took them.
As well as the people, it helps that the champagne sparkles equally and there
are plenty of fine things to nibble; if you need some air (or to smoke) the
balcony has a fine view along the rue Saint Antoine. It really was hard to
tear myself away to get the Metro back to my hotel around midnight; last year
I hear the party was still going until an early breakfast.
As always I took many more pictures than appear here, and if anyone who was
at the party and can't find themselves in a picture I'll happily look and
see if I have one of you should you ask. And as usual I'll be happy to supply
larger files if anyone in any of the pictures would like to print themselves
a copy.
more pictures
Poles Celebrate Independence Day in London
Westminster, London. Saturday 8 Nov, 2008
Polish forces fought on the Allied side against Germany in the war
more pictures
The modern state dates from the end of the First World War in 1918 when
the Second Polish Republic was founded - and November 11 is celebrated in
Poland as Independence Day. Although Poland had existed since the 10th century
it disappeared as a state around 1795, being absorbed into Russia, Austria
and Prussia, and only re-emerged with the defeat of Germany.
Unfortunately, independence did not last long, as the German army invaded
in September 1939, starting World War II, followed soon after by Russia occupying
the eastern part of the country. After the end of the war Poland became a
part of the Soviet empire.
Despite a number of popular rebellions, and a growing movement around the
Polish Pope's visit to Poland in 1979 and Lech Walesa and Solidarity from
1980 on, it was only in 1989 that democracy finally returned in Poland.
This year is the 90th anniversary of the foundation of the modern Polish
state, and celebrations took place in London a few days early on Saturday
(8 Nov) in a mass that packed out Westminster Cathedral, after which several
thousands marched to a rally in Trafalgar Square, attended by many Polish
dignitaries, including the ambassador to London, the Polish Cardinal Jozef
Glemp and other leading clerics and Ryszard Kaczorowski, the last émigré
President of the Republic of Poland who handed over the insignia of state
to President of the Third Polish Republic Lech Walesa in 1990.
more pictures
Bee-keepers Protest - Spend More on Research
Westminster, London. Tuesday 5 Nov, 2008
Bee-keepers protest in Old Palace Yard
more pictures
Forget the birds, it was the bees that led to my existence. My father, then
a young batchelor, signed up for a bee-keeping course at the newly founded
Twickenham and Thames Valley Bee-Keepers Association and made friends with
the similarly aged instructor. Both had younger sisters, and soon, thanks
undoubtedly to the magical properties of honey, there were two engaged pairs
- and, in the fullness of time, me. Both Dad and Uncle Alf kept bees for
money as well as honey, both gained certificates at the shows. Dad's second
war service involved getting on his bike to inspect hives across Middlesex
for foul brood, and for a time he looked after the T&TVBKA's own bees
at the apiary in Twickenham, as well as those of Mr Miller at Angelfield
in Hounlsow, and of course his own on several sites, while Uncle Alf had
hives in west country orchards as well as locally.
So although I've never kept bees, I certainly learnt about them helping
Dad as a young boy, and learnt to love honey. But bees aren't just about
honey, they are vital for pollination of crops, with around a thrid of
what we eat depending on their work. The economic benefit from this in
the UK is about ten times that from honey production at around £120-200
million a year.
But bees are under threat. Since the early 1990s, the Varroa mite has
devasted many wild bee colonies. Bee-keepers have managed to control the
mite, but now strains have developed which resist the treatments. A fungus,
Nosema ceranae has added to the problems.
An even greater threat is colony collapse, a poorly understood disorder
probably cuased by a combination of factors including viruses, stress,
pesticides, bad weather and various diseases. There have been huge loses
of bees in the USA and parts of Europe but as yet is has not reached here.
Around 300 bee-keepers, organised by the British bee-Keepers Association
(BBKA) came to lobby parliament for greater research to combat the threats
to bees and to deliver a petition with with over 140,000 signatures for
increased funding for research into bee health to Downing St.
Most wore bee-keeping suits and hats with veils and some brought the
bee-smokers that are used to calm the hives. Labour MP for Norwich North
, Dr Ian Gibson, spoke briefly at the start of the protest. One
of the few MPs with a scientific background, he was Dean of Biology at
the University of East Anglia before being elected as an MP in 1997. The
current president of the BBKA, Tim Lovett, who led the protesters, was
a former student of his.
more pictures
Leake St Grafitti
Leake St, Waterloo, London. Nov 5, 2008
onlyjoe and a little gestalt
I couldn't be bothered to queue for Banksy and friend's Cans
Festival in Leake St in May, but today the tunnel was almost empty
and more or less on my way and I had a few minutes to spare before catching
a train... So I took a few pictures of the display that seems to be changing
pretty regularly along there.
more pictures
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All pictures on this section of the site are ©
Peter Marshall 2008; to buy prints or for permission to reproduce pictures
or to comment on this site, or for any other questions, contact
me.
