Luke's Adventures

Tumblr

2011-12-22T18:01:00.003Z

Is it just me or Tumblr just becoming a bit of a ridiculous parody of itself..

I think if Baudrillard were still alive he'd feel like he'd found an all inclusive real life working example of the height of post-modern hyper-reality, nothing means anything on tumblr but its all there. Visual overload. Hmm, it's a shame as its a nice system of following blog but is wayyy too full of shit.* Oh well.. Might delete my account.

In other news, I'm finished uni for the semester and obviously am thinking 'oh wow look at all the time I have, I'm totally gonna write some blogs and stuff', hopefully this will happen, realistically, don't get too excited. More likely to be on Art Loris if I do.

*note: I am aware I currently add to this shit.

New Blog: Art Loris

2011-04-05T16:13:00.003+01:00

Appologies for the absence. That is making the wild presumption that anyone still checks back after the recent lack of posting.

I have a new blog

ART LORIS

A blog of art writings and such, posts coming soon over there..

2011-01-14T01:34:00.002Z

sooty, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Hello blog. I appeared to have neglected you like a dusty relic in an abandoned museum. My apologies.

Where did I last see you? Many months ago. I now spend my days studying art and its convoluted histories at university in Kingston-upon-Thames, no longer am I a gallery employee (though any of you nice museum/gallery directors have some part time work going, that would be lovely).

Still no photos have been processed and my finances suggest this will not change soon, though perhaps I will share some thoughts on art and life (I confuse those two a lot) with you in the coming weeks.

Also see my Tumblr for other things and stuff

x

the outpost

2010-06-01T18:38:00.002+01:00

the outpost, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

my input

Towner

2010-04-10T22:49:00.002+01:00

Towner, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

i work here now :)

2010-04-10T22:43:00.000+01:00

come on down. polaroidys of mine in there xx

Tate

2010-02-10T16:38:00.002Z

P2090028, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

P1060012

2010-02-03T15:12:00.002Z

P1060012, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

a few new photos from the last few weeks..

New Blog

2010-01-25T02:53:00.003Z

though i would have a little look at what tumblr is all about the other day so i started a little blog of my general musings over there

tumblr

x

Towner

2009-09-13T23:17:00.002+01:00

Towner, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

photos and stuff

more uploads...

2009-09-04T21:36:00.002+01:00

34290024, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Hello :)

2009-09-04T19:05:00.002+01:00

Stephy, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Finally got some films developed :):)

i photocopied the cat

2009-08-31T17:38:00.003+01:00

i photocopied the cat, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

yep.

Cameras for Sale

2009-06-11T02:02:00.002+01:00

Olympus XA, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

I'm selling a few cameras that I don't currently need on ebay.

check it out

link

Meow !

2009-06-06T21:44:00.002+01:00

Sooty !, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

back !

It's Back !

2009-06-05T12:01:00.001+01:00

Tell your friends !

onephotographeveryday.blogspot.com

USA

2009-06-05T11:47:00.002+01:00

USA Map, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

a fleeting visit. this map went a bit all over the place...

New Zealand Route

2009-06-02T01:49:00.003+01:00

New Zealand Route, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

yep.

Lake Taupo

2009-05-22T05:12:00.002+01:00

P5200042, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Really big lake.
Volcanoes in the distance.

The Remarkables

2009-05-15T04:13:00.002+01:00

The Remarkables, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

yep. pretty nice.

in other news, i am now part of the 5% of the worlds population that will pass below the 45th parallel in their lifetime. cool.

Lake Wanaka

2009-05-13T09:47:00.002+01:00

Lake Wanaka, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

More uploads.
Yep.

2009-05-12T08:11:00.002+01:00

P5110035, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

new zealand is a nice place

shame i spend about as much time fucking around trying to get buses as i do actually doing interesting things (like taking this photograph)

Arriving in Christchurch

2009-05-07T08:48:00.002+01:00

Arriving in Christchurch, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

hello new zealand !

Melbourne - Sydney and Beyond...

2009-05-06T08:03:00.002+01:00

Melbourne - Sydney and beyond..., originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Had enough of Australia...

Travels in Tasmania

2009-04-28T05:11:00.002+01:00

Around Tassie, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

This is where I've been this week !

Heading back to Melbourne today. But not for long...

Melbourne - Hobart

2009-04-28T04:43:00.003+01:00

Melbourne - Hobart, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

2009-04-19T05:25:00.000+01:00

morenewmath.com

2009-04-05T04:57:00.002+01:00

sorry i haven't posted for a while, I will return soon !

in the meantime here is a picture of me looking incredibly dashing and handsome.. maybe.

Great Ocean Road

2009-03-19T08:50:00.002Z

Twelve Appolstles, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

was good !

f1.8

2009-03-18T10:05:00.002Z

F1000021, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

some quite nice uploads today, even if i say so myself !

flickr.

more tomorrow

:)

Melbourne GPO

2009-03-18T05:19:00.002Z

Melbourne GPO, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

ahaha koala !

2009-03-17T10:06:00.002Z

WILD Koala, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

in the wild too !

Melbourne from the Westgate Bridge

2009-03-16T10:25:00.002Z

Melbourne from the Westgate Bridge, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

This shot was taken from the car leaving Melbourne on our way down the Great Ocean Road.

More pictures from my OM2n of the Great Ocean Road in a few days, taken with real black & white film!

This is now...

2009-03-12T13:04:00.000Z

That was then...

2009-03-12T12:56:00.001Z

I Went to Sydney Again

2009-03-09T03:20:00.003Z

84390014, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Which was nice.

Back in Melbourne

2009-03-07T23:29:00.002Z

Melbourne, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Good times.
We love Melbourne.

Of Montreal

2009-03-06T11:35:00.001Z

090303 OfMontreal 91, originally uploaded by stickwriter.

They are the best band in the universe !

(I didn't take this photo)

Canberra, Australian Capital Territory

2009-03-06T05:31:00.003Z

Parliament House, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

I went to Canberra last week on my way to Sydney.

This means that I have now been to all the mainland states and territoties in Australia, Tassy being the only other state that I need to visit...

More photographs on flickr

Melbourne to Sydney via Canberra

2009-03-01T10:06:00.003Z

Melbourne to Sydney via Canberra, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Uploading...

2009-02-25T03:58:00.002Z

F1000029, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Almost uploaded all the photographs from the films I got processed at the weekend.
I am very pleased with some of them, check out my flickr and other blog for more.

The Ghan

2009-02-25T03:52:00.002Z

F1000022, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Kata Tjuta

2009-02-25T01:09:00.002Z

Kata Tjuta, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

I am pleased with this for a shot taken in a moving car...

Uluru

2009-02-24T15:36:00.002Z

61280037, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Yeah I went to that rock too. Was ace.
Biggest rock I've seem in a while...

Cape Tribulation

2009-02-23T11:43:00.002Z

Cape Tribulation, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Awesome place.
Go there.

The Big Mango, Bowen

2009-02-22T01:22:00.002Z

The Big Mango, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

More Uploads.

2009-02-21T13:26:00.002Z

Curtain Fig Tree, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

I have got to buy some more Neopan 1600
Fucking love it

2009-02-21T08:15:00.002Z

Surfers Paradise, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Got all my films processed today...

Flickr.

2009-02-21T00:22:00.002Z

Excited!?, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

New Blog

2009-02-20T11:01:00.002Z

Camels, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

I have started another blog.

One Photograph Everyday

Everyday I will post a new photograph (this blog stays as my normal blog along with the new one just for one photo per day, everyday).

(the camels were just for fun!)

Adreas Gursky

2009-02-18T12:26:00.008Z

So I've been meaning to go to this exhibition for like the whole time I've been in Melbourne but it actually happened the other day! I couldn't take any photographs of it as there were scary security people everywhere!

To be honest I'm not very good at writing these type of things so I'll keep it brief.

I've always admired Gurskys work as good and quite unique but the only way to really appreciate it is in an exhibition with huge prints. At the NGV nothing was smaller than about 2 metres by 3 metres which allows you too really appreciate Gurskys work, both the huge initial image and the sometimes tiny intricate details which simply aren't visible when you see his work on the web or in print, etc.

This allows you to also see how impressive it is to have been able to capture this scene, this kind of photography is not easy to do.

It was hard enough to tell what was going on here when the print was HUGE:

At times Gurskys work almost doesn't look real, the viewpoints are completely unattainable and the lenses used far wider than the human eye.

When looking at his photographs you have to first look from a distance and take in the whole scene and then approach closer to scrutinize the tiny details. From a distance some of the images can look quite abstract and have some kind of repetition and/or pattern but after closer inspection prove to be real-life scenes.

Gurskys does a good job of documenting the successful 21st century capitalist world, creating a distinct picture of the globalosed world.

The texture of the water here is ridiculously awesome.

I have no idea why the sizes of these images went crazy.

So in conclusion my advice would be: don't come to a conclusion about Andreas Gurskys photographs until you've seen them exhibited in a state that does them justice.

Melbourne

2009-02-10T09:31:00.004Z

Flickr wont let me blog ! :(

I would have come out like this if it did let me:

Hello blog fans !

It's been a while, how are you?

The Overland

2008-12-31T05:01:00.003Z

The Overland, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Route the Overland train that I took from Adelaide to Melbourne.

Art Gallery of South Australia

2008-12-28T06:20:00.002Z

Bedroom by Samantha Small

The Art Gallery of South Australia had some interesting exhibits including an image from the same series as this (Living Room), works by Brent Harris, Bill Henson and Andy Warhol among others.

Vik Muniz experiments with media re-creating well-known images in art history. This is made by winding thread around hundreds of tall pins fixed to board. The net of suspended thread is then photographed and discarded and the photograph displayed. This creates the ability to see the image as either flat or an illusion of three dimensional space. This piece is a re-creation of Piranesi's The Round Tower and is displayed at the Art Gallery of South Australia.
Vik Muniz has also worked with Peanut Butter, sugar and chocolate syrup amongst other things.

There was also some decent looking temporary exhibitions but they require money to get in...

Jesus the Peruvian Boy

2008-12-27T11:26:00.001Z

I think this is like the best thing ever:

Link

If he was Mexican it'd be perfect.

2008-12-26T11:20:00.002Z

, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Still no films processed but there is a couple of drawings, some random videos I made on the Ghan and some photos of big paper boats on my flickr now.

The Ghan

2008-12-26T11:09:00.003Z

The Ghan, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

A rough map of the route the Ghan took me on from Darwin to Adelaide.

Road Trip Part5

2008-12-23T06:20:00.002Z

Road Trip Route, Part 3, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Uluru to Darwin

By this time we were all getting slightly low on money and needed to get to Darwin.

We left Yulara around midday-ish, made it as far as Tennant Creek that day, only stopping when necessary.

The next day we set off early, stopping for breakfast and a shower at Banka Banka, which consisted of a few tin buildings and a friendly goat called Gertrude. Gertrude was great fun, climbing into the car and such, though became less friendly when she discovered that none of the beans on toast were actually for her.

That night we arrived in Darwin, the final (for now) destination of 'The Road Trip'.

Road Trip Part4

2008-12-23T06:11:00.002Z

Uluru, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park

We arrived at Yulara to find that all card facilities were down, however we managed to work around that and get to Uluru for sunset which is the best time for viewing the rock, the amazing colours and contours of it are emphasized at this time of day.

However sitting on the car, watching the sunset, we managed to crack the windscreen, bad times.

After watching the sunset we drove up to Uluru. Its big. Really big. Imagine a really, really huge rock and its still bigger. Its hard to describe the feeling when you're up close, its not like any other experience in the world.

In my opinion, one of the best views of Uluru is from a fair distance as you can really get an idea of how it interrupts the landscape, all around is completely flat for a long way until you encounter this enormous red rock.

The next morning we watched the sunrise at Uluru and went to Kata Tjuta which though nowhere near as famous, I would say is as impressive a sight as Uluru, bigger in total size than Uluru, Kata Tjuta is a series of similar rocks protruding out of the flat ground around 30 kilometers from Uluru..

On the way back to Yulara we spotted a pair of wild camels, stopping the car, myself and Luke chased them through the bush to get photos, which was fantastic, running bare foot through the soft red sand after camels is surely what traveling is all about.

Road Trip Part3

2008-12-22T10:34:00.002Z

Road Trip Route, Part 2, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Cape Tribulation to Uluru

From Cape Tribulation we needed to make haste as there was a long way yet to drive, the first day after Cape trib took us as far as Cairns after a brief stop at Mossman Gorge for a swim and also entailed a night in a bed after a week of tenting which was much appreciated.

The next day the destination was Townsville after stopping as Lake Eachem and Millaa Millaa and Zillie Falls.

Lake Eachem is a volcanic crater lake, clear, dark, deep waters, fantastic for swimming in, myself and my namesake swam out into the deep in the rain, this was the best spot for swimming on the road trip, complete with large wild turtles.

From Townsville we headed inland through Charters Towers and Hughenden and stopped in Julia Creek for the night. This is real outback Queensland, faded grandeur where proud locals don't seem to have realised that the Gold Rush is over. By this time the humidity of the tropical north was lessening but the heat rising, in a cafe in Hughenden (whilst buying milkshakes) we asked how hot it was, the thermometer inside the air conditioned shop read 31 degrees and the lady at the counter guessed it was more like 41 degrees outside. The highest temperature recorded in Australia (in the shade) was in the town of Cloncurry, which we passed through the next day, if I remember correctly 53.1 degrees.

By this time we had also encountered the huge road trains of the inland highways. Imagine a lorry, then add several more on to the back of it, there you have a road train.

The next day took us from Julia Creek through Cloncurry, a brief stop in Mt Isa which I'm told (though I haven't checked this officially anywhere) is the worlds largest city. You may say 'but I've never heard of it!?', the population is only around the 22, 000 mark but in terms of area it is apparently the largest though this is mainly due to huge cattle stations that are considered part of the city. I have since looked that up and though it is listed in the Guinness Book of Records, Kalgoorlie-Boulder in WA and Chongqing in China are both larger.

That night we stopped in the Township of Camooweal, just before the border into Northern Territory.

The fourth day from Cape Trib entailed us entering the Northern Territory, my 5th out of the 8 states and territories, the most wild and sparsely populated of all 8, much of it being desert or other impenetrable terrain.

Flat tyre #2 of the Road Trip occurred somewhere between Tennant Creek and Alice Springs. Very, very flat this time, evidently it had gone down until the wheel was on the ground and ripped a hole in the tyre, wheel was changed easily enough and 'breaking down in the outback' can be ticked off ones list of things to do, as for a few days now the terrain had become what would be described as outback, red, red dirt, towering termite mounds and such.

The next brief stop was Devils Marbles, huge granite boulders piled on top of each other precariously. Created by layers of softer rock wearing away leaving the granite which eroded into roughly spherical shapes (this is a basic explanation but is the gist of it).

The next brief stop was Barrow Creek and the Barrow Creek Hotel where drovers and shearers would write their names on bank notes and pin them on the wall to ensure they could afford a beer when they were next passing. Travelers have since left bank notes in many currencies along with photos and graffiti all over the walls and bar. Unfortunately I had no money to leave so a bit of graffiti was sufficient.

That day ended in Alice Springs and the next destination was within our sights.

The next day we set off in good time, stopped at a roadhouse with some friendly kangaroos and emus, later on we passed Mt Conner, the outbacks most photographed red herring - a large tabletop mountain that on first sight many mistake for Uluru, some even in our car made this mistake, I wasn't fooled. Later on that day we set up camp at Yulara, the resort that services the Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park.

2008-12-20T10:04:00.002Z

, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Watch out.

They're out there.

Road Trip Part2

2008-12-20T05:51:00.002Z

Cape Tribulation

Cape Tribulation is one of the most amazing places I've visited, one of the few places in the world where the tropical rain forest meets the sea, but still I wasn't prepared for what that would look like, walking through thick rain forest and suddenly you're on white sand with turquoise-blue waters in front of you and rain forest behind.

Driving into Cape Trib was also the scene of our first puncture, fortunately easily dealt with (not by me, I just watched).

The experience of walking onto the beach is amazing, thick, lush, tropical rain forest suddenly stopping and you're on the beach which stretches away in both directions with a wall of green bordering one side and the open ocean on the other, red hot white sand burning your bare feet, trapped between an impenetrable tropical rain forest and the pacific ocean.

We went swimming in a rain forest stream, where there was a wild turtle and fish that seemed quite interested in us.

In the evening we went on a night walk in the rain forest,our guide was some kind of crazy man who drove like a maniac. Saw some lizards and large spiders, including one which decided my back was a good place to sit.

Road Trip Part1

2008-12-19T12:47:00.003Z

Road Trip Route. Part 1, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Airlie Beach to Cape Tribulation

Early one Friday morning we packed up the at the time unnamed car and set off from Airlie Beach, however the first stop was not far away, Proserpine was the destination for breakfast, nostalgic for the other boys as they've all spent at least three or four months or more there and it was their last visit to Cafe on Main where they went every Friday when working on the farm.

Next stop Bowen as that is the location of the Big Mango and if there is big things involved I have to stop.

The first day ended in Cardwell, between Townsville and Cairns after stopping in Townsville for a look around and at a creek where when I lifted the lid in the toilets, I got a shock when there was a toad looking up at me.

The second day took us as far as Yungaburra in the Atherton Tablelands, an area abundant with picturesque falls and mountain views. We visited the Curtain Fig Tree and Cathedral Fig Tree, both formed by a fig tree growing high up on the branch of another tree and the roots stretching down to the ground, after a while the tree beneath will die and leave the amazing structure that has formed.

There were some amazing things around this area, only irritation being the scores of leeches that were intent on eating me.

The next day we went on a search for Platypuses but there was none to be found, only more leeches.

After a winding descent form the Tablelands we arrived in Cairns. After the Cairns stopover we headed to Hartley Crocodile Park. Unsurprisingly saw a lot of Crocodiles both fresh and saltwater along with snakes, koalas, wallabies, cassowaries and lizards among others, this was my first experience of crocodiles in Australia.

Camped in Port Douglas where we hired a boat and sailed up the river and a couple of creeks that came off the river, in one of which we spotted a croc sitting on the bank with his mouth open, apparently they do this too warm up or cool down (depending on the weather).

Stopped at Mossman Gorge to swim - fantastic granite boulders with river running between them and larger pools for swimming in.

Later on we arrived at Cape Tribulation after crossing the Daintree River on the ferry and entering Queenslands tropical rain forest, thus the first stage of the Road Trip was complete.

As Requested..

2008-12-17T01:47:00.002Z

More pictures of me!

Cape Tribulation:

Us in front of some rock!?

Photographs that I myself have taken will follow soon(ish)

Road Trip Route, Part 3

2008-12-15T03:53:00.002Z

Road Trip Route, Part 3, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

After visiting the Rock we drove north through the Territory to our (probably) final destination in the shape of Darwin.

A more detailed description of places we visited and some photographs will follow but possibly not for a couple of weeks...

Road Trip Route, Part 2

2008-12-15T03:48:00.002Z

Road Trip Route, Part 2, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

From the Tropical rainforest of Cape Tribulation we drove south to Townsville and then west through the outback until we left Queensland and reached the Northern Territory where we headed south to Uluru.

Road Trip Route. Part 1

2008-12-05T02:00:00.002Z

Road Trip Route. Part 1, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

So the first destination has been reached, Cape Tribulation, where the tropical rain forest meets the sea...

The Big Bundaberg Rum Bottle

2008-11-20T04:00:00.002Z

The Big Bundaberg Rum Bottle, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

I went on the tour of the Distillery whilst in Bundaberg, where I also saw the Big Bundy Rum Bottle

Map

2008-11-15T08:18:00.002Z

Sydney - Airlie Beach, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Sydney - Airlie Beach map. Not great quality, for this I appologise.

Artspace, Mackay

2008-11-13T08:23:00.003Z

Today, as I am in Mackay, I ventured into the local art gallery - 'Artspace'.

It looks a little like this:

Inside, there is one main (but small) gallery, a couple of other small areas and 'foodspace', though I didn't investigate, I hear its very nice.

The exhibition in the gallery was 'Frame by Frame: Asia Pacific Artists on Tour', which is an exhibition run by Queensland Art Gallery, touring several of the galleries in Queensland, displaying photography and moving image including works by artists from Malaysia, India, China, New Zealand, Pakistan, Australia and Japan.

I wont go into great detail about stuff now, but I will show a couple of the artists that I particularly enjoyed (photographs I took at the gallery will be on my flickr, when this will happen, who knows!?)

Ai Weiwei 'Dropping of a Han Dynasty Urn'
From seeing and reading about this piece of work in the show and briefly googling his name, Ai Weiwei seems to be a very interesting man, creating interesting and challenging works of art. I'll let you investigate further rather than go on.

aiweiwei.com

He also has a blog but I doubt that many of the people who generally read this can read Chinese, so I wont link to it.

Simryn Gill 'Dalam'
A selection of images from the series 'Dalam' where on display, the entire series consists of 260 photographs, taken in peoples house, whom he had not previously met, taking just one photo in each persons house and displaying all 260 photographs he took, without any cropping or editing whatsoever (Tom, if you haven't encountered this series in the past, you would very much like it).

Selections from the series can be seen here.

There were several other good works in this exhibition but if I stay on the internet much longer it will cost me lots of money!

Also on display at artspace was a collection of artists books and Olafur Eliasson's The Cubic Structural Evolution Project which was ace!

Photographs soon...

Big Things

2008-11-12T07:19:00.002Z

Surfers Paradise, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

The Big Electric Guitar, Hard Rock Cafe, Surfers Paradise.

Not as obvious as some of the others as it blends in with the Surfers Paradise surrounds and is not the only place where there is such an oversized guitar, it still counts though.

For Mother

2008-11-07T07:30:00.002Z

A Picture of the Author, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

A picture of me, as requested.
From my outing with "the Baggots" to an awesome Buddhist temple in Brisbane.

More photos now on my flickr and a larger version of this here.

At some point soon you might even get a map! But not yet, I'm working on it.

The Big Prawn

2008-10-31T17:51:00.003Z

The Big Prawn, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

The next stop in our adventures in Big Stuff was The Big Prawn.
I thought this one was rather good myself. More pictures on my flickr.

Q1

2008-10-30T06:43:00.002Z

, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Q1 in Surfers Paradise, Queensland is the tallest residential building in the world.
The view from QDeck on floor 77 is pretty damn awesome.

2008-10-30T04:50:00.003Z

, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Hello good people, I'm in Brisbane now incase you were wandering.
Just though I would share this shot that I took in Byron Bay with you all.
Have a nice day.

Big Stuff

2008-10-24T09:00:00.003+01:00

The Big Banana, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Big Things in Australia are a loosely related set of large structures depicting oversized everyday objects.

My first experience of these was with the Big Rock Roadhouse which I believe doesn't technically count as it is a replica of Uluru however it is smaller than the real thing.

My second experience was the Big Banana, the first of the Big Things in Australia, constructed in 1964 to advertise a roadside banana stall.

I have also since come across the Big Prawn but more on that another day.

There believed to be over 150 such structures across the country. I will keep you updated on the others that I discover along the way.

21/10/08

2008-10-21T11:13:00.002+01:00

Hello citizens of the Earth!

There has been a somewhat lack of uploads in the last few days, for which i appologise, heres whats been happening:

I left Sydney on Friday for Newcastle, stayed there two nights in an awesome hostel, it must be said, formerly a gentlemens club, the ballroom still has wood panelled walls & leather sofas, excellent hostel, good times were had - if you're in the area you should definately stay there.

Got to Port Macquarie on Sunday and arrived in Coffs Harbour today (tuesday i think?), next stop being Byron Bay on thursday.

As for the lack of photographs, I had a film processed yesterday but cant get at the computer to insert the CD, so I will be uploading when I get an opportunity.

That is all for now.

2008-10-14T15:03:00.003+01:00

Sheila, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Yinka Shonibare MBE

2008-10-14T07:52:00.002+01:00

Today I popped into the MCA briefly, the main exhibition currently on is a Yinka Shonibare retrospective.

Prior to this exhibition I had heard of Yinka Shonibare but didn't really know much about his work so I didn't really know what to expect upon entering. However I was impressed by his work, particularly the photographic and sculptural work on display. His work explores ideas about contemporary African identity, the legacy of European colonialism and race and class structures, with the artist himself appearing in much of the photographic pieces. The staged grandeur & juxtaposition along with beautiful craftsmanship altogether creates clever, visually impressive & pleasing and thought provoking pieces.

I like.

Christopher Herwig

2008-10-12T15:19:00.002+01:00

Stumbled upon the work of Christopher Herwig earlier via a link to his series on Soviet Busstops, which personally I found fascinating, after exploring some more of his website, I haven't looked at it all yet, I found several interesting series' of travel photography from West Africa, former Soviet countries and other locations.

Definately worth a quick look if you are into photography, travel or... busstops.

Christopher Herwig Website

Sydney

2008-10-10T11:10:00.003+01:00

Sydney, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

This is where I am!

More on flickr

The Road East Photographs

2008-10-09T15:41:00.003+01:00

The Road East Part 4

2008-10-09T11:45:00.003+01:00

Indian Pacific (2), originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Some photographs from my trip on the Indian Pacific are now on my flickr, I will post some of the best ones on here later.

The Road East Part 3

2008-10-07T03:54:00.002+01:00

In Adelaide I wanted to explore a bit and was also in need of a coffee so I strolled towards town looking for cafes. This however wasn't hugely successful as I didn't come across any open ones however I randomly found myself in a market where there was a slightly greasy little cafe where i decided breakfast would be most appropriate.
Arrived back at the station and found that I had loads of time still and could have explored further. Oh well, another time then.

The next stop was Broken Hill on Friday evening. At this point the train was running late and we only stayed in Broken Hill for about half an hour so there wasn't really enough time to explore or venture into any establishments that wished to sell me beer, which was a shame as I'm sure it would have been an interesting place to explore.

Friday evening was spent in the cafe carriage playing cards and such with some guys i met on the train, there was a large storm that night and i could see lightening outside and hear the rain lashing on the windows, the train was rocking all over the place from the wind.

The next morning I woke early to witness the last stage of the journey passing through the Blue Mountains. The views from the train window in this area are just ridiculous, everywhere you look is a postcard view of tree covered mountains and valleys, distant mountains with that misty-blue hue that gives them their name.

Arrived in Sydney around 11am Eastern Time, got picked up by Sheila from Central station and did millions of awesome things that day as well...

The Road East Part 2

2008-10-06T17:13:00.003+01:00

So after crossing the SA border we arrived in Cook, a town in the middle of the Nullabor which I am reliably informed currently boasts a whole 4 permanent residents. Cook essential consists of a few buildings and dirt roads and a few trees, obviously not forgetting the gift shop, which presumably opens for about half an hour every couple of days when the Indian Pacific decides to regurgitate a couple of hundred people into Cook.
Amusingly Cook used to boast such things as a two story school, a nine hole golf course (without a single blade of grass i might add) and other such things.

And so we headed towards Adelaide, leaving the emptiness of the Nullabor and the longest stretch of straight track in the world behind us. Later on that day we passed the remnants of a freight train that derailed a few weeks ago, smashed up carriages and piles of wood and other such materials it was carrying littering the areas beside the track.

Browsing my Lonely Planet I found out a statistic that may give the distance some context to all the Europeans reading. Perth to Adelaide is almost exactly the same distance as London to Moscow. After reading this and pondering the fact that I was going past Adelaide all the way to Sydney, its safe to say Australia is a fairly large place. Personally I think VAST is a good word for describing it.

We arrived in Adelaide at around 7am central time on Friday morning.

Yeasayer

2008-10-06T16:29:00.004+01:00

This band seriously blow my fucking mind.

Saw the live again tonight with Sheila at the Oxford Art Factory here in Sydney.
They were supported by a band called Tame Impala who I believe originate from Perth, these guys were only young, similar age to me I would imagine but they freaking rocked, they played at psychedelic/noise type space-rock, kind of like a mix of The Olivia Tremor Control and Jackie-O Motherfucker, or something like that anyway.

Yeasayer were suitably amazing, on great form, performing 5 or 6 new songs as well as all the stuff from their debut, which after hearing certainly bodes well for their second album.
These guys are seriously good at what they do, the bass in particular blows my mind, technically amazing with a lovely bass tone from the fretless bass and a fantastic style that i love. The vocalist is mesmerising in a David Byrne-esque fashion, fantastic performers and when you here banter with the audience like "here have some coke, have some coke and a smile and shut the fuck up" you know its a good gig haha.
One thing you could see is that everyone is having fun and thats the key. The band need to enjoy it, the audience need to enjoy it. They both did, that why it was so good.

Unfortunately I didn't take any photos for you nice people to see. Sorry. I need some more fast film...

The Road East Part 1

2008-10-05T16:09:00.005+01:00

Hello again lovely people.

This week I have travelled a long way, sat down for long periods, slept little, drunk ridiculous amounts of tea and coffee and crossed a continent.

So on Wednesday I left the house in Woodvale, got on a train, got on another train and arrived at East Perth station where I got on another train however this one was the Indian Pacific.

Not long into the journey we passed through the Avon Valley, which was lovely, steep tree covered hills and valleys. I also found out that you are allowed to bring food onto the train, I was under the impression you weren't but there you go, will know next time.

The landscape then became more flat and grassy/sandy plains with scrubby bushes and a fair amount of eucalyptus.

Arrived in Kalgoorlie sometime between 11 and 12 at night, had a stroll around, didn't see any inviting pubs so I headed back t the train. I did note the Indian Pacific effect where the train deposits a couple of hundred people to wander fairly aimlessly around Kalgoorlie late on a weekday night. Has a look through the Gold Service window, looked far to posh for a filthy backpacker like myself.

Wednesday was also the evening that I met Mikee, an interesting character originally from Germany, now in his late 70s who told me about things he has invented and showed me some of his drawings, ended up having several interesting conversations with him throughout the three days.

Early Thursday morning the plains became increasingly brown and then the amazing red-orange colour that Australia is famous for, the trees also started to decrease until we were well and truly in the Nullabor - nothing but red dirt and scrubby grey-green grass for miles and miles, hours and hours of train time. It is incredibly flat and the sky is huge, starting with white at the horizon to a deep blue above your head. Looked out the window and saw some wild camels strolling through the Nullabor. Excellent.
Stopped briefly in a 'town' called Forrest to drop off supplies (didn't get off the train). Personally I thought Forrest was an excellent name seeing as it is in the middle of the Nullabor (which means no trees). Forrest apparently has a current population of 2, yes two whole real life people! It has the longest sealed runway outside of the capital cities as it is a stopover for fuel, etc.

We crossed the border into South Australia just before midday on Thursday (Eastern Time).

Conor Oberst & the Mystic Valley Band

2008-10-05T08:55:00.004+01:00

Conor Oberst & the Mystic Valley Band, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Conor Oberst & the Mystic Valley Band at the Enmore Theatre, Sydney, NSW, 4th October 2008.

Fucking AMAZING

Yeasayer tomorrow. Excellent.

Map

2008-10-04T17:31:00.004+01:00

I will give more details about mylast few days when I am in a position to think and have attempted to get some sense from my journal.

View from Leederville Station on a Rainy Day

2008-09-30T10:38:00.002+01:00

View from Leederville Station on a Rainy Day, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Greens

2008-09-30T10:36:00.002+01:00

Greens, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Freo Adventures

2008-09-30T07:13:00.002+01:00

Fremantle Markets, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

So the other day (Saturday I think) I went for a little adventures down to Freo (thats Fremantle to those of you not as painfully hip as myself).

Got off the train and wandered past some cool old derelict type buildings on my way to the Freo Arts Centre.

The show that was on turned out to be the Freo Print Award 08, which was cool as firstly I love printmaking and that kind of stuff and secondly it turned out to be of a high quality as well.

I then wandered around to the markets a mooched around there for a while which was very cool.

After I left the markets I was strolling down the street exploring when I happened to meet Pete, Cara and Tina who were apparently at a wedding so I went and chilled with them and other random wedding guests before the reception

Had a bit more of an explore when they went to the reception and got the train home.
We like Freo very much and enjoyed seeing some decent art after the Perth art gallery wasn't particularly impressive.

I have some more photos to pick up this afternoon which I shall post later and then I shall be catching the train to Sydney tomorrow. See you on the other coast...

More Old Black & White

2008-09-27T15:53:00.002+01:00

Eastbourne by Night, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

That nice man Tom has uploaded some more of my old photos to my flickr + I upgraded to a pro account so i am starting to add some new sets and stuff aswell.

Also should have some more photos on tuesday and if you're lucky I might tell you about the day in Freo I had today.

Swan Bell Tower

2008-09-26T11:28:00.002+01:00

Swan Bell Tower, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Swan Bell Tower, Perth, WA.

2008-09-24T08:22:00.003+01:00

Sooooooo I thought I would give you lovely people a little update on what I'm up to.

I had been planning on a brief trip up to Denham, Monkey Mia and Geraldton this week however the buses come out too expensive and the times inconvenient for such a short trip so I wont be going. Hopefully I might explore WA more at a later date.

However I have booked my train ticket, I leave Perth next wednesday (1st Oct) and arrive in Sydney on saturday (4th Oct). I have also booked a couple of pretty awesome gigs in Sydney, which you will no doubt hear about nearer the time.

So that leaves me with a week in Perth. I think some photographs are in order. Watch this space...

Mammoth Cave

2008-09-22T09:29:00.002+01:00

Mammoth Cave, originally uploaded by lukealder42.

Visited Mammoth cave whilst I was in Margaret River.

Mammoth cave is a 500 metre long and 30 metre deep multi-chambered cave, about 20kms south of margaret river, containing fossils 35, 000 years old. It was also quite dark but I did get a couple of sharp images.

cool stuff

2008-09-21T13:00:00.002+01:00

here is some stuff i have enjoyed of late, mostly discovered from those nice people over at itsnicethat

PicturesOfWalls. Stuff written on walls. Awesome

Gigi Cifali. Went to this site for the Absence of Water series which is awesome, after a quick looks some of the other stuff is also good.

Alexey Titarenko. First saw his photos on Toms blog, specifically the City of Shadows series but after coming back to his website a week or two ago, there is some great stuff on there.

And of course you should check out Toms blog as he is very good at the photography thing.

This was supposed to have more on it but it didn't quite work out like that.

2008-09-21T11:22:00.004+01:00

Went down to Margaret River and on to Dunsborough this week.

Went to a cave, explored the coast, unfortunately didn't see any whales, and met a couple of interesting people and am now back in Perth.

Some photographs may follow on my flickr tomorrow.

That is all for now

Old Black & White

2008-09-16T07:37:00.003+01:00

When I left England there were several rolls of black and white film I hadn't got round to processing. Tom very kindly got them done for me, these are a few of the images I have got back so far.

More can be seen over at my flickr

Nanga Photos

2008-09-15T12:13:00.004+01:00