Tag: england

Banco de Gaia, “Ynys Elen”

Banco de Gaia, “Ynys Elen”, from the Album “Farewell Ferengistan”, 2006

Banco de Gaia is an electronic music band from England, formed in 1989 by Toby Marks.. The music of Banco de Gaia is best categorized as ambient dub, but Marks works to cross genres, often using Arabic and Middle Eastern samples against a bass heavy reggae, rock, or trance rhythm to produce deeply textured tracks that progress layer upon layer.

in 1994 Toby Marks released his first studio album “Maya” on Planet Dog records, which was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize on its release. It was followed in 1995 by the critically acclaimed “Last Train to Lhasa”. Both albums reached No1 in the UK independent charts and featured in the national album chart top 40. In the following decade Banco De Gaia released “Live at Glastonbury”, “Big Men Cry”, “The Magical Sounds of Banco De Gaia”, “Igizeh” and “You Are Here”.

The Welsh name for Lundy Island, which lies off the North Devon coast in the Bristol Channel, is Ynys Elen. There is an ancient medieval Celtic chapel which was dedicated to Saint Helena situated on the ruins of Beacon Hill.

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Tomas Watson

Multi-Media Artwork by Tomas Watson

Tomas Watson was born in Sussex, England in 1971. He studied at Huddersfield College and Slade School of Art and graduated in 1994, having also completed a year’s course in Anatomy for Artists. He received two awards in 1994 and 1996 from the Greek Government and has since lived and worked in Greece. In 1998 Tomas Watson won the BP Portrait Prize and in June 1999 had his first solo exhibition in Britain at Jill George Gallery, which immediately sold out.

Henry Moore

Sculptures by Henry Moore

Henry Spencer Moore OM CH FBA RBS was an English sculptor and artist. He was best known for his semi-abstract monumental bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art. His forms are usually abstractions of the human figure, typically depicting mother-and-child or reclining figures. His forms are generally pierced or contain hollow spaces. Many interpreters liken the undulating form of his reclining figures to the landscape and hills of his birthplace, Yorkshire.

Moore was born in Castleford, the son of a coal miner. He became well-known through his carved marble and larger-scale abstract cast bronze sculptures, and was instrumental in introducing a particular form of modernism to the United Kingdom. His ability in later life to fulfill large-scale commissions made him exceptionally wealthy. Yet he lived frugally and most of the money he earned went towards endowing the Henry Moore Foundation, which continues to support education and promotion of the arts.

My all-time favorite sculptor. Pictures do not do them justice. Find one of his pieces near you and spend some time actually “seeing” them.

Bastille, “Flaws”

Bastille, “Flaws”, Recorded at Abbey Road Studios

Bastille (stylised as BΔSTILLE) are an English indie band formed in 2010. They began as a solo project by singer-songwriter Dan Smith, who later decided to form a band. The four-piece is completed by Chris ‘Woody’ Wood, William Farquarson and Kyle Simmons. They recently added a touring member to the band, Charlie Barnes. The name of the band derives from Bastille Day, which is celebrated on 14 July, Smith’s birthday.

After an independently released debut single and a self-released EP, the band signed to Virgin Records. Their first studio album, Bad Blood, was released in March 2013 and entered the UK Albums Chart at number 1. The band was nominated for four Brit Awards at the 2014 ceremony, winning the British Breakthrough Act. As of November 2014, Bastille have sold over 5 million records in the US and 2.5 million records in the UK alone.

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Caterham 750 Carbon E-Bike

Caterham 750 Carbon E-Bike

Caterham Carbon E-Bike’s design and material choices were inspired by the firm’s Formula One experience. A 36-volt, 250 Watt brushless motor along with 36-volt, 12 Ah lithium battery powers this electric bike through 8-speed Shimano Nexus gear hub. Alongside motor, E-bike is also fitted with conventional bicycle pedals and is capable of speeding up in the range of 25-50 miles (40-80 km).

Bike’s chassis is a Modular carbon-aluminum frame; available in three different and flexible frame sizes making it adaptable to the size and shape of each rider. Carbon girder forks will keep the front-wheel at the right position while the mono-shocked rear-end ensures efficient delivery of power.

E-bike uses a LED screen mounted on handlebar to provide all the details that a rider needs; speedometer, trip meter and battery status. Carbon E-Bike feature lightweight but strong aluminum rims, laced with stainless steel spokes. The braking system is similarly vigorous, featuring modern disc brakes front and rear. Tires are quite wide, impregnated with carbon-fiber for strength and reliability.

The Shelley Memorial

The Shelley Memorial, University College, Oxford, England

Percy Bysshe Shelley was one of the most important poets of the Romantic period and is widely regarded as one of the preeminent lyric poets of the English language. Shelley had a short stint at University College at Oxford University before he was unceremoniously expelled for penning a pamphlet titled, “The Necessity of Atheism.” It is rumored that he only attended one lecture in his time at Oxford. Though he died under auspicious circumstances in a boating accident at the age of 29, Shelley’s influence reached into the next several generations of Victorian poets and he was a considerable figure to members of the pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.

The monument is the work of Edward Onslow Ford, a prominent member of the so-called “New Sculpture”, and the enclosure was designed by Basil Champneys. Recent restoration work has attempted to recreate the original colour scheme of the memorial, so that it can be seen as its sculptor intended.

Sam Dalby

Sam Dalby, “Portrait of a Young Man”

Sam Dalby lives and works in Settle, North Yorkshire, England. He attended Harrogate College of Arts and Technology, and the Cleveland College of Art and Design, graduating in 1997. In 2011, Dalby was elected as a member of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters. With an established and growing reputation as a portrait painter, Sam is also a life drawing and portrait drawing tutor.

William Roberts

William Roberts:  Paintings and Drawing (Study for ‘The Return of Ulysses’)

Roberts was intrigued by Post-impressionism and Cubism, an interest fuelled by his friendships at the Slade, in particular with the audacious British painter David Bomberg, as well as by his travels in France and Italy after leaving the Slade in 1913.

Later in 1913 Roberts joined Roger Fry’s Omega Workshops for three mornings a week. The ten shillings earned for each workshop that Omega paid enabled Roberts to create challenging Cubist-style paintings such as “The Return of Ulysses” which was purchased by the Castle Museum and Art Gallery in Nottingham, England.

Arctic Monkeys, “The View from the Afternoon”

 

Arctic Monkeys, “The View from the Afternoon”

Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in 2002 in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield. The band consists of Alex Turner (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, lead guitar), Jamie Cook (lead guitar, rhythm guitar), Nick O’Malley (bass, backing vocals), and Matt Helders (drums, backing vocals). Former band member Andy Nicholson (bass guitar, backing vocals) left the band in 2006 shortly after its debut album was released.

They have released five studio albums: Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not (2006), Favourite Worst Nightmare (2007), Humbug (2009), Suck It and See (2011) and AM (2013), as well as one live album, At the Apollo (2008). Their debut album is the fastest-selling debut album by a band in British chart history, and in 2013, Rolling Stone ranked it the 30th-greatest debut album of all time.

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)