I spent yesterday afternoon wandering around Holland Park. I have a shoot there this coming Sunday so thought I'd find some yummy spots. Ooooh - so yummy! The cherry blossoms floating through the sky and the scent of hyacinth was divine.
I spent a lot of time in Holland Park as a child as my grandparents lived two streets away. After the park, I went to their old flat. Memory is strange - as a child I was not really aware what a beautiful building it was. But I do remember the enormous garden at the back and that Granny's rhododendrons were absolutely glorious.
Next door is the Leighton House museum, where the painter Frederic Lord Leighton lived. Sadly it is undergoing refurbishments so I was not able to go in. But I vaguely recall the interiors had the most intricate mosaics that had been inspired by his travels to the Middle East.
He painted Flaming June in 1895, which is one of my favourite paintings. It was on the cover of my 19th Century art history textbook. I kept most of my university textbooks and a few years ago I photographed the book - on the left is the painting and then one of my photos...
I then sauntered through South Kensington. A few photos from my sunny stroll...
I saw the movie 'The Young Victoria' last week and was inspired to learn more about Victoria and Albert. The Royal Albert Hall is just beautiful - I saw Cirque du Soleil there in January which was absolutely amazing! The Albert Memorial, commissioned by Queen Victoria, stands 176 feet tall and took 10 years to complete. Albert died of typhoid fever at age 42.
These are great - some you can use for stock!
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