Ghostly

It's been gloriously sunny here in Sussex this weekend....the perfect weather for dancing and a reminder of why I am completely mad to wear a mask whilst doing so! Were you one of the lucky ones who saw the Northern Lights? Regrettably I wasn't for I am a true lark and make a hopeless owl....yes yours truly was tucked up in bed completely oblivious of all the drama going on in the night sky right outside my window I very much doubt that my ancient steam powered phone could have captured anything of it  anyway😆

Speaking of spotting things I did notice a little thing unseen by many lurking in this gorgeous painting 'Interior of the Church of St Catherine Utrecht' by Pieter Saerredam [1597-1665]. Initially it stood out for all the different little clusters depicted within this light filled space even down to the dog towards the back.

With most paintings I tend to give them a fairly cursory glance before moving on, but this one really drew me in and had I not spent a bit of time looking more closely I would never have realised that there are these intriguing shadowy figures lurking.

With my febrile imagination running riot my first thought was 'ghostly apparitions'. However, I was adulting that day so I sought out the advice from the room steward who provided me with the much more practical [and slightly duller] explanation that this is where the painter has decided to remove them by overpainting them, but over time they have leached back through to the surface. 

We saw this and many other varied works of art at Upton House. Next time I'll let you know where Mr GBT distracted me with so that he wouldn't have to go to the art gallery I was beginning to make interested noises about visiting. That will be my final Midlands post.

Arilx

'The Prince of Darkness'

 Many famous people hail from Birmingham and of the crop of names, Ozzy Osbourne, aka 'The Prince of Darkness', is probably the one most will be familiar with. Did I go and pay my respects to the Black Sabbath Bridge? Of course I did!

Ozzy's image has been captured for posterity upon one of walls in Digbeth along with a whole host of other stunning street art. This is what the area's now known for and it lives up to its name. It's only since I've looked at the photos here that I have realised that the former custard factory chimney is decorated and that in true devilish style that spout on the teapot in Ozzy's hand is a snake🐍 I find that I miss so much the first time round.

Hope you have a fantastic weekend. More dancing for moi😁

Arilx

Getting up to mischief

Isn't it a tad frustrating when you see something you think you'd really enjoy and you can't manage it for a multitude of reasons. That was me last year when the Museum of British Folklore put on an exhibition in Compton Verney called 'Making Mischief'. I had to content myself with other people's photos. Things change though and this year they're back with 'Making More Mischief' in Stratford [London]. Joined by my dancing friend Rachel we managed to swing a visit. Realising that it may be of interest to others who won't be able to get there here's a small overview. It's small, but well curated and free of charge.

Boss Morris. An all female Morris side who were set up in 2015 by Alex Merry. They draw on lots of different folk cultures from around the world to inspire their kit and you'll frequently see them wearing something different. This one has the wheat headdress which was woven by a Ukranian and is one of their staple crops. They've based their Morris doll [the museum carried out a project some years ago where we were all invited to make a doll] on the same outfit. You may have caught a glimpse of these ladies dancing on the Brits last year. It's been interesting to learn this week that there are now more women dancers then men. 

This magnificent beast belongs to Blackthorn Ritualistic Dance side and it often features in their events at certain times of the year. It's called the Darkest Ooser and is based upon the Dorset Ooser. Nobody seems entirely sure what its original role was, but some called it the 'Christmas Bull' and it featured in the local mumming tradition. It would seem that others thought of it as a devil who was used as part of the rough music to punish people who had behaved in such a manner that was not in keeping with the moral code of the area. The last known one was from Melbury Osmond and hasn't been seen since 1897 [a photo of it exists]. Some say it was taken to America. A replica of it is held in Dorchester Museum.

One of the strengths of this display I found was that its choice of folk costumes reflect how multi cultural our society has become. I love learning about other countries. This fellow is called King Momo and he is the King of Misrule in Rio. He was made by the Hackney Paracarnival.

It may never happen, but I would love to undertake a tour of the country and experience our many and varied folkloric celebrations for myself. This Sailor Horse from Minehead is boat shaped to echo the town's history of seafaring folk. There is no apparent record of why or who started it, but it will have been out entertaining the crowds over the May day shenanigans. Speaking of which yours truly has been back to the Rochester Sweeps Festival. Absolute blast as ever catching up with old friends and making new ones. It gives me the perfect excuse to show not only the Mythago doll below, but also the one from Loose Women [rainbow hues with one one of dancers having fabulous rainbow hair to match] and Wolfshead and Vixens who were also there. The Gothic ladies in their black corsets are always a big hit with the audience and are very talented dancers too.🖤 It's always a pleasure to be a part of an event where there is such a breadth of dancing styles on show. 

Speak soon.

Arilx

Ride a cock horse.

"Ride a cock horse"

It is thought that a 'cock horse' was a high-spirited or uncastrated horse or a hobby horse. The annual hobby horse festival is held here every year.

"To Banbury Cross"

This version of the Banbury Cross dates from 1895 and celebrated the marriage of Princess Victoria, daughter of the Queen and Prince Albert. Originally three crosses stood in different locations, but nothing remains of them following their total destruction by the Puritans.

"To see a fine lady upon a white horse"

The lady has been cast as the 'Queen of May' She wears a Spring circlet of 13 alternating daffodils and wild roses with a moth and two butterflies secreted around it and riding a horse based upon a Welsh cob. The 13 references an ancient time when there were 13 months

"With rings on her fingers"

She is casting petals into the wind.

"And bells on her toes"

Seven beautiful blue bells are for the days of the week.

"She shall have music wherever she goes."

I've never been able to portray a rhyme through photographs before. A couple of hours spent in Banbury were a couple of hours well spent. The sun has been a symbol of the town since 1584 and there are several dotted around to spot. Just a few things we saw pottering about whilst we broke our journey before the car park calleth.

 Hope everyone has a peaceful and joyful weekend. 

Arilx