Thursday, July 02, 2009

Things You Can Find In The Changing Streets of Paddington





Investigations have taken The Ruinist team far and wide this week across the ravaged plains of London and into it's leisure-business interzones, motionless transport hubs, networked anti-terror infrastructures, public charmlessness, open-air spectaculars (accompanied by the blanket miasma of the odour of burgers), private water deserts and high-rise corporate rainforests.

Finally, we were able to stop getting our hands dirty researching the political economy of parts of London that we have never investigated before and to get our feet wet instead.

We have spared you a picture of the mint teas we had on Edgware Rd in favour of some wild swans who had brought their charming offspring to see us and accept some of our Cheese and Onion sandwiches from Tesco Express as well as biting our feet!

Monday, June 29, 2009

Learning From Others

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Nature Orders Itself, Capitalism Orders Banality - Lat Long 51n29, 0e0 going West - 3rd Interlude

















One of my favourite spots to see how Nature is happy to organise itself. Here the beach is laid out in strips - bottles, bricks, rocks, pebbles, broken and eroded bricks, mud, sand, water.

Elsewhere in town, capitalism is able to order itself into a series of identical shopping booths with directions posted everywhere (even in someone's hands)



















Lat Long 51n29, 0e0 going West - 2nd Interlude















































Fantastic tiling feature on Hurleston House, Trinity Estate, Deptford SE8. Are they real these people in this new build at Deptford Creek? Or are they not? Sustenance in the form of Rhubarb Crumble from Goddards.

Lat Long 51n29, 0e0 going West - 1st Interlude







Wednesday, June 03, 2009

Lat Long 51n29, 0e0 going East Part One








































































Coming Soon! Part Two: What we saw

Thursday, May 28, 2009

The Ruinist defines new terms for living: 'SHIT RINSE'

The Ruinist is happy to create new terms for living.


Last night The Ruinist was found to be complicit in some culterati art opening affair where everyone's nice and deferential to all who may at some point be there future patrons. It's very polite and very feudal. Lords and Lady's of The Manor arrive and swish about the place. Some court scribes come and go and take notes for the columns. The servants serve the alcohol and the doormen keep the portals secure. The hunt beaters keep the people circulating and some peasants blag in and drink as much free beer before closing time. Nobles and entourage put in an appearance from neighbouring fiefdoms to make sure all is well with the alliances and to catch up the news about the enemies.

Anyway, you get the idea.

'SHIT RINSE':
What you feel like you have been through the next day after going to these openings


Use freely!!

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Hidden Londoners
















It didn't take me long to find this guy once I read about him in book. Until that point he had remained invisible to me despite my passing him on hundreds of occasions.














I went to see him because I also read some idiots in Luton were marching against some people they didn't like.














They showed they didn't like them by waving the English flag (whatever that is?)

You can see it here:
http://ianbone.wordpress.com/2009/05/25/luton-yesterday-a-taste-of-things-to-come/

Monday, May 25, 2009

Ruinist Let Out For The Day Again
















On the prowl in Kennington SE11 for the site of Burgundia, the free autonomous zone established in the great film Passport to Pimlico (1949), we came across this impressive street sign at the far end of the former liberated zone (now built over with the China Walk council estate).















Happily we also came across this jaunty street sign nearby in a kind-of stretched or compressed Playbill typeface. Right up our street. We mused on the choice of Playbill as some kind of historical resonance with all the penny gaffs and music halls that had been a great part of that local area. Juxon St crosses Lambeth Walk, home of the famous dance made famous by Lupino Lane the film 'Me and My Girl' (1939). Just up the road in the newly rejigged estate in Lambeth Walk is Lupino House. More of these great street signs can be found around the older parts of that estate as we presume they were the standard for the estate signage. Top ho!















The Ruinist rarely enjoys al fresco but the spring heat brought it out in us. Two Portuguese chocolate milks and natas kept us going (as usual) around our regular tour of Vauxhall with it's fat rabbits and noisy black sheep in the City Farm.

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