Wednesday 25 March 2009

Shards of a city - 3 of 5


Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamp'd on these lifeless things,
The hand that mock'd them and the heart that fed;

From ... Ozymandias of Egypt by Percy Bysshe Shelley

8 comments:

Lowell said...

These are quite effective photos, Julie...but what city are you talking about? 1924 isn't that long ago...

Thanks for stopping at Cedar Key DP!

Ann said...

Where are all these - are they off Macquarie Street near the entrance to Govt House?

Julie said...

Jacob: Yes, 1924 is not that long ago, so what happened to this building that it did not last very long? Which buildings that stand now will suffer a similar fate? When it was being built, did the builders and the owners feel pride in their workmanship? Sydney is not an old city by any means, but as with many, many cities around the world, it sloughs off layers of "skin" regularly and renews itself.

Ann: yep.

Lowell said...

In Florida, it is said, that a city can turn upside down in two weeks...and I think I like it better when places are built to last more than 20 years or even 50 years. Can't we try to 500 or 1000 years?

Anonymous said...

But what brought them down, the elements or man?

Tash said...

this series is really beautiful and at the same time sad.
I've been trying to find out about Palos Verdes rocks & get very involved explanations. It's mostly crumbly layered sandy soil with crumbly white rock that I call PV rock, but I am sure there is a lot of solid stuff here too. Here is a link to a local collage on the geology - haven't had time to read it yet. thanks for your interest - made me learn something.
http://www.marymountpv.edu/friends/pvgeolecture.html

Julie said...

I am deliberately try to heighten the melancoly. Suits the images and suits my nature.

Thank you for the link, Tash. Have left a message back on your site.

My worry, Jacob, is that some developers/builders are deliberatly building in structural use-by-dates to ensure that cities are regularly rebuilt to give them incomes into the future.

Lowell said...

I think you're right, Julie! Much to their discredit.