Gothic

Cathedral of books

/ mikeosbornphoto / 24 Comments

This imposing building in the Deansgate area of central Manchester is the colour of dirty caramel. It sounds unprepossessing, but stands out among the sharp contemporary glass of its modern neighbours. But you have to venture inside the John Rylands Library to be truly impressed.

It was opened in 1900 as a memorial to Rylands by his wife, and its Gothic splendour is more in keeping with a place of worship. Stained glass, ornate stone columns and intricate woodwork make the library a reverential place to study and learn. It’s a building both flooded with light and full of dark, muted corners. I’ve captured my first architectural gem in this city…

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The cathedral of justice

/ mikeosbornphoto / 9 Comments

This building has all the hallmarks of being a lofty place of God or a palace of royalty. Beautiful arches, light flooding through a stained glass window. One of the women on the balcony looks upwards, enraptured.

The other woman, meanwhile, checks her camera. This is The Royal Courts of Justice on The Strand in London, a place where some of the biggest legal cases in the land are contested. Its doors were flung open to visitors, who spent the weekend thronging around its wonderful central hall, taking photographs at every opportunity.

While the Victorian building is magnificent in some areas, in others it’s a place of dusty corridors and has the stench of authority. It was a great opportunity to admire the architecture, huge in scale and created to make you feel small.