tombstones

Dearly departed

/ mikeosbornphoto / 19 Comments

Place of restAs the old saying goes, you’re a long time dead. You could do a lot worse than spending your eternity of rest in Brompton Cemetery, a captivating place to visit in the heart of west London.

Opened in 1840, this large plot is adorned with the grandeur of Victorian architecture, from a domed chapel to parallel sets of stone porticoes. Around the edges of this order are reams of wonderfully overgrown gravestones, transforming a place of solemnity into one bursting with the life of nature.

The cemetery still has space and around two burials a week take place there. Worth bearing in mind, but for the moment I’d prefer to enjoy walking around with my camera in the here and now…

Click first image to launch the gallery

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The last sunshine

/ mikeosbornphoto / 11 Comments

The last sunshineThis photograph marks a break from the bold colours and staggering light of Fuerteventura. The scene is back in the softer light of Essex in the UK, where summer is struggling to take hold.

But it’s late evening and the last vestiges of sunlight reach into this verdant corner, catching some insects in its rays. This small graveyard belongs to the Quaker church in Maldon and is at the back of my mother’s home.

I noticed this looking out of the window and was struck by its tranquility and stillness – apart from the fluttering insects playfully absorbing the warmth.

The composition hinges on the right of the frame, while the dark, lush vegetation of this rarely touched corner creates a good contrast with the sunshine. I think it sums up the mood I felt with this scene.

A London sanctuary

/ mikeosbornphoto / 12 Comments

Hackney in London is busy, brash, full-on and thoroughly inner city urban. You pass through here to reach a peaceful, inspiring patch of green in nearby Stoke Newington.

Abney Park Cemetery is a beautiful patchwork of resting places for Londoners passed, and has become a woodland sanctuary, criss-crossed with paths. Modern city dwellers use it as a place to walk their dogs, go for a jog and enjoy the peace and quiet.

In the middle of the cemetery is a chapel with a lofty spire, long since disused and a shell which diffuses the light and is fascinating for the photographer, along with the woodland setting and the numerous tombstones that fill the grounds.

Click on the first image to launch the full size gallery

Last month, Abney was the venue for the world premiere of the London Requiem, a new piece of classical music by composer Benjamin Till, based on memorials to Londoners. A recording of the performance and how the work was created can be found on Arts website The Space.

SEE ALSO: REST IN PEACE?

At rest in the sun

/ mikeosbornphoto / 11 Comments

A beautiful autumn day at one of London’s more hidden gems. A cluster of tombstones nestle in the woodland and are bathed by bright sunlight. Coincidentally, it is Remembrance Sunday and the resting places of these long departed souls are captured on film. It is most definitely a place of peace.

Images from my visit to the captivating Abney Park Cemetery in north London will appear here soon.