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| Kelston Round Hill |
As I came down this morning for my cup of tea, I caught a programme on the radio about Banksy, our homegrown graffiti lad. Though he must be getting older by now. Graffiti artist, political activist and even film director, he has made his fortune with the direct messages he puts on the wall. He is collected (yeah how do you collect a wall?). The person on the radio was relating the story about how people bought his prints and then sold them on Ebay for a bigger price.
Why is the world so greedy, and why do we spend horrendous amounts on art, or what is thought of as art? Heaven knows. I applaud Banksy for his ability through the medium of art to be able to show us our foolishness as humans but also his paintings of the terrible violent wars that go on round the world. The sheer stupidity of them.
He has always kept his identity secret, and there is much speculation as to who he is. If they have the right person (see the Wiki above) he was brought up in Yate just outside Bristol. He keeps himself secret because it is illegal to despoil walls but I fancy the image he has created helped towards his work.
It reminded me of Kelston Round Hill, my favourite walking area, I could spend a couple of hours walking just a mile from my home. Then of course I remembered this video, a gentle picture of this magic place, the walker and the farmer working together to make it a place where walkers were welcome. I can remember the slope of the hill being covered in, I think it would have been cowslips not primroses for it must have been a south facing slope.
Now my son walks up the hill to Beckford Tower, another place wherein the old gravestones slip precariously down into the soil, and primroses and violets still cluster in profusion. It was up to the tower that William Beckford would ride, somewhere from St.Edwards school to his tower - to do learned things! Perhaps I remember him most for Fonthill Abbey, which fell down not long after being built. A couple of photos below of Beckford Tower and a blog..
Hello Thelma, I enjoyed your words and pictures of your walk on Kelston Round Hill, the wildflowers especially. I need to get over my fear of Ragwort, which I religiously dig out of my wildflower meadow using my Hori Hori knife. The beech handle and steel blade knife is made by Niwaki and you will undoubtedly know that Hori translates as dig. It is my most used gardening tool. We stayed in Beckford’s Tower one October half term with the children. It was probably around 2007 when the children would have been 11 and 14. It was great to be able to walk down into Bath and during our week we must have visited all the museums and galleries and we walked the Bath skyline walk which had only just opened I think. When my daughter was a teenager the two of us had a couple of breaks together in Bath letting the train take the strain. We used to stay in a nice old-fashioned hotel opposite Henrietta Park and enjoy the walk into town across Pulteney bridge. Favourite bits were the theatre, the Holburne museum and gallery, the botanical gardens, the costume museum and once we had a glorious hour in the 40 degree water of the Cross Baths. Thanks for letting me reminisce Thelma. I know exactly what you mean about spinning for the sake of it. I bought 500g of Romney marsh merino fleece direct from the farm last spring and that is what I am now spinning. I spin as finely as I dare and then ply two strands together which gives a useful DK weight and 200g has already been knitted into hats. What I’m spinning now will be used for my 2024 Christmas knitting! Sarah x
ReplyDeleteHi Sarah, did not realise you could stay up at Beckford Tower. A good walk down into town past St.Edwards School, but a long way back up. So you have tried all the joys Bath has to offer. I liked the Holburne Museum, and the fact that on the canal walk behind it you could walk out of town to Bathampton. Ragwort it is said is poisonous to horses and it does tend to seed itself around, so I suppose it is a no-no in the countryside.
DeleteSpinning is very relaxing I must admit, my new wheel though has a slight noise when you pedal which is slightly distracting. It is a shame you do not have your own blog, it would be lovely to see some of the work you have done in your garden.
In all the years I have been here I have only visited Kelston Round Hill once, for some reason. I was struck by the single horse hoof print on the path with the hawthorn blossom.
ReplyDeleteKelston Hill is a long way from any road Tom, you either come over from the racecourse, or through Weston up a dead end lane and then trackway. Yes there was something eerie about the horse hoof print.
ReplyDeleteWhy should anyone need to go abroad when there are so many varied places here, when we can never know them all. This is an area I don't know at all.
ReplyDeleteYes Tasker this part of England is very different from Yorkshire. One of our problems though is surely an overcrowded island but sometimes when you look back to Victorian times the seaside was choc a bloc with visitors. Now it is just the roads that stall up.
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