Author: Alan Burnett

When Burne-Jones Was In Brighouse

An old postcard reminds me of one of the lost churches of Brighouse which was once the home of glorious windows by Burne-Jones, Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Ford Madox Brown.

Conversations

Two Couples On The Prom (1930s) There was a time when people would dress up to walk along the prom. A time of hats and coats and canes. A time of conversations through pipe-clenched teeth.

Monkey Puzzle

The puzzling thing about the Monkey Puzzle Tree (Araucaria araucana) is that it is native of Chile where there are no monkeys at all.

Words

Dean Clough Mills, 1971 (Alan Burnett) Slubbing Dyeing = The dyeing of textile fibres prior to spinning Melange Printing = Printing of textile fibres with bands of colour alternating with unprinted areas

Removals, Renovations And Warehousing

Sometimes, old photographs lay around for ages, decades, centuries - holding within them images of great beauty. They are warehouses of history, repositories of memories, constantly being removed from pillar to post, from old cupboard to old shoebox. And then someone comes and with the help of a little digital renovation, a new image emerges … Continue reading Removals, Renovations And Warehousing

Vintage

This was advertised as a vintage postcard on eBay, but it shows a Halifax I remember well. I caught a bus from that stop, I went to the Saturday morning cinema club at that cinema. I have become vintage in my own lifetime. A little further investigation gives a more reliable date range. The Victoria … Continue reading Vintage

Saving Souls

Like some latter-day Victorian parson, I occasionally think I am in the business of saving souls. Many of the nineteenth century studio portraits that come into my possession are showing their age: spots of mould eat into the very soul of the image. A little careful renovation makes them fit for another century or two. … Continue reading Saving Souls