The Wounded Landscape

This is an exhibition that is well worth seeing. When Marc Wilson spoke about it yesterday, he said that we must all tell others about it. He is right.

Many of the survivors, or descendants of those killed in the Holocaust, decided to talk after years of silence, because they are horrified by the way world events are going. They see the rise of the extreme right and the murder of innocent people in so many different countries. They hear holocaust deniers and want to show that they are lying.

Before I went, I had decided to photograph people who were looking at the images. I used the Spectre app so as to create ghostly images. This occurs when people move. Most people were very still. They read every word and looked at every image in detail. It became quite a challenge.

I wanted on person to appear to be going out of the door (it's a fire escape) but for me it represented people going into the unknown, usually to their death.

Even when more people came, the gallery was almost silent. People walked quietly and whispered if they spoke.

You can hear Marc on a podcast - just look for his name and The Wounded Landscape. His talk from yesterday will be online soon.

My day was spent in Newcastle. I had coffee at Julie's with Martin and Lynn. Great conversation and delicious home bakes.

I drove to the riverside and parked near the Bicycle Hub, then walked towards the city centre to the Side Gallery. The Sunday street market was on. There was a lively, happy atmosphere. People were out in familiy groups and there were lots of dog walkers. Jet skiers were on the river. I do love being in Newcastle.

On my way back to Hexham, I drove through Wall Village, just in time to see the murmuration again. There was a spectacular sunset, but the main flocks of starlings were over the village itself. Grrr.

I took images from below; a bit of a risky enterprise. My extra shows the birds from below blended with one of my sunset images. I used the Soft Light blend and it worked quite well.