We are immersed in the second phase of our big shift. I’m at the studios gathering up the scattered remnants of my own art amongst the rows of boxes & packed bags.
There are over three decades of stories in this building; delightful, entertaining & some tragic. Known as the Tramps’ Hotel, the current day studios formed part of the local workhouse. It provided sanctuary for the homeless & dispossessed. It’s history of poverty, fragile rags & loneliness was vastly different to the exotic atmosphere of colourful creativity of recent years.
The ghosts of a forgotten time have been surrounded by luxuriously beautiful silks created for some of the wealthiest in the world. We would often feel them sigh in wonder at the sumptuously delicious silk art that would emerge from vats of dye & steamers that would fix colour rather than remove fleas.
Today’s ghosts still echo too. Everyone has heard the footsteps on the stairs of unseen visitors. Countless times we would wait for the doorbell to ring. But there was often no one there.
Today I heard the ghost of my parents’ old car. A Silver Ghost Rolls Royce. The majestic engine would purr in pleasure at carrying its passengers with elegant ease. The staff would smarten to attention hearing the bosses arrive.
The car is long gone as have the halcyon days of big orders & exciting editorials in the glossies. But my parents still go on in their joy of creative adventures.
In this time of silence we’d enjoy hours of peaceful contemplation giving us the space to dream when working hours morph into a different pace of life at home. Abandoned remnants of the day’s busyness would repose in the solitude of the night giving us space to plan and create.
Now the town never sleeps. The traffic never stops.
Our dreams are filled with light studios ensconced by green fields, sunshine, birdsong & the melodies of wind & rain. This is where our creativity can truly blossom & thrive. It’s time for the ghosts to enjoy a new era when the next generation of occupants tell new stories.
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#photooftheday #history #arthistory #fashionhistory #newera #nextgeneration #change #transformation #art #creativity
