In the hustle-bustle and general animation of visiting a Festival like the ‘Ricky’, I tend to experience a kind of ‘global contentment’, and I’m happy just to drift through the crowds, chat with our kids and generally enjoy the colours, sights and sounds in a mildly unfocused kind of way.

Often the hidden gems of the day are only revealed in retrospect, when I look back through the photographs I’ve taken in a more focused and attentive way.

In many ways I suspect it’s these delightful details, these contrasts that are unconsciously at the root of my sense of well-being and contentment as I wander around…

Details such as:

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The contrast between a beautifully painted tunnel lamp and the course hemp rope tying it to the cratch..
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The contrast between a delicate bouquet of painted roses and bold sans serif lettering…
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The combination of decorative ropework, lettering and castle….
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Swaithes of a single colour contrasting with complex geometric designs and lettering…
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Stunning simplicity. (Incidentally, given the our boat Eileen was employed within the Stewarts & Lloyds Group from the 1920’s I’m beginning to see this as a possible colour scheme for the boat…).
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The way the white lettering stands out so clearly against the red…
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Or black… Also the contrast between lettering styles, between the A. Harvey Taylor company name to the red telephone number 9…
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The detail of the painted footstool contrasting with the functional red oxide painted on checkerplate beneath…
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And finally, the modern cylinder padlock contrasting with the ‘flourish’ of the painted flowers…

Published by Nick Holt

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