The light is low, and as I look through the portal up towards the vaulting I see dragons. At the top of the open door that leads into the chapter house is the upward thrusting head of a dragon.
Chesterton once wrote that the object of travel is to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land. I don’t think I understood what he meant until I turned into Hornpot Lane.
In many ways the process of painting felt like a pilgrimage - throwing up its challenges and yet leading me into a deeper understanding of the people behind the glass.
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For me, this is a moment of sanctuary: the ragged, ruddy fox against the monolithic west front. I can’t help but wonder how many generations of foxes have graced the curlicue and the curvilinear with their quatrefoil pads.
It is the humble hand where all this starts - from the first stone laid at the Roman basilica that lies beneath, through to the final carving of the pinnacles that pin down the grandeur of the Gothic church. This is a story about people.
Save the page and come back whilst I photograph York Minster during one of its most important times of the year.
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The Genius Loci Digest can be explored through a series of themed lenses — different routes through photographs, journeys, places and ideas.
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