New Paintings

Here are various views of some completed paintings that I have been working on this year. As my studio comes up short in terms of ceiling height, photos had to be taken with the works flat on the floor although this is also less than ideal as in most cases I couldn't achieve the necessary elevation to photograph them square on. Never mind.

As points of reference, I have included additional images which may go some way to explaining where the idea for each painting has come from...

Nic Pehkonen, Double Opening, 40cm x 180cm 

Nic Pehkonen, Double Opening  (other way up!)

Nic Pehkonen, Double Opening (detail).

Inside one of the test laboratories on the AWRE site at Orfordness 

Nic Pehkonen, Beam, 30cm x 227cm

Nic Pehkonen, Beam (other way up)

Nic Pehkonen, Beam (detail)

Supporting steelwork for duct pipes at Orfordness

Nic Pehkonen, Orange and Turquoise, 49cm x 230cm (max dimensions)

Nic Pehkonen, Orange and Turquoise (other way up)

Nic Pehkonen, Orange and Turquoise (detail)

Nic Pehkonen, Red and White, 49cm x 230cm (max dimensions)

Nic Pehkonen, Red and White, (Other way up)

Nic Pehkonen, Red and White (detail)

Orfordness, an endless source of inspiration...

Nic Pehkonen, Yellow and Turquoise, 25cm x 230cm

Nic Pehkonen, Yellow and Turquoise (other way up)

Nic Pehkonen, Yellow and Turquoise (detail)

Not a building but a close-up of a bulldozer radiator grill

Nic Pehkonen, Grey Panel, 86cm x 90cm

Sizewell A Power Station, main reactor building exterior

Nic Pehkonen, Grey Panel (detail)

Nic Pehkonen, Grey Panel (detail)

New work in progress

Here are a couple of new paintings I have been working on over the last few months and which are now finally approaching completion. The first painting is in two sections which are designed to be hung right up against each other. In the image below one section is hanging over the top of the other but you can hopefully imagine how they would look side by side from the shape of the piece in front (see the drawing below to get the idea). I need to find a suitably large free space in order to be able to hang and photograph the painting as I want it.

Nic Pehkonen, Yellow painting, (in progress), household emulsion paint on unstretched canvas, each section approx 6' x 6'

Nic Pehkonen, drawing design for yellow painting

As with most of my work, the ideas behind this painting have evolved over time from a variety of sources and subject matter so the reason it looks the way it does is mostly due to a visual coming together of this…

Orfordness, Lab 2 Blast-doors

and this…

Sizewell A, Perimeter wall section.

and this…

Uranium Oxide (Yellowcake)

The second work currently in the pipeline is:

Nic Pehkonen, Double Duct Pipe, 2013, 8' x 2' (approx), Household emulsion Paint on unstretched canvas

The idea for this painting comes from the pipes in the building below, the ends of which can be seen protruding at ground-level. I need to try and find out the exact function of these pipes within this test laboratory. Perhaps they were part of some sort of ventilation system? Either way, they look intriguing as they disappear into the wall. The tall cross-shaped openings set into the walls are going to feature in a new painting, which I have just begun.

Orfordness, View inside Lab 4

Bawdsey

Whilst in Suffolk recently, I had the pleasure of re-visiting the trio of concrete wartime buildings situated out on the coast at Bawdsey. Although only about three miles from Felixstowe and it's huge container port, there is no direct road access across the river Deben to Bawdsey which results in a greater feeling of remoteness than it really has.

WW2 Machine Gun Battery, Bawdsey.

In very close proximity there is a small round pillbox built during the first world war, an observation tower on the other side of the road and a machine gun battery right up against the sea wall both dating from the second world war.

WW1 Pillbox and WW2 Observation Tower, Bawdsey.

The local council have conveniently provided some brief information about the site for the visitor. In terms of military history though, Bawdsey has even more to offer, including the pioneering development of radar at Bawdsey Manor during the Second World War and the stationing of  Boodhound missiles in the Cold War.

A very brief history of the site for the visitor.

It has been some years since my first visit but it was great to still be able to wander freely in and around the buildings. The only discernible changes are that the observation tower has been subject to some text-based art installations both inside and out. Here is one of them.

Bettina Furnee, stencil, 2005

These are ok and I like the slightly wonky stencilled red lettering and font but for me the real aesthetic appeal comes from the forms and materials of the structures themselves. You just can't beat decaying reinforced concrete buildings for visual appeal with their striking combination textures and colour and form.

Here are some nice examples to illustrate...

Machine Gun Battery with internal steel work gradually emerging.

Observation Tower revealing something of it's inner structure
 (note another part of Bettina Furnee's text installation on right).

Inside the observation tower with ladders to the basement and first floors.

The inside of the machine gun battery is slightly more sinister looking, especially the partially flooded corridor that joins the two posts although you could wade through quite easily if you really wanted to. Just look at the amazing greenish walls and exposed rusting steel of the re-enforced ceiling.

Link corridor.

You can see the line of the passage connecting the two posts from the photo below. Although it is only partially subterranean the reinforced concrete ceiling would have been enough to provide reasonable protection when walking between the two gun posts.

Exterior view of the machine gun battery. The sea is only a few yards beyond.

Although the two gun posts differ slightly in construction the overall impression is one of satisfying symmetry and they have settled nicely into the landscape over the years.

Machine gun post - Northern end

On top of the southern gun post. Note the Martello tower
in the background (one of a number along the Suffolk coast).

Inside the southern machine gun post.

The Pillbox and Observation tower are on the edges of the fields either side of the narrow lane a hundred yards or so from the sea.

Bawdsey - Observation tower with pillbox in the foreground.

This pillbox is cylindrical in construction with a slightly overhanging roof which gives a clue as to how they came to be named although there were a great many other non-round designs. 

Bawdsey - Pillbox close up.

  

Car Park Architecture - Part 3

I think Cheltenham currently has four multi-story car parks and a new one will be coming when the recently approved North Place development becomes reality.

The Regent Arcade and Beechwood car parks are architecturally bland (as are the shopping centres they are attached to). However, the Grosvenor Terrace Car Park (for some reason not long ago re-named as  Town Centre East ?!) and the Brewery Car Park on the corner of Monson Avenue and St Margarets Road are both good looking structures.

Grosvenor Terrace Car Park or Town Centre East or TCE

I especially like the way this car park straddles the shops below on the angle and the contrast between the simple brick lift/stair block and the more decorative concrete car park exterior works well visually.

Exterior brown vertical concrete panels and blue steel corner detail.

Despite being a functional building, it seems that plenty of thought went into the design. The potential severity of three horizontal layers has been avoided by the proliferation of thin vertical panels on all sides and the trees planted along the "ring road" edge have grown up nicely to act as a partial screen between road and car park.

Trees add additional colour to the view from this side (for most of the year !)

Here is the view along the entrance side:

Entrance side

and the opposite long side...

Side street view.

Its not all right angles though and there is one satisfyingly rounded corner on the corner of Albion Street and the side street.

Curved Car Park corner.

Further round the "ring road" you would do well to ignore the godforsaken wind tunnel that is the Brewery development  and turn your eyes instead to the opposite side of the road and enjoy the much nicer multi-storey car park.

This is a great looking car park - a pleasingly low-rise structure with cream coloured rendered walls, grey steel panels and open parapet which all work together to great effect.

The Brewery Car Park

On the Dunalley Street side it gets even better with a super grey steel-clad polygonal stairwell !

The view from Dunalley Street looking towards St Margarets Road.

and not forgetting the fantastic black and yellow NCP logo against the pleasingly green-streaked wall.

NCP - Nice Car park

That is just the outside but inside there is plenty more lovely concrete and although the ceilings are very low, it still manages not to feel too oppressive due to the light colour of the concrete and reasonable lighting. The polished concrete floor also still seems to reflects light despite a number of years of continuous wear.

Inside

Still on the subject of car park interiors I thought I would finish off with a few pictures taken inside the Waitrose car park where the real interest lies in the fantastic array of suspended metal cable housings, duct  pipes and fixings covering the ceiling. 

Waitrose Car Park Ceiling, Cheltenham

This busy looking ceiling is in marked contrast to the simplicity of Brewery Car Park but both look great in their own way!

The same view with some colour adjustments!

and from a different angle...