Gearóid | Garrowed

@garrowed.bsky.social

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"Garrowed" is how to say my Irish name. Gearóid is how it's actually spelled. ¶ Mostly photos of buildings, art, and assorted oddities from a designer with notions. ¶ Alt text always, usually with additional information. ¶ http://garrowed.co.uk

A tree-lined path in an urban park. It is a summer morning and the light is hazy. Branches and leaves, in a variety of green shades, form a canopy over the brown soil. A lone, silhouetted figure is visible in the distance on the horizon. Royal Victoria Park, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Underneath a curvy pedestrian bridge with its exposed "Vierendeel" trusses and the underside of its timber deck. Where the bridge meets the embankment, a barrier with gate has incorporated into the structure, perhaps just to stop people/animals getting stuck in the tight space. Quays Bridge, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
On a bright summer day, people pass through a street with hundreds of green ribbons (and some flower sculptures) suspended above it. The ground is almost covered with the shadows of this art installation. On the left, an old red telephone box repurposed as a flower stand. SouthGate mall’s "Secret Forest," St. Lawrence Street, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Looking straight down a pedestrianised street with crowds of people walking in the distance. The figures have long thin vertical shadows over them. In the foreground, the paving is almost covered with the shadows of hundreds of ribbons which are suspended above. The ribbons give the image a green cast. St. Lawrence Street, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Paving slabs and a thin rainwater drain, with the shadows of hundreds of ribbons which are suspended above this pedestrian thoroughfare in a shopping precinct. At the foot of photo is a shadow of the photographer's head, shoulders and elbow. St. Lawrence Street, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Yellow-ish paving, a drain, and the shadows of many ribbons suspended above this pedestrian thoroughfare in a shopping precinct. Also in the picture is the base of an old red telephone booth repurposed as a flower stand. St. Lawrence Street, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A four-story, steel-framed building with balconies is designed to appear as stacked shipping containers. Cargo Works by Alec French Architects, as seen from Frys Lane, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Looking out of a doorway to a paved courtyard and the concrete external staircase of a 20th century building. The entryway is framed by double wooden doors with geometric-patterned wrought iron gates and a glass transom window. The 18th-century classical porch at the west end of the otherwise ruined Temple Church. It was bombed during the Bristol Blitz (1940), leaving it as an empty shell. Temple Street, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A grand Georgian building with a central pediment featuring a carved stone coat of arms. Balustrading with heavy urns and vases mark the boundary to the street. Old King Edward's School (1752), Broad Street, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A photograph taken from inside a red glass lift, featuring silhouetted people about to take a downward escalator. In the background is an ornate multi-storey building and on the right is Richard Neergaard's "Bubbly Guard" sculpture. Across the top of the image are the letters C, E, L, and A from the branding of the restaurant that this elevator leads to. Paddington Square, London, UK. Photo, without any post-processing, by Gearóid Burke.
White plaster casts of sculpted faces and death masks, plus a few other body parts, hanging from a dark ceiling and wall in a shop. Upfront is a copy of the bust of Patroclus, the "Companion of Odysseus," or the "wineskin-bearer." He seems to be looking at the face of Michelangelo's David. Casts by Nicholas H Wood at his eponymous shop in Shires Yard, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Looking up at a modern apartment building featuring eight storeys of curved and glazed balconies. An apartment dweller on the third floor has arranged clothing on the railing to dry. Chatham Place, Reading, Berkshire, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Inside a railway station with a vaulted glass roof supported by a series of semi-circular arches and a grand, in both size and decoration, semicircular window. London Paddington Station was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Matthew Digby Wyatt and opened in 1854. Wyatt provided the sinuous wrought-iron ornamentation in the glazed end-arches. Praed Street, London, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Stainless steel plates, layered in a sloping curve, with beaded rainwater. The BP Bridge (2004) is a sculptural, snakelike footbridge in Grant Park, Chicago. Designed by Frank Gehry and named for the oil and gas company that donated $5 million toward its construction. Columbus Drive, Chicago, IL, USA. Photo by Gearóid Burke, 2004.
An unpaved lane lined by very green trees, with a ford to the left and a stone pedestrian bridge to the right. The still water reflects the brighter foliage above. Cole Lane, Arborfield, Reading, Berkshire, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Former industrial buildings are reflected in the calm waters of the River Avon. The central structure features a metal, cantilevered balcony with café-style tables and chairs. Gabled timber hoists project from the uppermost floors. A bright red dot at the centre of the image is a covered lifebuoy attached to the wall. Camden Mill was built in 1880 as a steam-powered flour mill and is now an office building. Lower Bristol Road, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Light, from a burning spheroid of plasma about 1.496×10⁸ kilometres away, filters through translucent window graphics and brings colour to the grey floor of a skybridge. Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A hazy, blurry photograph with almost horizontal bands of green and grey, dotted with small white circles. A glass of cold, carbonated water with condensation forming on it, placed in front of a window that looks out to a garden. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Early morning scene from a bridge over the River Avon. Former industrial buildings are reflected in the calm water. Churchill Bridge, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Against a sky blue background, ocean waves on a beach swirl around to make a circle. At the top, a man with rolled-up trousers, his head down, enjoys the refreshing seawater on his feet. The result of playing around with polar coordinates and the "tiny planet" effect on a photograph of my husband at Saunton Sands beach. Braunton, Devon, UK. Photo and manipulation by Gearóid Burke.
A narrow pedestrian lane is lined with old timber-framed buildings. But the street's medieval history is most apparent due to a 'leat' running down the middle, carrying water from a nearby stream. Cheap Street, Frome, Somerset, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Looking out from a dark interior, through a raised stained-glass sash window and horizontal iron bars (to discourage defenestration), to the backs of some Georgian buildings. Currently a (excellent) Boston Tea Party café, the building dates from 1775, and has been attributed to John Wood the Younger. From 1898 to 1974 it housed Evans & Owen, Bath's first department store. An exterior view of this window can be seen in my post on Monday (10 June, 2026). Bartlett Street, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Looking uphill to a pedestrian thoroughfare with old-fashioned shopfronts, hanging signs, and a freestanding streetlamp. Spanning across the street is a six-metre-wide 'overthrow' sign with "BARTLETT ST QUARTER" in golden lettering. This 2015 sign replaced the Evans & Owen sign, which advertised the Victorian drapers and department store that operated in the building on the left. Bartlett Street, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A three-story corner building features a high-contrast, black-on-white mural of Jimi Hendrix's head. The artwork stretches over two storeys and centres the musician's face between four sash windows. The ground floor is painted solid back with white-framed windows. The Bridge Inn is a small pub where music memorabilia lines the (interior) walls. Passage Street, Bristol, UK. Mural by David Blatch. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Four pieces of partially-shredded corrugated cardboard found within a cardboard shipment box. The two central pieces feature two halves of a red-on-white "FRAGILE" sticker and the number 10889 printed in black directly onto the brown substrate. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
White plaster casts of faces, plus a few other body parts, hanging from a ceiling in a shop dedicated to the art. There a multiples of many of the pieces, with two copies of Donatello's sculpture of Niccolò da Uzzano (front and centre) and four facsimiles of Dante's death mask (on the right). Casts by Nicholas H Wood at his eponymous shop in Shires Yard, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A monotone photograph taken in a dark, semi-circular tunnel with lighting strips on its ceiling. Three people walk away from the camera, towards a bright plaza. Bicycles in racks occupy the east side of the passage. This arched, brick-lined underpass dates back to 1840. Bath Spa railway station, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A large translucent graphic with cutouts has been applied to a window. Through the gaps we see a somewhat dilapidated grey and white building with a clear blue sky above and a conservatory-style structure below. The signage of which reads "The Eating [Place]." Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A niche within an exterior stone wall has been decorated with picture of a teddy bear. The spray-painted artwork depicts a seated bear in black lines and with X-shaped eyes and a frowning mouth. At the centre of its chest is a yellow-outlined heart. Artist unknown. Beechen Cliff, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
In a white arched alcove is a haphazard pile of black and rusted-white metallic roman numerals, from I to XII. These are from multiple sets of vintage Clock Golf lawn games, some of which are stamped with the name "F.H. AYRES" and "LONDON." Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A digital clock made of four cable-linked Perspex cubes stacked on a stainless steel surface. Areaware's "Numbers" LED alarm clock was designed by Jonas Damon. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A mosaic featuring the word 'OFFICE' at the corner entrance to a building. On a white background, the word is set in a serif typeface, outlined in a golden yellow to match the stone of the building. Cantay House, Park End Street, Oxford, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A monochromatic photograph of a large number of bicycles locked to a series of bike racks. Oxford Railway Station, Park End Street, Oxford, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
An aging exterior wall. What was once a two-tone colour scheme now features the dirt of urban pollution in the top left corner and cracked render at ground level. In between are seemingly random blocks of paint: a long solid black box, a green polygon, and blotchy black L-shape — all to cover-up some tags. Also in the photo is an orange and yellow hazard warning on a short corner to the left, and a green utility cabinet on the ground with three white spots just before it. Hythe Bridge Street, Oxford, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
The back wall of a shimmery, iridescent water sculpture reflects the urban buildings that it faces — and me, vaguely. Aquarena, designed by William Pye, Millennium Square, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Looking through a plate glass shop window. The dark interior features white plaster casts on the wall and hanging from the ceiling. The casts are mostly taken from sculpted busts and faces, with some death masks. Reflected twice in the glass is a silhouetted person walking through a doorway into the light. Shires Yard, Milsom Street, Bath, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A very large, multifaceted stainless-steel sphere stands in an urban plaza featuring a shallow decorative pool of water. The round structure reflects its surroundings, and it is reflected in the gently rippling water. In the background are some modern office/leisure buildings with columns on the right, while on the left is the back of some sort of tented fairground attraction. The planetarium of We The Curious, a science and arts centre, Millennium Square, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
An urban scene at dusk with street lights, illuminated signage and brightly lit storefronts. The image has been cropped and rotated 90˚ so that a puddle that reflects the vista now appears on the left. The other post-processing was to increase the darkness of the shadows. East Randolph Street, Chicago, Illinois, USA. Original photograph by Rock (@rjrock.bsky.social) and remixed with permission as part of the #PostProcess challenge.
An urban plaza with a few fairground attractions. The image is split into 12 polygons, as this is a close-up of a large, multifaceted stainless-steel sphere. At the bottom of the photo is a dark hatch with steps down. The planetarium of We The Curious, a science and arts centre, Millennium Square, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A wide-angle shot featuring two people walking over a painted pavement. This section of the very large artwork has the name "Bristol" in stretched blue block capitals filling a white heart shape. The heart is then outlined in red and two shades of blue. Despite being only six months old, this 700-square-metre artwork ("Our Common Ground" by Oisín Davis-Lyons), is fading fast. Centre Promenade, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A wide-angle photograph, looking up at a contemporary 14-storey office building with a series of circular windows in precast concrete facade panels. The building also has more traditional glass windows and dark grey panelling on the sides. At the top of the image, tree branches and leaves slightly obscure the top of the structure. Building C of the Assembly development, Narrow Plain, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A wide-angle, high-contrast, and minimalistic monotone photograph of a concrete tower with vertical grooves receding with perspective. A series of circular windows start at the third level (around the centre of the image), with one for each of the subsequent eleven floors. Building C of the Assembly development, Narrow Plain, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A wide-angle photograph from the base of a contemporary 14-storey office building with a series of large circular windows in precast concrete facade panels. Visible through the glass, though partially obscured by the reflection of a tree, is a bright yellow staircase. On the left another side of this six-sided structure has similar but smaller windows and vertical grooves in the concrete. To the right, the building has more traditional glass windows and dark grey panelling. Building C of the Assembly development, Narrow Plain, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A colourful, 7-storey tall mural on the corrugated metal siding of a tower structure. The artwork centres on a fire fighter in uniform and a coordinator with a headset. In its background is a rendering of the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Behind (and quite close to) the tower is an 11-storey apartment building with balconies. "Not Just Fires" by Hasan Kamil (also known as HASS) on Avon Fire & Rescue Service's Temple Training Tower. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Looking up at a permanently fixed vertical access ladder, equipped with a safety cage, which leads to an access hatch in a wood-panelled ceiling. However, the opening is blocked by an aluminium thread plate. A "No Pedestrians" sign indicates that this area is not for general access. Platform 13, Temple Meads Railway Station, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A monotone photograph of a large and empty gothic window of a church ruin and a concrete external staircase of a 20th century building beyond it. Temple Church was bombed in November 1940, leaving it an empty shell. Temple Street, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A monotone photograph of a group of office buildings along a riverside. At the centre of the image is a 43-metre-tall concrete tower. Its slightly bulbous head is twelve-sided and has a central band of vertical windows. Cheese Lane Shot Tower is one of only three such structures to survive in England. Shot towers were the most efficient way to produce shot balls (i.e.: ammunition for hunting rifles) in the 19th and most of the 20th century. From the top of the tower, molten lead would be poured through a sieve. While free falling through the empty tower, the lead would cool and form into perfectly round balls. These would land in a basin of water to be cooled further. Use of the tower for its original purpose ceased in the late 1980s. Designed by E.N. Underwood & Partners, 1969. Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Under an overcast sky is the grotty back side of an American chain hotel and a boarded-up petrol station. The wooden hoarding around the former fuel stop has been painted black and covered with large posters that advertise music events in the area. The canopy of the former forecourt appears above boards and has also been covered and painted black, and the words "JESUS SAVES" have been added in freehand with white paint. Redcliffe Way, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
The empty windows of a church ruin and the windows of an early-20th-century office building beyond them. Temple Church is so called because the original church on the site was built by the Knights Templar. It was bombed in November 1940 during the Bristol Blitz, leaving it an empty shell. Temple Street, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A photograph taken from a doorway of a dark building and looking to another entrance on the opposite side. A small cross (cut out of stone) is centred above the door, and the silhouettes of an adult and child can be seen entering the structure. In the distance is the back of an old farmhouse with a large dovecote. The 700-year-old Bradford-on-Avon Tithe Barn, Pound Lane, Bradford-On-Avon, Wiltshire, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A steel mesh panel of a bridge's guardrail has been tagged in yellow and black spray paint. Through this metal grid we can see an urban harbour and a wooden jetty with small private pleasure boat moored to it. Pero's Bridge is a pedestrian bascule bridge that spans St Augustine's Reach in Bristol Harbour. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
An evening shot of an illuminated sculpture, taken from directly below. "Pivotal" is a kinetic artwork by Mark Nixon and Viliina Koivisto, composed of 73 colourful and flapping fins. Station Hill, Reading, Berkshire, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A dark interior of an old structure with stone walls and curved timber cruck roof. The wall at the back of the building features a chamfered, unglazed, cross-shaped window, which seems to glow. The 700-year-old Bradford-on-Avon Tithe Barn, Pound Lane, Bradford-On-Avon, Wiltshire, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A dark interior of an old structure with stone walls and curved timber "cruck" roof supports. An open doorway reveals a brightly lit lawn (with an incline) and a stone boundary wall beyond. Nearly 700 years old, this barn was used for storage of tithes during the Middle Ages — effectively a 10% tax on the agricultural produce of Shaftesbury Abbey's tenants. Bradford-on-Avon Tithe Barn, Pound Lane, Bradford-On-Avon, Wiltshire, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
Looking up to three-storey external staircase of an early 20th century office building (now student accommodation). The stairs, with their concrete half-walls, seem to float in the air. Water Lane House from Petticoat Lane, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A dark interior of an old structure with stone walls and curved timber "cruck" roof supports. Nearly 700 years old, this barn was built to serve a manor farm that belonged to the nuns of Shaftesbury Abbey. It was used for storage of tithes during the Middle Ages — effectively a 10% tax of the produce of the abbey's tenants. Bradford-on-Avon Tithe Barn, Pound Lane, Bradford-On-Avon, Wiltshire, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A woman and child walk through an arcade by a river, as seen reflected in a storefront's colourful striped window graphics. The woman is wearing a red and white striped top and a yellow "Minions" backpack. On the other side of the river, beyond some trees, is a Brutalist multi-story car park (Apex Parking Bristol Prince Street). Bordeaux Quay, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
A multi-storey car park with distinctive geometric composition of cast concrete X-components. On the ground floor, the façade is supported by V-shaped supports. Architecture by Kenneth Wakeford Jarram & Harris, 1966. Narrow Quay, Bristol, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.
The view from one train platform to another, centred on a small yellow-stone railway building with two sets of panelled windows and two bright yellow doors. A young woman perches on the back of a wooden bench, with her feet and her CoOp-branded bag on the seat. She looks to her right for an eastbound train. This station was built in 1850 to the most elaborate of the standard designs used by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, resembling a lodge or estate house of the period, but in local Bath stone, rather than the more commonly used bricks and mortar. Bradford-on-Avon Railway Station, Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire, UK (the station name is hyphenated, unlike the name of the town). Photo by Gearóid Burke.
An ornate terracotta ventilation cover in a red brick wall. A damp stain in the lower left corner suggests that a small- to medium-sized dog had recently established this building as his territory. Reading Town Hall (constructed in 1872 to the designs of Alfred Waterhouse), Reading, Berkshire, UK. Photo by Gearóid Burke.