A very rewarding photo of the week

Posted on September 28, 2022September 29, 2022 by carlotta

A very rewarding photo of the week

This is the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange on my very first site visit. I had never been inside the building before and was overwhelmed by the sheer size and beauty of this interior space. It was a very hot June day and afternoon sunlight was streaming in through the huge iconic west-facing windows.

It is that figure, dead centre and running in the shaft of light, that always gets me. He looks so tiny, giving perspective to the enormity of the room.

The special reason for sharing this cyanotype today is that it is being offered as a reward for a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for the Brighton Dome and Corn Exchange.

The Brighton Dome need to raise funds urgently as they are still recovering from the impact of covid, plus facing huge increases in energy costs and inflation.They do so much to support the arts and are an invaluable part of their community: “We employ 130 full-time equivalent permanent staff, 200 casual workers, around 100 freelance artists and creative workers and 131 volunteers, and have a duty, as custodians of these spaces, and a commitment to the artists we support.” I am one of those 100 freelance artists.

I have three different cyanotypes of the Corn Exchange refurbishment being offered at a variety of levels, from greeting cards, to reproduction prints, to signed, hand-printed originals.

Please do check out the link and give generously if you are able.

Love me some verdigris

Posted on March 12, 2021 by carlotta

Love me some verdigris

This jaunty roof is part of the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange, where I have been documenting an extensive redevelopment project. Apart from the simple joy of this view, I would like to point out the two vertical panels of a slightly different colour. These panels are new and were made specially to match as closely as possible the centuries-old verdigris of the existing roof. A section of the roof had to be removed, necessitating replacements. The thing is, these panels are not visible from the street. In fact, they are only visible from up on the roof itself, and yet still the effort was made to keep it as authentic as possible.

I point this out because they represent an attention to detail that exists throughout the build. This is just one example of the lengths that the Brighton Dome are going to repair and rejuvenate this unique 200-year-old building, inside and out, with the help of a further £1 million in Lottery Heritage funding announced last month. You can read the latest news about the project on the Dome website here and find more of my photographs of the project here.

Please get in touch if you have a workplace, an event, a celebration, a portrait or a building project you would like to have photographed.

First photos ever taken of the Corn Exchange ceiling

Posted on June 5, 2020June 8, 2020 by carlotta

First photos ever taken of the Corn Exchange ceiling

I am so pleased to be able to share this photograph I took of the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange in January. This is the apex of the magnificent vaulted roof. At a height of 34 ft (10.3m), this unsupported structure covers a space of 178 by 58 ft (54 by 17.6m), the widest span timber frame in the country. Legend has it that there were delays to the construction of the building 200 years ago because of the difficulty of finding large enough single spans of roof timber.

This ceiling has never been photographed up close because it has remained too difficult to get to – until now. The wooden platform shown here is laid across the top of the scaffolding birdcage that fills the open space of the Corn Exchange, giving access to the timbers for the first time in 200 years. This enables them to be examined and repaired – and photographed. Lucky me, I got to be the one for the job.

Many more of my photographs of the Corn Exchange restoration can be found here. You can read more about the progress of the work on the Brighton Dome website here.

Perfect light at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange

Posted on November 7, 2019November 8, 2019 by carlotta

Perfect light at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange

And it’s back to the beautiful Brighton Dome Corn Exchange for me, where I have been documenting the refurbishment of this historic landmark. I had not been since the summer so it was great to be inside this fascinating building once again. You can find a blog about my photographs on the Brighton Dome website here.

These are the south-facing windows of the Studio Theatre, a small, intimate venue that sits adjacent to the enormous Corn Exchange. When I first started photographing the site, these windows were high up and inaccessible to me and my camera.

A balcony has now been built that wraps around the central space, putting these beautiful circular glass panes right at eye (and lens) level. I am sure I have said it before here, but photography really is all about light and the light was just right for me on this visit. The angle of the sun cast perfect circular shadows through the textured glass onto newly painted window frames. You can find more photographs of the Corn Exchange here.

Please get in touch if you have an event, a celebration or a portrait you would like to have photographed or a building project documented.

The new within the old at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange

Posted on April 2, 2019April 2, 2019 by carlotta

The new within the old at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange

I have been photographing the huge beautiful windows of the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange for nearly two years now. I love that they never look quite the same depending on the time of day, the quality of light, the stage of renovation, with panes of glass and without, and sometimes covered by large sheets of semi-opaque plastic.

The amount of work that has gone into their refurbishment is enormous. The size and shape varies for every pane of glass, meaning that each one has to be individually fitted into its specific place. I counted 185 panes in just one of the 11 large windows of the main hall. In all, this has been a monumental task.

It was very exciting, therefore, to see the finished result this week. Several fully renovated windows were freshly painted and pointed and sporting all new glass. Within these shiny panes you can see the reflection of the new modern extension. This white steel and glass box creates a dazzling light-filled space where the exterior becomes the interior and the beautiful old windows are in pride of place.

More photographs of the refurbishment of the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange can be found here.

Please get in touch if you would like to discuss how we can work together. I deliver photographs that delve deeper than showing just the surface of things.

Lost in space

Posted on January 4, 2019 by carlotta

Lost in space

Wishing you all a very happy New Year! A new year and a 200-year-old ceiling at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange, the redevelopment I have been documenting over the past 18 months. This monumental, unsupported vaulted roof stretches across a room that is 178 by 58 feet. In other words, it is just enormous.

Over the months I have watched while workers manually stripped the paint off of each strut (there are hundreds), and slowly renewed the wood. Now shiny new bolts are reinforcing this 32ft high expanse. More photos of this fascinating project can be found here.

Please get in touch if you would like to discuss how we can work together.

Tag: Brighton Dome Corn Exchange