Catwalking

Fashion through the lens of Chris Moore is the exhibition at Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle at the moment. The Northern Documentary group had a trip there today, supported by a few friends from Whickham Camera Club, whose numbers meant that we had a group entrance and a good discount!

It is a beautifully curated exhibition. In addition to Moore's photographs, and there are a large number, there are models wearing clothes from the photographs. The big names in couture are all here. There is a sense of excitement in the images and the art form that is fashion is well displayed.

Of course, the clothes were made to be worn by stick insects. My first extra shows a different take on the exhibition. Am I comfortable with the whole fashion business? I'm not and I've never been very interested in clothes, since I can't wear anything for the standard model. For the first time I did see that the fashion shows must be good fun for some.

So, (I may write about the use of the word SO soon, but that is for another day), are these fashions for the delight of men or women? I think it is women and that the average man is not going to be interested.

What do you think? I would like to know.

My second extra is the silver swan, an automaton. Once a day it is allowed to catch a silver fish. It was very dark and you can see the fish if you look closely. 

We had holidays in Barnard Castle when I was a child. We took two long bus journeys to get there. Visiting Bowes Museum and seeing the swan is one of my happy memories from that time, along with fishing for minnows in the river and spotting Sunderland number plates on the cars that came through the town.