William Heath Robinson, poets of Pinner and Goldsmiths in Acton

At long last I could visit William Heath Robinson Museum in Pinner before attending another poetry evening there!

 I cannot recommend the museum enough and the poetry was also very enjoyable. Apart from the main exhibition, I saw 'Rejuvenated Junk' which is a temporary one and inspired by W.H. Robinson's series of drawings showing new uses for unwanted objects. You can read on the museum website that the 'exhibition features several of these original drawings together with a stunning collection of recycled and upcycled artefacts from 33 countries around the world, provided by knowtrash.
The “Rejuvenated Junk” exhibition is a collaboration between Heath Robinson Museum and knowtrash. These highly-original and creative artefacts from knowtrash celebrate the talents of resourceful upcyclers from diverse communities all around the world. The makers retrieve mass-produced, everyday objects that have been thrown away – including newspaper, metal cans, glass bottles and plastic packaging – and transform them into useful and beautiful objects.' Yo The experience propted me to think about my two friends. One is Karolina, a young Polish woman living in London who makes bespoke jewellery pieces of guess what? recycled everyday materials! The other is David who makes other useful and beautiful objects using recycled stuff. He has a shop in Grenada, Spain and that's where I met him attracted by a curious display.

Have I just mentioned jewellery? Then you may like to read about an exhibition I managed to see just a day before it finished last week. 'De Vroomen: Harmony in Colour and Form, a celebration of five decades of artistic collaboration between renowned husband and wife team, Dutch goldsmith Leo de Vroomen and British jewellery designer and artist Ginnie de Vroomen.  
The showcase brought together over 100 pieces of De Vroomen jewels, sketches reflecting the creative process, as well as Ginnie’s vivid paintings inspired by nature and the urban landscape.' The exhibition was held in no other location but at the Goldsmiths' Hall in the City of London.

As a person living in Acton and interested in the local history, I was particularly interested to visit the Worshipful Goldsmiths Company  premises because of the local links: the early 19th century Goldsmiths Almshouses and other W3 connections which we can explore on one of the Ealing Walking, Talking and Exploring tours. I doubt we would manage to visit the flat which is the focal point of the said almshouses.

As you can see. Dear Reader, fewer and fewer pictures accompany my far less frequent posts and it's not going to change until I get help with technical problems.

Let me wish you a great day! (And the same to me if you don't mind.) :-)

From a tour of Pitshanger to Young Living

When I last saw my friend Magda,  I learnt from her about yet another positive outcome of my walking and talking tours. She met Ola from Poland on our walk from Ealing Broadway to Pitshanger Lane earlier this year. Ola had come to visit me in London the day before and for both of them it was the first sightseeing with me. During our walk, after everyone introduced themselves to others, we chatted with one another and this is how the ladies found out they share an interest in massage therapies.Ola is a qualified and experienced massage therapist while Magda is studying to become a reflexologist. They had a lot to talk about. As a result Magda booked a session with Ola to try her fascial release treatment and thus discovered really good essential oils Ola uses. Every massage needs oil, sometimes more than one, as we know. Anyway, this is how Magda found out about the Young Living Essential Oils which Ola buys online. And read on! Here is something interesting! When Magda went online, she discovered that the main distribution Young Living centre for Europe is in Chiswick, near where she lives! It actually is in Chiswick Business Park, an interesting location itself.

About Poles in Britain at Ben Uri Gallery

Having missed the exhibition opening, I was determined to make it to the talk last night and to see the works as well. My friend, on hearing that I was going to cycle there from Acton, insisted on driving me. Besides, he also wanted to go there. On hearing that, I offered another friend to join us. She was unsure and I couldn't get hold of her when it was time to leave. Thus the two of us resumed to set off as early as we could knowing the traffic in London all too well. We arrived just in time to grab a glass, glance at the pictures and sit down to listen to the Polish Press Agency journalist in UK, Jakub Krupa's talk: 'All You Ever Wanted to Know About #PolesinUK But Were Afraid To Ask'. :Not a bad topic, isn't it? The presentation was really good and so was the Q&R time afterwards. And the exhibition? Absolutely mind-blowing! We are going to see it again, that's for sure!

Explore North Acton on Wednesday, August 9th

Have you ever thought of exploring the area of  North Acton, part of each overlaps with the industrial zone known as Park Royal? 

If not, the time is right to consider this possibility.

I am pleased to announce the Exploring North Acton tour!

Here are the details:

• When? Wednesday, August 9, 2017 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
• Where? Cowork Hub,
  98 Victoria Rd, London NW10 6NB, North Acton, London 
• Let's meet at the Cowork Hub reception. Our walk will end at the Castle Pub nearby.It is a tour with a difference! Come to explore North Acton if you work or live in the area and do not venture much further than your own workplace or home, but also come if you are from afar!
• We  will be walking round the eastern part of the Park Royal industrial area, known in the past for its light engineering work places, especially cars. The area was once called ‘motor town’. The street names of famous cars remain but the industries, as everywhere, are changing. Food companies are plentiful in the area now, along with a strong Middle Eastern/Lebanese presence.
  
  We will start from the Cowork Hub, a place where many new companies can share office space and where you can learn about business. Then we will walk around the surrounding roads visiting Jack Wills, a modern UK clothes company supporting charitable causes,
  
  the Oriental Carpet Centre, which includes a number of such companies,
  
  
  
  a Lebanese Bakery, a French and Middle Eastern Patisserie owned by a very kind and generous Mr Fakhouri (you might be very tempted to sample some!), the Torpedo factory (now AV Equipment but was it a torpedo factory long ago?),
  
  maybe also the West London Art Factory (before they move to the new premises) and North Acton Cemetery where the first British pilot to fly upside down rests.
  Well, it would be great to find the time to examine this engine
  
  as well as the former Elisabeth Arden’s Perfume Works, once Elvis Costello’s workplace too, wouldn’t it?
  
  The cemetery is an oasis of greenery and tranquility in this part of North Acton.
  
  
  
  
  Frankly, that is all probably too much in two hours and we could easily get stuck in the Patisserie (!).
  
  
  
  Nevertheless, wherever we get to, we will then make for the Castle Pub to conclude our little journey and to be merry.:-) The pub is a short walk from the North Acton Station on the Central Line and there are many buses that can take you to various places.  Just check the TFL Journey Planner.:-)
  
  Do come and join us. The trip is planned but what happens during it is very much up to us. We have a route, there are people waiting to see us, but who knows how long everything will take. It’s not about doing everything, more about meeting each other and following our interests on the way.
  The tour costs £10 and children can come free but your responsibility.
  
  Also remember to dress appropriately, depending on the weather forecast and beware of the various vehicles and machinery 'at large'.;-)
• 
  

https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/22._heritage_strategy.pdf