Hamnøy, Moskenes Municipality, Lofoten, Norway

You will spot these racks all over the Lofoten islands, especially in and around the fishing villages for these are drying racks for cod (Gadus Morhua).

The history bit…

The Lofoten Fishery is the richest in the world
The world’s richest cod-fishing takes place every winter in Lofoten. For nearly 1000 years, dried fish has been exported to Europe from here. Traditionally, it was the most important event in the calendar along the entire coast of Norway.

When the temperate waters of the Gulf Stream enter the grounds around the Lofoten archipelago, the temperature is exactly right for the Norwegian Arctic cod to spawn. Large cod swim down from the Barents Sea in the middle of the darkest winter, and become known as skrei on the way. They reach the western coast of Finnmark and Troms before Christmas and get to Lofoten in January. Some spawn as far south as Trøndelag and Møre, but most of the spawning occurs between Røst and Lødingen, on the mainland side of the Lofoten archipelago.

The fish is dried to preserve it
In order to preserve the fish, it is dried on large drying racks for a calculated amount of time, depending on the size of the individual fish. Around 16 weeks is the average length of time for fish to dry, based on optimal weather and wind conditions. It doesn’t need to be salted or smoked, as the temperature in Lofoten in the winter is just below freezing. The fish does not freeze into pieces, but it doesn’t rot either. The fish simply dries in the sun and wind from late winter until spring. Then, it is bone dry and easy to transport but still retains its key nutrients.

Fish trading
The trade in stockfish between Lofoten and Europe began in the early 12th century. In the summer, large cargo vessels transported the dried fish to Bergen. The German Hanseatic merchants were waiting, and sold the fish on to the citizens of the thriving cities of northern Europe. Good Catholics eat fish on Fridays, and cod are rich in hearty proteins.

Cod prices cycle
In the 14th and 15th centuries, the Lofoten fishermen got very good prices. In the 16th and 17th centuries, competition increased and demand fell, and there were hard times along the coast. In the 19th century, demand increased again, and the coast got a boost that has lasted, with a few interruptions, until today. From the 19th century until around 1940, the Lofoten fishery made up the bulk of revenue for most fishermen in northern Norway. Today, most of the dried fish is exported to Italy, while airborne fresh fish is sold to fine restaurants throughout Europe.

Fishermen from along the coast
The Lofoten fishery was part of the annual rhythm of coastal people from Trøndelag and northwards. After Christmas, fishermen’s Lofoten chests were packed with dried food, warm clothing and hymnals as they left for Lofoten. They were away from home from January to March/April, depending on how the fishing went.

Footnote
This particular set of fish racks lies on the opposite side of the road where everybody congregates to snap the iconic, if somewhat cliché image of Hamnøy. Worth a quick wander to find something extra.

Tags:   Norway Lofoten fish drying racks racks cod Hamnøy fishing village Moskenesveien E10 Moskenes Municipality Nordland landscape photography seascapes mountains Andy Rouse andyrousephotography Canon 5Dmkiii EF17-40mm f/4L USM

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Salford Lads Club, Coronation St, Salford

My previous posting - The Smiths Room seems to have bombed, maybe the sheer overload of imagery and colour put a lot of people off… or they simply don’t like The Smiths!

So, here’s a more tranquil image, just as much information as the room next door (maybe even more – I didn’t stop to count all the names). At first glance it’s hard to make out what it actually is, but on closer inspection I found it somewhat mind blowing. A simple concept, but with a hell of a lot of planning, forethought and sequencing to make it work.

Tags:   Salford Lads Club Salford archive room listed building historic members membership art installation Andy Rouse AndyRousePhotography Canon 5DMkIII EF17-40mm f/4L USM

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Salford Lads Club, Coronation St, Salford

I couldn’t not post images of this room… after all, it’s what put the club on the national and global map judging by all the overseas visitors it attracts (Salford Lads Club is the third most visited music related venue in the UK next to the Abbey Road crossing and The Cavern). It’s a bit in-yer-face compared with the tranquillity of the Archive Room next door.

The left image is the photo of The Smiths outside its doors for their album sleeve – The Queen Is Dead, but in reality, it was more to do with Morrissey’s love of Coronation Street and the street sign high on the wall why it was used.

The right image is a mosaic I’ve never seen before as I’ve photographed all ten of the mosaics outside Afflecks Palace many years ago. A little bit of research and… in October 2012 Elaine Walsh, founder of Afflecks Palace donated the original mosaic from the building exterior, featuring Morrissey among other Manchester music icons to the club. The mosaic was created by Mark Kennedy and installed outside Afflecks Palace in 1995 – it was taken down in 2008 and replaced with newer versions.

Tags:   Salford Lads Club Salford The Smiths Morrissey album The Queen Is Dead icon listed building historic archives music pop Afflecks Palace mosaics Andy Rouse AndyRousePhotography Canon 5DMkIII EF17-40mm f/4L USM

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Salford Lads Club, Coronation St, Salford

It’s been over a month since I posted the iconic Salford Lads Club front doors here on Flickr and added it to my Etsy shop… not a sniff of a sale so far, but that’s art and photography for you in a commercial world!

As I mentioned in my previous write-up, Kathy’s parents both lived in Salford and her dad was a member of the club in his youth so it was a great surprise to find this room. Here are stored all the membership records going right back to 1903. It took our guide Ross no time at all to dig out the membership card of Kathy’s dad… and all his brothers from such a well organised and indexed filing system (all the grey boxes on the shelving). We even got photocopies of all the family records and at no cost!

But this room is more than just an archive store… look at the grey panel left of the chairs. That is a laser cut (might be water cut… not sure) panel of a selection of members names, all arranged alphabetically which fill the entire wall behind me. We found Kathy’s dads name and brothers on the wall but it was too high to capture a good close up image (a good reason to go back and try again with a tall tripod).

One final note to mention, many footballers of yesteryear were members of SLC including Brian Doyle (Stoke City), Steve Fleet (Manchester City), Albert McPherson (Walsall and coach at West Bromwich Albion) and most tragic of all – Eddie Coleman (Manchester United) who was killed in the Munich air disaster. That’s his membership card over the desk with his last entry dated 6th February 1958.

Tags:   Salford Lads Club Salford archive room listed building historic football Brian Doyle Stoke City Steve Fleet Manchester City Albert McPherson Walsall Eddie Coleman Manchester United Busby Babes Munich 6th February 1958 pop The Smiths album The Queen Is Dead icon Andy Rouse AndyRousePhotography Canon 5DMkIII EF17-40mm f/4L USM

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Tromsø, Troms municipality, Hålogaland, Norway

Tromsdalen Church or the Arctic Cathedral (Norwegian: Tromsdalen kirke, Ishavskatedralen) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Tromsø Municipality in Troms county, Norway. It is located in the Tromsdalen valley on the east side of Tromsø. It is the church for the Tromsøysund parish, which is part of the Tromsø domprosti (arch-deanery) in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland. The modern concrete and metal church was built in a long church style in 1965 using plans drawn up by architect Jan Inge Hovig. The church seats about 600 people.

The church is one of the most notable churches in Tromsø due to its design. However, Tromsø does have other churches of interest, such as the Protestant Tromsø Cathedral, which is noted for being the only wooden cathedral in Norway, and the Catholic Cathedral of Our Lady, Tromsø.

The ground breaking of the church was on 1 April 1964, and it was completed in 1965. The new church was consecrated on 19 November 1965 by Bishop Monrad Norderval. The church is built out of cast-in-place aluminium-coated concrete panels. The shape of the church is believed to be a reference to the nearby twin-peaked island of Håja. In 1972, a glass mosaic titled "The Return of Christ" was added to the eastern side, made by Victor Sparre.

Tags:   Arctic Cathedral cathedrals churches religion architecture Tromsø Troms municipality Hålogaland Norway Lofoten Nordland landscape photography cities cityscapes Andy Rouse andyrousephotography Canon 5Dmkiii EF70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM

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