Still Standing

While I was out with the camera over Christmas I was able to document the latest incarnation of the old burned-out Donisthorpe factory.  I wrote about the sad loss of this important piece of Leicester’s industrial past after it burned in July and have been watching the changes the remaining edifice has undergone throughout the intervening months.

For much of that time, the brick shell was scaffolded, creating a whole new element of visual interest with even a hint of quasi-Modernism about the resulting grid and safety mesh.  Several photos here show that stage on a sun-drenched summer day that seems a long time ago now.

The scaffolding is all gone now and the building apparently stabilised with an internal structure of block work and an ad-hoc flat roof.  I have to assume someone thinks the building has a future and, even in this forlorn state, it does still form part of an impressive architectural cluster on the riverbank.  It’s also evident that whatever schemes the developers and planners may hatch, the graffiti writers pursue their own alternative agenda tirelessly.

It feels like documenting these constant processes of urban transformation, both official and unofficial, will remain an important part of my own creative practice into the foreseeable future.

Happy New Year.

Addendum:

A few hours after posting this I discovered it was receiving many more hits than I'm normally used to, - mostly from the USA.  I'd love to believe so many people are fascinated by my musings on the fate of an old factory building in Leicester, England but suspect I may have just got lucky with my post title.  Apologies to anyone who landed here by mistake while browsing for something else and to any that actually got this far, - Thanks for reading on anyway.