A post about cranes over at Nourishing Obscurity reminded me of my intention to blog about the same subject - only not in the same way. We have lots of cranes towering over the Swansea skyline currently. The Marina and new dockland developments both demand their presence. And I'd never realised before how beautiful cranes are.
They have a sort of magical quality to them, an incredible mix of strength and fragility. They look as if a strong wind would topple them but they're capable of lifting and transporting huge weights. And of course, in a gale they simply sway and give with the prevailing wind.
And the lines are clean and straight but not harsh; they're too vulnerable to be severe.
I was pondering on these things when I heard a report on the news about villagers somewhere in middle England who are opposing plans by a local farmer to install three wind turbines on his land, to provide green energy.
There is a - I wonder what the collective noun is, tessail maybe - a tessail of turbines on one of the hills edging Swansea Bay. They stand out, of course they do, but they're not a scar on the landscape. I'd rather have those than a nuclear power station any day. Perhaps the farmer should suggest building that instead.
xx
3 comments:
I don't particularly like cranes myself - they always remind me of a holiday in Spain, many years ago, where the view along the beach was sea, sand.... and cranes.
However, windmills, or turbines if you want the modern equivalent, are lovely. The Lasithi plain in Crete, (although most of those windmills are now not in use and were used for irrigation), is a beautiful 'picture postcard view. There is a modern wind turbine in the grounds of (I think) a business park just near Reading on the M4; very clean, peaceful lines and not at all offensive to the senses.
I think they're lovely and would rather have those than the block of flats that the local council are allowing to be built in my backyard (well, almost).
...a tessail of turbines...
Now that is interesting - I'll have to remember that one.
I can't say I like cranes but there was one in Cardiff Bay that used to be strung with fairy lights at Xmas.
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