Savoy | The Restoration Opening Night

 © Tilley Harris

It was a full house on Thursday evening with The Savoy pop up bar adding a little glitz to an already colourful evening. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everybody that came, for making it a very special occasion. The show continues until June 20th and I will be in the gallery until Wednesday at 6pm. For those that have expressed an interest to re-visit or for print sales please call 07941 365645 or email me at siobhan@siobhandoran.com or alacartearts@gmail.com. If you did not make it then we are open everyday from 10am to 6pm. Print Sales collections are on Thursday morning June 21st or as otherwise arranged. Have a wonderful weekend! If you would like to see some more Pics from the opening night; you can see them on alacARTe's Facebook page; Facebook.com/alacartearts

Savoy | The Restoration Exhibition, Preview 3 - 2 days to opening

I have just been informed that the artwork has arrived at the gallery - 81 Leonard Street. Can't wait to assist  Alacarte tomorrow with the hanging!

The image shown here is one of 34 pieces which will be exhibited.  Royal Suite, River View, The Savoy, January 2010. It was after work hours and the building was empty but for security and myself.  I was walking through half built rooms and this picture caught my eye. I stood and observed this majestic view while all I could hear were the faint sounds of car engines passing by. The Savoy’s Embankment location overlooking the Thames, with wonderful views of Cleopatra’s Needle and the Houses of Parliament, is unrivalled among London hotels. Richard D’Oyly Carte was lucky to acquire a plot of land facing Embankment Gardens, just south of the Savoy Theatre, and clever enough to realise the potential of the view by designing his new hotel with wide balconies that ran all along the riverfront. Although the balconies are long gone, the 2010 restoration has allowed the architects to ensure that windows on the river side maximise the iconic Thames views. D’Oyly Carte’s vision has been supplemented by the addition of the London Eye to the skyline, and the magnificent view at night-time when the city is illuminated.

For more information or to receive a Press Release please contact alacartearts@gmail.com

Savoy | The Restoration Exhibition, Preview 2 - 3 days to opening

I  get the same wondrous feeling when I see a print emerge from the printer, as I did when I  developed my negatives in the dark room. It has been a real privilege to do my own printing for this exhibition. It means, I can concentrate on every detail, which is very satisfying. After all, taking the photograph is one step but having the opportunity to see it through to printing and framing is a real joy.

The photograph seen here emerging from the printer; Thames Foyer, The Savoy, December 2009 was the turning point for the restoration. With the completion of the structural work and the removal of the internal scaffolding, natural light returned to the interior spaces. The Lower Thames Foyer was glowing like a stage under its grand new dome, which was flooding the space with beautiful daylight. There was an air of optimism to the site – although still a long way from completion, the feeling of being at the right side of the mountain was unanimous. The dark days were quite literally over. The visibility of the new design seemed to create a furore of excitement, and the opening date was confirmed. Once this date was set the hotel swarmed with the largest amount of workers it had seen throughout the whole program, and they worked day and night to meet their deadline.

For more information or to receive a Press Release please contact alacartearts@gmail.com

Savoy | The Restoration Exhibition, Preview 1 - 4 days to opening

Preparation for the exhibition is progressing well. Each day this week, one image will be previewed on my blog, accompanied by a short story about the photograph or in this case, the photographs.

The attached shows the 5th Floor River Suites captured in December 2007 whilst Bonhams conducted The Savoy Sale downstairs.

'Initially, I set to work during the Savoy Sale, the December 2007 auction staged by Bonhams at the hotel. I decided to photograph the nine River View suites stretching across the fifth floor during the two-day duration of this event. It was the only time that I could shoot these rooms, because prior to the auction they were fully booked. The Savoy’s fifth floor is its centre. Every room on that level has a spectacular river view offering a unique perspective. In each room, the desk and chair – which I repositioned to face the window – represented, to me, the people who have passed through the hotel during its 118-year history. The furniture was affixed with Bonhams’ auction tags, which signifies the present, while the view – displaying the River Thames, the Royal Festival Hall and the London Eye – grounds each image, establishing a sense of the hotel’s London presence and also symbolizing its future. So the sequence ponders the Savoy’s past and contemplates what is set to come.'

For more information or to receive a Press Release please contact alacartearts@gmail.com

Savoy | The Restoration Exhibition opens in under 7 days!

Preparation is on track; the framing will be complete this weekend, invites for the opening night have been posted. We are all very excited to start the hanging on Tuesday / Wednesday... From Thursday work from this series will be exhibiting in three locations in London! Royal Academy, 81 Leonard Street and as a finalist at the Fitzroy Place Open Air Gallery.... All at AlacARTe and Siobhan Doran Photography look forward to seeing you during the exhibition from June 14th to June 20th. For more information or if you require a Press Release, please contact alacartearts@gmail.com

Royal Academy Summer Show 2012 Vanishing Day

I had a magical start to the week at The Royal Academy Vanishing Day on Monday 28^th May for the first day of previews before the official opening of the Summer Show on June 4^th.

Savoy external lettering in Savoy grill, The Savoy, June 2009 is hanging in the Harry & Carol Djanogly Gallery which is curated this year by Peter French RA and Chris Orr RA. It was crowded with artist milling around the really beautifully curated galleries. I loved the impact of the Wohl Central Hall with its red walls ’chosen as a homage to Matisse’s Red Studio’ and the very colorful themed artwork displayed on them. It both commanded attention and acted as a place to orientate oneself when deciding on ‘where to go next’. A real feast – the Summer Exhibition opens  on June 4^th and runs until August 12^th 2012  http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/exhibitions/summer-exhibition-2012/

Royal Academy of Arts, Summer Show 2012

Savoy external lettering in Savoy grill, The Savoy, June 2009

I am honoured that  one of my photographs from The Savoy series has been chosen by the Royal Academy of Arts, for the Summer Show 2012. It is my first year to enter so a real surprise to receive notification a couple of days ago. I am looking forward to attending The Vanishing Day Service and afterwards seeing the exhibition. Exhibition opens to the public on June 4th and runs until August 12th at Piccadilly, London W1J OBD.
http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/exhibitions/summer-exhibition-2012/

Shown here, the selected photograph is one of 34 photographs from my forthcoming solo exhibition which opens on June 14th and runs until June 20th - see previous blog for further details or contact me at siobhan@siobhanoran.com

The Savoy Restoration Exhibition | June 14th - 20th 2012

siobhan@siobhandoran.com

Knoll & Missing Photography Competition Entry

From the series Missing, Point Hill, Greenwich, London

I was delighted to be short listed for this competition; by coming across the competition call, I was reminded of a project called Missing I had started in 2004. The image attached to this post is from that series.  It is a project close to my heart, as it was a turning point while studying photography, that I realized, I could and perhaps would change paths form architecture. Coming across this competition call has given me a prompt to return and complete the series... also encouraging to see commercial companies partnering with charities to both inspire and help others. 

For more information contact me at siobhan@siobhandoran.com

Savoy | The Restoration reviewed and recommended by Laura Noble from Diemar & Noble for the Spring Edition of fLIP

With hotel rooms starting from £300 and running into the thousands, for many The Savoy would be the ultimate decadent experience. With a history as rich as its clientele, when its doors closed for refurbishment at midday on

the 15th of December 2007, it was officially closed for the first time in its 118-year history.

But just as the proverb says, ‘As one door closes another one opens’, and open it did for photographer Siobhán Doran, whose access-all-areas gave her the unique opportunity to record the changes taking place within the aging interiors of this incredible iconic building.

Her images do not only record the transition from beginning to end of the transformation, they also seize the multiplicity of the task at hand through sensitively composed glimpses at the very bare bones of the building. The layers as they are peeled away expose the changes in time like the rings of a tree trunk. Each layer has its purpose whether it be for function or façade. Abstract alignments of brick against concrete, broken tiles and floral wallpaper become pictorial and pleasing on the eye. Each element no matter how deconstructed retains a beauty, indeed an appreciation of the past as it steps towards the glossy future of decadent delights to come.

As the book progresses and the detail transforms from structural achievement to stunning artistry, Doran continues her document in the same way. In treating each and every element of the process as such she brings The Savoy

to life and more importantly her photographs also. This is a fascinating book from every angle and I urge you to discover it for yourself.

The book is a Clothbound hardback, 
178 pages, 290mm x 290mm
, 110 colour plates
 ISBN: 978-1-907893-14-8




It can be purchased gift wrapped and signed at The Savoy http://www.shopatthesavoy.com/the-savoy-collection/gifts/restoration-book.html 

alternatively, an unsigned copy is available at http://www.dewilewispublishing.com/GENERAL/NEW&RECENT.html