News
Wednesday, 01 June 2011
Britain from the Air comes to Oxford Castle this summer
Oxford Castle is confirmed as the next prestigious host venue for Britain from the Air, an outdoor exhibition of more than 100 aerial photographs. From dramatic saw-toothed coastlines to the geometric symmetry of cities and industry, the street gallery includes human and natural landscapes from across the country. Ten spectacular photographs of striking locations around Oxfordshire have also been specially selected by Oxford Preservation Trust, to be unveiled as part of the exhibition when it opens to the public on Friday 24th June 2011.
The exhibition is brought to Oxford by The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) in collaboration with street gallery pioneers, Wecommunic8.
Britain from the Air made its debut in Bath in 2010 and is now setting out on a national tour of the UK with Oxford as the first location. Viewed by some four million people in Bath, this free-to-access street gallery is the perfect way to see Britain from a unique aerial perspective, combined with a large-scale, walk-on Ordnance Survey map enabling visitors to walk the length and breadth of the British Isles, finding favourite locations and discovering new ones. Britain from the Air will remain at Oxford Castle throughout the summer until 4th September.
Trevor Osborne, Chairman of the Trevor Osborne Property Group, which owns the Oxford Castle site, comments: “We are extremely proud to be chosen as the first location for this exhibition‟s
national tour. Oxford Castle is a symbol of national heritage and will be a wonderful setting for such breathtaking images of Britain.”
Debbie Dance of Oxford Preservation Trust, which has curated the Oxfordshire images and played a large part in bringing the exhibition to Oxford, adds: “Aerial photographs always give people a new perspective on a location they may have seen many times before. We have chosen a selection for Oxfordshire that combines familiar landmarks with locations many people may never have encountered. Alongside the national pictures, they will add a regional interest to what is one of the most beautiful collections of pictures of our country to be seen in one place.”
Dr Rita Gardner, Director of The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), hopes the free exhibition will encourage the enjoyment and exploration of Britain's great outdoors: "A unique value in the exhibition lies in its ability to help everyone to appreciate Britain and understand more about how natural forces and people have shaped its landscapes for millennia," she says. "As people take in this view of Britain as they've never seen it before, we hope it will inspire them to get out and about around the country and see for themselves the wonders of our islands."
Image - The White Horse at Uffington © Webb Aviation. The oldest chalkland engraving in the British Isles, the White Horse at Uffington dates from the Bronze Age and was first etched into the landscape between 1200 and 700 BC. Measuring 110 m by 38.5 m it is also the longest in the country. It was made by digging curved trenches into the chalk hillside, and then filling the trenches with white chalk rubble.
