Monday, April 11, 2011

Sherborne, Gloucestershire


Tin among the trees

Regular readers of this blog will have noticed that I’m a fan of corrugated iron, which I like because it can be bent to form interesting shapes and because its undulating surface looks good in the sun. I hope I’ve shown by now, in posts about corrugated iron "tin churches" and other buildings, that this is not a substance that should be consigned to the bottom of the hierarchy of building materials, and that can be at home in both farm and village, by both road and railway.

I didn’t expect, though, to find a corrugated iron building in a quiet valley in the Cotswolds, fitting in amongst the water, grass, and trees. And I have to admit that I’d been along the road that passes this small boathouse many times before I even noticed it. In a way, that’s the point. This unassuming green building is in part designed to blend into its surroundings. But its builders took the trouble to give it a curving, pagoda-style roof, so once you do notice it, there’s that extra touch to admire. As I did one evening recently, as, interrupted by only the occasional quack from the water, the sun slid silently down behind the trees.

3 comments:

Kate said...

I'm not sure if you've already visited it, but there's an impressively large tin garrison church in Deepcut, Surrey which is well worth a visit if you're ever down in this neck of the woods.

http://lightwater.wordpress.com/2009/12/18/friday-fact-no-9-st-barbaras-church/

Kate :-)

Philip Wilkinson said...

Kate: Many thanks for the link. I've not visited that church - and it is indeed an impressive one. It's on my list of places to go to now.

Peter Ashley said...

Mmm, lovely. And a very evocative description of your visit. Like you I'm also oiling my bicycle clips in order to get down to Kate's garrison church at Deepcut.