Portals to Oxford

Blackfriars

2011-03-11T23:13:00.001Z

Not as grand as many of the colleges in Oxford Blackfriars Priory is a community of more than twenty Dominican friars living a common life of prayer, study, and preaching in the centre of Oxford. They are members of the Order of Preachers with a history stretching back nearly 800 years. The friars are known as 'Dominicans' after their founder, St Dominic. In the Middle Ages were known as 'Black Friars' after their black cappa or cloak which they wear over their white habits.Close-up of the statue of 'Our Lady above the entrance' . S'funny that I always thought the 'Our Lady' statues had much more religious connotation in the names such as Our Lady of the Devine Spirit, something like that, Our Lady over the door seem so – well so not the 'Mother of the Son of God', but what do I know, me a fully paid up card carrying heathen!

RUSKIN COLLEGE

2010-09-19T00:12:00.001+01:00

An unimposing entrance graces RUSKIN COLLEGE but the boss above the door is good. This is where I will be doing my degree starting this year. Wish me luck.

WORCESTER COLLEGE

2010-09-16T20:08:00.001+01:00

This is the front entrance to WORCESTER COLLEGE

Through the portal is the quad.

In the process of being cut.

Experimental Psychology

2010-02-22T09:22:00.001Z

This is the front door to the Experimental Psychology Department. It must be the most uninspiring portal in Oxford. The whole building is an architectural eyesore. Who ever got paid for this abomination must have been a master of flim flam.

Sandwich shop

2010-02-07T18:45:00.001Z

This alley beside a sandwich shop leads to the courtyard below, Whilst not a seat of learning I think many a learned seat may have sat here and a great many things learned.

LINACRE COLLEGE

2010-01-05T19:02:00.006Z

Not named after that well known footballer and pundit Gary. Founded in 1962, the College named after Thomas Linacre (c.1460-1524) who was a distinguished humanist, medical scientist and classicist whose accomplishments established him as one of the great scholars of his time.

Linacre College stands at the end of South Parks Road as the first, or is it the last building on St Cross Road as you travel along from Parks Road. A ‘red brick’ (modern) college. Such colleges were often maligned by the intelligencia of the University of Oxford.

This portal is very much in a ‘ministry’ style. It reminds me of Station headquarters often seen on military bases.

"Linacre is a graduate College of the University of Oxford - wholly interdisciplinary and international in its student body, academically rigorous and environmentally aware in its ethos, and a genuine community of intellectual and social equals. . . . . . ", Paul Slack, Principle.

This college is good at big words.

Still at Rhodes

2009-12-29T09:47:00.001Z

This door, to the right of the main portico, while allowing entrance to the building is merely for those that stay only short periods, minutes in fact. Tradesmen's entrance.

This sign obviously not original or they would have got it on straight. Not sure about the placement of the apostrophes.

Rhodes House

2009-12-21T19:40:00.001Z

The forward facade of Rhodes House, complete with diners. These eight columns support the the top structure which which seemingly only supports the flag pole. What you can’t see here is the dome behind the balustrade.

Above the door this superb carving.

This is the back gate to Rhodes House. There is a virtual tour to see the whole of the grounds here

No 1 South Parks Road

2009-12-19T17:41:00.001Z

This is The Department of Statistics front entrance.

Behind this door all manner of number crunching goes on.

Its a shame that the symmetry of the windows wasn’t thought about in the designing

SKY PORTAL

2009-12-19T00:24:00.000Z

My first 'portal' is a very modern one. This man has the sky portal over Oxford. From his lofty perch he has a view of hundreds of years of Oxford history, he can see all the spires beneath which all the portals sit

Why doors and Portals

2009-12-18T23:12:00.002Z

I have long been fascinated by doors and what lies beyond them. There is a history of doors and portals in Arabic art. Since coming to Oxford it has not escaped my notice that the great colleges and halls have some fantastic doors arches and entrances through which the great and mighty would have embarked on careers that changed the world. The perimeter walls are also dotted with smaller doors through which one can imagine the not so great and mighty sloping of to the local taverns instead of getting down to their studies or smuggling a young lady up to their rooms in the dead of night.

Doors most often close the spaces behind from our view, hiding secrets that those inside would rather not broadcast to the general public. Should I discover any secrets I will write about them here but that is not the purpose of this blog.

Also seen round the town are various alleyways and cul-de-sacs that lead to some amazing places.

This then is my photographic collection of the doors and portals of Oxford.