The Ruins of Bannerman's Island

Quite how unlucky can one building be? Abandoned, neglected and decaying, at first sight you may think that Bannerman’s Castle is located in Europe, perhaps a Scottish remnant from the days of the lairds or a site in Ireland forsaken by retreating British aristocrats. Yet the Castle, sitting blithely upon Pollepel Island is only 50 miles north of New York City, on the Hudson River. Its history is a long and strange catalogue of disaster. Image Credit Flickr User gsz

Image Credit Flickr User kilgub

Image Credit Flickr User dbfoto

Bizarrely, it isn’t even a castle. What you can see here are the remains of an abandoned military surplus warehouse.

The fact that it was built in the style of a castle says much for the eccentricities, not to mention wealth, of its builder, Francis Bannerman VI (seen left).

Yet from the moment it was built the castle was, so many maintained, doomed.

What was designed to be a testament to and record of the wealth and power of a single interview was to befall no less than four disasters. In little more than a century it would fall in to complete ruin.

Against the Grain

I had to share this with you for three reasons. First it’s wonderful and secondly it is evocative of all those sets of colored pencils I demolished when I was a child. Finally, it made me wonder whether, even if I had the technical knowhow, if I would have the patience and tenacity to sit down and create something as painstaking as this. The answer to that question was a resounding no!

This is the video to accompany Against the Grain, the new track by emerging indie-folk artist Hudson. It really is a catchy song and it can only be hoped that this animation helps it to become the hit it really should be. Heads up to both Hudson and animator Dropbear (aka Jonathan Chong).