they used my photo
I don’t really mind since it appears on the website of the Comisión de Museos y Monumentos y Lugares Históricos. It’s not even that good of a pic. But a little credit would be nice.
Researching what’s officially listed in Buenos Aires as a Historical Monument, this page classifies certain stations of the A, C, D & E Lines as national heritage. Oddly enough, the B Line is completely absent from the list… perhaps because tilework panels don’t date from the 1930s? Anyway, the representative photo is the following:
At the third photo, I stopped. That looks familiar. Sure, it’s possible that someone took a similar photo but not with the exact same top & bottom margins. It’s been cropped a bit on the sides, but without doubt they used my photo:
I wonder how many other people out there are using my pics without my knowledge or consent. I only know of one guy who massively posted my photos on his site. After much bitching & complaining, he doesn’t “have the time” to delete the pics. Please. At least he doesn’t get much traffic.
Speaking of photos, thanks to everyone who’s been logging into my Flickr account… currently 61 pix & growing. There are many more photos I want to upload, but the free accounts are limited to only 3 sets. So I can’t categorize pics beyond those 3 sets. Are any of my readers willing to donate some cash so I can upgrade to a pro account? One year = U$S 25. Poco.
If anyone feels inclined to contribute, it’s easy. Go to PayPal & send whatever amount to robert@recoletacemetery.com … simple. Thanks & I’ll keep a running total here to keep everyone informed.
Current total = U$S 25
Update: Goal reached! Thanks, Daniel! I truly appreciate it. I’ll be spending even more time on Flickr now :)
housing for the masses 22
The 1930s weren’t good for housing projects in Buenos Aires. No doubt due to worldwide recession, workers had neither the government nor private organizations to look after them. Remember Barrio Rawson was finished in 1934 & the Casa Colectiva América in 1937… only two projects since 1928 is hardly a good track record or very helpful to those in need. By 1939, the program got back on track & two projects were completed.
Casa Colectiva Patricios, 1939 • Parque Patricios
(24 de Noviembre & Rondeau)
Built on a lot behind the first Casa Colectiva, the lot space was probably purchased by the government in 1919 for later expansion but sat vacant for several decades. That seems to be the only explanation for the 20 year gap between adjacent projects. The CNCB built 77 units in a unique E-shape. Unfortunately I don’t know who the architect was, but it’s an interesting combo of the modernity that Estanislao Pirovano brought to the Casa América (elements of Racionalismo) with a touch of Bereterbide-inspired design (interior patios & a rooftop overhang).
I don’t really care for the lack of window treatment, but the design has some interesting elements. The “E” is open to the street so allows a lot of light to reach every apartment. The back wall is not flush with the Casa Colectiva Valentín Alsina so anyone walking by can see the exterior balconies. Nice:
The only main exterior façade on the street had a bit of thought put into the balcony design:
Both interior patios are gated with no public access, but the staircases are ultra-mod:
The lower corner unit had some work being done, so the workers left the windows open. I didn’t stick my camera in, but rooms were average size for BA & I didn’t see anything special with the interior design. One more project to go before I can dig into the Perón era. I hope I can find the time.
…so addictive
I could be talking about Madonna’s latest release “Hard Candy” because I don’t think I’ve listened to anything else over the past few days. It’s really that good. I thought I was Kylie-crazy with “X”, but Madonna just knocked her out of the picture. I’ve caught myself about to bust a move several times on the subway or walking down the street. I’m still shakin’ my pom pom thanks to Missy but her full album isn’t out yet.
Anyway, enough pop music references. What’s really addictive is Flickr. I’ve resisted so far, & I’m still not sure it’s the best way to share photos. But I bit the bullet, Yahoo-Microsoft jitters aside. Lots of people have asked to view my photos in larger format, & Flickr will be eventually incorporated into the BA blog. But patience is required.
Here’s the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/robert-wright/
I’m only uploading the best of the bunch… which takes time to sort out. Right now, there are only 22 pix posted. I’ll try to upload 5 new pics daily until I’m satisfied. Flickr is so addictive because you have to wade through a lot of average photos, but the good ones are really good. Plus, I can post a bunch of pics of myself. My other photoblogs will disappear over time. I think I need a secretary.
Anyone else have a Flickr account for me to check out? Let me know. I may ask someone to sponsor a Pro account for me if my upload limit is getting close.
ignore it
& it just might go away. That seems to be the Kirchners’ policy with inflation. Better than discussing numbers, compare the prices on the following take-out menus at my local pizzería. They are from 2005, 2007 & 2008, & it doesn’t take an econ degree to see how things have changed over the past few years… although I’m sure Cristina doesn’t order from Mi Matute:
Salaries don’t match this kind of price increase, but let’s ignore that for now. Cristina mentioned inflation today, but more or less hinted that it was something that came about from farmer protests last month. Before then, the media was misreporting info. Right. This comes from a government that organizes protests against national media:
New signs went up recently saying “Clarín apriete!“… that’s the verb for squeezing something tightly, like choking someone or having a death grip. The whole nasty bit against the press is coordinated by Máximo Kirchner, son of the dynamic duo. Hardly a conflict of interest there.
But the news gets better. Apparently the national debt is now higher than it was during the 2001 crisis. If that isn’t wonderful news, I don’t know what is. I also read an interesting bit about how national debt & inflation are tied together… the simple version is that public debt is indexed by a coeffecient determined by the official inflation rate. So if Cristina manipulates inflation figures, then national debt numbers are drastically different.
There’s a lot more to the situation of course, but it’s late & I’m beat. With major amounts of bonds expiring in 2009 & 2011 + Club of Paris debt due soon + false stats, the general macro situation doesn’t look promising. And given past economic problems, the show has to go on until the bitter end. Hopefully it won’t come to that this time.
