Salford …. the pastoral collection

Now, Andy Robertson spends most of his time photographing the urban side of Greater Manchester, but in a trip around Greengate last week he wandered out seeking those pastoral scenes of Salford and by extension bits of that other place.

And so here is one of those almost rural views by the river, which for many will be a rejoinder to those who see only tall buildings, and relics of our industrial past.

But Andy can’t resist that other side of Salford, although to be fair most of his second picture is of that other place where they do things differently.

Well, I say that but the last 20 or so years have seen an identical burst of redevelopment across the twin cities.

And some will despair of the rise and rise of tall apartment blocks and shiny new office towers.

All of which is to be a bit unhistorical, given that the buildings that are disappearing are themselves a creation of an older burst of development which saw warehouses, factories, and rows of terraced build replace what had once been elegant 18th century properties, and quaint half timbered structures dating from the time of the old Queen Elizabeth.

And so as much as the modern high-rise apartments blur the boundary between Salford and Manchester, a mid-19th century observer might have said much the same.

Leaving me just to retreat behind the sofa, and wait for Eric of Eccles and Greta of Geengate to call down the heavens on me.

Well we shall see.

Location; Salford

Pictures; from the Pastoral Collection, courtesy of Andy Robertson, 2021