[Curatorial description - National Media Museum - December 2011]
This photograph is similar to Benington's 'Across the Housetops', also taken in 1903. It shows the smoky skyline of London, looking towards the church roof, Benington has not tried to beautify the skyline. In 1904 Benington wrote an article for 'The Amateur Photographer' entitled 'The Beauty of Ugliness'. In it he defended the use of, among other everyday objects, lamp posts and back garden fences, to 'assist in conveying an artistic or poetical idea'.
