Gothic Revival Bell Tower, Manchester — Worm's-Eye View

30 September 2019 · Manchester

Manchester's Gothic Revival stonework rarely looks more imposing than from directly below. Shot at a steep upward angle, the tower's receding faces compress into a graphic wedge of dressed stone and lancet windows, the rose window sitting dark against an overcast sky that acts as nothing more than a neutral field for the masonry to occupy. The detail is dense — pinnacles, carved reliefs, pointed arches stacked floor on floor — yet the composition holds it together by giving the sky the space to let the tower breathe.