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Andy

@therealandyharris

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Mudlark. Collector of Thames found maritime artefacts.

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In June 1978, I spent a blissful week on a barge, traversing the leafy canals of the river Lea. On a cool damp morning of the 19th, I was eager to jump to shore, get into town and pick up a book I’d been itching to get my hands on, release day! The book was titled Genesis, The Evolution Of A Rock Band, by the Author Armando Gallo. Since 1973, I’ve absolutely loved the band Genesis. Unlike today, where info is at our fingertips, back then were the glorious days of Melody Maker, Sounds & NME! These rags were the bibles for music fanatics. We’d learn about our favourite bands, fill in voting polls & scrapbooked cuttings. I tucked my new book under my arm and raced back to the boat. For the rest of that week I was a bit antisocial I remember, because I read that book from front to back, back to front, several times over, only stopping for food and the odd lock duty! At the end of that week, I knew more about Genesis than I’d ever gleaned from the music weekly’s and it was Armando who was instrumental in giving Genesis’ fans this rare insight into their music and personal life. That book primed me for an event that took place at the end of that week…Genesis at Knebworth, 24th June 1978. For 15yo me, this was the event of a lifetime! 46 years later and we are in a very different world. It is (almost) possible to contact anyone we want. I’d been in touch with Armando for a while on Instagram, we’d exchanged a few DM’s over the months. In 2022, just before his return to LA after time spent with Peter Gabriel & publishers in the UK, I reached out to Armando and the possibility of picking up a book of his directly from him. We FaceTimed and from that call, he invited me over to his sisters house in Ealing. Armando is one of those larger than life characters. His greeting was warm and inviting, just as it was from his sister too. It’s the Italian way! That late hot May afternoon, we spent 3 hrs and more chatting about the past, areas of our similar paths (as music photographers) and future projects (Gabriel fans, you’re in for a treat!!). From myself and the army of Genesis fans out there. Happy Birthday Armando. 80 years young today! Thank you. With love ❤️ #genesis by @therealandyharris

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3 years ago

Real foreshore finds ❤️ #mudlark #mudlarking #foreshore #friends on the #shoreline by @therealandyharris

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3 years ago

A wonderful day digging with Andy @therealandyharris and Ali @actuali.art and Scott @greybeardboy

The layer gave birth to a porcelain bisque doll and I “popped” it out with my digging stick literally 😂
Emerald green bottles, oxidized amber glass bottles, a clay bubble pipe, yellow glass and clay marbles, and many clear “ sick “ bottles for Ali ✨

#bottledigginguk #antiquebottles #antiquedolls #dumpdigging #goodfriends by @therealandyharris

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6 months ago

Gracious to a fault but strong and principled to the core. You have held steady your course, never faltered. Your kindness & love burns brighter than any sun. We could not ask for more because you have always been there.
Happy 98th Birthday Mum. I love you more Xx by @therealandyharris

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10 months ago

Along the banks of the Tyne, my father used to take me to the docks when I was a child. This was before the machines of the then thriving shipbuilding industry had gone and gentrification rapidly shaped Newcastle’s riverfront to what it is today. I remember standing next to the massive crane bogies that stood taller than me, their heavy iron wheels firmly planted on tracks, set into the dockside. Scores of monstrously impressive cranes towered above. On occasion, we were lucky enough to witness one of these great behemoths rumbling along the dock. From wooden blocks, to Lego, then Meccano and Mamod steam engines at home, Newcastle’s dockside was the icing on the cake. Industrial at its best. Some 55 yrs on and including a move south, it’s the river Thames that has given me my industrial kick. This is where I’ve found the heavy things I love. On a very low tide, not far from London Docklands there is a patch of shore that’s strewn with broken cast iron carnage, riveted deformed steel, rusty cable and crane parts. I can only imagine that it’s a spill after a direct hit during the Blitz in WWll. On a much lower tide than usual at this spot, I found a fantastic pulley block covered in concretion. It didn’t take me more than a second for the ‘you’re coming home with me’ moment to kick in. It was a bit of a heave to haul off the shore and even a trip to the hospital for four stitches during the cleanup process didn’t deter. Made in Chattanooga (USA), this pulley block somehow ended up on the Thames foreshore. How though? That’s a story for next time….. by @therealandyharris

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2 years ago

Positivity/ pɒzəˈtɪvəti. Sometimes, our baskets can’t always be full (are they ever?) but it’s important to hold onto even the tiniest glimmer, that spark of an idea which propels us forward. We always use the new year as a starting point, thinking that whatever we’re striving for will happen that year. Actually, what you’d like to happen can be started at ANY time of year. I headed up to the river this morning, reluctantly. Not because I’d been partying in the new year. On the contrary, it was the quietest nye I think I’ve ever had! In fact, when I rolled into my local train station late last night after visiting mum for the day, I was the only one who got off the train! Anyway after leaving the house this morning and realising the weather wasn’t as uninviting as I’d first thought and after a jolly buffeting from heavy winds en route, I arrived to a completely empty foreshore, except for one other sole Mudlark. We exchanged our goodwills and thereafter, larked our separate ways. The strong winds were dragging the tide out much lower than expected. Not only that, the shore was completely mud free. I found good things, the kind of heavy things I like. I trudged aimlessly up and down the shore with not a care in the world, plucking ‘treasure’ as I went. After my lark on the south shore, I headed through the Blackwell Tunnel to the north shore to collect a large timber that I’d spotted. It had been beached some two months before at the top of a slipway and I’d pulled it to one side so the tide couldn’t snatch it back. I even found a tenner in the leaves that the tide and wind had pushed up the same slipway. Today just happened to be New Year’s Day and I decided to fill it with something I enjoy doing but it could’ve been any other day really. So, go and fill your basket (your wellbeing) doing the things you love and if the start date is today then that’s fantastic, you’re on the first rung of the ladder and that’s a great start. If you’re unable to do the things today that you’d like to, that day will come. It’s not a race, there is no pressure. A day can still be enjoyed, even a little. Just be kind to yourself. Wishing you and all a very Happy New Year Xx by @therealandyharris

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2 years ago

A planned detour through London to pick up my daughter allowed us a brief moment on the foreshore. Other than the quiet hum of the city and Christmas Day gatherings on The Mayflower terrace which overlooks the river, all was quiet. The afternoon light was sepia monotone, low clouds obscured the tops of buildings and the tide between its ebb and flow state was a millpond. It was beautiful. I did bag some finds but had I not, simply being on the shore would’ve been suffice. It’s a good fix. Wishing you and your families well. Merry Christmas Xx by @therealandyharris

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2 years ago

Mum casually added yet another orbit around the sun today to a long and beautifully fulfilled life. Kind, gentle and still humorously spirited with never a bad word to say. She’s one of a kind. The immense love for you cannot be conveyed into words. Happy 97th Mum 🥂🥰 by @therealandyharris

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2 years ago

#neverforget by @therealandyharris

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2 years ago

Aurora borealis. South east. UK. 10.10.24 by @therealandyharris

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2 years ago

This weekend, The Museum of London plays host to some 30 mudlarks who are displaying their amazing Thames found artefacts at Docklands, London. This is a hands on experience so a great learning opportunity for kids (and adults!) to be able to hold some of the treasures mudlarked from the Thames foreshore. Doors open at 10am over the two days. See you there!!
Thank you @katesumnall @jasonmudlark @mudika.thames @oldfatherthames for organising this amazing event & opportunity to display our finds. Poster artwork by @charlie.collects. by @therealandyharris

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2 years ago

What goes on on the foreshore, stays on the foreshore. Right? Image @actuali.art by @therealandyharris

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