Clay Lane Furnaces, South Bank, Middlesbrough 1981

This photograph, captured by Graham Smith, presents the Clay Lane Furnaces against the South Bank sky in Middlesbrough. In the gloom of this industrial landscape, the furnaces loom like colossal, ancient gods overseeing a modern-day forge. These furnaces remind me of the forges of Hephaestus, the Greek god of the smiths, where metal was worked with fire and hammer. This imagery carries a potent psychological weight, tapping into our collective memory of industry and labor. The industrial revolution's symbols—the belching smokestacks and stark, functional architecture—are recast here in steel. Consider the visual echo of these furnaces in other contexts: the fiery pits of hell in medieval art or the alchemical furnaces, symbols of transformation. Smith's photograph captures not just a place but an emotional landscape, reflecting the intense, often turbulent relationship between man and machine, the grit and grandeur of the industrial age. A symbol in constant evolution, forging our world and shaping our collective consciousness.