The first few days in London were spent mainly in the city walking around and visiting a number of different sites, including a few museums and galleries.
But before galleries, there needs to be coffee. I did the thing and ventured to Prufrock Coffee. It was so good I took mum there later in the week.
While it was early the street was packed with food stands setting up for the day.
Tate Modern
My first gallery was the Tate Modern. More disused power stations should be converted into art galleries. I had a ticket to see Capturing the Moment, an exhibition that looked at the relationship between photography and painting.
The first artwork in the exhibition is A sudden gust of wind (after Hokusai) by Jeff Wall.
A huge photograph presented as a transparency on a lightbox. It was the size of a bedroom wall. Before I managed to find the tiny plaque I thought it was from a Japanese artist. The image reminded me of canal in Japan. Jeff is from Canada, but reading the details on the piece it was inspired by a Hokusai artwork, Yejiri Station. I didn’t recognise it as a Hokusai at all, but I still felt kind of cuffed for thinking there was a link to Japan, even if it was for entirely the wrong reasons. Jeff Wall spent 5 months on the single piece of artwork. I enjoyed the whole exhibition.
The exhibition ended near a cafe with some magnificent views across the river. It took me at least 3 goes to open the door to the balcony – the door just wouldn’t open, but there were people outside, so it must open.
Spent another couple of hours walking through different exhibits at the gallery. Some notable ones included Guerrilla Girls, and pieces by Roy Lichtenstein as part of Media Networks – Beyond Pop. There was also Babel which was great.
The National Gallery, London
Next stop, on the same day, was the National Gallery. I didn’t have anything specific to see at this one.
I am always, always impressed enamoured with the colours in old paintings. Sure, there are a lot of browns (which can be a lovely colour) or dark greens, or tinted yellow varnish, but then where on earth did those yellows and purples come from?
There are some mistaken ideas that young people often take frivolous photos of their food, or frivolous photos of themselves. The mistake is thinking that this is something new. People have been capturing images of still life for centuries, and will continue to do so. People used to use photo booths to take photos of themselves or of them with a partner on a night out. Painters have been painting portraits of themselves or been commissioned to paint portraits of others for centuries. None of this is new. The mediums have change, they are more accessible. But the desire to capture moments of “mundane” to share and remember never has.
Keep taking photos of your lunch.
Fun fact – there is a similar wall at The National Gallery of Australia, in Canberra. Also a piece by Bridget Riley.
The National Portrait Gallery
Just around the back of the National Gallery is the National Portrait Gallery.
I managed to find the statue of Sir Tim Berners-Lee by Sean Henry. Last time I saw him he was visiting the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra.
The Courtauld Gallery
On an entirely different day mum and I visited The Courtauld Gallery. There were a number small exhibitions on across a number of floors. It is much smaller than The National Gallery, but really very enjoyable. I think the size made it feel more focused, even though there was a very diverse range of art.
It always makes me think of the Doctor Who episode when they visit Vincent. That was some of the best Doctor Who, best television, and just so moving 😭
Again, where do the colours come from? The photo almost doesn’t do it justice, it really does pop when you see it in person. This isn’t over exaggerated.