Archive for the ‘L’art est dans la rue / That’s street art, baby!’ Category
Post-it for the week-end (Oct 10-11)
Get your umbrellas out this week-end to go and see…
- The new street art by Mutate Britain near Portobello Rd
- Discover the favourites for the Turner prize @ the Tate (including Roger Hiorns who likes to see life in blue)
- Shop fort art @ the Somerset House craft fair…
- take the kids to Saddlers’ Wells family week-end – an excellent dance show with workshops where 5+ can experiment with dance and shapes… There’s even one for toddlers!
- Dream of exotic India with the Maharaja exhibition @ the V&A..
- Rethink your house with the eco home exhibition at the Geffrye Museum…
- Be very brave and try a nudist flashmob on a London rooftop…
- Or simply, join me in my winter blues fight. I’m having an oriental afternoon tea @ Yauatcha – how could I resist grean tea and coconut scones?
V for Victory, W for Women
Walking through London, you’ll meet countless monuments dedicated to WWI/II, to the soldier’s courage, bravery, strength. They’re sometimes impressive, others dark, proud, full of hope. But always, praise is on those whom left for the real fight.
On Whitehall, this amazing bronze sculpture by John Mills is less known and what a shame! Rounder shapes, a little shyer but so vibrant with peacefulness and determination… It was dedicated in 2005 to the 7 millions women who fought, in their own way, during WWII. Husbands were in the army, of course, and they rolled their sleeves taking over as much as they could: they volunteered for military service, drove ambulances, buses, traijns, helped to build planes and ships, made munitions, dug coal… The title uses the same font as the ration books at the time.
I love, in this work of art, the movement in the uniforms, the very strong presence of this feminine force, ready to jump back into action any time…
Intrigued? Rush to the Imperial War Museum close to Waterloo (ironically, previously and asylum) – I have always been fascinated by the collection of WWII slogans such as Dig for Victory, the wonderful unity of the British nation. You’ll also learn how children were massiveley evacuated from the capital to the countryside during the Blitz, with only a suitcase and a label with their name around their neck…
Alternatively, try this book: Can any mother help me? A group of women, feeling isolated, corresponded and created a magazine. Each would write an article on any subject would add it to the pile and send it to the next person on the list. Each reader would leave annotations. This covers WWII - an extraordinay insight on how they coped, welcomed evacuees, their political views, their regions at the time, how they struggled to keep their family together. All true – no fiction at all!
There’s more than lions @ Trafalgar square
Following my mini-jungle theme @ Trafalgar Square… get closer to the South Africa House…
…and discover lions, antilopes, giraffes…
… even a winged gazelle at the corner.
Very little history on this building, built in 1930 where an hotel used to be. it has always sheltered the South Africa Consulate . No mystery surrounds it, no crunchy story but it juste makes me feel like jumping on a boat and sail towards more exotic countries…!
Trafalgar Square
London WC2N 5DP
Metro/tube: Charing Cross
Clash on Wardour St
Strolling through London, I always enjoy going through Chinatow. Being French, I just adore food. I go for steamed buns filled with sweet meat, mochis – deserts with a heart of red bean paste – or just admire the Asian biscuits packagings, funny and colourful. I never fail to bring soe exotic mikados back.
In Wardour St, a street I have taken hundreds of times,this building catches my eye:
Sarah Bernardt? A whigmaker, French? The building once belonged to Willy Clarkson, a famous theatre whigmaker in his time. Not suprising that Sarah Barnardt laid the first stone of his house.
These days, the glamour is lost, remains… a Chinese restaurant, Wong Kei. My collegues smile; this is the most famous place in alla Chinatown! Ah? The food must be superb? No, no. The decoration, then? Neither. It all comes down to the service, so arrogant and insulting it became a joke and people came to experience it for a real laugh. Customers are taken all over the building to find a table, then ordered to wait in the stairs, forgotten there. It’s amost theatre like, the waiters sighing and swearing, intimidating. The food was allright and cheap which seems to have made it a hit. Unfortunately, I learn, these days the staff is way too polite…
41-43 Wardour St
London, W1D 6PY
Post-it note for the week-end (Sept 26-27)
My notebook is full. So much going on, where to start this week-end?
- Feeling like breaking the routine? Funny knittin? Hoola-hooping? Try the alternative village fete on Southbank!Free!
- Rush and see the extraordinary/shocking Anish Kapoor @ the Royal Academy of Art (£1 reduction here)
- Travel through the Mexican civilisation with the Moctezuma exhibition @ the British Museum
- Pause @ the latest pop-up cafe, Central Perk, a copy of the one in Friends? Free!
- Love design? Redecorate and lighten your bank account with Tent @ the Truman Brewery
- Try the Wonderland exhibition, inspired by classical fairy tales @ the V&A childhood Museum with my daughter? Free!
- Celebrate Eid, the end of Ramadan @ Trafalgar square. Music, poetry, wonderful food, persian art exhibition… Free!
And on Sunday…
- Don’t miss the Pearlies parade @ the Coastermonger’s harvest festival! Marching band, colours, even donkeys… (be there at 13.00) Free!
- Aller feter le 10eme anniversaire de Regent St, ferme a la circulation pour l’occasion. Musique! Venez danser dans la rue!Gratuit!
Discover different kinds of apples @ Fenton House for their apple day (11.00-16.30). Wokshops for kids, demonstration, apple delicacies, mmmmh…. £2.50/adult, free for children
- Have a musical time with the Peace concert @ Trafalgar Square. Free!
- Feeling peckish? Try the Brick Lane Curry festival…
Have a closer look @ The Grand building
Remember this mini-jungle?
Walking past, I decided to have another look.
A few details:
God wears a tie…
Eve does not see…
…that Adam is having quite a hard time…
The balcony follows the same ecological theme – on each side, plants cover the forest with smoke – the irony of words!
The artist also sculpted 27 faces on the facade, inspired by family and friends. I like their parody style, the extravagant hairstyle, the sidelooks… less refined that the “real” ones, I admit, but much fun to point at when guiding visiting friends around!
Find a mini-jungle near Trafalgar Square
A surprising sculpture at the corner of Northumberland Avenue and Trafalgar Square: 70 endangered species decorate the Grand Building.
Amazing, they really look as if they are stepping out of this wall.
I love to stop there with my daughter. We play “I spy…”, caress a stone squirrel… Look up: Adam and Eve are right above the arch. A little higher, God, looking very perplex. A very modern version, his wristwatch has stopped at the 11th hour (remember Leonardo Di Caprio and his ecological documentary – the 11th hour is almost the point of no-return).
The artist, Barry Baldwin, has a wonderful expression for this ecological issue: he does not speak of heartache but of art-ache…
Grand Building
Trafalgar Square
London, WC2N 5EJ
www.baldwinsculptor.com
Post-it note for the week-end (Sept 12-13)
This week-end, I’m planning to spend every minute enjoying the Thames festival. So much to do and it’s all free!
Follow me…
First, wander through the European village (Saturday and Sunday Noon-22.00). Stalls, choirs… So much folklore to discover!
Let breakdancers steal your breath away at the Barclay Freerun Zone (Saturday and Sunday Noon-21.30)
Enjoy Southwark bridge and its special party. You can churn butter, learn how to do mayonnaise, listen to stories and music, see a 6 metres monster be built out of cake (which will be sliced for children at 17.00), have a glass of wine… (Saturday Noon-22.00)
Clap at the fantastic collection of boats strolling along the Thames: yachts, pleasure boats… (Saturday 13.30-15.30)
Marvel at street artists: silk flags, glistening fish and yurts also are part of the fun (Saturday and Sunday Noon-19.00)
Maybe a little jazz, a few dance steps, DJs…? (Saturday and Sunday Noon-21.30)
Not to be missed: the fire garden in front of the Tate… (Saturday and Sunday Noon-22.00)
Surely it’s time for the night carnival - 2000 dancers, musicians, illuminated costumes, lanterns…. (Sunday 19.15-21.30)
And for a perfect finale… Fireworks, Sunday at 21.45! How could it get more magical?
Post-it for the week-end (Sept 05-06)
I’m escaping to Paris for a few days… Your turn to test and tell me of your adventures!
Gourmet? Food lover? Rush to the Specialty Fine Food Fair on Sunday to test the trendiest novelties! A whole part is dedicated to… chocolate…
Alternatively, why not stop @ the Slow food market on South Bank? Always great for a picnic close to the Thames. I always found some great grilled food there. I also tried some nettle lemonade annd saffron chocolate. Full of surprises! More importantly, Petra from the choc star van will be there. Now that’s yummy news…
You have kids? Stay on Southbank for the Pestival – a festival on insects all week-end. Promises to be fab - installations, experiences, workshops…
Think of your karma, do something good and stop @ Selfridge’s to look at the WWF exhibition… Free!
Also… 150 arts exhibitions in a massive art trail!
Not to be missed, the Deloitte Ignite festival @ the Royal Opera House on both Saturday and Sunday: listen to an opera written by Twitters.. Learn to dance the pogo…Admire dancers by torchlight surrounded by mirrors… Magical and free!
What else? The great river race! Saturday @ 11.00.The best view should be from Tower Bridge. Free! Ham House (Richmond) then proposes celebrations, food and music.
A last one - Trafalgar Square welcomes the Liberty Festival (favouring equalities of opportunities): dance, music, street art, kids workshops… Have a look at the programme. Free!
Invade Lazarides with Space Invaders
Second exhibition of the artist @ Lazaride’s. Great teamwork!
SI had already evolved in 2005 from his more simple mosaics to what he called cleverly Rubikcubism – in other words, the rubikcube as the new pixel. The new works presented here are excellent of course and wink at iconic 8oies album covers: David Bowie, the Cure, Michael Jackson…
Always nice to see up close how the rubikcubes build into an artwork!
Or feel so tiny!
You’ll also come accross some QR codes – cryptic drawings, very much used in Japan, rarely in Europe. You’ll need a mobile phone with camera and link to the web to decipher them (use the 2D sense app for your iphone): suprise message!
So what’s new? We’re getting further away from the usual SI logo (also available here as a giant version) for pixelled objects like this paint pot, this megaphone. very Marios Bros first generation!
Note to parents: yes, do bring your kids! On a Friday evening, I was alone in the gallery with my 3 year old. She loved the colours, drew a crowd of cubes afterwards and danced happily between the giant rubikcubes…
Pssst: you can also go street-hunting (again). The giant versions are using bathroom tiles and won’t be easy to miss!
Pssst (2): do go to the second Lazaride address, a few streets away. Head straight for the lower floor to see short videos of the artist…
[flv:videos/2009/08/space.flv 600 450]
Low fidelity by Space Invader
Lazaride
11 Rathbone Place
London W1T 1HR
Until September 17, 2009
Tube: Tottenham
