by Patricia Frischer
We completed another adventure in London.
We go about every 18 months and this is a short trip of only three weeks this
time. We were so lucky to have our exit gate next to the West End Gallery in
Terminal 2 of SD International Airport. Their focus right now is Point
of Entry.
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| Olivia Vivanco (photo) |
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| Olivia Vivanco |
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Michael Ruiz (altered photo)
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Michael Ruiz
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| Ivan Diaz Robledo (split screen video) |
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| Ivan Diaz Robledo |
We arrived
in London on March 6 after a riotous few days
drinking far too much whiskey in Scotland with old friends. So we
took a few days off to settle in to our charming rental flat in Lisson Grove
near the Church street
market.
Plympton Street is quite tiny and a bit
hidden and I could not believe the cabby even could drive down it. It is
one lane and I was surprised it was not one way as two care simple would not
fit. Some one would have to back up. There are several flats done up like
this one on the street but you would never know from the outside what is hidden
away.
This flat
was so cleverly designed to be bright and even with a smallish square footage,
it looked huge. High ceilings, and the patio seen through huge windows and the
open plan made this a light and cheerful place to live for our stay in London. It is masculine
with red brick walls and black leather, but also clear acrylic and natural woods
touches and the fresh flowers delivered by our host made it warm and gracious.
The American bright yellow fridge and red lacquered cabinet gave the flat even
more personality. There were masses of books to choose from and a starter
basket of breakfast treats.
We found
every thing we needed to hold a dinner party and to store and cook food for
ourselves. Fresh vegetables from Church
Street market and the closeness of the buses and
underground made shopping super easy. We enjoyed especially exploring the
hundreds of antique stalls open all week just a few feet from the front door.
Very close to the flat is excellent Indian
(tandori) Lahore, Chinese (dim sum) Phoenix Palace and (skate
wing and chips Sea Shell
restaurants. Ozz got outstanding reviews
but we didn’t have time to try that….maybe next time.
Our host
hired a company to manage the flat and they were responsive to our every need.
Plumbing in the UK is not
quite as reliable as that in the US and we are aware of that so the
adjustments that had to be made during our stay were handled efficiently and with
minimum intrusion.
We would
recommend this flat for anyone who wants a stay in London and wants to experience living like a
native. At less than £100 a night including cleaning and AirBNB fee, you would
never find a hotel to match this experience in London.
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| Our bed is in back of this wall. |
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| No large dinner parties from this wee kitchen but it does have all mod cons. |
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| Glad to have a big yellow USA refrigerator in the dining room. |
Let me
begin by saying that when you visit a place every 18 months, you do see
changes. The biggest one so far is that technology has grabbed hold of all
communication and transportation modes. We have been encouraged to use Uber
instead of black taxis. Our phones plot our routes by foot, bus and tubes from
destination to destination. We read
reviews online instead of in print.
So to get
out on the streets and just walk and look and listen is a nice change. It is
colder than I remember London
being, so I am wearing all of my layers. It takes twice as long to get dressed
here as at home...underpants, bra, slacks and t shirts and I am done usually.
Now I add sweater, jacket, coat, gloves, scarf and a hat!
Our first
real day out was to scope out the antique markets next to the flat and also
score some fresh food at the market. Alphies is a block that actually almost
extends over our roof with 300 stalls. We got lost in the maze of staircases
and levels. There were also about 15 shop fronts that we didn't get to yet.
A huge number specialized in 50's Italian modern and I felt like I was walking
through a Felini movie….lots of chrome and glass and cast metal. And then all
the silver you could possible want. There was a roof top cafe with great views
but too cold to eat outside. We had pear cider and a tuna filled baked
potato and a yummy orange poppy seed cake. The rest of Church street market is fresh vegetables
and fish and I got a very large box of blueberries for 2 pounds. Trying to keep
my antioxidant levels high. Mainly middle eastern shoppers but nice to have
that fresh items just around the corner every day but Sunday. Not a gourmet
market, but well priced.
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| It appears that the entire nations antic was held in these 300 stalls. Got to love that CAT! |
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| And how about this sculpture that must have been an unwanted wedding present for some poor couple. |
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| This amazingly thin gold chairs must have been used at a fashion show in the 60s when tiny models were all the rage. |
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| These two tall columns of glass were so outrageous.I could see them at the entrance to a home theater. |
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| Loved this round sectional table when the matching round chairs fit neatly under each circle. |
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| A pair of glass dogs...might have to go back for these! |
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| half a baked potato with tuna and fresh tasty stripes of carrot. |
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| Pear cider |
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| An orange poppy seed cake as good as the one I make myself. |
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| Darwin overlooking the outside roof top |
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| View on a cloudy cold day. |
Royal Academy: Painting the Modern Garden
Monet to Matisse I think the most
interesting thing about this exhibition was realizing that the garden is a relatively
new invention. When a leisure class developed gardens thrived. As cities grew, the idea of an oasis was very
alluring. Artist made their own gardens and Monet was of course, the most
inspiring of these creators. This was a chance to see the late works of Monet
when he made the leap to remove ground and sky and let the works exists as abstracts
(almost). One large water lily painting from Kansas City,
Cleveland and St. Louis were re-united in this show for the
finale triptych.
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| With the very larg Monet pictures you can stand very close and be absorbed into the paint. This was a real treat. |
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| Gustav Klmt's pryamid composition, draws you into the path of light. |
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| This charming scene with children has a perfect composition |
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| Gustave Caillebotte was a new artist for me.After I researched him, I discovered this was the only image I liked! |
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| Emile Nolde's bold compositions were a relief after all those pretty pale garden views. |
The
Age of Giorgione
upstairs at the Royal
Academy was so
interesting....all those "pretty boys" painted so long ago...and one
very phallic religious painting. Am I the only ones that sees these as sexual?
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| Anyone for a bit of rough? |
I attended
a Zocalo Public Square panel in
Encinitas before I left for this trip and it was interesting to compare and
contrast this event with one we attending in London. Encinitas was packed to the rafter
with people who really wanted to discuss the subject of the evening…was San Diego ready to be a
city of culture? The panelists were not exactly experts but they were
passionate about the arts. The venue was a little classroom at Lux Institute. There were carrot strips
in plastic cups at the reception after the panel. Darwin and I attended a Zocalo Public Square
produced Smithsonian sponsored panel
discussion at the British
Museum on the relationship of America
as a colony of Great Britain. (click to hear the discussion) Panelist Adrian Wooldridge, of The Economist,
feels that fundamentally America
remains British. But panelists Craig
Calhoun, director of the London School of Economics and Political Science;
author and former Penguin book editor Erin
Moore; and moderator Brooke Masters
of the Financial Times—all dual citizens see America with a very
distinctive path since those early British days. Panelist Loyd Grossman, a broadcaster (you may remember him as the first
presenter for Master Chef), born in America
but with the title of Commander of the Order of the British
Empire, was somewhere in the middle and kept the discussion light
and humorous. The venue was amazingly impressive but only about 1/2 full, the
panel very articulate and clever. The reception was elaborate with selection of
drinks and nibbles in lovely glass container. There were printed coasters and
ball point pens as give aways. Zocalo
started in 2003 out of LA and is an affiliate of Arizona State
University. It is a
not-for-profit Ideas Exchange that blends free live events, conferences and
humanities journalism that is syndicated to 264 media outlets worldwide. It maybe that there is never another Zocalo in
Encinitas or even San Diego, but the idea of organized public discussions not
based on an election year, it a worthwhile idea. If you want to join into more
arts events in North County San Diego, then sign
up for notices from North County Arts Network. There next meeting
will be coming up in April 2016 and the topic is arts education.
What a thrill to see
really good artists who are dear old friends showing this March in London. My two favorite
shows were:
Overland: Boyd and Evans at Flowers Gallery
Cork St – a
smashing show of photographs that perfectly capture
that perfect moment of sky and land. Boyd and Evans are dedicated
appreciators
of the American terrain and they go on safari in the southwest as often
as
possible and have documented our topography over many years. This
brilliant show focuses strongly on the sky pointing its drama to earthy
concerns.
No one that I have ever seen does this better that the duo of Boyd and
Evans.Not just absolutely stunning, phenomenally stupendously stunning.
Sporting Chance: Nancy Atakan, Sporting
Chance at Pi Gallery, Eastcastle St. This exhibition of digital
drawings also includes the original pencil work and embroidered handkerchiefs. Atakan
knows the world is full enough of the stories of raped, abused, discriminated, and
down trodden women. In this series she has concentrated on an enhanced story of
a women and her quest to bring gymnastics to Turkey. She chooses to see her
fictionalized character as a heroine who aids the county into seeing the
benefits of physical exercise. The story is told in a lovely but un-passionate
dialogue written in Atakan’s own hand.
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| Nancy Atakan |
GRAD Gallery for Russian Arts and Design:
Unexpected Eisendstein The film Battleship Potemkin is the most well
know work by Eisendstein, It is a
fierce, aggressive compelling telling of a harsh story. That is why this
exhibition of Eisendstein visit to London,
fascination with Sherlock Holmes and Nick Carter and modernist costumes designs
not only came as a surprise but showed a very human and charming side to this
very real person.
Unfortunately,
I took a bad fall on a hard pavement and the rest of my visits to art shows was
curtailed this trip. I did manage to see my friends, which was a great joy, but
I missed the following planned exhibitions.
I also
recommend a quite different choice of exhibitions visited by Doug Simay.
You can read about these now.
Abraham
Cruzvillegas at Tate Modern
Giacomo Manzu (1908- 1991) at Estorick Collection
Gino Severini (1883-1966) at Estorick
Umberto Boccioni (1882-916) at Estorick
Chantal
Joffe at Victoria Miro
Chillida
at Ordovas
Paul
Winstanley at Alan Cristea
Joan Miro
at Bernard Jacobsen + William Tillyer
Arnaldo
Pomodoro at Tornaduoni
Tom
Wesselman at David Zwirner
Yamashita
Kikuji at Sadie Coles HQ
Harmony
Korine at Gagosian Davies
Alighiero Boetti at Ben Brown
I will be back in London in 18 months and hope to be fit again long before that time.
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