Modern Couples at the Barbican

Auguste Rodin was in a relationship with Camille Claudel from 1882 to 1892 while this work was being created. Jane Alison curator writes, "While their professional and intimate relationship fuelled their inspiration for a decade, Claudel ultimately sought her creative independence from Rodin. She continued to pursue a new direction in her own work until 1905, but their final break up and her precarious financial situation aggravated her mental health. At her family’s request, she was incarcerated in 1913 and passed away in 1943 after 30 years of solitary exile." 

At the Barbican Art Center we met our artist friends Boyd and Evans to see  Modern Couples: Art, Intimacy and the Avant-garde. But what we really ended up doing was reading about the couples included in this show as there was very little visual stimulus.   The curator of this show Jane Alison  somehow managed to take artist couples who were undoubtedly full of exotic erotic sexual deeds and extracted the driest possible images of their lives together. There is a famous movie from the 70's called No Sex Please, We're British and it appears that sex is often the subject of the show but seems to also be absent from the exhibition. Over 50 couples are explored in so many rooms that we all had crossed eyes and visual indigestion. 

But when I was studying art history, I was taught little about the lives of the artists. This gathering of data made me concentrate on the relationships that existed while works of art were being created.  The text is very educational but reading it in the comfort of your own home is a much improved way of getting this information. You can have practically the same experience I did just Download the Large Print Exhibition Guide. 

There are a few exceptions. Tamara de Lempicka as part of the lesbian  group encouraged by  Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own is represented by the image below. Although we see the works of Frida Kohla, Barbara Hepworth and Georgia O'Keefe, most of the women in this display were less well known that their male counterpoints. So it was good to see them take equal stage space at the Barbican.

Tamara de Lempicka

Federico García Lorca and Salvador Dalí are described thus, "The extent of their sexual relationship is unclear." But letters to Lorca from Dali include, "You are a Christian storm and you are in need of some of my paganism [...] I will go get you and give you some seaside medicine. It will be winter and we will light a fire. The poor beasts will be trembling with the cold. You will recall that you are an inventor of marvelous things and we will live together with a portrait machine..." 

I enjoyed reading about Emilie Flöge and Gustav Klimt who had a relationship between 1892–1918.  Flöge was a fashion designer in Vienna and " for a short time at least they were also romantically involved."  It was easy to imagine the dresses she designed on his models. "They were also fervent advocators of the Secession’s promotion of the Gesamtkunstwerk or ‘total work of art’ that championed an integration of art and design in every aspect of life."  We saw many artist teams, which were activist. 

Images in this blog are not always the images in the show since no photography was allowed. I have used illustrations available online 

The Cotwolds: Purton and Cirencester

We really enjoyed the New Brewery Arts Gallery in Cirencester (pronounced like Siren Cester) where there was a lovely exhibition of hand painted signs Sign UP...evidently there are still 300 sign painters still working in the UK and the art is being revived. The team of Colin and Louise Hawkins were also on site at this craft center, blowing and etching glass. 

This is lettered on a skateboard!

I could not resist posting what looks like a rubbing...I am a sucker for all things Darwin.

See the detail below as this is back painted and embellished on glass.. You would swear it was raised letters, but it is completely flat. So glad someone is still doing this technique. 

Gallery View

Colin and Louise Hawkins

Lunch at Made by Bob also in Cirencester was chic and trendy.  Bob Parkinson is a former head chef at Bibendum one of our favorite restaurants in London. Located in the newly refurbished Corn Hall, we especially like the fish soup. Corn Hall also host the Friday antique fair and I bought some useful used leather gloves lined in fur which later fell apart! But I replaced them with good warm gloves that can be worn while using a cell phone. When the weather is cold, this is very useful indeed. I know, not much use in southern CA but I am not done traveling yet.  

Fish soup with garlic sauce and Parmesan topped crouton.

Beet salad with creamy goat cheese was a little funky.

Darwin at this time was still waiting for his fish and chips but eventually had haddock and chips twice and with a full English breakfast once to complete his must have food in the UK. 

We went to The Organics Farm Shop recommended by my friend Peter Logan. His instructions were perfect, including the cones warning of the bump which we navigated smoothly! We bought some lovely things including an England Walnut Tart which we are planning to share on Monday with friends from Scotland coming to stay overnight. I was tempted by the textiles but having just come from India decided to give it a miss.. Much colder today so glad to be back home in Purton with a cup of ginger tea.

We had a wonderful Indian meal at the local last night The Maharajah...very mild but wonderful flavor...a mussala chicken and kurma lamb.   I have seen these spelled all sorts of ways like massala and korma, I think, but of course every restaurant has its own recipes. These were an intense red for the chicken and yellow ochre color for the lamb and just delicious. We had okra and naan bread with it and we have leftovers as well. I know we are pathetic, but we really enjoyed this version and the chance to eat Indian-type food that we were unable to eat in India.

I know I should be showing photos to you of the roaring fire and the cozy bar at  The Wild Duck Inn, part of the Lucky Onion group, and the abundant plates of food. This includes Cornish mussels in a cider and bacon sauce, roast pork with crackling, roast potatoes, carrot and parsnip, cauliflower cheese and Yorkshire pudding (with no room for pudding dessert) but instead I am including these moss covered rocks and toad stool seat because they photographed better than the rest and were more symbolic of the lovely drive through the country side we took to get to this eatery. 

The Bell at Sapperton and The Chequers outside of Stratford on Avon. 

KFP: Kentucky Fried Pheasant

Sticky Toffee Pudding

It is time to go home…I know this as I can’t possibly eat another meal at a gastropub.  We had lamb burgers and confit of duck and a pheasant burger (KFP instead of KFC)  pheasant pieces bound together in a nice sauce and then breaded and deep fried and served on a bun with lettuce and tomato. I made the wise decision to only eat half but only so the table could have sticky toffee pudding.  AND we stopped at an Aldi and they have wonderful fresh pastry so we have chocolate croissants, fig and walnut loaf, cheese buns and white chocolate chip cookies as friends were coming for tea and breakfast. Needless to say there were leftovers. 

Most of our errands were done in Royal Wooten Basset. I tell you this as I just like saying Royal Wooten Basset....sounds like a place in a P.G. Wodehouse novel where Bertie Wooster would live. Lots of small towns are suffering with empty shops, but in the UK these are all given over to charity resale emporiums. Royal Wooten Basset has 5 of them on the high street which is a lot considering there are only about 30 shops in this hamlet. Recycling is an ongoing way of life here through these efforts. 

Back to CA for us and only salads, where the richest thing we should eat is the occasional avocado. 

Lovely little cow sculpture in the garden of the The Bell. It was actually snowing when I took this image which appears to be in the fog. 

If any of you are interested in Brexit, we did get an earful from our friends...so much so that one man banned us from talking about it at a lunch party! A general consensus is not possible except that everyone agrees it is a mess. Equal time was given to Trump...nuff said. 

One more day in London...watch this space for the last blog from our travels once we return home. 

Barnsley House Hotel and Spa

 

Sometimes you are just plain lucky. The Village Pub in Barnsley was closed for kitchen renovations  and they directed us to the slightly more expensive but vastly superior Barnsley House Hotel and Spa where we had lunch in the Potager dining room. But we started with drinks in one of the several sitting rooms at the open fire to study the menu and have a first glass of wine. Our meal began with a double baked cheese soufflé which was crispy on the outside, puffed and then super creamy in the inside served on a bed of matchstick apples slices and greens. Darwin had cod but I went all out for the local venison served with red cabbage, sprouted broccoli and the most amazing whipped potato purée. Darwin always asked, “How do they make it so good without butter?” Of course, they USE butter! We finished with a beautiful raspberry sorbet on a lemon tart. But the meal was only the beginning of the adventure.  There was a light drizzle but  we decide to explore the grounds before we made our way home. A series of outside rooms awaited us, with shaped topiary, the occasional folly, the portage garden, the kitchen garden and the herb/healing  garden. We also popped our heads into the very modern glass spa. Just take a look at these photos and dream!

Twice baked cheese souffle

Did we like it, you bet!

Raspberry Sorbet and Lemon tart

The loo had a fireplace

Wellington boots for all comers

A glass paradise hidden behind a hedge

London Post Script 2017

On the  last two days of our London trip I finally started to discover some very local art delights just minutes away from our ABNB flat. Yes, the fall has arrived and the leaves are changing and tingle of cool air is coming. But I was so pleased to see such wonderful art just a stone's through from our front door. For all of you are considering visiting, don't forget to discover Bermondsey...and that includes my  London friends!

The Dawn After Yesterday – Sándor Szász, The Concept Space 

This was a tale of the future apocalypse but set in World War 1 and 2.  I loved the disappearance of heads and the appearance of the wonderful circle/spheres as a mystery element of hope. 

Art House Ruth Dupre

The exhibition was on the top floor of a private home up a set of lovely wood stairs. The work was a mix of variations on clothes and accessories from a frock made from old bicycle tires to the rough wool of a sheep. We have seen recycled fashion before, but I think it was the hand wrought details of this work that was so poignant.   

The second part of the show has some charming rabbit themed works which I am including for my good friend Irene de Watteville. In fact the hats above would suit her so well. And how could i not include a gallery cat for Michelle Kurtis Cole!

Drawing Room Nicola Tyson, Beyond the Trace

Tucked into an old industrial park was a huge space, so was a perfect showroom for Nicola Tyson. I loved these small drawings and her full life sized figures were stellar. The space and the connect Tannery Gallery/Project has artist studios and a public drawing room

Tannery Projects Appropriated Sunlight: Ralph Anderson and Nancy Milner

From this group show I choose two artist, Ralph Anderson shaped strokes were painted red on the reverse and so the wall glowed around the cut out and around the outer edges.  These rounded free works made a nice contract the Nancy Milner's color field stripes with the out of focus change over. Both of these artists' works are completely flat. 

Ralph Anderson

Ralph Anderson

Ralph Anderson (detail0

Nancy Milner

Nancy Milner

Kagyu Samye Dzong London Tibetan Buddhist Centre

We were turned on to this meditation center by Richard and Victoria Nathanson although they live all the way on the other side of London in Putney. 

Richard Nathans on is an exclusive private art dealer who just curated an exhibition in New York on Modigliani Unmasked | Drawings From The Paul Alexandre Collection And Other Works.  Read his essay: What I Am Searching For