Architecture – Page 24 – slightly weird

16th August 201825th August 2018

Art at the Tate Modern

Thursday, 16 August, 2018

Liat has a friend at the Tate Modern and she can get us free entry to exhibits. Now, I’ve been inside the museum many times but mainly because the Turbine Hall is spectacular. (Hate that it’s now divided up by a newer middle bridge section. The view was so stellar before that.)

The Turbine Hall in numbers:
Height from ground level: 26m (85ft).
Size of area where works of art can be shown: 3,300 m2 (35,520 sq ft).
Length: 155m (500 ft), width: 23 m (75 ft), height: 35 m (115 ft).
Roof light consists of 524 glass panes.
Total area of basements under Turbine Hall, boiler house and sub-station: approx 1.1 hectares (2.75 acres), with an average depth: 8.5 m (28 ft).

I’ve never been into an exhibit and there are two at the moment.

One is Picasso 1932: Love, Fame, Tragedy (just that year!). The other is Shape of Light, an exhibit of 100 Years of Photography & Abstract Act (it mostly shows how artists have worked with light – and subsequently shadow.

I don’t really like Picasso. So many millions disagree with me, therefore I must be missing the point. But taste is taste. Mine doesn’t lean to Picasso. I won’t say much more but I’ll caption some photos from the exhibit for you to ponder.

Ok Picasso, whatever! — OK Picasso, whatever!

What they say every man has on his mind? Well, at least Picasso... — What they say every man has on his mind? Well, at least Picasso…

Um... sex while desexualising...anyway, sex — Um… sex while desexualising…anyway, sex

And my one liked piece in the whole show. Notice the lack of sex?

Oddly, I quite like this. Reminds me of Robin's cartoons as a child — Oddly, I quite like this. Reminds me of Robin’s cartoons as a child

Messaged Robin immediately to tell him to get started on his own Picasso career!

Oh, we women love lounging around admiring each naked other

Inspired by crucifixion, he said. OK then — Inspired by Matthias Grunewald’s Crucifixion, he said. OK then

A few words on the next two pieces. The program reads, ‘Picasso turned to a new and darker subject matter: the threat of drowning, and the possibility of rescue.’ This happened after his lover got a viral infection after swimming in contaminated water. ‘This is suggested by some of the works on paper in which fatal accident is transformed into sexual violence.’ What? This might lend a clue: ‘Some biographers have argued that, since the childhood death of his younger sister…Picasso felt doomed to cause women to suffer.’ Do I need to say more? Maybe. Maybe not. Not now, anyway. Sorry, Picasso, you’re not for me.

Continue reading “Art at the Tate Modern”

25th June 201823rd July 2018

Shoreditch walks and Supper Clubs

18-24 June, 2018

The tree is growing more leaves from the stumps daily. I’m taking a Monday photo each week to show its progress.

On Wednesday we walked to Shikumen in Aldgate. It was a long, meandering walk and sometimes it felt like we looped too much and came back not so far from our last point. I should try to map it. Just behind Broadway Market there are some interesting art pieces. I know I’ve seen this area before but not sure if the art is new. Probably not.

When we reached the top end of Brick Lane, we bumped into Rosie from Krish’s volunteering. We had a brief chat and then moved on.

The walk was a bit of a struggle and, at the end, our favourite dish at Shikumen the crispy prawn with garlic, chili and cashew.

Friday after the Falls Prevention exercise class, Lisa and I went to Palm Vaults, which is a vegetarian/vegan coffee shop. It’s so girly in there! I had an iced coffee and sweet-talked my way to getting half a salad. At Palm Vaults, which also has a Soho branch, there are absolutely no dairy milks for coffee and it’s card only. This is becoming more common – shops that don’t take cash. And the drinks are inventive and trendy – beetroot, lavender, rose, turmeric, teas I’ve never heard of….at a steep price!

When I was a teenager, my parents were in a supper club. In those days it meant that a group of friends, and friends of friends, got together in one person’s home once a month or so and that person would cook the meal. It seemed a great idea at the time. In London the concept of supper club is somewhat different. Continue reading “Shoreditch walks and Supper Clubs”

16th June 201818th June 2018

Quiet days

June 11 to 17, 2018

Nothing new and exciting last week but I did manage to get out.

We decided to attend the Dalston Pasta Festival. It had been advertised as having food, drink, music and demonstrations. So off we went.

Sadly, the festival didn’t look so good once we got there, although it was well attended. There were a couple of pastas on offer. One with a tomato and pork sauce, and one that was with ricotta and zucchini. Neither one looked very good. Krish asked if the pasta was homemade and was told it was, although we could clearly see the commercial packets stacked nearby. We decided not to have any. There was a small stage but no acts were up and no sign of any demonstrations.

We left the pasta festival and headed off to Gillet Square.

Gillett Square has been 25 years in the making.The idea, which began in 1993, was to make a new town square. In fact, when you walk into the square, that’s exactly how it appears.

There’s an open area and several kiosks (added in 1999). There’s also a ‘culture house’ and the Vortex Jazz Club.

In November 2006 Gillett Square was opened as the first of the London Mayor’s programme of 100 new public spaces for London. It can be a very lively area and seldom empty.

**Real community spirit at Gillet Square**

**A brunch place in a yard off Gillet Square**

We were sitting here last week and heard a really loud thud/crush. A small car had somehow mounted onto the traffic island, knocked over one of the markers and the beacon had been completely laid flat. There the car sat, leaking petrol, while a woman and a small child were helped out of the car and onto a chair from one of the cafes. And there they sat.

The tow truck arrived but had a lot of difficulty getting the car up onto the flatbed truck. Eventually, they managed to move the car diagonally away from the markers and beacon, which were stopping it from moving. Almost immediately a crew arrived to start cutting and welding and putting things to rights as best they could. That was enough excitement.

**The car knocked down the island. The driver is sitting on a chair looking on**

**Hard at work taking care of the beacon**

There’s been quite a bit of sun and on one sunny day I remembered to photograph one very pretty house not too many lots away.

Mostly, though, it’s been a homey week, not getting too far away. Next week might be a bit busier, but not as far as I know!

**A lazy dim sum lunch with a good dish of kai lan**

**Taken on 11 June. The tree coming back to life**

14th June 201816th June 2018

Old Street and Palatino – in pictures

Thursday, 14 June, 2018

Thursday, I went to the doctor to get another blood test. I was relieved to hear the phlebotomist I didn’t like the last time was away. The replacement nurse was great. Blood taken and off I went.

I was meeting my friend, Tom, at a restaurant I’ve been wanting to try for quite some time, Palatino in Clerkenwell.

Old Street is a nice Shoreditch street with a lot of interesting things to look at and some good cafés. There’s also some cool architecture and street art (which I’ll photograph when I’m not rushing off to a meeting. However, the station and the roundabout aren’t very nice.

Along the way to Palatino, which was a longer walk than expected, there was a lovely little garden.

Palatino has a great Instagram feed. All their food looks great. Every time I see something like that, I’m curious to see if they can live up to the photography. The space is on the ground floor of a new block of flats. As you walk inside, there’s a desk for residents and the co-working space on your right and the restaurant is on the left. It’s a bright and modern place so it’s easy to sit and relax and wait for Tom, who has to come from South East London.

The food was very nice, not spectacular. I started with the Anchovy, stracciatella, toast followed by a tender Pappardelle with a pork and beef ragu – half size. Finally, we splashed out on dessert. Mine was an Apricot, Hazelnut and Rosemary tart. Tom thought there was too much rosemary but I quite enjoyed the combination. His panna cotta with strawberry was also delicious. The service was friendly and efficient. It’s a good place for lunch with friends.

On the way back in the bus, I came across this shopfront. I was tired and actually fell asleep for a stop or two. The next bus was packed to the door and I was happy to get home.

7th June 201811th June 2018

Mare Street for plants, Bump Buddies event, and Pasta!

Thursday 7 June, 2018

We want to put plants on the windowsill now that we are opening the windows up. It feels like a lengthy process. So far all that’s happened is talking about it. Such is life with a perfectionist. Let’s make this so!

Plan: herbs on the kitchen windowsill – parsley, basil, rosemary…so far. I think also thyme, oregano, and sage, perhaps coriander – not sure. In the living room a mix of green plants and wildish flowers plus lavender. Instead of a box, we will have pots grouped together.

There are some nice plant shops on Stoke Newington Church Street and I can go there today or tomorrow and pick some things up. But I’ve also noticed from the bus a place called Hackney Flower Warehouse so I decided to pop along there in a quiet time to see what they had to offer.

The shops are at Victoria Park Road right by the Regent’s Canal. It’s old school Hackney in this neighbourhood.

**The flowery plant here really makes a difference to the old building front along Mare Street**

Regent’s Canal stretches from the Grand Union Canal at Paddington in the West to the Limehouse Basin and the Thames in the east It’s 13.8km (8.6 miles) long. It also runs parallel (just a dozen metres away) to the house I grew up in so it’s an old friend. While the Grand Union Canal can be wide and surprising with its greenery and wildlife and majestic views, Regent’s Canal is like an everyday Londoner. There are factories, derelict stretches, ordinary homes – modern and old, and walkers, runners and bicyclists along the way. Building began in 1812 and the first stretch was open in 1816. The part that runs through Hackney opened in 1820 so almost 200 years ago.

On the Regent's Canal Bridge at Andrews Road — **On the Regent’s Canal Bridge at Andrews Road**

It can be very picturesque along the canal, with its greenery and barges but not everywhere. Going through Hackney Wick it can be a real mess with the expected graffiti everywhere. This section is a mixed bag.

There’s a fair bit of construction on the east side. I wonder what they’re planning.

I see there’s a plant warehouse on my side of the street so I wandered around that a bit. Some really nice big plants and containers, a bit on the pricey side. I headed over to the flower warehouse and look around. It’s a nice feeling that everywhere in the world, when you step into a florist, the warm damp smells are the same. It’s quite heady.

Nothing blew me away here. I walked around a few times, seeing the options and making mental notes of what might be nice. The prices here are pretty good. In fact, they are about on par with Columbia Road Flower Market – three or four small plants for £10 – and it’s a lot less crowded! Noted! I’ll see what I can get along Stoke Newington Church Street and perhaps return to fill in some gaps.

Enough flags? Along Mare Street — **Enough flags? Football frenzy along Mare Street**