As I was going to St.Ives....

...I thought I would pop into the Tate. There's an interesting installation by Martin Creed there at the moment. He has filled a large area with white balloons ( about 10feet deep).When you go in to the area you are surrounded in all directions by them. Before you go in they ask if you suffer from claustrophobia or similar. Yeah, Yeah, health and safety gone mad I thought, and plunged in. I have to say, it really was quite an experience! You get disorientated very quickly as everything looks the same. Its quite hard to find your way out and you have to fumble around until you reach a wall to get any idea of orientation. On top of that all the static makes your hair stand on end and you emerge looking like a crazed loony! Oh and the beach there's not bad once you've done the balloons.

Signs of the Times

One of the benefits of living almost on the doorstep of an art college is that I can sneak into some of the events and talks that they have on. Last week I was quite excited to see that Bob and Roberta Smith was giving a talk. Bob and Roberta are, in fact, one person. I have been familiar with some of his/their work for a while as it sometimes would be visible in the environs of Hackney. I'm sure there used to be a bit of his work up near the junction of Hackney Road and Bethnal Green Road. Anyway,the work appeals to me as it doesn't take itself too seriously- it has a sense of humour and also because I just happen to like hand painted signs and typography. I hadn't realised that his work crosses boundaries into other areas such as performance, installation and music. The talk was entertaining and at times perhaps a little "random".It included elements of audience participation.For example,one student played the tune of three blind mice on a toy xylophone whilst the rest of the lecture theatre was divided into halves, pantomine style, for a sing-song on the theme of fruit and vegetables! Meanwhile a film featuring Bob going on a bike ride wearing a chain-mail outfit played on a screen in the background. All part of life's rich tapestry...

Strange and Beautiful

I've become a bit obsessed lately with the paintings of Jeremy Miranda. Who he? you may ask.
Well, I found his work when he was a featured seller on Etsy. The quality of the painting is incredible and I particularly like it when the paintings become narrative. The central theme to quite a lot of the work seems to deal with the relationship we humans have with nature and how we attempt to contain, tame and take ownership of it. He tends to work on series of paintings reworking them several times. The floating greenhouse is so strange and beautiful I can't stop staring at it. I have to warn you that visiting his shop may result in separation from your cash! The paintings are however very reasonably priced - so you can buy 4 like I did!