Photographer's Gallery

A few days ago I went to the Photographer's Gallery again. Andy Warhol, William S. Burroughs, and David Lynch all have a floor dedicated to each of them. I took the lift to the 5th floor and worked my way down. Most of the images were in black and white, which made their subject stand out even more. It was very interesting to see the transitions of their different perspectives during the 20th century. 

The gallery itself has very open spaces, lining the images along the walls and using the central space to display books or other prints in glass casing. The thing I like the least about photography exhibits is when they cover the images with glass, because you end up seeing a reflection of yourself in the image. This can be used well as an optical illusion but it's really frustrating when looking at a very dark image.

I went to the show especially to see Andy Warhol's work because I've seen so many of his other pieces so I though I would enjoy these too. However I was most impressed by David Lynch's work because it reminds me of the part of London in which I live. There were run down brick factories in most of the images, and I live in an old wool factory, so it was really interesting to see the decline of these buildings and how they have been reused now. 

Overall, the show made me reflect a lot on the past and how things evolve. I rarely have time to think so clearly and deeply on a subject so going to this show helped me clear my head and focus my thoughts. It was really interesting, and a good 3 GBP spent. 

Here's the website for the show: http://thephotographersgallery.org.uk/current-exhibitions-2

Whitechapel Gallery

I’ve walked past Whitechapel Gallery about 500 times throughout my time in London. Finally when my friend Gabi was here we decided to go inside. We didn’t go to the main temporary exhibit that was going on because there was an entrance fee, but we did however walk around the rest of the gallery. We were able to admire the art work as well as building. 

On the lowest floor there was a huge room with a room inside it. The internal room was made out of books relating to history and anthropology. Inside this room made of books there was a little staircase that had a mirror at the top. This mirror allowed you to see yourself in the room as a sort of outsider. I really liked this. 

Upstairs there were a few rooms available to visit for free. One was a collection of historical pieces showing the history of the gallery and the events at the old gallery. The other room had a collection of older pieces showing a combination of mixed media. Overall, I really liked the gallery space, but I’m certain that next time I’m going to pay to see the temporary show. 

Here’s their website: http://www.whitechapelgallery.org/

Body Language at the Saatchi Gallery

I recently went to see the new show at the Saatchi Gallery. It's called "Body Language". There were a lot of colourful varied pieces with a lot of different influences. Sadly, my trip there was sort of ruined by two groups of students there on a school trip. They were really uninterested and making it very difficult to appreciate the art. So I rushed through the gallery staring longer at the pieces that intrigued me most. 

One of my favourite things about the Saatchi Gallery is that they integrate paintings, photographs and sculpture. This then leads them to use the space in a really interesting way, and it may be part of the reason for why I keep going back. They also always have things that you can't see any where else. The selection of pieces is always broad and diverse and thought provoking even if all you're thinking about is the composition.

The Saatchi Gallery is just one of my favourite places in London and it makes me happy to live here. It is one of the few places where I can be completely alone and be surrounded by ideas without feeling lonely or overwhelmed. 

Here's their website: http://www.saatchigallery.com/artists/body_language/

Taylor Wessing Prize at the National Portrait Gallery

London has billions of museums, ok maybe not billions but it does have quite a few and they always seem to have amazing temporary exhibitions. Last Friday I wanted to do something more with my day and I decided to have a look at the Taylor Wessing Prize photographs at the National Portrait Gallery. All of the images are breath taking as well as thought provoking. Through the beautiful photographs you gain a tiny bit of insight into the people's lives, and the photographer as well. Some of the images can be scaring, but most of them just push you to try and understand the person in the image for a few minutes. 

Sadly it was really crowded when I went so I didn't get to enjoy it as much as I hoped. I would have loved to linger in front of every image at least twice. Once to soak in their story and the second to admire them. If I could see the show again I would probably go on a weekday morning where the number of people in the space is lower and it feels like it's just you and the person in the photograph. 

Overall, I loved it, I feel like it was the perfect way to end my week. The entrance to the show costs a mere £4 and you can probably stay in there and stare for hours. These portraits stood out to me so much that I didn't want to browse the rest of the gallery incase my memory started to lose the photos from the show. 

I'm very excited for their next temporary exhibition starting on the 6th of February, Bailey's Stardust. 

Here's the website for the National Portrait Gallery: http://www.npg.org.uk/

Stolen Space

When returning home one rainy afternoon I happened to notice the "Stolen Space" gallery. And as a way to get out of the rain I went in. The show was very interesting and different. The artist Haroshi named the show "pain". His pieces are made out of old and broken skateboards. Using the wood as layers to create images reflecting common pain in our lives. One of the pieces was a broken heart, smooth and perfect on the exterior, but with some major cracks and breaks in the middle. 

The work was really interesting to see because you couldn't see how much time Haroshi put into each piece but even if a piece looked simple it was so powerful that you could feel the pain and the work put into it. I hurt my ankle the day after I saw the show, so the images I saved from the show helped me feel like I would get over my physical pain quickly and I'll also heal like the used wood. 

Overall, I think this gallery will continue to show very interesting things especially since most of the pieces on show were already sold. Definitely a place to watch for diverse up and coming art. 

Here's the gallery's site: http://www.stolenspace.com

and here's Haroshi's website: http://haroshi.com

Urban Dialogues

While walking through Shoreditch with my mum we saw a small gallery space. We were welcomed in to "Urban Dialogues" a show exploring art, belief and identity. The rooms were all dimly lit so that your eye would focus on the piece in front of you. 

What I enjoyed most was seeing different media being used to express an idea. Most of the work made you think about what you were looking at and the thoughts behind them. Many of the pieces in the show were linked to religion. There was a video with a quote from the bible about God making your path straight and in the clip there was a winding road that became straight after a lightning bolt. 

The gallery continued downstairs where there was also a little cafe and a stand selling cards and badges from the show. Every was really peaceful. You wouldn't expect to find a place so quiet so close to one of the busiest roundabouts of east London. 

I really loved that for half an hour, you could get off the street, clear your head, and look at the bigger picture through visual arts. Working with religion is a very touchy subject but I think this show helped me look and think without imposing a strong religious opinion, so I was able to formulate a thought on my own with the guidance of the art.

Here's the link for the gallery and this specific annual showcase: http://www.3ff.org.uk/arts/

Belmacz Gallery

The Belmacz gallery is a tiny little gem in Mayfair. My friend Kristin's cousin showed his work there so she was invited to the opening of their new show. The gallery is tiny, with one room on the ground floor and a smaller one below but the space is used well. The pieces are shown in the window and one along each wall, except for two smaller pieces on the largest wall. Sculpture is also well integrated into the exhibit and it is set up in a way that you can truly only focus on one piece at a time, which I really liked.

One of the organizers of the gallery (Julia Muggenburg) has her own jewelry brand and make-up brand. Her necklaces and other items are shown throughout the gallery in a metal glass display hanging from the ceiling on the ground floor and in a wall display on the lower floor. Also, when arriving on the lower floor you can peak into their offices which gave me a bit more understanding of the process behind it. 

The night itself went really well, we drank a few whiskey sodas and mingled with a few artists trying to understand their thought process behind their work. The more traditional pieces were by artists who had very strong technical skills whereas the most controversial piece (Kristin's favourite) was done by a man who programmed the whole image on a computer. He was able to create a person in 3D form digitally and then map out the shape. His friend then drew the whole image that was then mapped back onto the digital body. The other layers in the piece were also created by the artist using digital software. This was really interesting to us because it shows how much the world is changing with technology, and it was really great to see what we could create. 

Here's the gallery's website: www.belmacz.com