Art, Curry, Pub, Floor...
May 31, 2008
The last week of May proved a little less busy than the rest of it had been. Apart from a brief visit to the Untitled Artists Fair in the Old Chelsea Town Hall with Viv. Which was followed by a curry at Nirvana which is, strangely, situated underneath the Vivienne Westwood shop at World's End... and wasn't overcrowded. Still, apart from the soup that I had [I can't remember coming across a soup on the menu in an Indian before and assumed it was going to be sort of Thai like as it was noodly... It wasn't.] It was all good.
So, we thought we'd spend a relatively quiet Saturday trying out a local-ish watering hole that we had been intending to visit for some time. Engineering works meant that the relatively short journey it should have been to Sydenham ended up taking us about an hour. Still it was worth the trek. Although the Dolphin is a fine example of a gastropub [looks good, tastes good etc...] it really is in an unusual location. There doesn't appear to be any other reason, that I can think of, to go to Sydenham other than the Dolphin... And we live in Tulse Hill!
Deciding to walk back from Sydenham might not have been a great idea. It wasn't especially hot but it was bloody humid and I hadn't bargained for the fact that half the journey is uphill. Luckily we had factored in a stop at The Mansion to see what the White House had done to it since their relatively quiet takeover earlier in the month. Pretty much nothing, other than change the wallpaper it would appear. Still, we met Kev & Karol there... and at about 9.15am the following morning I woke up on their floor. Weekend over.
Categories: Art, London, Food & Drink
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And Another Thing... Or Eight
May 29, 2008
 The problem with not having time to keep this blog up to date is writing about stuff way after everyone else has. For instance...
Events wise there's Sutra, The Teletroscope and Louis Greaud at the ICA. Then there's Image Radio, if you happen to be in the Netherlands.
And another couple of oddities like Polynapping and the slightly strange Place To Pee. Worth hiring for a party I suppose? Accompanied by a Giggly Pig Hogroast maybe?
Which reminds me, I have tons of links still to post from the Real Food Fesival last month.
Hopefully I'll get round to that next month. In the meantime... Get your Moleskine engraved... just like this one.
Categories: Music, Art, Food & Drink, Theatre, Technology
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Fireworks And Flying Rats!
May 26, 2008
I thought I was going to get a lie in today! Yesterday seemed an unassuming day, meeting up with Kev and Karol to travel down for Sunday Roast in Kerry And Rob's newly rebuilt kitchen/dining room. Followed by the end of the Brighton Fringe firework display at the Marina and the last train back.
We woke up to find thick cloud and rain. Not good for the fireworks but that couldn't affect the roast and we rolled into Brighton, at around 12.30, to find the sun was out and the skies were blue. Also, that Sue was going and could give us a lift, which would save Rob a trek to pick us up. So we waited... at the Grand Central pub, on their lovely sun trap of a roof terrace, with Bloody Mary's.
After a fine spread of lamb and trimmings, strawberries and chocolate torte we adjourned to the garden to enjoy more of the sun until firework time. A harmless bit of sitting in the garden with a variety of drinks was briefly disturbed by a tiny rat dropping from the sky and hitting Kev on the leg. Weird!!! It was either a passing bird dropped it or somebody's cat had brought it into their garden, mid-barbecue, and they just lobbed it over a fence or two! Either way, it didn't look at all well for the experience and poor old Rob had to put it out of it's misery with a house brick before burying it in the garden.
With that excitement over we headed to the marina for the firework display. Forgetting to get any booze! As we had word from Sue that we could watch the display from Steve and Carol's yacht we couldn't turn up empty handed so she headed off with Kev and Karol to find an offy while we passed the time in the remarkably cheesy bar/club called Seven. Grim!
As soon as they were back we set off looking for the yacht [well, big boat with sails] and waited for the fireworks to start. Not at the 8.30 they had advertised of course. It does need to be dark doesn't it? So about an hour or more later, they started... and went on for seemingly ages. It must have cost a fortune but they were great even if it had turned bloody cold by then. And even if it meant that getting to the station for the last train, at the same time as the massive crowd, was going to be nigh on impossible. So I got talked [quite easily] into staying the night...
Goodbye lie-in! We Finally got our head's down at about 2.30 and by 10.30 this morning we were in The Dorset having more Bloody Mary's and Full English breakfasts. Another Bloody Mary and we felt we could brave the train back home.
No lie in tomorrow either... But at least I can have an early night.
Categories: Music, Food & Drink
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The Ballad Of Sexual Dependency
May 24, 2008
 Kev and I ambled along the Thames today looking for any possible interesting stuff to photograph and enjoy a few beers on the way. It was pretty good weather and I thought if we got the train into London Bridge and tube it to Canary Wharf, we could get the DLR to Shadwell and walk approximately three miles to the Tate Modern, in time for me to meet up with Sam...
Firstly there were no DLR trains directly to Shadwell, so we had to get, after an interminable wait, an overcrowded replacement bus. Then I realised I should have done a bit of homework regarding Thames side pubs north of the river. As we didn't find one until we reached the Dickens Inn at St. Katharine's Dock! Also we had found very little to photograph of any interest before reaching it either. Most of what we passed was residential and any other pubs we passed after that were closed, apart from the Samuel Pepys, which looked great inside, decor and menu wise and had river views, but was closing in ten minutes.
So we fought our way through the masses of folk going in the opposite direction and headed over the Millennium Bridge for Bankside not realising the there was a massive BMX/stunt bike type event on outside the Tate, presumably as part of the Street And Studio exhibit, and understandably a little rammed. So we headed over to Borough Market to find a relatively quieter place to drink and getting a lot more photo opportunities than on the other side of the river. After that we parted company and Sam and I went on to the performance of "The Ballad of Sexual Dependency" and "The Other Side" slide shows in the Turbine Hall.
A slightly nervous Nan Goldin introduced both pieces and her unmistakable images projected onto the large screen dwarfing the performers below it. John Kelly was spectacularly moving. It was only the wiping away the odd tear towards the end [I suspect during "What Makes A Man A Man", though I can't remember now] that made us realise we had been sitting there agape all the way through.
Patrick Wolf also turned in a virtuoso performance, sliding from one instrument to another with ease, accompanied by strings and some guest vocalists, including the marvellous Bishi. Wolf blended his own works [old and new], such as Magpie, with operatic pieces by the likes of Gluck and Klaus Nomi. Well done and thanks Tate Modern and Last.FM
Check out the Patrick Wolf Set on You Tube, courtesy of hideshine.
Categories: Music, Art, London, Photography, Books, Food & Drink
See my flickr set: Tate Modern: Street Art & Photography
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On The Map
May 18, 2008
 We got to Sheffield on Friday afternoon, via the St. Pancras champagne bar, and checked in to the the Ibis [cheap!] before heading out for a walk to excellent Nonna's.
Prosecco, bread and olives, pancetta and potato ravioli with baked cabbage in poppy seed butter, cauliflower soup and garlic pesto, Italian sausage rigatoni, risotto with watercress, spinach, nutmeg and mascarpone with a bottle of red. Followed by 5 cheeses [with excellent parmesan crisps] and three ports. All brilliant and only £75.00!
Picture: Johnny White's Barking up the Right Tree
The centre of Sheffield looks like a huge building site at the moment but I suspect it's going to be a top place to visit in a few years time if the area around the Station, Hallam University, the Millennium Galleries and the Peace Garden.
The Millennium Galleries is where the On The Map exhibit is on. Disappointingly, what I'd already seen online was all that was there and we were round the whole thing in 15 minutes. I was hoping there would be a lot more. I liked what I saw but it was a bit of a way to go for such a small exhibit... although seeing the Stefanie Posavec works in the "flesh" was worth the journey, even if they were only pinned to the wall, necessitating a rope to keep you from touching them and consequently not being able to read the small print. I really hope she gets those Rhythm Textures published soon. Still, I had a little look around the Metalwork Gallery next door which was interesting and I found out a bit about Ookl.
Categories: Art, Photography, Food & Drink
See my flickr set: Sheffield
Google Map
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Mapping Out May
May 15, 2008
 We're off to Sheffield to see On The Map at the Millennium Galleries tomorrow, satisfying my mapping and artistic bents! So, I thought I better get something down here before there is even more to write about! Let me see if I can explain the lack of posts since the on the first.
I thought I just heard gunshots outside but I can't see anything. There have been quite a few sirens since but that's par for the course round here...
So far this month we've caught up with Justine & Pat [Saturday 2nd] on a rare visit to the UK from New Orleans after which we partied on well into Sunday [3rd] at The Happy Valley Country Club [or Trev's!] with sets from Rob, Pav and Marc scaring the garage-loving kids up the garden. Then on to the Cans Festival [5th] and a drunken amble along the South Bank with Kev & Karol. On Tuesday [6th] we popped along to the ICA to see Life Through A Lens, Barbara Leibovitz's movie about her photographer sister Annie. I recognised many of the shots included in the movie but realised I knew nothing about Annie Liebovitz at all, least of all her relationship with Susan Sontag. We spent Wednesday [7th] working on a new, as yet un-named new tune with Kev with a brief lull on the Thursday and Friday.
Saturday [10th] was a trip to Uckfield to meet up with my folks and sister for lunch, followed by a picnic in Brockwell Park on Sunday [11th] and dinner at the Blueprint Cafe on Tuesday [13th] - Cubeens, followed by Rabbit & Rook Pie as you asked - then more work on that tune round Kev's last night.
In between I've been trying to keep up with some new music, mainly the marvellous Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip album. Tracks about Tommy Cooper and the periodic table do it for me!
I've been trying to only listen to music released this year this year, although a few nostalgic visitors have dictated that I play a few old albums [well, it's only polite to oblige]. And there have been quite a few new albums so far this year. I reckon I've got about 30 so far, although I can't say that I've been impressed with all of them. Portishead hasn't been the release I'd expect after a 10 year hiatus, Neon Neon were a disappointment and the Hot Chip and Gnarls Barkley albums haven't got me too excited either. The Foals, Benga, Be Your Own Pet and Scroobius Pip albums will definitely be getting a few more plays before the year is out though.
Hopefully the rest of the month will be a bit quieter, because I'm way behind reading that pile of books I got all those months back at Christmas time! All we have planned, so far, after that is the Nan Goldin/Patrick Wolf /John Kelly event at the Tate Modern on the 24th.
Next month we'll be off to Liverpool for Klimt at the Tate.
...No more on those gunshots, must have been fire-crackers or something. Odd!
Categories: Music, Art, London, Photography, Food & Drink, Film
See my flickr set: Cans Festival 2008
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Can The Can?
May 01, 2008
 A quick, extra post before the weekend... I've tons more I need to put up here but won't have the time until Monday but the Cans Festival will be pretty much over by then.
The Cans Festival is on at an as yet unknown location, in London, this weekend. I'm not sure I'm going to squeeze in a visit or not yet, in fact I doubt I will but...
Still to come at the Tate, there is Street & Studio: An Urban History of Photography and Street Art. Both of which I believe are free and both run from the third week of May until the end of August.
LOCATION UPDATE - Leake Street SE1
10am -10pm - Sat-Mon
Categories: Art, London, Photography,
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