You know when you plan a weekend down to the minute detail, but you end up doing something completely different and yet it turns out to be an incredible few days anyway?

I made the stupid mistake of completely misjudging how long art exhibitions run for in galleries. I was under some vague impression that we were in the last week of Lucian Freud Portraits at the National Portrait Gallery. Not one to miss a blockbuster, I dashed from work to one of the Portrait Gallery’s ‘Late Shift’ events, where all the galleries open until 9 and they pump out David Bowie and Duran Duran in hope of enticing a ‘younger’ generation. Needless to say, everyone who I walked past in the building that night could have easily passed for… people old enough to be my parents, anyway.

Lucian Freud was spectacular, and thankfully the exhibition runs until May, so the chance of making a repeat visit is almost inevitable. I’m still in shock that the queen agreed to let him paint her portrait; I certainly wouldn’t!

I really liked how the exhibition had been arranged in a chronological format, as what I find most interesting about Freud is how he develops his portraiture practice into something more refined and yet more ‘honest’ as his career progresses. In the exhibition guide that you’re provided with on walking into the exhibition, it contains this quotation which really sheds light on Freud’s practice:

‘As far as I am concerned the paint is the person. I want it to work for me just as the flesh does’

His early work stimulates me as much as his more recent commissions, and my favourite of his work 

continues to be his 1951 portrait ‘Girl With Beret’ which I came across the first time I visited the art galleries in Manchester.  Freud really captures the essence of youth here, and this young girl who sat for this painting simply evokes this great feeling of innocence to the viewer, really enticing them in with her dazzlingly large eyes.

Saturday was much more relaxed, having spent the whole day just relaxing in Camden, drinking coffee, researching into curatorial practice etc. I was with friends, so prior to a quick tipple (or 4); we ended up in COB Gallery which isn’t too far away from Camden Road Station. They had a Pete Doherty exhibition on at the time (which ended earlier on today I’m afraid) which managed to be morbid, disturbing and incredibly beautiful all at the same time! 

It wasn’t long before we were sampling the newest ales on tap at The Grand Union, but I’m hoping to make a few return visits to COB, as it’s actually quite incredible what they’ve done with the spatial confines of essentially, a house...

 www.npg.org.uk

www.cobgallery.com