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Sunday, 10 February 2013
Feeling Fitzrovian. .(scribbled at 13:42 )

I seem to be incapable to blogging at any other time than the weekend these days, but uploading pictures can be a pretty arduous process at the best of times. I’ve barely documented anything this week, which is a blessing really as all I seem to have done is eat another tonne of instant brownies (see previous post). I’m really putting off the ‘Learn to Make Croissants’ bit of my To Do list this month (see the Liste de Tâches tab at the top), all the recipes for buttery croissants imply that you have to leave the pastry overnight which I don’t have the patience for. Who can leave pastry?!

I went to 66 Portland Place for the first time on Tuesday evening. For those non-architecture folk, that’s the HQ of RIBA. And I have quite literally fallen in love with its interiors! I was planning to spend an hour there, which somehow turned into 3. The brilliant high ceilings and carvings throughout the building are. Just. Incredible. Ditto the elongated windows too. Wandering through the six storeys, it seemed that each floor offered a new set of beautifully crafted spaces. I have every intention of returning there every month from now on; their exhibitions programme looks rather impressive! Whilst I was there, I checked out the RIBA Royal Gold Medal Exhibition 2013, which is a prize awarded as recognition of an architect with at least 30 years in practice.  The incredible Peter Zumthor was awarded the Gold Medal, and seriously, after reading up on his design for Therme Vals in Switzerland, who wouldn’t hail the man with an award?!


© TripAdvisor

An absolute masterpiece, Therme Vals is a spa complex in the Chur region. The building is filled with natural spring water, and seems to be an ideal place for meditative thoughts and a pure week of relaxation. Someone take me there, please.

Equally inspiring, was the AR+D Awards for Emerging Architecture. With over 250 entries from 43 different countries, this exhibition of works is pretty darn cool. Only built work is eligible for submission, and these works are based upon the notion of humanity in architecture. With schools, cemeteries and social housing structures featured heavily in the show, it really evoked how much care we have to put into the design of non-corporate structures. I’ve quite a fondness for the M Building designed by Stéphane Maupin, which gives us an insight into a new social housing project based in the northwest district of Paris. There’s nothing I want more than to move back to continue what was my short-lived period residing in Neuilly, and the M Building is practically just around the corner! Hurrah for affordable (tiny) housing!

© Dezeen.com


This really is an extraordinary item of beauty, and it seems that every need of the resident has been taken into account. Evidently there is an impending limitation of space considering that it is social housing, but Maupin has created the structure in mind of allowing as much natural light into the apartments as possible. It consists of 2 descending symmetrical terraces which are clad in this Parisian Zinc material, which together forms this sort of contemporary ziggurat (FYI, a ziggurat is a pyramidal structure that hails from the ancient Middle Eastern period). Pretty nice, huh!



© Dezeen.com

So yes, urges to move to Liverpool have now been replaced with stronger urges to move out of Blighty altogether. Ideally Paris, but I’m not too picky. Perhaps it was the hideous amount of snow, slush and bad karaoke I encountered shortly after my train pulled into Lime Street, but I think I may have previously been seeing Liverpool with rose tinted specs in recent months. It’s still an incredible city, but I guess my urge to move up there is waning a little. For now, anywho.

Still wouldn't say no to my dream Hope Street terrace, though...

I still can’t get enough of The Bluecoat though, which is one of my favourite buildings in Britain. Their William Kentridge retrospective that they had on at the time was absolutely brilliant. Born in Johannesburg in 1955, Kentridge actually studied Politics before moving onto etching later on in his life. After moving to Paris for a year to study mime (!), it actually wasn’t until dOCUMENTA (X) that he became firmly grounded in the international visual arts scene. He used a variety of techniques, particularly the ‘Chine Collé’ that he executed when making his ‘Sleeping on Glass’ series back in 1999. 



Actually, to a certain extent, it was a fairly prolific weekend up North. I finally got round to replacing my 5 year old battered Zara parka with a swanky new Ralph Lauren one, which feels so amazing to wear that it has seldom left my torso in the past fortnight alone. I mentioned in my previous post that I saw Les Misérables at FACT whilst I was there, but more importantly I HAVE NOW FINALLY SEEN AN EPISODE OF ‘GIRLS’. And I’ve gotten a little bit hooked to it, so expect even less frequent blog posts from here on.

I meant to pop over to The Royal Standard too, but ended up spending a few hours before I caught my London-bound pendolino train in The Open Eye Gallery instead, and having a ridiculous amount of Tofu and spring rolls at Tokyou.

Anyway, I loved The Open Eye Gallery’s current group show, entitled ‘A Lecture Upon the Shadow’, which ends next Sunday, so catch it if you can.








Ahh, and I had to post a picture of this new T Shirt I bought from the V&A shop a few days before I went to Liverpool. This was a pretty casual slovenly dressed Sunday, to say the least:

NB: I am not posing, hahah. The sun is in my eyes and my hair keeps falling onto my face at the moment because I'm too lazy to get a haircut.

This is Tomorrow/Whitechapel Gallery T-Shirt: V&A Shop
Bag: Urban Outfitters
Jeans: Zara
Leather Converse: Kurt Geiger

Moving swiftly back down south, I went out for a night out in Fitzrovia for the most recent Haunch of Venison Private View on Eastcastle Street, which was followed by a pretty damn good pizza on this diner by Goodge Street, which I forget the name of.

The Thomas Joshua Cooper Landscapes at Haunch of Venison were pretty impressive, but I didn’t spend too long at that exhibition opening because I really wanted to check out ‘Orange between orange and Orange’, a show by Michael Joaquin Grey at Carroll Fletcher Gallery (which is also on Eastcastle Street). I took Daniel for a wander around the show (he’s pictured here in tweed:)


Before retreating to the bowels of North London (and before Daniel went back to Stoke On Trent), we went to the Wellcome collection, and managed to easily spend an hour or so drinking the delicious chai tea that they sell in their café. Yum.

I wore this new top that I bought in Zara when I was in Liverpool. It was an absolute steal, as I know I’m going to wear it to absolute death. As much as I wanted to buy their leather-sleeved parka jackets that were everywhere last season, I hate buying coats that I know I won’t be wearing year after year. So it seemed much more purse-friendly to try out the pleather-sleeve trend with a t-shirt instead. 




Everything points to Fauvism. Yesss.

And on the street behind the Wellcome Collection, we came across this ‘Sorry You’re Leaving’ cake, which had been hilariously tossed onto a front porch of an office building.



I know the weather’s looking a bit naff, but hope you’ve all had a lovely weekend! I am very much still recovering from an endless amount of Baileys cocktails and a night out in Covent Garden from Friday night… I have literally spent the entire weekend in my pyjamas which I’m trying not to feel too guilty about. We went to Maxwells Burger restaurant first, which is just around the corner from The Royal Opera House. Although it was literally packed to the brim with people, the service was brilliant, and we managed to grab a few Mai Tais whilst it was still happy hour! I can’t rave enough about the vegetarian burger, which comes with a bucket load of fries. Actual food heaven. 

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Thursday, 27 September 2012
Diary of a lazy blogger. .(scribbled at 04:00 )


Whilst I've been impatiently waiting for my new Moleskine journal to arrive in the post, I've abandoned my virtual ramblings and through all the chaos of the past 2 weeks, I've not only forgotten to update you on Germanic adventures, but also a last minute trip I took to Liverpool for the Biennial last weekend. I’m meant to still be there right now, but work commitments prevailed…

Anyway, I will upload posts for both of these events, but like dOCUMENTA, I spent a fair amount of the experience through my dusty camera lens. There are a lot of photographs to condense down into one friendly, bite-size blog post. So again, this is just a way of exclaiming “Wait- don’t abandon Vermeer’s Victoria Sponge just yet!”… Well, not until you’ve seen my photos of the prison cell I ended up sleeping in a few weeks ago.

Regarding the last week (Biennial 2012 excluded for now), here’s a little snippet of what I’ve been up to.


I spent last Thursday night at the opening of the London Art Book Fair, which was spectacular. Should you ever end up wondering one day how many art book enthusiasts can fit into a gallery space, then I suggest you head over to Whitechapel Gallery next year to see for yourself. Although it only runs for a weekend, the event hosts book stalls from a vast number of publishers, from Tate and Saatchi Gallery to lesser known independent art book publishing houses. This year’s opening was even busier than the last, and there is no better way to get yourself into an autumnal mood- everyone knows that September is a time for fresh new books and stationery, regardless of whether you’re at an educational institution.




In other news, I set up office yesterday afternoon at the Royal Opera House to work on a project with my friend who works there. Rather than sitting in their offices and overhearing Opera singers rehearsing next door, I plonked my laptop just outside the enchanting Paul Hamlyn hall instead. It is absolutely beautiful; I can’t quite put into words how jealous I am of my friend. We were sitting on the rooftop terrace together a few weeks ago, which is adjacent to the ballerina’s rehearsing space, and the view you get from there. Is. Effing. Incredible. With a small exception to the view of Tower Bridge you get from the Design Museum, the London skyline from the roof of Covent Garden is just spectacular to say the least. Westminster seems a stone’s throw away, and you can hear the chimes of Big Ben ring out across the West End. 



The Paul Hamlyn Hall, Royal Opera House
oh, and I was at the V&A earlier on this afternoon, and spotted this little gem as I walked out its main doors:


Until next time!

V x

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Sunday, 22 July 2012
Cases for Incrementalism .(scribbled at 07:00 )

At the time of typing this on a sunny Saturday evening, 117 miles in Birmingham away a 72ft narrow boat had began making an epic voyage at an average speed of 4mph...

Meanwhile 117 miles away in London's Whitechapel Gallery, I was listening to a lecture given by William Mann (of Witherford Watson Mann Architects) entitled Piece by Piece: The Case for Incrementalism. 


Lloyds Building: the epitome of adaptability?
Img courtesy of Wikipedia
Beginning with an anecdotal talk about the rich history of East London, Mann spoke about a need for adaptability in the buildings that we inhabit ourselves with. Using Whitechapel Gallery as a paradigm for this, he explored the notion of rather than buildings being fit for one purpose, we should look to buildings as a structure which can at times, be flexible. We are rapidly expanding, and are thus building upwards to accommodate more of our daily needs as a society.

There were mentions of old and new buildings co-existing harmoniously (like The Whitechapel, which used the old Passmore Edwards library next door to form its great expansion plan during 2007-2009) Mann's talk shifted slightly, with a gentle reminder that nowadays buildings are simply knocked down altogether and rebuilt, rather than adapting them to fit the needs of the contemporary user. Buildings with a lifespan of no more than 25 years are becoming depressingly common...

 Not long after this, Mann had delved further into how space is used in East London, with particular focus on the developments around Shoreditch between the 18th and 20th Century. Myself (and the rest of the audience included) laughed with Mann as he wittily remarked that on Commercial Street 'a bombsite had been transformed into a NCP car park'.
La Sagrada Família:
Still a building site after 130 years

Just as we were learning more about the peculiarities of land around Stratford , the talk was put on a momentarily pause whilst the sounds of cheer and applause radiating from Whitechapel High Street became too loud to bear: the Olympic Torch had just passed us by.

 Mann also argued the case that when the structure of a building has been complete, this is in fact the beginning of its life rather than the end. If buildings do in fact continue to grow, expand and develop then we can't assume that just by laying the foundations of a building that this process of development has truly started.... which kind of got me thinking about my trip to La Sagrada Família last month. Gaudí began this monumental basilica back in the 4th quarter of the 19th Century, and yet still it is incomplete. But we generally do not regard it as incomplete; it is visited by thousands of people each week, and even though it is essentially a construction site, it's frequently used by Roman Catholics as if it were whole.

 Anyway I'm just going to sign this bit off with a brilliant quotation from the beginning of the lecture, regarding Stratford and its immediate surroundings:

 It's a landscape like no other I've seen before in London... a landscape of juxtaposition.

(William Mann, 2012)
From Landscape to PortraitChris Wilkinson (RA)
Price: £180, 000


From Whitechapel, I went straight to the Royal Academy for their late opening to catch this year's grand Summer Exhibition. If last year's 2 1/2 hours spent there was anything to go by, I figured that it would be best to allow at least that much time to look around this year.

Now, whilst I have every intention of writing an excruciatingly long write up of what I thought about the works, I've decided to keep it sweet with my three favourite pieces.

© Katharine Morling
Above is Katharine Morling's edition of 100, simply entitled Matches. I actually hadn't even noticed this work at all when walking through the galleries- it was the 50 red stickers next to the work that caught my eye (NB: a circular red sticker in the galleries indicates that a work has been purchased). On closer inspection, we see that Morling has delicately handled the ceramics to create this work. It is subtle, unpretentious and to be frank: quite cute.

©ARTnet.com
Who doesn't love Johannes Vermeer? This contemporary take on the classic Milkmaid by Raeda Saadeh is brilliantly put together.

And my third favourite work? Is a piece by Yosef Cohen called 'The End' which sits in its main exhibition space (Room 3). I've yet to find an image of it, but the work can be viewed on Cohen's website here. Being the cold, unemotional soul that I am, it's rather rare that I audibly react to artworks. But Cohen's work even made me chortle a wee bit. It basically consists of the shell of an alarm clock mounted to the wall. The time indicates that it's 10:40, and we see the second hand ticking from where the '6' would be on the clock all the way through to '10'. And then the second hand falls limply back to where it began, repeating this process... the clock has a mere capability of 20 seconds.

 Of course, just like last year there were some brilliant works by Wearing and Craig-Martin. But less so by Martin Creed, who for this year had put one of his neon signs on sale for the exhibition. This one being 'Work no. 623, DOGS', which flashed in a vivid shade of green.... it's £66, 000 (and an edition of 3 as well). I much preferred his stacked chairs from last year's Summer Exhibition (alas, I can't remember how much those sold for).

 ...and then I cycled through Hyde Park during dusk on the way back. Twas lovely.

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Thursday, 22 March 2012
ART (plus) DECO .(scribbled at 13:06 )

With F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic novel The Great Gatsby premièring this Autumn, Art Deco fever has already sprung a little prematurely.

Gucci SS2012
I love how films and television programmes inadvertently determine what fashion choices we make. Mad Men has (re)given us Peplums, fitted shift dresses and a whole array of pastel tones to our wardrobes. Twilight has appeared to create a whole new wave of wannabe adolescent vampires. Not that I'm complaining or anything, I find it interesting really, but as I haven't actually watched either of these two... my wardrobe is lacking that shot of lemon-tinted blouses worthy of Betty Francis.

©TOPSHOP
However, I will be seeing the Gatsby adaptation later this year. Hence, GATSBY FEVER. I am totally feeling the raring twenties and all its ephemera. My love for René Lalique glass vases has increased tenfold, and I'm suddenly lusting for embellished waists and ephemeral motifs. Gucci were first on board with this trend which is going to be huge this year, here's what they had to offer us during their SS2012 Campaign


(& if that is slightly (or heavily) out of your budget, then Rare at Topshop are retailing a similar dress at £60!)
If you happen to have a spare £6120...


© French Connection
© Mulbery Hall
Feather hair piece: Topshop
Personally, I think the high street brand that's leading this trend is French Connection. Albeit a little pricey (the dress above is £160), their collection is unique and extremely well thought out to the minute detail, and what I really like about this dress is that it's totally wearable, you could probably get away with wearing it continually every winter until you're practically supergluing those sequins back on to get your wear out of it. I was lucky enough to attend this year's  Swarovski Art Plus Opera Party at the Whitechapel Gallery last Thursday, which was spectacular. Being 1920s themed, there was so much glitz flowing through the gallery spaces that I've already decided on how to wear the Gatsby look this Autumn.

Want to start working this trend early? With Summer on the horizon, it's going to be a little tricky to work the fur coats and flapper dresses, so get into the accessories instead. I bought these from Topshop last time I went to Liverpool- that store is the best one I've came across for the huge sales it has. The mark down on shoes is actually phenomenal too.

I've also just started re-reading my battered copy of The Great Gatsby for the first time since studying it since my A Levels. It's nice to rekindle the hatred for Daisy Buchanan...

I bought this from Henry Bohn Books
by Lime Street Station 2 years ago- it's a
bargain for old books!

www.gucci.com
www.whitechapelgallery.org

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about
diaristic ramblings about architecture, design, art, baking and shoes.

...all posts penned by Vikki, a twenty-something girl based in London (but currently having itchy feet and wanting to move back to Neuilly).

all these poorly taken photographs are indeed my own.


Vermeer's Victoria Sponge.