In 2011, the sublime was a popular topic of discussion. At the National Theatre there was Frankenstein and in the John Martin exhibition at the Tate, the sublime was on show in a spectacular way. The John Martin exhibition was my favourite exhibition of the year. The epic was presented on grand canvases, but what…
Here is my best of.. lists. The following post discusses what I thought about the year. Shakespeare in the Theatre 1. Romeo and Juliet (RSC at the RST) 2. Much Ado About Nothing (Globe) 3. Hamlet (The National Theatre) 4. Much Ado About Nothing (Wyndham’s) 5.The Comedy of Errors (Propeller at Sheffield) 6. Antony and Cleopatra with Katy Stephens and Darrell D’Silva (RSC…
Theatre: Shakespeare 1. Romeo and Juliet (RSC). 2. King Lear (RSC). 3. As You Like It (West Yorkshire Playhouse). 4. Measure for Measure (Almeida). 5. The Winter’s Tale (RSC/Roundhouse). 6. Henry IV part 2 (Globe). 7. Macbeth (Globe). 8. Antony and Cleopatra (RSC). 9. Antony and Cleopatra (Liverpool Playhouse). 10. Hamlet (The Crucible, Sheffield). 11.…
The Sixties as a decade isn’t really my era, but I did grow up with the music, because I played my parent’s vinyls as much as I could when I was a teenager. This is why I found this exhibition so interesting and went back for a second visit. I heard of many of the artists, but didn’t always have an…
Read more Beatles to Bowie (The National Portrait Gallery, 12th December 2009 and 16th January 2009)
Andrew Tift’s portrait of Neil and Glenys Kinnock, exhibited in the National Portrait Gallery, is clearly within the tradition of portrait painting going back to the eighteenth century. In the background are objects that tell us about the sitter. The bust of Bevin leaning towards us, and the bust of Nelson Mandela next to the…
Read more Thoughts on Neil and Glenys Kinnock (National Portrait Gallery)
I really like visiting the National Portrait Gallery because I feel that I am getting close to people in a non intrusive way. I particularly enjoyed the Gay Icons exhibition for three reasons. Firstly, my interest in the ten panel members who made the selections, secondly for their selections, and thirdly for the reasons for…
Read more Gay Icons (National Potrait Gallery, 18th July 2009)
The Constable exhibition is a much smaller exhibition than the Richler exhibition showing a range of Constable’s works that we don’t always see as we normally experience his landscapes. The exhibition is series of portraits of Constable’s family, close friends and associates. The catalogue does say that , “Famously, constable once observed that painting is…
Read more Constable Portraits (National Portrait Gallery, 2nd May 2009)
I experienced this exhibition as an exploration of blurring reality both literally and metaphorically. I was fascinated by the images in this exhibition, and it felt really uncomfortable looking at some of the images which are actually blurred, in contrast to viewing images in recent exhibitions such as the Face 2008 and the Annie Leibovitz…
Read more Gerhard Richter (National Portrait Gallery, 2nd May 2009)
Julie Raby: A Dyslexic Writer 