To See

I've been making a real effort not to miss exhibitions and had a binge of viewing on Friday. Here is Phyllida Barlow's installation at Tate Britain - amazing, she really knows what she's doing. Utterly uncompromising original stuff.

So that was a good start, then on to 'Boro' at Somerset House, also free. Not allowed to take photos, but these are patched and stitched abstract textile pieces in cotton from Japan. See here.

Then I went on to the Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons in Lincolns Inn Fields. I had known about this place for years but not yet been. This is full of jars of specimens, normal and mutated for study etc. There was a 4 legged chick and a 2 tailed lizard and creatures with too many legs. I didn't really like all the preserved foetus's etc,(funny that) but the bones really fascinated me; some with huge growths and awful diseases or just clever mending. Funnily enough I went with a GP who'd never known of it's existence until now. Google it's images to see if it's for you and maybe don't go just before lunch!

2011 Recommended

Happy New Year All
I've been trying to catch up on exhibitions in London around this holiday time.
Do go and see The Coral Reef by Mike Nelson at Tate Britain.  I'll tell you nothing, more fun to just go! I chanced upon this, it's not on the Tate website or pamphlets yet it was the best thing I saw at Tate Britain that day. One of the attendants there told me it was on for another couple of months. It's really refreshing to see something profound in contemporary art as I find alot of conceptual art rather bloated.

Kimonos in a Tokyo flea market

Also excellent if it's up your alley is Future Beauty - 30 years of Japanese Fashion, on at the Barbican until the 6th of Feb. Ingenious construction, especially Issey Miyakes pieces seen flat, very inspiring, beyond fashion really.
I must catch Gauguin at Tate Modern, it ends on 16th January.