Scotland the beautiful

I'm in Scotland for only 3 whole days (plus one coming and one going) its not enough. Scotland is so beautiful. I'm glad because I really wanted to come here, and it is rare that something lives up to your expectations. All the hostels are nicer than London, and so are the accents. In Edinburgh everywhere there are amazing looking shops, the one next door to our hostel sells brooches that are little sticks of wood, painted to look like a stick of wood! I wish it was open for me. Of course spilling a whole cup of tea on my beautiful laptop kind of ruined the last day for me.

past art

Since I am nearly home I thought I'd start to post about some of the other great art I have seen overseas, or discovered but not actually seen. I have been to way more museums than I ever went to at home (there's only so many times you can repeatedly go to the South Australian Art Gallery) I think I am up to 39 that I can remember now. But the best ones recently were the Palazzo Grassi and Puento della Dogana in Venice. They are two parts to one collection owned by mega richFrançois Pinault, owner of a lovely art collection, and a bunch of other things including, Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci, Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Christie's Auction House and a couple of Football teams. But his art collection was amazing. What was on display at the exhibition I saw, 'Mapping the Studio' was only a selection of what he owns chosen to be displayed in the exhibition by Japanese architect Tadao Ando. It was spread out over two buildings, and included works by most of the major artists I had only seen in such publications as Art Now, and the Vitamin books. It was amazing to finally get to see some Luc Tuymans paintings in particular still ife which was enormous and imposing yet still gentle, when I was expecting it to be tiny.

Also finally saw Jake and Dinos Chapman's 'Fucking Hell'. I had previously dismissed this work as just boys playing with figurines or something like that, when viewing it in books, but it was amazing in actuality. Glass aquariums filled with countless figurines all disfigured, bloodied, mutated and doing battle with Nazis. And the glass aquariums were arranged in the shape of a swastika. What's not to like. Actually for me it was, surprisingly impressive and compelling.

Luc JD 2

Japan is coming

Cannot wait for Japan, I'm a bit sad because we just changed our flights around to abandon Russia, China and Finland (no more visas or non cutesy countries) so that means we are going to Japan in a week and a half, so all the tickets for the Studio Ghibli museum have sold out. Big disappointment. Now I have to plan something else for Japan, this was the only thing I had researched, what else can I see in Japan apart from cute girls and clothes and anime? I am 100% expecting to be further disappointed when it doesn't feel like a mixture between 'Lost in Translation', and a Miyazaki movie (lots of bright lights and paddy fields etc)

everywhere that is not Tokyo should look like this (although I guess its ok if there is no Totoro)

and everywhere else will be like this, me hanging with Bill Murray & Scarlett Johansson.

cute Japanese fashion hello kitty lit 2 totoro

Deep in the cell of my heart I will feel so glad to go

This is our last week in what has finally become a very sunny Europe. A few more days and then we head back to the UK for a couple of days of Scotland, then Japan, Hong Kong, home. I was feeling so anxious to be going home a few weeks ago. It can be tiring travelling and never being a part of anything, always being a spectator in life's events. But now that it is finally happening, now that there are weeks not months left, I don't know if I am ready. I forgot that being part of it means getting a job and an apartment... Oh well time to start life I guess.

Before we came back to Europe, we went to Africa! Actually Morocco which felt like a cheating version of Africa, but there were still markets, and child street sellers, and conmen, and uncomfortably warm dress requirements. I suppose this should not have been a surprise, but it was an exact depiction of street life as seen in Disney's Aladdin.

In Milan, biding time

Have just done a quick driving tour of the South of France, down from Paris, through Toulouse, Avignon, Cannes, Nice, Monaco, and now in Milan for a night. It is starting to feel like one of those whirlwind country tours, so far removed from our weeks of sitting round in countries. But each town looks the same to me at a glance and I think I would rather sink back into the many peopled cities as before. Paris however was remarkable, amazing, what is expected of it. Now I am planning for Venice and looking forward to the silent streets and expensive contemporary art gallery that I have been waiting to go to for months.

vegetarian tour of the world

In Paris it is easy to get sick of not knowing if what you are ordering is vegetarian or not, especially when you don't speak French. So tonight I found a vegetarian restaurant a few streets from our hotel. This makes such a big difference, even if I don't know what I'm ordering, I know its safe. We went to Au Grain de Folie in Montmartre. It was tiny and felt like we were just sitting in someone's kitchen while they cooked us tea, which I guess is what it was, only we paid for it. But it was very homey and the food was delicious. We watched her cook it all so you know everything is freshly made, even if it takes a little while as it is one lady doing everything. But it brought me to thinking about the other amazing vegetarian restaurants I have eaten at along my travels.

Paradise Found Cafe, North Shore Oahu, Hawaii

California Vegan, Hollywood, LA

Truly Vegan, Hollywood, LA

Herbivore, Mission district, San Francisco

Enjoy vegetarian restaurant (Chinese), downtown San Francisco

Udupi Palace (Indian), Mission, San Francisco

Blossom, New York

Maoz Vegetarian (fast food felafel), Everywhere

Espiral (cafeteria style) Lisbon

Yellow Sunshine vegetarian diner, Berlin

Earth Cafe - Marrakech, Morocco

Romance

Looking at beautiful romantic art. Liking the emptiness and the similarities.

Ryan Mcginley

Peter Doig

Gallery finds NY

I went to a few smaller galleries while in New York quite a while ago now. These were from Clare Grill's exhibition at Jen Beckman gallery on Spring Street. I love the soft Michael Borremans, Luc Tuymans feel about these paintings, while still being strong and not too wishy washy.

Clare Grill

Power lines mach II

While trawling the web today, came across this artist, whose paintings are depressingly similar to my newest travel project. I guess it was inevitable that I would not be the first to be stunned by the melodrama of these lines across infinity...

Images from Granthaffner.com

Nendo

This is what their website says

nendo created blown-fabric for Tokyo Fiber ’09 Senseware, an exhibition intended to convey the possibilities of new materials developed with Japanese synthetic fibre technology.

but all I can think is, Disney and Studio Ghibli, Enid Blyton and Ida Rentoul Outhwaite. I guess because these creations look like mushrooms and mushrooms are oft seen in fairytale type settings. Obviously there is nothing bad about that, it's okay to use nostalgia as a means to access art works. It also makes me want to read Enid Blyton's 'The Enchanted Wood' again...

Fantasia, and, Princess Mononoke, Ida Rentoul Outhwaite and and

Cut paper

Little Ampersand, Green Spot, Turbine, Vessel,

Catch

Matthew Rich, latex paint on cut paper. I found these today and really liked them. I have recently been really interested in geometric shapes in art work. I've come across a lot of Constructivist art work recently and am finding influences of this movement in a lot of contemporary art that I have viewed in the last couple of months. Again Matisse could be mentioned in connection with these works.

Matisse, The Snail

Matthew Rich, Matisse

Hello Chris Ofili

And so now here I am again, back in Europe. It was nice getting to see the Chris Ofili exhibition in London, but that was pretty much the highlight, and 5 days once again felt too long. However I would definitely recommend the Chris Ofili exhibition at Tate Britain. This was my main reason for going back to London this time, and it was really good. I had already seen one of his paintings in SFMOMA, and was familiar with his work from Art Now, Matthew Collings interviews, etc so the first few rooms of paintings at his exhibition were not particularly new. Obviously they look better in reality, and the mass of lots of similar works, similar size, subject matter, medium is much more powerful than when viewing one painting of his amongst other artist's work, as at SFMOMA. But for me the real high point was 'The Upper Room'. I had heard about this work previously in a controversial light, as it was purchased by the Tate Britain, on whose board of trustees was Chris Ofili, conflict of interest much? However upon seeing it I had to agree with the decision to purchase. You walk down a dark wooden corridor to a dimly lit room, wherein the paintings are lit from directly above, leaving the room in virtual shadow. You enter at the back of the room and along two sides of the walls are paintings, each a different colour, each depicting a monkey facing toward the end of the room. And as is natural at an art gallery, you stop to view each painting. But the real power of this work is viewing it as a whole. It is when you look with the monkeys toward the far end of the room, toward the queen, that you can start to imagine the inner workings of these monkey's minds. You feel almost one of them, bowing toward your superior, the hushed light of the room provides a feeling of reverence and I almost felt that I should bow my head and shuffle out backwards. The rest of the work in the exhibition, the newer work, was good to. I especially liked his paintings all in shades of blue, starting from 2 tones of similar blue together, and becoming progressively more contrasting. But 'The Upper Room' was definitely the highlight. Oops I forgot to mention the elephant dung, never mind, there it is.

artfagcity also mentions similarities between Ofili and Matisse (I think generally Ofili's newer works like Iscariot Blues, picture top). I only mention this because I love Matisse, and so appreciate when other artist's honour him (even unknowingly perhaps).

Tate, timeout and thank you artfagcity