Cheapside Hoard at Museum of London

A mystery! Workmen demolishing buildings in 1912 smashed through a cellar floor and discovered piles of sparkling jewellery! Hidden treasure that had been abandoned. And it's the largest collection of Elizabethan/Stuart jewellery in the world.

There's background history to begin with including an actual mocked up jewellery workshop based on a drawing from that time, shop signs and a beautiful painting that shows London before the Great Fire.
Then you go round a corner and there is so much delicate sparkling decadent jewellery! Some is so tiny and detailed! Magnifying glasses are provided for closer looks but I preferred looking with just my eyes. I find the smallness beautiful. I saw pieces from the official photos and they are much more beautiful and tiny in real life.

There are paintings on the walls showing how the pieces may have been worn and also videos showing close ups.

I particularly loved a case of pearl pendants. The pearls were a bit decayed, not having enjoyed their time in the cellar, but still lovely and attached to intricate little teardrop shaped cages. There were also the most amazing tiny buttons encrusted with precious stones and yet not ugly! Sounds so ugly in my head but it wasn't.

There is a pin with a tiny ship on it, there's an emerald watch, there's an amazing perfume bottle. Folks used perfume to cover the stench of the times and Roja Dove created a perfume that may be similar to theirs and you can smell it from behind a little door in the wall! And there is much more than I mention,I've only mentioned my favourite things.

As you leave you can watch a short film wondering who might have hidden the hoard and why they never came back. The hoard was hidden before the Great Fire and at a time of civil war. The film tells a possible story and suggests more.

Museum of London is one of my top museums. The permanent collection is fantastic, so informative, interesting and fun and so far I've always enjoyed their exhibitions and events.

Security is high as the hoard is so valuable so you are required to put your coat and bag in a locker which costs £1. I never usually bother to use a cloakroom so it was kind of nice to do it this once but I was lucky I had the change on me as I didn't realise ahead of time.

On till 27 April.

Links:

Cheapside Hoard

playing with my window

Experimentation with shadows....cut paper and plastic attached to my window casting shadow on the curtain. It's not final design work but it's lovely because it keeps surprising me...I only get the sun late afternoon so I'll be working and suddenly Bam! I'll realise I'm surrounded by shadow of light!

Adam Frank

Adam Frank is a designer/artist who plays with light and interactivity. He's done oil lamp shadow projectors and projecters that create a sunlit window shadow effect. How very like what I'm trying to do...though I'm hoping to use actual windows. His can be used where there aren't windows though. Nifty.

Philips Daylight Window

Anke Jakob

Light projections onto fabric, playing with perception and ephemeral decoration.

http://surfaceandmedia.blogspot.com/

Su Blackwell

Su Blackwell's work is so beautiful and so exactly what I love - storytelling and books come alive. I went to a talk last night with Su Blackwell and the editor of Crafts magazine at Borders. Her work is all based on stories and fragility. Stuff she said that I liked: "books going back to trees" and " half this world half book world".

100% Design - Highlights

ZNP Creative - Lots of delicious contrasting. Like these bright smooth wood with natural tree trunk! http://znpcreative.com/

Take a Luxe - http://www.takealuxe.com/

Ulrika Jarl. http://www.ulrikajarl.com/

Freedom of Creation Lamp based on Fibonacci sequence. Pretty! http://freedomofcreation.com/

Pooroni Rhee's graphicy illustrations <3 http://www.pooroni.com/

Kate Goldsworthys Multisheers, decorative entirely polyester textiles - single materials are easier to recycle. http://kategoldsworthy.squarespace.com/

Heather Smith decorates hard materials using the weather :) Metal nails in wood with rusting! http://www.heathersmithcollection.com/

Farmily prints and Japan

I'm pretty happy with these experiments - flocking on photographs :) I had a bit of trouble with it because the glue kept sticking the photographs to the screen...then tearing...then the flock didn't stick everywhere...then I blocked my screen with glue..I guess it takes some practise :) I like it so hopefully I'll get it right next time. Its lovely to have flock on a photo. The sillhoettes are me and my family...I'm gonna take them as gifts for my relatives in Japan.

Off to Japan tommorow! Exciting! I haven't seen my sister for a year or everyone else for 4 years...we'll all be different people... I've been reading Japanese for Busy People on the bus. And for now I guess I'd better pack!

A week ago...

I found this amazing dress in a charity shop and gave it to my mum :D I love the print :D

Summer Fair

I popped in here on my way home from Sheffield to have a quick look...too tired to look properly but here are my highlights:

http://lualua.net/

http://www.rentaro.co.uk/projects.html

http://www.aroundthewall.com/

http://www.studiovertu.com/index.jsp

http://www.95percentdanish.co.uk/
http://www.louisecampbell.com/ http://www.xilocart.it/

http://www.jerseypottery.com/

http://www.lindaclifford.com/JerseyPotteryHistory.html

Vivienne Westwood @ Millenium Gallery

I was in Sheffield this weekend with my wonderful gran who took me to see the Vivienne Westwood exhibition thats on there atm. So much wonderful tailoring and luxurious fabric :) Also a dress with I think real garden snail shells attached to it with fake shiny snails :) My favourite bit was a collection from 1981/82 all browns and peasanty with hoodies :) I'd also quite like an enormous silk taffeta ball gown with dramatic bows and the occasion to wear it. Thank you.

A Vivienne Westwood quote from the exhibition that I really like:

"When you analyse where the glamour is in clothes, the romance, it is, I believe, in something that people have seen before. It's like a perfume. You think 'I know that smell. It's reminding me of something else as well.'"

http://www.viviennewestwood.com/flash.php

http://www.sheffieldgalleries.org.uk/coresite/html/millennium.asp

Hey while checking the Millenium Gallery site I just spotted this: http://www.sheffieldgalleries.org.uk/coresite/html/exhibitions.asp?id=935 but I didn't see it at all! Rubbish :(

Esther Coombs

Just discovered Esther Coombs via Print&Pattern and she has also made cake stands with old crockery :) only hers are actually stuck together and printed :) Her drawing is loveliness. I really want to do more drawing.

Giles Miller

Previously I posted about Greypants cardboard lampshades...then Stephanie showed me Giles Miller's cardboard work which takes it alittle furthur - working in floral designs. It's lovely but so expensive! I guess it must be alot of work. I'd like to have a go though :) Work in some sillhouettes! Giles Miller is part of Farm...so that's where you can see all his stuff and other lovely stuff.

From Atoms to Patterns @ Wellcome Collection

I heart the Wellcome collection! It's free AND open till 10pm on a thursday. This is genius! More stuff should be open later in the evening...some people work in the week and don't want to cram in on a saturday!

From Atoms to Patterns is really interesting and beautiful. I love the connection between science and design, and that these designs are representing something real yet just look like beautiful geometric patterns.

Giant pendants to be!

Glee :) Look at these lovely sillhoutte picture frame things I found in the charity shop! I don't know which I like best - child holding crab or old man sweeping leaves! I plan to make them into over sized pendants :)

Lotte Reiniger

Lotte Reiniger is a huge inspiration for me. I think her work is stunning :D it must of been amazingly time consuming but so very worth it. Rachel at uni is always talking to me about animating my stories. I don't know how keen I am on that idea. I always think it sounds interesting. Then it doesn't feel right. Maybe it is beacause I prefer books to films...I'd rather make a beautiful storybook than a film. Perhaps I feel just because there is a story, every action doesn't need to be played out. Then again of course I do frequently enjoy films...and actions can be very beautiful. Animating my characters could be quite exciting and though I still don't feel right about it, like it wouldn't work, or it just isn't what I want to do...I may in fact enjoy it and be surprised by the results so I know I should push myself to have a real go...

Greypants - Beautiful Cardboard

Look! A video of cardboard furniture making! By Greypants. Bit more sophisticated than mine though :) And these beautiful cardboard lamp shades that cast textured shadows. I still have alot of card...I wonder if I could something like this and incorporate imagery...

Tale of How

Lina also showed is this AMAZING video :D it fills me with gleejoyeggs! The tale of How by the Blackheart Gang.

Lina Kusaite

Lina Kusaite who led our drawing workshop does lovely lovely drawings. Creepy and beautiful and illustrative and sort of melancholy. She kind of reminds me of Kiyoshi Nakashima.

Seduction: Sex in Art @ The Barbican

Araki

Duchamp

Egon Schiele

Hans Bellmer

Aubrey Beardsley

Shunga

Juliao Sarmento

Then the next day it was Seduction at the Barbican. A multitude of bizzare cocks :D cocks morphing into animals/object, flying around, changing scale. Yes.

I really liked the old stuff, roman pottery depicting sex etc. And Japanese Shunga prints. Indian paintings. There's so much detail. And landscape. And expression. Chinese ones were very landscapey and had poetry :)

Juliao Sarmento did big porn sillhouettes, which naturally interests me. I like sillhouettes. And sex. Pretend I've said something more intelligent. I can't think of anything. Shame.

I have discovered Aubrey Beardsley, an illustrator from 1872-1898. Lots of ink, contrasty black and white, detail and space. His drawings are beautiful and the next exhibition I'm excited to go to is Age of Enchantment at Dulwich Picture Gallery which involves much Beardsley. Mm even his name is excellent.

Hans Bellmer's etchings caught my eye, gorgeous fine twisting delicate lines forming bizarre scenes with surreal genitalia. Apparantly he is best known for dolls but that doesn't really interest me. I like these.

There are Klimt drawings there, I've always liked Klimt. And with him Egon Schiele who I've never paid much attention to before but I actually like his drawings. Intimate and raw. Next to that were etchings by Marcel Duchamp. Which I mention cuz I quite like them despite never liking his urinal rubbish. I find that sort of conceptual thing too pretentious. I like beautiful things. I guess I'm a simple person.

Erotos by Araki is repulsively compulsive. Photography. Really real, detailed and somehow beautiful as well as kind of disgusting. Close ups of hair and tongue and skin and suggestive foods and objects. Why is hair so disgusting? Hair and moisture. Ugh. I guess it's just so personal. It's strange to see it huge on a gallery wall.

Finally Heartbeat by Nan Goldin. A slideshow of photographs of couples, long term in love with families couples interacting and loving set to the sound of bjork. The music was lovely and it set a lovely mood. It was pleasant to sit listening and looking. I never usually bother with the films in galleries.