Results tagged “modernart”

Image by Spencer E. Holtaway via the Londonist flickr pool.

"By the end of the 20th Century," reckons Chris Stephens, Head of Displays at Tate Modern, in his Introduction, "London could claim to have become the world capital of art...signalled by the opening of Tate Modern." Well, he would say that, wouldn't he?

Interesting concept this. What would Martian anthropologists make of us Earth-dwellers if all they had to go on were examples of contemporary art? The Barbican Art Gallery, disguised as a museum on the red planet, plays out this indulgence in a new exhibition.

While half of the fair is watercolours and drawings, the other half is thankfully modern works on paper. From 30s posters advertising such things as Ireland, or Shell Oil, to the more fine art end of the spectrum: abstracts, figures made out of collages of adverts, you get the picture.

Like the bottle of olive oil in an Italy-shaped novelty glass bottle that has been in the kitchen cupboard since that trip to Florence in 2004, London has always been meaning to do something with Battersea Power Station. It just sits there. It shouldn't be wasted. It's still useful. C'mon, think... it's been there for ages. Let's do something with it. Let's... put some art in there. Modern stuff. From China. In collaboration with Norway. And... and... and get some hot young architects to join in too. It'll be special. It'll be good.

Nobody will win this group. Like the Conservative party of old, a leader will emerge from it. Three middling candidates will strive to rally support for long enough to avoid accompanying Angola on the plane home.

When photographer Diane Arbus visited London in 1970, she wrote in a letter,

You'd have thought there was only one record in town the way the radio was so full of hype recently. But enough about Crazy Frog (we can think of a more appropriate word beginning with 'C' to apply to the Annoying Amphibian), this week we bring you four full reviews of albums released this week: Art Brut - Bang Bang Rock & Roll Oasis - Don't Believe The Truth Sleater-Kinney - The Woods Turin Brakes...