The Mirror, 12th March 1932
Sleeping Woman By A Mirror, 1932
We had a few days staying with friends in South London and took in trip into central London on Tuesday which gave me the opportunity to see the Picasso 1932 exhibition at Tate Modern (for free too courtesy of friend's Mum's membership card. The Picasso show is amazing, gallery after gallery of paintings done in a year long creative burst (inspired by his love affair with a younger woman Marie-Theresa Walter). Along with the paintings are sculptures, drawings, sketchbooks and a few paintings from earlier on in his career, arranged to re-create the one man show he held in Paris in 1932. Some of the portraits, large canvasses, were completed in one single afternoon sitting. The speed and intensity of the work is jaw dropping as is his use of colour. The paintings become darker towards the end, a recurring rescue of a drowning woman dominating (in the autumn of 1932 Marie picked up an infection swimming in a sewage infected river). It's on until 7th September. It frazzled my head a bit to see so many of these pictures together and close up. Well worth a trip out.
There are quite a few songs that mention or are about Picasso. Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers are at the top of the pile.
Coming out of South London our SatNav decided to take us north up to the Thames, though Crystal Palace, Norwood, Tulse Hill, skirting the edge of Brixton, and then crossing the river at Hammersmith Bridge. I don't think it was the fastest way out of the city. Maybe it knew the M25 was at a standstill. Or maybe it knew that having crossed Hammersmith Bridge we'd turn left and see Cheyne Walk and Edith Grove, home to the 60s Stones, the World's End Estate (home to Joe Strummer and where he wrote London Calling, by the river) and then turn up Gunter Grove (the infamous home of John Lydon and the base of Metal Box-era PiL). All seen through the window of the car while negotiating London traffic. I think London Lee of Crying All The Way To The Chip Shop fame knew this part of London well. Anyway, thank you SatNav for showing it all to me.
Desperately wanted to catch the Picasso show at the Tate Modern on my recent trip to the smoke, but just didn't quite manage it. Curses.
ReplyDeleteMy word, a useful sat nav? You've got a unigue piece of kit there. People using sat nav to find my house end up halfway up the wrong side of the estate!
ReplyDeleteI'm rather partial to Bowie's interpretation of the song, even if it doesn't deviate too greatly from the original.
haven't heard Bowie's version. Will check it out
DeleteArt and music - perfect partners. Wish I had more time to get down to Tate Mod to see this, but great to at least read about it here. I know what you mean about your head being frazzled when you see so much together and close up. Saw some of Picasso's sketches once at a drawing exhibition at Tate Britain and was bowled over by those - I get a special high from seeing sketches because they give you this shortcut to the artist's brain somehow - the spontaneity of a pencil mark and its connection with the artist's brain is more obvious, more close, more nuanced than in a finished painting and I really get off on that!
ReplyDeleteSounds like your SatNav somehow picked up on your musical credentials (maybe that'll come next - smart SatNavs that will take us via routes with specific connections to our interests?) I love seeing London as a passenger in a car (or on foot), away from the more obvious landmarks.
Walking is by far the best way to see London. There's something of interest round almost every corner.
DeleteYou drove right through my old manor. Sadly the Kings Road isn’t what it was as
ReplyDeleteBit more than just turning right after Hammersmith Bridge to get there though
ReplyDeleteOn reflection we turned left.
ReplyDeleteNothing but envy on this end.
ReplyDeleteOh, and a great song as well. Not as good as the original, but I’ll plug the cover by Burning Sensations found on the Repo Man soundtrack.
ReplyDelete