Return to London 2: Tate Modern & Southwark

One thing I have learned about visiting London is that one cannot plan to do too much or to see too many sites/sights in one day. So this day was dedicated to art, not tourism. (Plus Harrods, and the entertainments in Jubilee Park!)

My main goal was to see the acclaimed new exhibit, Exposed: Voyeurism, Surveillance and the Camera, described in the brochure as “Shocking, witty and revealing,” EXPOSED really IS a disturbing exhibition. I particularly found the images of death upsetting, especially one of corpses from Nicaragua after the 1979 revolution, as I just read Barbara Kingsolver’s novel, Animal Dreams, which has a character who volunteers to share her agricultural knowledge with the farmers but is executed by the Contras. It was also odd to see the sexually explicit photos with a huge crowd of exhibit viewers. Crowded into one small cubicle to see one of the more graphic films, I felt like I was in a peep-show, which, likely, was the point!

Ishi’s Light (2003) by Anish Kapoor. Fibreglass and lacquer: Born India, lives in Britain.

“An egg-like structure opens to reveal a dark red interior. A column of light appears at the centre produced by reflections from the curved interior. ‘The column of light is like a virtual object,’ he has said. ‘It isn’t simply on the surface.’"

Crossing The Millennium Bridge towards The Tate Modern art gallery, which is located next to The Globe Theatre on Bankside.

Huge crowds were here today, many inside and many more lounging on the gallery lawn.

The Tate tower, from the cafe balcony.

The view from the balcony, over The Millennium Bridge towards St. Paul's Cathedral.

The exhibit rooms in The Tate Modern are huge, especially good for large works and installations.

The Snail [L’Escargot] (1953) Henri Matisse.

Gouache on paper, cut and pasted on paper mounted on canvas: France

The Acrobat and his Partner (1948) by Ferinand Léger.

Oil on Canvas: France & USA

Untitled (Bacchus) 2006-8 by Cy Twombly.

Acrylic on canvas, using a brush affixed to the end of a pole.

Carnival (1926) Fastnacht by Max Beckmann.

Oil on canvas: Germany & USA

Three Figures and Portrait (1975) by Francis Bacon.

Oil and pastel on canvas: Born Ireland, worked in Britain.

“The furious movement of the two principal figures is placed within a claustrophobic setting, watched over by the portrait, which gives this work a striking intensity. One—and possibly both—of the twisting figures has been identified as George Dyer, the artist’s lover, who committed suicide in 1971. The bird-like form in the foreground, with its snarling human mouth, has been linked to the Furies, the fearsome agent of divine judgement in Greek mythology.”

the pack [das rudel] (1969) by Joseph Beuys.

Volkswagen bus with twenty-four wooden sleds, each with felt, belts, flashlight, fat and stamped with Braunkruez [brown oil paint].

“Beuys described the pack as ‘an emergency object . . . in a state of emergency the Volkswagen is of limited usefulness , and more direct and primitive means must be taken to ensure survival.’ Each sledge carries a survival kit including a roll of felt, animal fat and a torch. The work relates directly to Beuys' plane crash in the Crimea when, he later claimed, he was rescued by a band of nomadic Tartars who saved his life by coating his body with fat and wrapping him in felt.”

Portrait of a Young Woman (1935) by Meredith Frampton.

Oil on canvas: Britain

Morning (1926) by Dod Procter.

Oil on Canvas: Britain

The Snack Bar (1930) by Edward Burra.

Oil on canvas: Britain.

“Whether it is in London, Paris or New York, Burra’s snack bar is the setting for a muted urban drama acted out under a harsh tungsten bulb. The light obscures a female figure in the street; is she a prostitute? Is the woman at the counter another? This suggestion is strengthened by the lascivious sideward glance of the barman and the suggestive curling of the pink ham he cuts. His attention goes unnoticed, however. The painting seems to speak to the perennial isolation of life in the city, which is exemplified by the mysterious, lonely male figure in the background.”

The Fig-Leaf (1922) by Francis Picabia.

Household paint on canvas

The upper reaches of The Turbine Hall. The Tate Modern occupies what was before The Bankside Power Station, which closed in 1981.

A kind tourist offered to take my pic at The Globe. It looks like I will not get to see Macbeth this summer as it ends this week.

The OXO building, rises above the Thames which, at low tide, reveals its sandy beach!

"London Pride" by Frank Dobson, at The National Theatre.

One of the dozens of decorative elephants available throughout the area, available to buy.

Sir Laurence Olivier as my favourite Shakespearean creation, Hamlet.

The London Eye rises above the entertainments of Jubilee Gardens. Hundreds enjoyed this area today in the bright sunshine--children on the carousel, buskers delighting the crowds for a few coins.

Big Ben and Westminster across the Thames. Didn't go there today; not enough time. Besides, there are too many anti-Israel protests this week and I wouldn't want to get caught up in trouble.

"This flagpole provided by the forest industry of British Columbia for the 1951 Festival of Britain was re-erected by the Provincial Government of British Columbia in 1977 to mark the Silver Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II."

Canada rises high above the crowds with this massive flagpole. Even minus a flag.

A busker in Jubilee Gardens. I overheard someone say that "the crowd is so large it MUST be a good act."

Charing Cross Station.

The river sweats

Oil and tar

The barges drift

With the turning tide

Red sails

Wide

To leeward, swing on the heavy spar.

The barges wash

Drifting logs

Down Greenwich reach

Past the Isle of Dogs.

-From "The Wasteland" by T. S. Eliot

The Queen's Walk alongside The Thames, at Jubilee Park. I could spend hours here watching the people and the entertainment. Family from the USA will be here soon, and this will be one of the many destinations for my son-in-law's kin.

The Hungerford Bridge across The Thames.

I am becoming very fond of London and will come back as often as I can afford to do so. It costs me £23 to get here and back to Bicester by train, and many museums and art galleries have free admission. Some tourist attractions--The London Eye and Westminister Abbey--can be quite expensive, but what better way is there for me to spend my paltry pension; besides, travel on the Underground is cheap, and the whole system is quite easy to use.

I look forward, then, to visiting again, and offering more photos and bits of impressions.