Friday 31 January 2014

The Wettest January?

Each January I realise that I still have quite a lot of holiday to take before the end of March..... Use it or lose it I think they say. This year is no exception and today and yesterday were the start of me 'using' these full days up.

The weather was not kind at all and although my BBC Weather app promised me rain after 4pm I'm sure it was with me on most of my 8.5 mile walk!

First stop after a walk from Liverpool Street Station was Fashion and Textile Museum, Bermondsey for the first day of their new exhibition Artist Textiles Picasso to Warhol. The wording on the exhibition leaflet states: 20th Century art in textiles and fashion from Cubism and Surrealism to Pop Art. This runs until 17th May 2014 and is another fabulous exhibition.  A change from the last few which have been mainly about frocks but here were some really good examples of textiles designed by extremely well known artists - Picasso and Warhol obviously but also Chagall, Dali, Henry Moore and Dufy...












The museum is not open on Sunday or Monday but opens the rest of the week 11am until 6pm.

Next stop was supposed to be The Crossbones Cemetery in Southwark but unfortunately Network Rail had other ideas and the road was shut (for a few days anyway) to all traffic. 

Further along Southwark Street and after lunch at the Menier Chocolate Factory I went in search of Hopton's Almshouses on Hopton Street. They were founded from a trust set up in 1752 and are on their original site.  They are amazing and you get a glimpse of them through the railings. I'm going to look out on Open Gardens weekend to see if this oasis in the city opens to the public.

 
 

By now the rain was really falling but I still managed a look at the Tate Modern Turbine Hall followed by a wander along the Thames and back over The Millennium Bridge...




Back on the North side of the Thames I made a very quick visit to see the new exhibition at the Guildhall Library by the Worshipful Company of Needlemakers, a return visit is a must!  Across the courtyard I went to see the new display downstairs at The Guildhall Art Gallery...some lovely work on display old and not so old which work very well together..

 
 
 
That leaves only another ten days to take and hopefully they will be sunny!