Last Saturday, we planned the quintessential London day. We took a stroll down Oxford Street, had lunch in Soho and spent an afternoon watching Just for One Day: The Live Aid Musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre.
It was a lovely day, the perfect day for wandering about, and it was thankfully cooler than it had been earlier in the summer.
I love hometown tourism, the idea that we don't need to travel far to discover hidden treasures. Despite my lofty aspirations, it took me far too long to visit Crossness Pumping Station, which is practically located in my back garden.
The best thing about visiting the East End is that it is a haven for street art and you will always spot new art on each visit.
On a crisp January afternoon, Stephen and I ventured to the Design Museum in Kensington to explore "The World of Tim Burton" exhibition.
Chasing bright lights and illuminations has become one of my favourite winter pastimes in England as we seek to stave off the long, grey winter. Following on from our adventures at the Gravesham Light Festival, the Tonbridge Winter Light Trail and the Canary Wharf Winter Lights, we decided to head off to the "Lost In Light" exhibition in Shoreditch this year.
"Lost in Light" is an immersive digital art exhibition that invites visitors to step into a world where light, sound and technology converge to create an otherworldly experience. Curated by the innovative collective Squidsoup, the exhibition explores the boundaries of perception and interaction, offering a series of stunning installations. This ethereal, multi-sensory adventure blurs the lines between art and technology, providing an experience that is both introspective and awe-inspiring. The venue was previously an illegal rave venue in Shoreditch.
There were five rooms, each with a different theme and vision, and each kitted out with bean bags and places to sit so that visitors could spend as long as they wanted, just gazing at the lights and relaxing. It was a very trippy experience!
"A circle is a symbol of completeness, wholeness, the centre… but it can also be a boundary"
This room featured a series of glowing, elevated orbs arranged in a circle around people lying on beanbags in the centre.
"Infinite presents a spatial orchestra, constructed from a composition of notes scattered around the space in illuminated clusters of light"
This was one of my favourite rooms. The wall murals were impressive, the shiny floor reflected the lights,and there were distorted mirrors on the walls too.
We went into this room twice and it was a lot of fun. It was a triptych of three suspended cubes of pulsating lights that were illuminated at different times, the effect of which was a different landscape every few seconds. Stephen lay on a beanbag beneath the closest cube and had to practically be dragged out of there.
Sola creates a shifting, radiant environment that evokes the energy and movement of the sun itself. It felt very 1989 watching what looked like a wall of televisions.
"Submergence places us directly inside a matrix, reminiscent of the middle of an exploding screen".
This room was huge and proved to be most people’s favourite.
"Lost In Light" is an fantastic experience and photos cannot do justice to the synergic effects of the pulsating lights, electronic music and overall ambiance. Highly recommended.
The exhibition is running until 2 February 2025 and tickets are £12.50 plus booking fee for adults.
118 Curtain Road
Shoreditch
EC2A 3AY
Over the course of a single day in December 1992, photographer Kevin Davies took a series of photos of David Bowie for his upcoming album Black Tie White Noise.
While some of the photos were approved by Bowie for press use, most of the original rolls of film, contact sheets and prints were put into storage where they remained until 2020.
Discovering over 400 film negatives in pristine condition, Davies realised the cultural significance of the collection and worked with Bowie biographer Dylan Jones to bring the collection to the public.
We felt quite privileged to see the David Bowie - A London Day exhibition in the Fitzrovia Chapel. The chapel is beautiful and provided a perfect backdrop for the collection of prints.
The chapel features stunning marble flooring, intricate gold leaf detailing, and spectacular stained glass windows, including the remarkable east window, which bathes the space in colorful light.
The ceiling is adorned with exquisite mosaics, inspired by the Byzantine style, making the chapel a masterpiece of art and architecture.
Fitzrovia Chapel was completed in 1891 as part of the Middlesex Hospital. Today the chapel is all that remains of the hospital complex, a tiny red brick building nestled in amongst modern apartment and commercial buildings. After the hospital was closed in 2005 and subsequently demolished, Fitzrovia Chapel underwent a careful restoration which completed in 2015.
We visited the exhibition in its final week in March but the chapel is open to the public and provides details of upcoming exhibitions on their website.
Fitzrovia Chapel
Fitzroy Place
2 Pearson Square
London W1T 3BF
April has been quite a month! I had eye surgery on the 2nd April and it took much longer to recover than I'd anticipated. I couldn't exercise for a week afterwards, not that I'd have wanted to, and I'm still adjusting to the changes in my near-and-middle-distance vision. I'll have to see how it affects my photography but haven't taken my camera out yet.
Just when I was settling down, I fell down the stairs and twisted my ankle badly. I'm recovering now but have agreed that April was not the most auspicious month. Here's to more adventures in the months to come!
I found myself in Kentish Town this week with a moment to spare. The journey from Dartford had somehow worked out to be half an hour shorter than expected and my friends' taxi was going to arrive half an hour later than anticipated.
I decided to potter about, take some photos and just think for a minute. It was a bitterly cold afternoon and I was pleased I'd brought along my winter parka (known fondly as the 'walking duvet cover').
I thought to myself how much I love the word 'Kentish'. My aunt lived in Kentish Town in the late-80s to late-00s and I spent my gap year here helping out as au pair for my cousins.
Our reason for meeting in Kentish Town on this cold March day was to see Kaizers Orchestra, the band we'd travelled to Norway in December to see. They were so good! We had a delicious meal at Bonga Korean Restaurant before the concert.
I've been wondering if there is something in the stars causing travel disruptions this year. Our trip to Italy in April was cancelled because the airline cancelled our flights, and our road trip from Milan to Annecy to Geneva in September was also cancelled because my friend can no longer make it over from South Africa. I'm in the beginning stages of planning a trip to Slovenia instead in September. Please drop a link below if you've blogged about Slovenia!
The good news is that cancelled trips mean I'll finally be able to tell you about all the things I meant to blog about last year when a special project at work stole five months of my life. I hope. As Allen Saunders said (and John Lennon made famous) "life is what happens to us while we are making other plans".
This is certainly true of the past month. Work commitments and an old whiplash injury have left me slightly out of sorts. I asked in my last post how often I should post here and realised the answer is "when life allows it". I'll aim for 2-3 times a month, which seemed to work with most people - thank you for your feedback!
We went up to Canary Wharf last Saturday night to see the famous Winter Lights Festival. It was such a fun night and we got to see most of the lights before the cold and sore legs sent us packing for the train home. We enjoyed a superb meal at the Ivy beforehand. They have an unbeatable deal at the moment offering two courses for £19.17.
I've been a fan of Morph since I was a little girl and knew that I absolutely needed to visit Morph's Epic Art Adventure in London. It's been ages since I explored an art trail in London and what better excuse to meet up with some friends for a rather rainy wander and lunch?
Inspired by the Royal Guards and located in Hays Galleria
One can never take too many photos of this view.
Inspired by London's parks, which are splendid in summer. Located on the Queen's Walk.
Located on the Queen's Walk, just after the HMS Belfast. Inspired by Morpheus, the god of dreams, and looking just like Morph looked in his humble beginnings.
Featuring characters from Piñata Smashlings and located just outside Groucho.
Harking back to the marvellous Books About Town book benches trail, Rik's design references the trail map for Morph's Epic Art Adventures in London.
Wearing the artist's iconic Yellow Braille suit, this Morph is a proud visually impaired character. His cane symbolises Morph's independence to walk the trail with his trusted tool. The Blind Braille Artist uses black on yellow as it offers the highest contrast for visually impaired people.
Martin was born with cerebral palsy and has been a lifelong wheelchair user; John is his brother. They used their shared experience to talk to young wheelchair users and their messages about inclusivity feature on this Morph located on the Queens Walk.
Inspired by the original Pearly King, Henry Croft, a 19th century orphan who raised money for charity by wearing clothes decorated with mother-of-pearl buttons.
Inspired by Biddulph's picture book Odd Dog Out about a daschund who wears a rainbow scarf.
Never get tired of this view...
... or of this place and its connections to Oliver Twist.
Located in a shop window in Shad Thames, this mini Morph featured all the favourite songs sung by pupils of Riverside Primary School.
It began to pour with rain when we reached Butler's Wharf, so we stopped for a well-earned lunch at Butler's Wharf Chop House. We sat before an open window, watching the rain fall over Tower Bridge, and were given blankets to help warm us up. Summer in England!
Located on the More London walkway back to London Bridge, this Morph celebrates London's diversity.
Located in London Bridge Station, Cactus Morph was inspired by a visit to the Princess of Wales Conservatory at Kew Gardens.
We spotted the new art installation by Mark Titchner. The work features three stainless steel domes. The one pictured above has the words “One foot in front of the other”. The other two say “Only the first step is difficult”, and “The distance means nothing”.
Titchner's art installation can be seen in the background, looking past the iconic flower stall at London Bridge Station.
Our final Morph siting was the Our School mini Morph representing all the different nationalities at Grange Primary School.
The epic adventure is over now and the Morphs will be auctioned on 12 September and online to raise money for Whizz Kids, the UK’s leading charity for young wheelchair users. Bids start at £3,000 per statue so here's hoping they raise a massive amount of money!
