Cathy's Art Diary

Interesting exhibition at the Museum of London Docklands looking at mudlarking and the objects uncovered. The first section looked at how the found objects can tell the story of London and its people. The items were grouped together into themed displays. At first, I thought these would be chronological but they then became more subject orientated. They were all set into a model of the foreshore. The gave glimpses of past lives. They were shown with contemporary art inspired by mudlarked finds. The second section looked at the practice of mudlarking, how people find objects, identify them and catalogue them.   I liked the works shown in a display resembling museum storage. There was a slightly random but interesting section on an area of the Thames around London Bridge renowned for its Roman finds. The exhibition then ended with an installation of the Moon by Luke Jerram and soundscape by Felix Taylor to represent the tides. I’d seen the Jerram piece before but it made quite ...

Fun public sculpture trail around London of decorated eggs to mark the Easter holidays. The trail was organised by Elephant Family to raise money for their conservation work and had a total of 147 eggs scattered around the city. It was accompanied by a good app on which you could log your egg sightings and learn more about the designers and sponsors. The map was a bit difficult to read at times particularly in locations on various levels but that adds to the sense of it being a hunt. The eggs seem quite delicate as quite a few had been taken away for repair. I collected 46 mainly over four sites Covent Garden, Marylebone, Battersea Power Station and Canary Wharf. I’d hoped to do Sloane Street which seemed to be packed with them but I ran out of time. It was a good excuse to have a wander round these areas and some of them took you into strange locations like pharmacies and hotels. I think my favourite was this shell egg in Covent Garden by interior design company Campbell-Rey ...

Effective new public sculpture at Canary Wharf made by artist/architect duo Jason Klimoski & Lesley Chang (StudioKCA). The work is a large leaping whale made from plastics from the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean sourced by the Hawaiian Wildlife Fund. It looks very effective in emerging from Wood Wharf and dominating the space. I love the fact the concert base is made from old coffee grounds from cafes around Canary Wharf but I would question the environmental impact of bringing the waste plastic from across the Atlantic. The gesture might have been more meaningful if more local waste plastic had been used, maybe from the nearby Thames? Permanent but new

Comprehensive online lecture from the National Gallery looking at the life and work of Velazquez. Jo Walton led us clearly through the subject with excellent illustrations and an emphasis on works owned by the gallery itself. She started with his early street work which I love and talked about the symbolism in it as well as emphasising the delightful still-lives he included. We then talked about how he went to Madrid and became the court painter and we looked in detail at the work he did for them. Alongside this we looked at his mythical and historic works as well, of course, looking in more detail at the Rokeby Venus and Las Meninas.

Interesting online lecture from the Victorian and Albert Museum introducing their exhibition on the jeweller, Cartier. Helen Molesworth, Senior Jewellery Curator and Rachel Garrahan, a project curator and writer for Vogue, did a fun double act to guide us around the themes of the show and to point out key pieces. They outlined the early history of the firm and how it was developed by the grandsons of the founder outlining the roles each of them took. Then looked at the design choices of company was well as how they worked with clients to develop new pieces. They finished by showing us some of the 18 tiaras which close the show. I haven’t manage to go to the show yet but its definitely on the list and I can’t wait!

Charming exhibition at the national Gallery highlighting two cartoons for frescos by the Carracci Brothers. These two preparatory cartoons by Anibale and Agostino Carracci were used in the decoration of the Palazzo Farnese is Rome and had been owned by Joshua Reynolds before being acquired for the National Gallery. The show displayed them at eye level although the frescos were for a ceiling and accompanied them with good explanations of the art of fresco explaining how they were cut into sections for use but have been stuck back together. They were delicate drawings and I particularly liked a dog in one which seemed quizzical about what was happening to his pack leader. Closes 6 July 2025    

Fascinating online lecture from the London Art History Society looking in detail at a 14th century psalter. Michelle Brown from the British Library introduced us to his amazing work commissioned by Sir Geoffrey Luttrell which includes unique illustrations in the margins reflecting the life and issues of the time. She took us through what a psalter was and how it would have been used by a family before taking us briefly though the history of the Luttrell’s and Geoffrey’s place in the events leading to the Wars of the Roses. We then looked in detail at the illustrations, what they meant and how they reflected the family. She concluded that the work shows a world in flux in troubled times.