London Therapy Part Three

It was good to visit Tate Britain once more. Tate Britain is not in central London, so takes a bit more effort to get to, also, the day we visited, it was raining buckets. We really enjoyed the Van Gogh Exhibition, it really fitted in well with my interests in healing and wellbeing, it was very therapeutic.

I had intended to visit the Saatchi Gallery, but unfortunately it was closed, so I ended up in the Barbican instead. The Barbican is in the middle of the City of London which is busy and noisy. The Barbican itself is an oasis of calm and inspiration with a soothing inside of high ceilings, comfy sofas and yellow lighting and outside with water features, greenery and lots of outside seating.

I walked from the Barbican to St Paul's Tube Station and was treated to extra art therapy in the Guildhall Art Gallery. I was particularly taken with the painting of a starey eyed woman with an axe (Clytemnestra by Collier). If you think you're having a bad day ...

The Greatness of the Everyday

I have written various poems about the seasons over the years starting with one of my early childhood poems 'Out of the Door'. From then I wrote a piece for an early PowerPoint presentation in the late 1990s called 'Through the seasons' which eventually became four seasonal haiku. Amy has also written and illustrated a seasonal poem called 'What do people do', which has been used as a YouTube video to accompany my song 'For What I Am'. Some of my short poems have developed to encompass the seasons; poems like 'Nature' and 'It must be the weather'. 'The Greatness of the everyday' was originally one verse about Spring, but I have since found something good to say about summer, autumn and winter too.

Art Therapy London

After being at a very low psychological ebb for much of 2018 I found that the arts could be a great comfort in times of stress. I had, since 2016, felt that we were drifting away from what a rich cultural life could do for our well being. I have made a very big effort to get more culture into our life and visiting more art galleries has been an important part of that. I feel that the slow art idea is a branch of mindfulness. It is just slowing down and appreciating art, taking time, at least five minutes, to really look at a painting, taking in shapes, colour, brush strokes, technique. Art and culture can help you appreciate your own life more and the struggles you face. Below are reviews of six of the best cultural centres in London.

South Bank Centre

The South Bank Centre is one of my favourite places in London. Often on one of our London walks our visit will start or end in the Royal Festival Hall. There is often entertainment going on in the hall, often music and exhibitions, there is also a welcoming bar and cafe area. The South Bank Centre also includes the Hayward Gallery, the National Theatre and the National Film Theatre which are also well worth a visit. It is also near an attractive stretch of the River Thames.

Tate Modern

Another favourite place in London is the Tate Modern near to other lovely London landmarks; St. Paul's Cathedral, the Globe Theatre and the Millennium Bridge. The building itself is very impressive, a disused power station. Modern art is often criticised as being pointless and not making sense. In the Tate Modern are very impressive paintings and thought provoking sculptures. I really like the surrealists and a visit generally takes in these and other favourites.

Tate Britain

 

I don't visit Tate Britain as much as the other galleries on my list. It is a bit more out of my way, in Pimlico, but still near a pleasant part of the river. It is an impressive place with great art by British Artists and the newer Turner wing. It is an excellent place to practice slow art appreciation.

National Gallery

The National Gallery sits facing Trafalgar Square and is also handy for Leicester Square, Theatreland and China Town. It is probably my favourite gallery in terms of the pictures held here. I love viewing Vincent Van Gogh and the Impressionists in particularly. It also features the National Cafe where you can sit comfortably and enjoy a latte and a muffin.

National Portrait Gallery

 

 

Next to the National Gallery is its smaller sibling, the National Portrait Gallery. Paintings we really enjoy in this gallery are the Tudors; there are some beautiful portraits of Elizabeth I here. Last time we visited we were also taken with the large Ed Sheran and Darcey Bussell paintings. There was also a small photographic exhibition which featured three of my favourite female pop starts; Kate Bush, Annie Lennox and Debbie Harry.

Barbican

The Barbican Centre is an artwork in itself, an important example of Brutalist architecture from the 1980s. The centre itself contains a conservatory, a theatre, a library and a cafe overlooking water. Outside the centre is the equally impressive residential area, flats as picturesque as other great Brutalist buildings I have visited; the Alexandra and Ainsworth Estate and 2 Willow Road.

Webflower Girls

My WebFlower WebGraphic project never saw the light of day. It was an intermediary project in between the SubVerse Poetry Tea Room and the Star Heart Cafe. I created many images and I am still using them in my stories, my greeting cards and a montage of them can be found on 'Kaleidoscope Girl,' a LornaJHart music video on YouTube. Above and below are some images from the WebFlower web pages I created at the time.

       

London Interrupted Part Four

My last London Interrupted excursion involved a walk from Regent's Park to Trafalgar Square to visit three different cafes.

The first Cafe has been on my list to visit for a long while, since March 2017​; The RIBA Cafe. RIBA was a suitably impressive building, considering that RIBA stands for the Royal Institute of British Architects, with airy rooms and a luxurious staircase. There was an interesting exhibition going on, involving Hastings Pier and the Honest Shop, featuring honest consumables. The Cafe itself was small and inexpensive, but also felt cosy and friendly.

It was quite a walk, for me, from Portland Place via Regent's Street, Oxford Street and Soho Square to Foyles' Book Shop and the ghost of Ray's Jazz Cafe.

I remember drinking coffee in Ray's Jazz Cafe years ago, it was quite pleasant but now long gone. Today the music collection is on Floor Two and the cafe is on Floor Five. I have visited the new cafe before, it was big and noisy. I decided to press on down Charing Cross Road to St Martin's in the Field and the Cafe in the Crypt.

The Crypt Cafe was an enjoyable experience, even though it was a bit busy and noisy. The environment was suitably Gothic and crypt-like, with high arches and soft, yellow lighting. I enjoyed my coffee and my mindful musings and my look at St Martin's Church which I don't usually pay much attention to.

I finished my walk at Trafalgar Square wishing I was wearing different shoes, more suitable for London Streets and London Rain.