V&A membership: Pearls; Club to Catwalk

Today I had an interview at the Royal College of Music for my work placement at the beginning of 2014 so I will be working there for a few weeks along with a Bridal company based in Bristol so I'm super excited!
Whilst I was in Kensington I decided to go to the V&A for the last time in 2013 to abuse my membership as I'm going to the Isle of Wight tomorrow for Christmas and to work for a few weeks.

The V&A membership is fantastic, especially for students who live in London. The standard price is £64 which is still great value but if you are under 26, for £35 you get unlimited entry to all V&A exhibitions, a discount in the shop, the V&A magazine (I think it's seasonal) and access to the members room which is very exciting! I personally think it is such a good deal as you need to go to approximately 4 exhibitions to get your money's worth. My boyfriend got me mine as a gift last Christmas - such a great present!

Buy yours here.

Club to Catwalk
Today I went to the Club to Catwalk exhibition which is open until February 16th 2014 and a student ticket is £5 which I think is a good price for what it is. The exhibition shows London fashion from 1980s showcasing many innovative designers. I partly love going to exhibitions to learn about all the talented artists and designers out there and I personally think this is the best way to learn. Some of my favourite designers featured were: Chrissie Walsh, Michiko Koshino, Willy Brown, John Galliano, Anthony Prince, Zandra Rhodes, Pam Hogg and Georgina Godley.

John Galliano - The Lucid Game Collection

Georgina Godley - 1986
1987 Vogue: 'Stretch is fashion's dynamic force, a challenge for designer and wearer alike... It's the sexiest dressing yet, hiding the body and at the same time showing its every movement.'

Chrissie Walsh - inspired by the Ballet Russes

Willie Brown

Pearls
I also went to the Pearls exhibition which is on until January and is £7 for a student. I really enjoyed learning about the process behind harvesting natural pearls and how the beauty of them is that they are simply natural and need no further enhancements unlike any other jewel.

At university I study costume design and have been studying visual culture as well in my past term. So particularly when studying period costume I do a lot of looking at paintings and thinking about symbolism so I particularly liked learning about what the pearls symbolised in different centuries. For example, in medieval times they symbolised perfection and purity. In the 'Portrait of an unknown lady' (shown below) from 1595 the pearls symbolise fertility. In Victorian times Queen Victoria was described to be having a 'gladiatorial contest with jewels displayed as weapons.' and in 1861 she wore black mourning pearls upon Albert's death.

Portrait of an Unknown lady
1595

I didn't get around to seeing Masterpieces of Chinese paintings but that in open until January 19th so I intend to go in the new year. I am also very excited to see future exhibitions such as 'The Jameel Prize 3' (an art prize for contemporary artists inspired by Islamic traditions) which opens tomorrow and 'Wedding Dresses 1775 - 2014' which opens in May. I think once I do my placement at the Bridal company I will be even more excited for this one! Who doesn't love wedding dresses?!

Hermes Exhibtion - Saatchi Gallery

A few days ago I was lucky enough to get to go to the Hermes exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery (part of the Festival des Metiers) with my friend Xiwen which was just fantastic.

That's something I absolutely love about living in London - just being able to pop over and see and exhibition. When living on the Isle of Wight my Mum was very good at organising days out in London involving some sort of gallery/museum and/or theatre. Although this was great, we'd have to plan weeks or months in advance so living in London means I have such a privilege of being able to wake up and think: I think I'll go to the Saatchi Gallery today! It's great!

Anyway, the exhibition was free (I still can't believe it!) but was unfortunately only on for a week so I can't urge you to go and see it but I took lots of photos!
It was a very interactive exhibition that gave the opportunity to witness the Hermes artisans crafting their famous masterpieces including the Hermes silk scarf, handbags, watches etc. They even talked through the process of what they were doing via a French-English translator which felt very authentic! It really gave me the chance to really appreciate the amount of time, precision, talent and patience that goes into each and every piece. I began to understand why they're so expensive.

Watch making

Holes are made in the gold then
the Diamonds are place on and
then wrapped in gold using
tweezers. No glue is used.

Diamonds - we were allowed to look through the telescope
and see how tiny and fiddly it looks!

Hand knitted jersey t-shirts

Hermes bags -
Demonstrating how to sew leather.

Hand sewing Hermes ties

Hermes Silk Scarves

The printing process -
Up to 46 (I think?) different printing screens
per colour can be used

Silk Screen Printing

Breaking down

The silk is scratched at with small tools to create a more
textured effect.

Les Miserables Costume and Props Exhibition

 Today my Mother was lovely enough to take us over to Portsmouth to see the Les Miserable Exhibition  at the Mary Rose in Portsmouth. The beginning scenes from Les Mis were filmed in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard with HMS Victory and Portsmouth Naval Base both being used as locations in the film.

Costumes designed by Paco Delgado and worn by the main actors and actresses as well as the extras were on display in the exhibition. Seeing the costumes in the film is great but there is something special about seeing the costumes in the flesh that encourages you to really appreciate the fabrics, colours and amount of detail that goes into every costume. Well worth a visit!

 

Dancing around Duchamp

Nude descending a staircase (1912)
One of my favourite pieces from the
exhibition

I recently went to see the The Bride and the Bachelors: Duchamp with Cage, Cunningham, Rauschenberg and Johns exhibition at the Barbican and it definitely is up the top (along with with the Hollywood Costume exhibition at the V&A [2012/13]!) as one of my favourite exhibitions.

I was a little unsure as to what the exhibition would be about when I booked it. I just new that it combined art, music and dance which won me over and I wasn't disappointed!

Fountain (1917)

The exhibition showcases Duchamp's influence on Cage, Cunningham, Rauschenberg and Johns and includes Duchamp's most influential work including 'Bicycle Wheel' from 1913 and 'Fountain' from 1917. This is complimented by the paintings, sculpture, stage sets and musical notations from Cage, Cunningham, Rauschenberg and Johns and furthermore, live contemporary dance performances and a two self playing pianos of Cage's 'prepared piano' where the sound is altered by placing objects between the strings.

I really admired the way the exhibition linked performance, art and music together. And also the way it highlights how Duchamp questions 'What is art?' really makes you think. I love the idea that anything can be art and anyone can be an artist and use it as a way to express themselves.

All in all a fantastic exhibition and well worth the money. Plus if you're aged between 16-25 sign up to the Barbican's 'freeB' membership here and it's 2 for 1 on a Monday!


The Dancing around Duchamp season is on until June which includes other events as well as the exhibition.