The Barber Institute of Fine Art - Birmingham University Campus

I must firstly say a big thank you to Mr Andrew Davies, Press & Marketing Officer at The Barber Institute of Fine Arts for granting me access to the Gallery before it opened to the general public in order to take my photographs.  I was shown around the Gallery by a nice Security Guard called Pete who told me a little about the history of the Barber Institute and how they came about their collection.

A brief history of the Institute reads like a modern day local boy done good.  William Henry was a highly successful solicitor and developer.  This enabled him to retire at an early age (mid thirties).  Along with his Wife, Dame Martha Constance Hattie Barber, they drew up plans to contribute to the City of Birmingham in the form of the Institute.  Henry, as he was always known, died before the plans came into being and it was left to his Widow to ensure the completion the plan.  She too was to die shortly after the Institute was founded in 1932.  The terms of the Barber Will was that their entire collection and fortune was bequeathed to the Trustees to ensure the building was complete and the art collection expanded.

Fast forward 80 years and you have a beautiful intimate gallery set in the heart of a thriving University.  The collection is not only a lovely way for members of the public to appreciate art it also forms an important part of the University's Art courses.  This is a reason why the collection spans a great time period, this gives all the students studing the subject of Art the chance to see works up close and to learn from them, a wonderful legacy from the Barber's.

For more information about the Institute please see the Official Website

Now, onto the paintings themselves.  As you will see for yourself below, they house some lovely paintings.  I have included a photo of the accompanying painting description so, if you wish, you can research the painting further.  Some of the photos may have slight glare/reflection and for that I am sorry.

Please view my Flickr Account for the rest of my photos from the Barber Institute as well as other Galleries I have visited.

Proms In The Park - Preston Guild

Once every 20 years Preston, my home City, dusts off the cobwebs and has a big party to celebrate "Preston Guild". They have street processions and a whole host of events.  This year they have kicked out the boat (onto the River Ribble) and arranged a spectacular Proms in Avenham Park.

They have not skimped on the acts, oh no, no second tier performers for Preston.  They have gone straight for the top and secured Jose Carreras, yes he of Three Tenors fame!  And they did not stop there, they then went and got the lovely Welsh lady Katherine Jenkins.  Together on stage for the first time!  They will both have individual sets then perform a "World Exclusive Duet"!!!!

Tickets for the event were a little overpriced at £65 but I very much doubt I will get the chance to see these two superstars of the music world.  The weather today is a little wet so I will be packing my umbrella.  I am going with my Mum and she is bringing the blankets and cushions, I am bringing the food & drink.

Preston Guild Official Website

Katherine Jenkins Official Website

Jose Carreras Website

A Day of Art In Glasgow

I had never been to Glasgow before last Saturday (25 Aug).  Whilst researching the art galleries of the UK I found that there is quite a lot to see in the Scottish city.  So, I booked myself a train ticket and off I went for the day.

My first gallery was the Burrell Collection situated within Pollok Park.  This is not a large gallery, nor is it large on paintings but oh my, what they do have are fantastic.

A friend of mine is a huge fan of Degas and I have told her she must visit this collection, there are lots of Degas to admire.  Other artists such as Cezanne, Renoir and Sisley are displayed too.

The most impressive part about the painting section of the gallery (upstairs in the Mezzanine) was that each room was small with large comfy leather sofas in the middle of the room so you could sit down and view the paintings from a reasonable distance but not lose focus on the painting itself. 

The Ground Floor contained works of pottery, textiles and armour and was also worth a look.  There is a nice cafe where I stopped for a bowl of homemade soup and a lovely fresh salad.  the prices were very reasonable too, £7.75 including free water.

Here is the official website

My second galley was the Kelvingrove and again I was very impressed with what I found there.

This is one of the major museums in the city and whilst it was busy on a Saturday afternoon there was plenty of room for everyone to take their time over the items on display.

Again the paintings on display were just what I wanted, Monet, Sisley, Renoir etc were all here.  I also found myself a new artist who has a painting displayed.  Rachel Ruysch, a Dutch painter from the 17-18th Century.  Her painting is called Flowers in a Terracotta Vase (last picture on this page).  It was such a beautiful painting, even surrounded by Monet & other famous artists.  I took a photo and have printed it on to photo quality paper and framed it.

I also found a few Scottish artists who I knew nothing about, but, that was another point of my visit, learn something new, discover new people and their art.

I took lots of photos and I have uploaded the best to my Flickr account for you all to view.

Next stop is Birmingham on Saturday 8 September.

RAF Orchestra @ Bridgewater Hall

Now that I am back home for an extended period of time (no tennis to dash off to) I decided to have a look at the upcoming concerts at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester.

The RAF in Concert seem to continue the spirit of Britain that has been flying high this summer so I thought it would be worth a look.  I am going to presume that it will be very similar to the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic concert I went to at the Preston Guild Hall when I watched a tribute to John Williams (please see my Review here).

The concert is not until October but it is almost sold out which is a good sign.  I'll write a review once I get back from the concert.

My Latest Update

I was lucky enough to be picked as a Games Maker for the Olympic Games so I have been away in London.

Whilst I was there I managed to fit in a few visits to art galleries.

My first trip was to the Courtauld Gallery within Somerset House. - http://www.courtauld.ac.uk/gallery/index.shtml

What a beautiful, intimate gallery this is.  I went on a Friday and it was very quiet, at times I was the only person in the room!  The paintings are gorgeous and I highly recommend that you pay a visit.  Entrance was £6.

The second gallery was at the Royal Academy of Arts.  I went with a friend to see an exhibition from the Sterling & Francine Clark Art Institute - http://clarkart.edu/museum/

Again this was a beautiful collection of Impressionist art and whilst it was small, it was perfect enough so that you could study each painting in detail and read the descriptive placard to gain further knowledge.  I enjoyed this so much that I purchased the catalogue.

Unfortunately you was unable to take pictures in the Royal Academy but you could at the Courtauld.  I have a Flickr Pro account where I store all my photos and you can view them here:

www.flickr.com/photos/clare2904

You will see photos taken from my stay at the Olympic Village during my time as a Games Maker.

On my final day in London I went on a Thames Boat trip and you can also view photos taken from the boat.

A highlight of my trip was Richmond Park.  I went with a friend hoping to see the wild Deer that live in the grounds.  As you will see from the photos we were very lucky as we saw a group of 3 adult Deer in the fern and they came out into the open so we could see them and take photos.  Later on we found the younger Deer out in the open parkland, sitting about and enjoying the sunshine.

I hope you enjoy :-)

Claude Monet & Other Plans

In May & June I went to Paris for the French Open at Roland Garros. I had a few spare days so I planned to visit the Musee de L'Orangrie which houses 8 large paintings of Monet water lillies. A friend of mine adores this museum and being a fan of Monet I just had to visit.

All I can say is that if you want to see some beautiful paintings by Monet, Renoir and Cezanne then this is the place for you. The best things about this museum is that it is not full of tourists so the wait to enter was short and the galleries are not packed with people.

If you ever go to Paris, please visit this museum - http://www.musee-orangerie.fr/

I loved it so much that when I was sitting looking at the Monet's I made myself a promise that I would visit Giverny and Monet's Garden & House. Once I was back in the UK I had a look around a few websites and found all I needed to book our trip. We are going for 5 days in September and I cannot wait. For futher information see this website - giverny-monet.com

My upcoming trip to France made me think about the most beautiful painting I have ever seen, The Water Lily Pond So I have booked myself an early train to London in September and I am going to spend the day looking at this most beautiful painting.

Now that the art bug has well and truly bitten me I started to think of places I have never been before. I would say I am more appreciative of Impressionist art, I certainly do not like "Modern" so I had a little look online.

I have decided to visit "bonny Scotland" and have day trips to both Glasgow & Edinburgh. During my visit to Glasgow I will go to the Burrell Collection as well as the Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum I am sure I will have a very interesting day out.

In Edinburgh I will visit only one gallery and that is the National Gallery. There are a few exhibitions going on whilst I am there so I am sure I will need the full day to see all that I want here.

In August I am visiting the Tate Liverpool to see an exhibition called Turner, Monet & Twombly. This looks to be very interesting and I am looking forward to the day I go, with my Mum :-)

Until then I will endeavour to keep this site up date with my goings-on.

Apologies & Catch-up

Sorry, sorry, sorry.

I have been so busy recently travelling around watching tennis that my "art & film" hobbies have taken a bit of a back seat.

Fear not though, I have been watching films via Lovefilm and booked myself a few little trips (see my next post).

A selection of films I have watched:

Dr Strangelove - Sellers at his best
The Long Goodbye - Monica & Ross' Dad gives a great performance
The Seventh Seal - Not easy to describe
Last Tango In Paris - Very interesting use of butter
The Sorrow & The Pity - Real documentary of wartime France
Flatliners - Would you?
The Mummy (1932) - This is what happens when you don't do as you are told!
The Crimson Rivers - Good film
Life Is Beautiful - A film of Fatherly love to the limit
Annie Hall - A must-see
Platoon - Hard hitting film
The Apartment - How to get on the right side of the boss
The Odd Couple - How not to share an apartment
Metropolis - A film ahead of its time
Deliverance - Fantastic film that you must watch
Kiki's Delivery Service - A heart warming film for all ages
Jean De Florette & Manon Des Sources - Greed always has a price
Houseboat - What a great way to live
Cape Fear - Bloody hell Gergory, just shoot him already!
Raging Bull - De Niro as a prize fighter
12 Angry Men - Wonderful film
The 400 Blows - Sometimes all they need is a little attention
Fistful Of Dollars - Hello Mr Man With No Name
Copycat - How easy is it to copy a killer
Witness For The Prosecution - Great film with a twist
The Son's Room - Very moving film
Repo Man - Very 80's
Au Revoir Les Enfants - Another very moving film
A Few Dollars More - Clint is back for more action
Days Of Wine & Roses - Epic tale of excess
Dogville - Very strange set
Pom Poko - Don't mess with the racoons
Beyond A Reasonable Doubt - Keep copies of everything

I have also made a few trips to theatre etc.

I went to London in April and paid a visit to The Royal Opera House where I watched 3 short ballets (Polyphonia / Sweet Violets / Carbon Life) I enjoyed the first, the second was pretty decent too, the third was forgetable as well as painful on my eardrums.

Back home in Preston I went to the local Odeon to watch Rigoletto relayed live from the ROH. Excellent opera with great performances from all involved.

I subscribe to a service called SeeFilmFirst and every now and then I receive free offers to concerts or shows. I was offered a ticket to the Opera House in Manchester to watch a Musical called Vampirette. I had nothing better to do on the Saturday afternoon so I went along. What a riot! Great music and songs as well as story (based on the Addams family) They had the whole audience up dancing at the end.

Brass Festival at Bridgewater Hall was a whole day long event I attended. Whilst it was good I had seen a few of the bands before but at least it helped me decide who I like.

La Fille mai Gardee was another show watched at the cinema. This was a very colourful affair with a funny storyline. How they never got tangles up during the Maypole dance I'll never know.

Jools Holland came to Preston in May so I dragged my partner along for a night of live music. Jools and the band did not disappoint playing their jazzy music that had people dancing in their seats.