Olympics - London Empty and Hasting & Margate eateries pay tribute to the Olympics

 Olympic London empty
 I had been dreading the Olympics.  Living next to the Olympic park I thought I would not be able to leave my house.  My road had half it's parking removed on one side with double yellow lines, so I thought it would be full on Olympic traffic even though its a very quiet back street.   Not only is my road empty - so is the whole of London - quiet eerie.  Not only have tourists stayed away, Londoners seem to have left town.  The little left residents parking in my street is virtually empty as is the rest of the streets around me.   By making sure I avoided intersections with new restricted or no turns I have been enoying the empty roads going into the Tate and the South Bank several times.  I feel sorry for shops and taxis etc as they are all losing business.  My friend John has just told me that places like Leicester Square are very busy - perhaps the Prime Minister's plea to everyone to now come to London rather than stay away, is beginning to work - I just checked the BBC traffic camera between me and the grounds - the main Olympic route the A12 is still pretty clear.

Hastings - The little tearoom next to Hastings Arts Forum (used to be called Jam Jars I think with a window full of jars you could add to)  runs a knitting club on Thursday evennings.  The kintting group have knitted a wonderfully fun and funny Olympics window display for the cafe.   Look out for the pink and white chairs in front of the pavement, opposite the new seafront restaurant, Azure) if you want to pop in for a chat with the friendly owner and locals.

Bet the ridiculous Olympic logo police don't know about these - Couldn't get rid of the reflections

Gymnastics amongst the rings.

Even Margates' Turner Contemporary Gallery has given itself an Olympics paint job.

Yes I know you can barely see it - the pink stripes on the gallery at the back - but I was enjoying my Fish and Chips too much to move.

Tracy Emin - 'She Lay Beneath the Sea' at Turner Contemporary, Margate

I had did a two hours dash from my Hastings visit to Margate on my way home, to see the latest Tracy Emin works (6 hours in the car - I could have gone to St Ives).  I've never been convinced and this didn't help. It took me about 10-15 mins to see it.  More large scrappy drawings, neons and gouches, monoprints and sculptures mainly of nude women with legs splayed and hands on groin - will she ever grow up and get over her past?  Do we?  Since she's been made Profesor of Drawing at the RCA I thought I should see if there is some lovely flow to her lines I that might inspire me, and there was a little.  But there was also the ugly, the disturbing and the scrappy writing.  

The 'prettiest' was the tapestries of yes, again, women with no heads, legs open and hands to groins.  I looked close, she surely didn't produce them did she? - and no she didn't.  A college did it to her design.

I could be wrong - as I went into the hallway, looking at further revealling (erotic?) drawings and rough watercolours of provocative nude women I detected an improvement - but then I noticed they were private works by Rodin (his Kiss is on loan downstairs in the gallery)  and J. W.Turner placed here for context.   The programme states that in the history of art where female eroticism, sex and the nude are usually presented by men, she presents it all from a female perspective.  I find hers less pretty and more confronting.  Maybe that's the point.

The reason for her title - I heard her explain it on TV a few months ago - not worth repeating - like Hirst, she's a story spinner in order to explain her work to us and herself - I rarely find it convincing.  It's her first solo exhibition in Margate where she grew up, and to which she is committed to help develop.
 
I really felt some of her drawings were taking the piss but I still can't completely dismiss her.

Tracy Emin - Rose Virgin Tapestry

Tracy Emin - Tapestry

Tracy Ein - Neon

Tracy Emin - Breakfast at the Grotto (I assume the Margate Grotto)

Tracy Emin - She Lay on Blue

It wasn't a waste.  I stopped in at my fav Margate seasfront Fish and Chip shop - great value.

ShirleyG - Fish & Chips Half Eaten, Erotically.  What's that hole?

My 3 New Pieces of Art - Artists Victoria Kiff, Alistair Kendry

I went back to Hastings yesterday to pick up the art I bought from my friends exhibition as the Hastings Arts Forum.  Alistair has another one at The Stables till the end of September.  From the poster I've seen, it looks full of wonderful colour.

After picking up the works I went to my fav part of the old town, the antiques market where I spotted Vickie buying a desk for her new studio.  We had a lovely chat over a coffee - always lovely to run into someone you know when you don't expect it.   I then had to dash off to Margate before heading home - see next post.

Victoria Kiff - 'Self Portrait with Death'.  (drypoint.  - she is lovely, really and as serene as her portrait.)

Alistair Kendry - 'Gold Leaf Letter' (reminds me of the work we did in class and the his huge gold works)

Alistair Kendry - 'Yellow House by the Sea' (small painted book - reminds me of his house on the Hastings seafront)

Making a Mark - Artist Business Survery and other handy links

In today's e-newsletter from Making a Mark, selling artists are wanted to participate in this year's survey of where best to sell art.  Even if you don't sell yet, it's worth seeing the results of last year's survey and the other useful links for artists - see links below.

 

• 2012 survey annual-poll-whats-best-place-to-sell-art.html
• 2012 survey results
• how do you sell your art
• What price is 'Affordable Art'?
•  A page of handy art business links for artists

Poppy Teffrey - St Ives Desinger

I found this designer in St Ives Cornwall and I get her e-newsletter.  I have added her to my fav sites today.  I love her sweet simple design.

 http://www.poppytreffry.co.uk/

 

She has just published a book.