Art of the Brick

Are you prepared for a trip down memory lane? Well, there's an alternative exhibition in town. The medium? Thousands upon thousands of little Lego bricks. I've never seen Alex so excited to see an art show - except for the Sherlock exhibition (but more on that another day!) Nathan Sawaya, a big-shot American lawyer, hung up his legal wig in order to pursue his love for the little bricks, and this exhibition showcases all the sculptures he's made from Lego since. Including the beauty above. When I saw this incredible T-Rex piece on Lisa's blog, I knew I had to go and see it. You all know what a palaeontologist wannabe dino fan I am by now. Here's my personal highlights from the show!

In the first few rooms are Sawaya's Lego-fied replicas of the Old Masters - pieces that everyone knows by sight, and that I as an art historian must know by name (or risk humiliation)! Sawaya pays homage to van Gogh's Starry Night, Leonardo's Mona Lisa, Michelangelo's sculpture of David, Rodin's Thinker and more. Alex and I were particularly drawn to his version of Munch's The Scream, having seen one of the originals at the Nationalmuseet when we visited Oslo in January (before I started this blog!)

On a sidenote: I love the Nationalmuseet. It was almost empty when we visited, but the work inside was fantastical and mainly unknown to me. A real gem.

The serene blue light in this room lent it a hushed, underwater atmosphere. 

What I imagine when yoga instructors tell me that I'm holding a heart-opening pose.

Lots of ways to read this one. Do the hands represent the manacles of society? Are they guiding the man's every move? Or are they trying to pull him back from the edge?

And the star piece of the exhibition, given an appropriately Jurassic Park mood with jungle sound effects piped over the loudspeakers. Let's face it, it was always going to steal the show for me! Apparently Sawaya spent a whole summer labouring over this one. Lego and dinosaur skeletons - a match made in geek heaven.

At the end of the exhibition, there's a buzzing room full of visitors making their own Lego creations. I was never a Lego aficionado back in the day, but Alex, number one Lego fan, whizzed around the room looking for bits and pieces to complete his rocket thingy. Space missile. Whatever. (I'm not jealous at all...)

So. I'm not sure I would deem some of Sawaya's work 'art' exactly - not in the fine art sense, anyway. I think the curators are aware of this from the fact that they encourage the photo-taking and sharing on social media, as usually photography is banned at exhibitions (and often for good reason, too.) If you're in London and looking for a serious art show to see, I'd recommend going to see Late Turner at the Tate Britain (preferably after seeing the Mike Leigh film!) That's got bags of emotion, colour and raw talent - and the tickets are about the same price as this. But everyone's idea of what constitutes art is different, and although Art of the Brick wasn't completely my cup of tea, it might be yours. With a lighthearted vibe reminiscent of a theme-park (Legoland) at times, it's definitely one to take the kids to. Or, alternatively, your Lego-loving significant other...

The exhibition will be running at the Old Truman Brewery off Brick Lane until January 2015, and you can buy your tickets here. 

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Hurricane Sunset

A couple of weeks ago, the remnants of Hurricane Gonzalo swept through England, raising the usual furore on the weather reports. Truth be told, we were barely affected here in London. What the tail end of Gonzalo did bring with it was the first taste of winter - freezing rain droplets on my cheeks, gusts and bluster, and a sunset that set the sky on fire, almost reminiscent of Turner's The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons at times. Walking through the park at the time, I gaped up at the sky as other commuters hurried past me, eager to escape the icy sting of the rain. Fascinated by the ever-changing colours of the sunset, I couldn't resist photographing the process, from the initial flaming orange hues to a short respite in the form of a weak rainbow, and finally the sombre blues of dusk tinged with gold. I'd like to think that Turner, fascinated as he was by the invention of the daguerrotype, might have done the same.

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Hix Oyster and Chop House

I'd been gunning for a visit to one of Mark Hix's restaurants for quite some time. Hix fuses great British food with great British modern art in his eateries - in Tramshed there are pieces by big names like Damien Hirst, Jake and Dinos Chapman, Michael Landy...the list goes on. According to his website, food and art are the perfect marriage, and as an art historian, I'm duty-bound to agree! My mum's a big oyster fan, so when her birthday rolled around this year I decided to book Hix Oyster and Chop House in Farringdon.

On walking into the restaurant I clocked the giant Tim Noble and Sue Webster neon hanging on the wall immediately. When reflected in the mirror, it reads 'fucking beautiful'. Oh, for the love of modern art.

You'll have to forgive me for completely forgetting the specifics of the dishes that arrived on our table. That's what you get when you order a round of very delicious apple elderflower cocktails at the start of the meal and forget to note down what else you ordered...

I started with the 'Heaven and Earth' dish. Sticky black pudding perched on a bed of crushed potatoes.

My sister and mother went for the oysters, and they were so good they ordered another platter, letting me sample a couple. They tasted fresh from the sea, salty and acidic from a light dousing of lemon juice and red wine vinegar and shallot sauce.

The mains came next, and this is the point where things go a little fuzzy. I'm pretty sure I ordered duck but can't be 100% sure, since the plate's been taken off the menu since! Unfortunately, all I remember about the actual bird was that the meat was a bit chewy and I had to work hard to get it off the bone. The vegetables and accompanying side of creamy mash went down a treat though.

Mum chose sea bream and Bri got her meat fix with hanger steak and bone marrow, accompanied by an unctuous béarnaise and chips. 

We chatted about how Bri's university term has been going so far over our cornucopia of sides and admired Mum's earrings.

Dessert for me came in the form of a hedgerow trifle. This is always the kind of pudding I make a beeline for, but it was a little too sweet and rich for me and I couldn't bring myself to finish it. 

And for my sister, a Peruvian gold chocolate mousse. It may not look much, but trust me. This. Was. Sensational. It slipped down all too easily, leaving a completely unexpected kick of flavour in the back of the throat, almost like alcohol, that left me addicted. 

A trio of chocolate truffles to celebrate my mother's birthday provided a lovely full stop to the meal - a very sweet touch from the waiters.

I think Bri's chocolate mousse, the elderflower cocktails and the oysters were stunning, but I have to be honest and admit that the rest of the meal didn't overly wow me. I may have been a little tipsy after the cocktails, but the fact I could barely remember what my main was must mean it wasn't all that memorable. The hit and miss elements might just be down to my bad ordering though - all three of the dishes I ordered have been taken off the menu now, while the Peruvian gold chocolate mousse, hanger steak and oysters remain. I also really enjoyed eating in the presence of modern art and thought the service was impeccable. And I'd definitely go back just for that Peruvian chocolate mousse... 

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Monthly Goals: November

It's already November 6th and I can't believe how quickly this month, let alone the year, is speeding by. Last night I watched the local fireworks from the comfort of my living room. And with Bonfire Night comes the one month mark until my birthday! (Get ready for me to blabber on about this all month long, people - I bloody love December. Might have something to do with all my presents for the year coming at once...) And before my birthday I'm always itching to do a little self-improvement. So let's get down to business! As usual, first we'll see how I did on my goals from last month *quakes*. This is just like Parents' Evening all over again...

OCTOBER GOALS

• Apply for 5 jobs per week •

Ok, this one went down the drain as soon as I started my work placements. Penguin and Blue Rubicon were really fun, but I was so swamped that I ended up crawling home exhausted every night, probably more tired than I was during finals. I applied for a couple but nowhere near as many as 5 per week, so I'll be continuing with this goal this month. 

• Read 5 scary novels! •

I seem to be good at ticking off my book-related goals! I read my requisite 5 scary books, and you can see what I thought of them here. I kind of want to read at least one scary novel a month - they're so addictive!

• Continue to learn Spanish •

Again, this one went out of the window. I did fairly well towards the beginning of the month, racking up a 16 or 17 day streak with all my languages on Duolingo, but after I started suffering from the most stubborn cold ever (three weeks, guys - I need sympathy here!) the streak quickly fell by the wayside. I'm not going to let this one slide, though - I want to get my Spanish up to at least a basic level so this one is officially appearing on my goals list for a second month in a row.

• Get rid of things I don't need •

I've begun to clear my wardrobe of the summery things I didn't end up wearing this summer, and my bookcases are next. I have so many that they're spilling off my two floor-to-ceiling bookcases into piles on the floor, so I've started putting the rejects to one side to sell on Amazon or give to charity.

• Build up my stamina •

Another goal, another defenestration...I totally failed at factoring the promised runs into my routine, but I did manage to do a couple of workouts each week, so I think my stamina might have improved, if only by a little! I'm really interested in the nine week Couch to 5k plan though, as recommended by Lisa. This one isn't going to get swept under the rug!

So yes. I was a bit fail this month with my goals. I'll chalk it up to my lack of a regular schedule, running around town at two different work placements as well as starting a part-time job. Hopefully as soon as I have a stable routine I can put these goals into action! I'm going to cut myself a little slack this month and go for four instead of five: here's what I'd like to accomplish this month.

NOVEMBER GOALS

• Establish a regular blogging routine •

I didn't post as much as I wanted to in October and have ended up with a backlog of seven posts that really should have gone out last month (drat). I'm going to try posting three or four times a week to see if a Tuesday/Thursday/Sunday or a Monday/Wednesday/Friday/Sunday schedule works best with my lifestyle.

• Teach myself how to use the manual setting on my Canon •

I'll come clean here: I completely suck at using manual. I'm lazy and usually just flip the settings to automatic or no flash. This month I'm going to look up YouTube and online tutorials to try and finally sort out how to use manual. If anyone knows any good tutorials, please link me to them - I'm so useless at using my camera properly!

• Try out 3 new things •

This one's a bit vague, I know. It's kind of a get-out-of-jail-free card for this month's goals, and might mean trying out a new restaurant or bar, attempting a brand new recipe or even learning a short new piano piece. I'll report back next month, hopefully feeling that I've mixed up my routine and been a bit daring in the interim!

• Persevere with Spanish •

I'm going to get back into Duolingo and continue to learn español! I really love languages and would love to add Spanish to my list. I found the vocab fairly easy to learn last month because of my Italian and French, but haven't quite got to grips with the grammar yet. Maybe one day I'll be as good as Beth and Sam...

What do you want to tick off your to-do list this November?

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October Favourites

Oh October, you were a bit of a weirdo. Stubborn clouds and driving, icy rain meant I finally liberated my giant knits and coats from the back of the wardrobe, only to be nonplussed when the thermometer soared back up to 21ºC at the end of the month, leaving me sitting outside during my lunch break in a thin t-shirt, craving ice cream. I didn't have much time to sit and ponder the meteorological mayhem though, since October has been my busiest month since graduation! Here's my highlights from this month, as seen through the bleary lens of my increasingly senile iPhone:

Strolling through Westbourne Grove to peruse the Aladdin's caves of Ottolenghi (incredible caramel mascarpone cheesecake!) and Melt Chocolates. Every year my parents buy me a little bag of Melt goodies for my birthday, and I'm convinced their salted caramel truffles are the best out there. Their raspberry puree-filled white chocolate and mint truffles are pretty special too.

Realising that losing stuff on the Internet can sometimes be cathartic. I was extremely annoyed when I lost all my Chrome bookmarks as well as the contents of a few notes on Evernote due to computers not syncing properly or generally malfunctioning, but accepted the losses as a chance to start afresh. My bookmarks, for one, are much neater now...Yup, there's always a silver lining.

Scoffing a deliciously doughy blueberry cinnamon roll with Alex at the Soho branch of Nordic Bakery during their Cinnamon Bun week! Nordic Bakery is a perennial favourite for our foodie/coffee dates (I enthused about it way back in June) - I'm addicted to their pastries and wi-fi free, minimalist interiors. I made pinwheel pastries using their cookbook last Christmas, so perhaps I'll attempt making some cinnamon rolls if I'm feeling brave this year.

Learning about different industries while on work experience in two separate companies this month! I interned in the publicity department at Penguin Press, where I sent out hundreds of books, ran around the Science Museum on a research trip and helped out at a talk given by the inimitable Harvard professor, Michael Sandel. Then last week I was given a short crash course in public relations at communications company Blue Rubicon, working on eight different accounts that allowed me to write tweets, come up with a list of Roald Dahl's most memorable quotes and work out which politicians might have an affinity for red squirrels. Yep. I certainly wasn't bored this month. I had a great time at both, and hope I've learned enough to be a few steps closer to a job! 

Catching up with WIRED during my lunch break over a cup of chai and some biscuits. Tea and biscuits really do make the world a better place. And WIRED always makes me feel that I'm improving my brain a smidgen (in a way that my Cosmo habit doesn't...)

Getting my exhibition on with Alex! We went to see three different exhibitions together - Late Turner at the Tate Britain, The Art of the Brick at Truman Brewery and Sherlock Holmes at the Museum of London. I didn't have the opportunity to take any photos at Late Turner due to having to stow my trusty Canon away in the cloakroom, but seriously enjoyed it, having watched the much-acclaimed Mr. Turner in the morning before the exhibition. I'd recommend going to see both - in the same day if you possibly can! I'll be blogging about the other two exhibitions in due course.

Chuckling at a wonderful sign in the car park of the Hand and Flowers gastropub in Marlow. Probably one of the best meals I've eaten this year, I can't wait to review it! Sadly, though, the pictures suffer from dark restaurant syndrome. Clearly should've brought one of these along with me.

Developing square eyes in front of the TV! With cold weather comes couch potato season, and I've been glued to programmes like Grantchester, Doctor Who, and most of all, the new season of the Apprentice, my guilty pleasure! The contestants are all so dislikeable, though the best ever boardroom happened this week, with a triple firing of all my least favourite candidates. Also, don't tell anyone, but like the rest of the population, I went to see Gone Girl at the cinema. And I actually slightly preferred it to the Gillian Flynn novel. Bookworm sacrilege, I know... I'd love to know if there's other bookish types out there who liked the film better too, at least to assuage my guilt!

I'm behind with my Bloglovin' feed as usual, and can't wait to read all the October posts. I'm looking for more blogs to read ('tis the season to be a social recluse and choose laptopping over bar-hopping), so link me to your monthly favourites or let me know what you've been up to lately! 

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