Jul. 24, 2013
Ibrahim El-Salahi is a modernist artist from Sudan. I believe this exhibition is a first for an African artist at the Tate Modern. Much like the Choucair show (which is still on everyone!), it’s an engaging but too short introduction to an interesting artist that you have probably never heard of.
The pieces are roughly divided between large blank and white ink drawings that are mounted on multiple panels and oil paintings in earthy colours that depict abstract scenes.
Tags: Art, Tate Modern, Ibrahim El-Salahi, Thirteen
Jul. 23, 2013
There were no mornings or afternoons. It was one seamless day, every day, until the sun began to arc and fade, mountains emerging from their silhouettes. This is when we sat and watched in silence.
Today I finished reading “Point Omega” by Don Delillo. I have wanted to read one of his novels for a while and though this is a slip of a novella, I certainly enjoyed it. I accidentally came across it when I looked at the wikpedia page for Pierre Teilhard de Chardin last week as part of research for another post that I am writing.
Tags: Don Delillo, Books, Novel, Thirteen
Jul. 5, 2013
This week I read “Skios” by Michael Frayn (who was born in Mill Hill). It’s another book from now customary pile of books that tends to develop around this time of year. “Hawksmoor” and “The Marriage Plot” were on the same ever-increasing pile. “Skios” is something of a change from what I normally read: it’s a comedic farce about stolen identities set on the (fictional) titular Greek island. Amusingly, the wikipedia page for the novel currently reads “Praise for Skios was entirely misplaced”, probably thanks to some curmudgeon who doesn’t like the novel.
Tags: Michael Frayn, Books, Novel, Thirteen
Jun. 30, 2013
Just two albums this month as I am still enjoying last month’s albums so much (and I spent loads of time getting reacquainted with Boards Of Canada at the start of the month). I listened to a few more albums but not often enough to write loads about them so there is an “honourable mention” section at the end of the post that briefly discusses a few more albums.
Without further ado, the two albums are:
Tags: Album Digest, June, Music, Boards of Canada, Jon Hopkins, Thirteen
Jun. 26, 2013
Peter Ackroyd’s “Hawksmoor” was first published in 1985. I bought a recent reissue that forms part of Penguin’s decades collection whilst on a spree in Waterstone’s. It appealed to me as I recently realised that despite growing up in the eighties and nineties, I had read very novels that were either written or set in the eighties. Happily “Hawksmoor” is both of these, sort of. It also appealed to me because it is (again, sort of) a detective story and I’ve found myself getting into those lately.
Tags: Books, Peter Ackroyd, Novel, Thirteen, London
Jun. 24, 2013
I have written a lot in these posts about how music gets indelibly tied up with places, events and feelings. For me this album by Fanfarlo is tied up with all three of these. It makes me happy and sad at the same time in memory of great times that are now gone but are fondly remembered. I am aware that this is the youngest album on the list so far and so it might be a bit early to endow classic status upon it, but “Reservoir” is a fine album and to my ears it stands up really well.
Tags: Understated Classics, Fanfarlo, Music, Thirteen, Rock
Jun. 22, 2013
Today I went to see the new Superman reboot Man of Steel with friends. I really enjoyed it, particularly the more reflective take on the superhero myth. Starting out with the fate of the planet Krypton, Man of Steel approximately fuses the events of both the first two original Superman movies. We get to see Superman’s arrival and childhood on earth and then the arrival of Zod, a maniac bent on replacing the earth and everyone on it with a new race of Kryptonians.
Tags: Films, Thirteen, Black Hole Rules, Science Fiction
May. 31, 2013
Lilacs & Champagne Danish & Blue You might remember that last year I reviewed the first Lilacs & Champagne album and I liked it a lot. This album sees them back with more of the same: taking the approach that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. There are very few changes to the formula apart from the fact that the spoken word samples are not quite as good this time and there’s a bit more Grails-like guitar solo action.
Tags: Album Digest, May, Music, Lilacs and Champagne, The Phoenix Foundation, The National, Vampire Weekend, Thirteen
May. 29, 2013
Today I went to see “George Bellows 1882-1925 Modern American Life” at the Royal Academy of Arts. It’s the first time I’ve been to the RA but I was emboldened by my art pass and the fact that Bellows was a contemporary of Edward Hopper, a painter whom I admire greatly. This is the first major retrospective of Bellows’ work in the UK and taking in his wonderful paintings this afternoon, I felt a little embarrassed that I hadn’t seen anything of his before.
Tags: Royal Academy, George Bellows, Art, Thirteen
May. 25, 2013
Yesterday I went to see the Saloua Raouda Choucair show at the Tate Modern. As it was quite small, I went to see the Lichtenstein show again as well.
Choucair is an underrated Lebanese artist and many of the paintings and sculptures shown were created in the fifties and sixties. Her sculptures in particular are amazing.
The first room is lined with paintings that were nearly all gouache on paper, about 40cm by 30cm.
Tags: Art, Tate Modern, Saloua Raouda Choucair, Thirteen
May. 23, 2013
It was quite hard to choose an 808 State album for the understated classics series for two reasons. The first is that I was introduced to 808 State quite late through a friend’s sister’s cassette copy of The Shamen’s En-Tact (the original version recorded from vinyl that had a thirteen minute version of “Evil Is Eden”) that also had – to fill out the C90 – the full length sweary version of “What Time Is Love?
Tags: Music, 808 State, Understated Classics, Thirteen, Electronic
May. 21, 2013
This was a show that I had put off going to see for quite a while now. Looking online at the pictures featured in the show did not really excite me enough to get out and see it. I’d seen Whaam! before in isolation (it’s part of the Tate collection and will no doubt return once the retrospective show is over) and it didn’t really grab me, arresting as it is.
Tags: Art, Roy Lichtenstein, Tate Modern, Thirteen