Tate Modern Time

Despite what the last two posts imply (aka Brussels & Borough), I do not spend all my time in Europe eating. I do get a little culture now and then as well ;-)

After visiting Borough Market, I spent the rest of my Friday afternoon at Tate Modern, the national gallery of contemporary art. It is only a 15-minute walk away from the food market; close enough that my falafel-and-dessert-and-samples fullness didn't slow me down, far enough that the smell of melting cheese was gone.

The art gallery was created in 2000 in an old power station. With over 4.7 million visitors a year, it is one of the most popular modern art galleries in the world. I actually wrote a case study on the opening of the Tate Modern for my public relations class last semester, and learned how the goal of the communications team was to convey the idea that art should be accessible to everyone, not just the "snobby, art-interested elite." In fact, the PR team hosted a gallery preview just for London cab drivers. Talk about a smart word-of-mouth marketing strategy; cabbies have quite the outreach!

When I first entered the gallery, I was greeted by a huge installation called "Sunflower Seeds" by Ai Weiwei. It consists of millions of what appear to be real sunflower seeds, but are actually porcelain replicas. The artist was trying to highlight the "Made in China" phenomenon by displaying handmade, tiny sculptures created in Chinese workshops.

Weiwei's "Sunflower Seeds"

I proceeded to exhaust Tate Modern's collection, visiting all four free exhibits (Material Gestures, Poetry and Dream, Energy and Process, and States of Flux). I often enjoy going to art galleries alone because I can take my time engaging with the works and reading the accompanying plaques.

The works of many famous modern artists are housed in Tate Modern. Recognize these names?

Pablo Picasso's "Head of a Woman"

Pablo Picasso's "The Three Dancers"

Jackson Pollock's "Naked Man with Knife"

Salvador Dali's "Mountain Lake"

Kandinsky's "Lake Starnberg"

Henri Matisse's "The Snail"

Rothko's "Untitled"

Claude Monet's "Water Lilies"

Roy Lichtenstein's "Whaam!"

Mondrian's "Sun, Church in Zeeland"

Matisse's "Trivaux Pond"

In addition to the more recognizable names, I saw plenty of futuristic, innovative works by other artists. "White Field" consisted of nails, not a piece you want to lean up against. "Shooting Picture" was created by filling polythene bags with paint, enclosing the filled bags under a layer of plaster, and then allowing viewers to shoot at the work to release the paint underneath (like that scene in "The Princess Diaries." Anyone know what I'm talking about? I know Sophie does.)

Gunther Uecker's "White Field"

Niki de Saint Phalle's "Shooting Picture"

The cafe on the top floor of Tate Modern presented a great view of the Millenium Bridge that goes straight from Tate Modern to St. Paul's Cathedral. I decided to go home via a different tube stop just so I could walk across this bridge featured in the "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" film. If you haven't seen it (shame on you!), the movie's opening scene where the dementors blow up the bridge is availble on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mo-U5iOinM8. Fortunately, no dark wizards demolished the structure while I was walking across...

After a busy Friday of talking in class, exploring Borough Market, and spending hours in Tate Modern, not to mention a late night out Thursday celebrating a friend's birthday, I was happy to enjoy a relaxing night in. I borrowed the movie "An Education," the Academy Award-nominated film which introduced Carrie Mulligan, from the library. I want to try watching a bunch of British films while I'm here, and this movie was the perfect choice! It's about a student named Jenny(!) living in London :-) I highly recommend it.