A White Christmas

The Nat Gall has an exhibition called Monochrome: Painting in Black and White. It’s on until February 18th but I doubt I will see it. Here’s why.

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Categorised as Art

A Peregrination

The bird feeders in the back garden are a bit of a disappointment. In the summer mice put on engaging gymnastic displays in their endeavours to gain access but not many birds attended.

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Categorised as Art, Nature

Morning DJ

Radio 3 is not frightened of being quirky. On Sunday there was six hours of music with no interruptions. Sacred River was introduced by Neil MacGregor at 9.00 am and then flowed along presenter-less until 3.00 pm.

New Tricks

My train journey to Suffolk on Wednesday morning was a conspicuous success. Hitherto I took the tube to overcrowded Liverpool Street and caught the train. This time I did it differently.

Portraits

There are two exhibitions in London worthy of your attention and both on until early next year. Isn’t it frustrating to read a recommendation about a play/opera that is about to close or is sold out? First Paul Cézanne’s 19th century portraits at the National Portrait Gallery. I will report in due course, if there… Continue reading Portraits

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Roman Holiday

The picture is a detail of Modern Rome – Campo Vaccino by Turner. He had been painting Rome for twenty years and this was his last picture of the city, completed in 1839. It was sold by Sotheby’s in 2010 for £29.7 million – a record for a Turner – to the Getty Museum. But… Continue reading Roman Holiday

Henry Lamb

This is a picture in the Imperial War Mueum by Australian-born Henry Lamb. He was born in Adelaide, where his father was professor of mathematics at the university, in 1883.

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Arnaud de Môles

It is a few years since I visited Auch and its magnificent cathedral. It has eighteen windows by Arnaud de Môles. If I saw this glass in an English church I would label it Victorian but I’d be wrong, big time.

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Five Go Down to the Sea

The title may ring a bell if you grew up on a literary diet of Enid Blyton. In fact we were four as our fifth had a knee injury and we didn’t have Timmy, the dog in the Famous Five series.

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Categorised as Art, Travel