We made our way into the city to visit the grand Royal Academy of Art to see the exhibition, Impressionists By the Sea.
In its final weeks, the exhibition pays homage to the Impressionist painters and their fascination with the French coast. The curation of artworks had a broad appeal from dark and moody shipwrecks to the colourful and whimsical landscapes that the Impressionists are most well known for. An Impressionist exhibition cannot be an Impressionist exhibition without Claude Monet, and the Royal Academy did not disappoint as we found about a dozen priceless Monet’s hanging in the last room.
Seeing an art exhibition was not a bad way to start off my week in London as I was down working at the Design Council again and attending some of the London Design Festival Events. I got to spend a day out at 100% Design, a huge exhibit of design-related products, projects, talks and ideas.
In the evening we went to see the Deptford Design Market Challenge. An exhibition of second hand products that challenged a team of international designers to breathe new life into objects bought at the Deptford Markets. Some of the most impressive ideas included a jigsaw puzzle of a picture of jigsaw puzzle pieces (somewhat confusing).
Piecing together broken crockery with colourful glue to make unique patterns.
And chucking out the chintz of old-fashioned plates...
... and turning them into minimalist clocks with some paint. We loved the innovative ideas and the transformation of trash into treasures.
But all the action was happening down at the Super Design Market. Flanked by colourful ribbon and Swarovski crystal chandeliers, more than a dozen stores had for sale the innovative products of up and coming designers. Some of the quirky ideas included stickers that looked like scratches, to stick on your car or bike to make them less attractive to thieves (brilliant).
A week in London is never complete without catching up with old friends. We got to enjoy great Spanish fare at the popular and packed Brindisa with Mike. We had drinks at a quirky pub across the road afterwards. Here's a shot of the interior...
We got to satisfy more Thai food cravings at Mango Tree with Wendy and Will and enjoy the lively atmosphere of Giraffe at Southbank.
I got to catch up with an old friend, Arthur, who is traveling through the UK. It has been about 5 years since we have seen each other so we crammed a catch up over coffee in a satisfying 2 hours.
Rounding up the week, I was granted access to the brand new London Design Embassy on the top floor of the Southbank Centre.
The Embassy provides a stylish meeting place for designers to met local and international buyers- quite literally, where design meets business!
