Most cities have plenty of art galleries to share with their residents and visitors, and with its own remarkable collection, London is no exception.
The National Gallery is a popular venue for anyone visiting the City of London. One of the reasons for its popularity is that it doesn’t charge an entrance fee. But this is far from being the main reason for going.
Situated in Trafalgar Square, the impressive exterior gives way to countless galleries, paintings and exhibitions that will attract your attention. There are some famous paintings here too, not least ‘Sunflowers’ by Van Gogh. Other painters who are represented here include Rubens, Rembrandt and Michelangelo.
Another popular venue to try out is the National Portrait Gallery. The name indicates that this is focused purely on portraits, and there is much to explore and appreciate.
There are hundreds and thousands of portraits here, and while some take the form of paintings others are in photographic form. It is the variety of subjects and the methods by which their features have been committed to a portrait which makes this particular gallery well worth a look.
One of the most famous – or perhaps infamous – galleries in London is Tate Modern. While the original Tate Gallery is at Millbank, Tate Modern resides at Bankside, very close to the old Battersea Power Station.
If nothing else you can certainly expect to find your senses and attitudes challenged about what modern art really is when you step inside. The exhibitions change on a regular basis but many of the main exhibits and collections remain the same, as they provide an insight into key periods in the history of modern art from the last century.
Of course art takes on many forms and one of these is photography. If you enjoy the photographic form of expression, make sure you don’t miss The Photographers’ Gallery. As with any other type of art gallery this one has regular and occasional exhibitions that show you how photography can be used in so many different ways to express feelings and images.
The gallery also offers talks and various other events to help you enjoy photography even more, so it is good for budding photographers of all ages. This is also another gallery that is free to enter.
There are plenty of other art galleries dotted all over the city too. When you are considering which of the many http://www.hotels.co.uk/hotel-united-kingdom/hotel-london/”>hotels in London you want to stay in, think about where the various galleries are and make your room booking accordingly.
So why not educate yourself on the worlds of art and photography next time you stay in London? It can be a fascinating experience, regardless of whether the art is modern or traditional in nature.
By: Matthew Pressman
Posts Tagged ‘Michelangelo’
Top Art Galleries In London
December 12th, 2009The When and How of Modern Art
October 29th, 2009Over and over again, there have been debates surrounding the origin of modern art. Some believe it to have originated in the initial years of the 20th century while others claim that modern art refers to contemporary art which has its roots in the recent past, i.e. around 1950. According to the Tate, modern art begins in 1900.
It cannot be that one fine morning in 1900 gave way to modern art. The inception of modern art can be much ahead of 1900. In 1863, Édouard Manet painted Olympia- a portrait of a Paris prostitute. Many critics claim that Manet’s style in the painting is queerly flat, displaying lack of emotion and even of desire. This off-the-track painting is regarded to be the pioneer of modern art by some critics. But if Manet bore a different style then how can one classify the radicalism of The Death of Sardanapalus (1827)- an orgy of sex and drugs floating free of pictorial gravity?
On a rational level, there is one artist who can truly be called modern- the Spanish artist, Francesco Goya. Known for his depiction of madness and war, Goya continued to surprise his admirers till his death in 1828. However, Italy can take the entire debate even further back to the disturbing realism of Caravaggio, who died in 1610.
If modern art is all about originality and novel experiments, then Michelangelo (1475-1564) stands unparalleled. It was he who pioneered the idea of artistic originality. If the current generation artists pride themselves on abstract art, then Michelangelo’s Rondanini Pietà is none the less abstract than Brancusi.
Herein rests the irony. Once you push modern art to Michelangelo, the term becomes meaningless. Every generation tries to break away from the past. When we admire art as modern, we do so because it appears to be urgent and meaningful in the current scenario. The same can be applied to a cave painting or a Frank Stella sculpture.
By: Suzanne
