Gaudi and Gia

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this is if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

This is one of my favourite poems. EVER. When we were walking around the Sagrada Familia there was a small side room which was dedicated to explaining the way in which Gaudi used formations drawn from nature to construct the details of the cathedral. It spoke briefly of his love of the outdoors, founded on spending his childhood summers at the family home in Mas de la Calderera where he studied the natural world around him with zeal and fervour. Much as I’m sure we would all love to be able to indulge ourselves as William Henry Davies wanted. There are few times in the adult world when we have the mental, as well as physical, time to devote to doing absolutely nothing but watching and absorbing the life that whirls ceaselessly around us. Children on the other hand do, and luckily for all of us Gaudi’s love of detail and the perfection he discovered from his childhood studies were never lost to him.

The Ammonite shell is a recurring motif in much of Gaudi's work

He was a man of his homeland, and despite being a world-renowned architect he continued to live in Cataluña all of his life. Gaudi believed strongly that where a man came from shaped him as an individual, gave him purpose, direction and a strong foundation – ironically, everything that a great building needs to make it strong. His love of his home can be seen all over Barcelona and the surrounding Catalan region in the numerous commissions he undertook; from churches and apartment blocks to humble lampposts and frankly awe inspiring gateways. Gaudi’s vision has lent Barcelona an air of refined modernism concealed beneath a distinctly Catalan veil. In any other city his refined architectural motifs would look out of place, the undulating building forms for example, would be an eye-saw rather than a distant echo of the surrounding hills. Cataluña ran through his veins as much as blood does another human, the land was in his bones and he began to shape its principle city in its image.

Gaudi designed lampposts throughout his career - this is a particularly illuminating example. Yes, I really am that dreadful...

In my oh so humble (yes, I am capable at times!) opinion, we all undertake a few journeys before we find out who we are. Artists and craftspeople are distinct from us in the fact that we see their progressions unfold before our eyes; their journeys of discovery are open for the criticism and wonder of all. Like all of us, Gaudi didn’t arrive at his style immediately – he experimented with other popular architectural movements along the way. He was particularly fascinated with oriental art, especially Indian, Moorish and Japanese for a time, and the influence of these can be seen in the Capricho, the Güell Palace, the Güell Pavilions and the Casa Vicens (Gaudi’s first important architectural work once he graduated). He took various structural and ornamental solutions from nazarí and mudéjar art, which he used with variations and stylistic freedom in his works. Notably, Gaudí observed of Islamic art its spatial uncertainty, its concept of structures with limitless space; its feeling of sequence, fragmented with holes and partitions, which create a divide without disrupting the feeling of open space by enclosing it with barriers – something which is immediately apparent in many of his structures.

It is interesting that when I first saw the Sagrada Familia my immediate impression was that it was decidedly gothic in its construction – the soaring arches and myriad towers brought to mind a fairytale castle gone slightly bonkers. No surprise therefore to note that the other major influence on Gaudi’s early career was Gothic Revival – a movement begun by the Frenchman Viollet-le-Duc – though he wasn’t without his criticisms of the style. In the end, he was to ‘perfect’ the Gothic style, beautifying its vault and buttresses using form derived directly from the study of internal natural forms such as trees, reeds and even bones. The key to doing this was the hyperboloid shape (ever twisted the ends of a slinky in opposite directions? The shape it makes is a hyperboloid) which allowed Gaudi to create structures which were more expressive gothic than the more traditional austere: the hyperboloid vaults have their centre where Gothic vaults had their keystone, and the hyperboloid allows for a hole in this space to let natural light in. In the intersection between vaults, where Gothic vaults have ribs, the hyperboloid allows for holes as well, which Gaudí employed to give the impression of a starry sky. The effect it nothing short of brilliant.

Vaulted ceiling in the Sagrada Familia

 Now for me, architecture should escapes the bounds of the building that it is manifest in. The Sagrada Familia is a Cathedral to celebrate religion, however within its construct it is so much more – it is an ode to the beauty of nature and its inherent perfection regardless of the hubris of man in believing he can do better. Gaudi became known for championing the natural within his work as I’ve already mentioned, and this went from the weird to the wonderful, the profound to the profane and everything in between. This is something I love about him as an artist, nothing was too humble to be glorified – the structure of a shell, snails, leaves, it all moved him and in turn he moved us by highlighting them and reminding us of the beauty to be found when we truly open our eyes and look.

The Dragon Gate at the Guell Pavilions - beautiful yet bonkers

Barcelona!

Let’s all face the worst together – Summer at the moment just is not going to happen. The strawberries are flowering, the cream is flowing, the Pimms is just aching to be drunk but the rain just keeps on falling… Depressing is not the word. Frankly bizarre is one word, as is annoying and those are both closely followed by typical. Dear Blighty, I love you deeply but really, is this necessary?!?

Given the frankly appalling meteorological state of the nation (isn’t it wonderful we can complain about the weather rather than the economy for a change?) the thought of four days in the sun was not something I was going to turn down lightly. When my +1 had the Barcelona Brainwave I was sold immediately. Stepping out into hot sunshine when we landed assuaged my guilt at leaving these rain lashed shores , as did the great food, stunning hotel and amazing culture we surrounded ourselves with.

The W Hotel is an architectural gem, and one which you simply cannot miss on the skyline - it screams luxury and doesn't disappoint. In a city which is still heavily traditional in terms of style, this is a beautiful addition and points to a bright architectural future.

So, what can I tell you about Barcelona – or Peckham on Sea (long story and probably says more about my +1 and I’s grand designs for world domination than anything else) – that will make you want to visit. Well… there is absolutely nothing not to like, and by like I mean love and want to go back again and again and again. I’ll limit myself to the culture though since that’s what I’m best at, well, that and food – oh MAN was the food good. Oodles of seafood, everything fresh, great flavours, yummy wine… yummy!

The market on La Ramblas is the perfect place to kick back with some amazing food and do a little people watching... Bliss!

Right, the culture of this amazing city deserves a huge mention as once you get off the beach you can’t turn a corner in the old city without seeing a beautiful church, cobbled street, museum or local gallery selling beautiful pottery. We started our cultural eager beavering at the Museum of Contemporary Art which was a beautiful modern construct, surrounded by sun bleached stone buildings and cool shady side streets. The MACBA building explodes visually onto the quiet Catalan square – bright white, geometrically striking and almost Bauhaus in style and internal structure. Enter its quiet interior and be transported from the bright bustle outside to the calm and serene contemporary haven that it is. The exhibitions are varied and definitely lean more toward the visually challenging – as all contemporary art should do – and even i found myself questioning whether this really was art. Unlike the Tate Modern which mixes modern and contemporary, this place is for the cutting edge; the new wave of sculptors and installation artists who are making a name for themselves. 

MACBA is Barcelona's modern art mecca. If cutting edge and contemporary are your thing then head over to see the next big name.

Next stop: the Sagrada Familia. There aren’t words enough to describe this amazing building to you. It is a monument to natural processes as much as to religion, a testament to architectural vision and enduring passion, beautiful and slightly grotesque all at once. Getting off the metro I couldn’t quite believe the site of the cathedral which when you first look at it appears to have grown of its own accord from the bedrock of the city. Sitting amidst modern apartments buildings and dusty parks, the Sagrada Familia is truly monstrous in proportion; a seemingly gothic giant which has no right to be there. Like all amazing artwork though, the more you look, the more you see, and in this case come to understand about the building. Gaudi was a lover of all things natural, and frequently used motifs derived from the natural world within his work. When he took over the building of what was to be a church, he steadily adapted the design to bring in more and more of the naturalistic elements which he so admired. His vision outgrew the original project, and a beautiful cathedral was conceived. Once you get your head around the detail outside – and when I say detail, it is honestly utterly mind-blowing – the inside will transport you. It reminded me of stepping into a forest, but one which was bathed in all the colours of the rainbow. Gaudi was a genius, and the sacred nature of the space has been mixed seamlessly with the greater idea of natural creation, to create a space which is spiritual but not religious.

This is one place everyone should visit once in their lives...

Whilst we pottered around all manner of places over our four days, the only other one really of note here is the Picasso Museum. Now many of you will know my feelings on Picasso after the blog about the Tate exhibition of his work… (the condensed version being: I like him, a lot) and visiting this small museum in a city which the artist loved hasn’t changed my feelings about him. Unlike the London exhibition which focussed on the main stylistic periods of Picasso’s life, the Barcelona museum went chronologically from his earliest drawings to some of his latest paintings. What can I say? The guy really can paint incredibly well; he wouldn’t have been out of place amongst an old masters exhibition at the National Gallery. For me, this was one of the highlights of the museum as you can trace very slowly the evolution of his style from stately and proper beginnings, through impressionism into cubism and modernism. For those who want a complete portrait of Picasso as an artist, this place is a must, for those who don’t there is a great ice cream shop just down the street which you can enjoy just as much!

One of the great things about the Picasso museum is the building it is housed in -  traditional Spanish style stonework and plaster mixes seamlessly with the artwork giving the feeling of a grand (if modernist) house.

Barcelona is somewhere I always wanted to go, and it didn’t disappoint. Whether you want to wander through the packed streets, spend time on the beach or simply relax in a museum, there is something there for everybody. Go, immediately if not sooner, you won’t regret it for a second…

Phlegm and the Street

Occasionally my work at the gallery forces me to think and work outside my favourite box of contemporary and twentieth century artists. Recently the architect asked me to find a specific street artist for him – not, my box at all. Now I really am not a snob, and when he asked me sweetly over coffee several months ago my heart sank like a stone and I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry or discreetly become deaf and avoid the issue…My mind screamed the question: Street, ME?!? Whilst I found myself saying, “what a wonderful idea, I’d love to help…” After he beetled off to build another multi-million pound property, I drank my cappuccino in contemplative silence, wondering what exactly I’d let myself in for.

What I had done, it turns out, is open the door to a world of art I’d only really seen in passing, admired and by turn slandered as rubbish, and decided that it really isn’t as scary or achingly cool as I thought. The people I met and dealt with were charming artists who were passionate about their work and very unpretentious about the possibility that it was a transient addition to the urban landscape. The majority of artists I meet would throw an epic wobbly if something they’d worked so hard for was destroyed by anyone once they themselves had decided it was finished. In many ways it was a breath of fresh air for me to be surrounded by these guys.

In hindsight the whole operation was akin to a detective story. I had nothing but a picture and my wits and considerable brain to go on – oh yes, I really am that modest. That March morning I saw myself setting out on a journey of adventure and discovery which would take me to the darkest recesses of London, mixing with the seedy underbelly of artistic society. Thankfully I’m the kind of gal who gets stuck in to pretty much anything – particularly food – and whilst slightly nervous as to what I was going to find, I decided to take my reputation in my hands and dive straight in by calling my modern day Baker Street Runners. It took a while but we got there in the end, and as it turns out the seedy underbelly isn’t quite as uncouth as I had reared.

Now, when I started coming to the East End in the blisteringly un-wintery winter of 2010, I was struck by two things – firstly the people and secondly the street art. The first isn’t particularly pertinent to this discussion, but the second is fundamental – street art was everywhere! Being raised in a strictly canvas and paper art world, it was something of a revelation to me that some street art was beautiful. I was particularly struck by an image which I saw on the corner of Great Eastern Street. For a moment I was transported back through the years to my studies on the German reformation – urgh, what a waste of time that was – but way, way cooler… The thing that caught my eye initially was the style, the thing which evolved into a permanent love of the work was the subject; these images were full of wit, dark humour, humanity and curiosity, in short they were brilliant. I never dreamed in a month of Wednesday lunchtimes, that when I wandered by all that time ago that I’d be one day tracking down that same artist and working with him.

Phlegm. Phelgm… Good start with a name like that isn’t it? Well, interesting tag aside, he’s a street artist who lives and works in Sheffield and is fond of a reet good cuppa. Some may think the name was chosen  to be deliberately shocking, but as it turns out it was picked for its historical relevance to health. Phlegm's name derives from classical medicine, where the body was thought to have four main fluids (or humours), if you had too much phlegm in the system it was thought to lead to apathy. His artwork, particularly his comics (see below) were a release from the strict confines of the Fine Art Degree he took and allowed him to escape what he deemed the ‘stagnation’ of his post-degree work.

His artwork bridges a gap between what some people would call proper art and street art, it is intelligent, witty and provokes debate – what more do doubters about the place of street art in our cultural heritage want? For me the images are immediately striking; they aren’t like anything else out there. It’s like seeing a modern take on an ancient art form, bringing the past to present and doing it phenomenally well. I love it. I want it. I managed to get him to paint a wall in Old Street. I survived. I’m chuffed.  Enjoy them – I hope you like, but even if you don’t, I do!