Modern Art and Skip Diving!

Well the weather has been a bit changeable recently hasn't it? Within the space of a few days we've had glorious sun, torrential rain, high winds and then back to sun! English weather - don't you just love it? 

Today I went to the Modern Art gallery in Oxford. I'd seen it advertised and, never having been before, thought I could combine a visit with seeing L. 

The exterior didn't appeal to me that much:

A few years ago we saw an exhibition at the Royal College of Art - we hadn't gone into London specifically to see it, but rather were killing time waiting for something else. The exhibition was a real eye opener - near the entrance was a sort of wooden barrier and R started speculating about the deep meaning behind the 'fence'. I muttered a few comments along the lines of 'come away and stop making a show of us - it's only a partition!' As it turned out, it was actually one of the exhibits and that set the tone for the whole show. There were bits of screwed up tissue on the floor, shampoo bottles painted pink below a smudge on the wall, a pile of juicy fruit chewing gum - in the end we came across a photocopier in the hall and I'm still not sure if it was one of the exhibits or not. Most of the work resembled the junk modelling beloved of nursery children and the deep meaning went way over our heads. Still, it was memorable.

The current exhibition at Modern Art Oxford left me feeling just as bewildered. There was a lot of topiary decorated with litter, hub caps and hair pieces.

L decided that her favourite bit was a photo of someone lying down in Tiananmen Square breathing on the ground until their breath formed a patch of ice. I didn't take a photo, I was too underwhelmed. I think what it boils down to is that the art I appreciate is something that I know I could never do myself and, quite frankly, I could put a wig on a bush and throw a few hub caps around the place. Please tell me if I'm missing something here - I suppose the topiary took some skill but the guide wasn't clear if the artist did that bit or not. I spent a lot of time thinking 'I don't get it' and fighting the urge to giggle childishly. I think maybe I'm just a philistine.  

There were some bits of my trip that I enjoyed:

Lunch in the Vaults and Garden:

Sweet potato and coconut curry and carrot, parsnip and lentil soup - Yum!

Ice cream in G&D's:

Coffee on the right (mine), Blueberry Lemonade on the left (L's)!

Lots of lovely fruit and veg in the covered market:

Admiring some beautiful buildings waiting for L's tutorial to finish:

Whilst waiting for her to come out, I happened to be standing by a skip, watching 2 men filling it with old metal filing cabinets, broken chairs etc. When L emerged, I hugged her and whispered in her ear that there was a small table in said skip that I had my eye on. When we came back later, it was still there, so a little skip diving later (we did ask the college porter's permission too!) and the little wooden Oxford table was ours. It could do with a bit of a revamp (sorry, I didn't take a photo) but it's currently in L's room waiting for the end of term - she needed somewhere to put her mugs as her 'coffee' table is usually buried under books!

A few final happies from my week:

Cypriot olive and oregano bread:

The cherry tree - smaller and much less magnificent than my neighbour's but I love it!

The crabapple - not as bright but beautiful none the less:

My lovely pink carnations - one of my favourites because they last for weeks!

This week's library books:

.... and finally, my hostas - I have to appreciate them at this stage before the snails find them!

That's all for this week - I'd just like to wish everyone a relaxing and sunny Bank Holiday weekend.
Toodle Pip for now. x