Is Turner the true Father of Modern Art? Born in Covent Garden, London in 1775, Joseph Mallard Turner is often hailed as Britain’s greatest artist. His face adorns banknotes, streets are named after him and, indeed, the Turner Prize takes his name. With 2025 being the 250th anniversary of Turner’s birth, it’s time to resolve […]
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Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? How Gauguin’s visit to London in 1885 helped clear up an existential crisis 140 years ago, French artist Paul Gauguin set off on a get-away-from-it-all visit to London. This visit marked a watershed moment in his life – he had split from […]
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Toyosi Saliu Makes a Solid Gold Statement With Breathtaking 24-Carat Art From the heart of the African continent but firmly rooted in London, rises an exciting new artist whose work bridges African identity and ancestral royalty with modern elegance. Nigerian artist Toyosi Saliu uses real 24-carat gold to craft dazzling portraits that bring a […]
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Highgate Cemetery has been a century-long tourist attraction not for those with a taste for the macabre but admirers of a certain political philosopher whose Das Kapital and Communist Manifesto arguably had a greater influence on 20th and 21st-century nations and the beliefs of mankind than some major religions. Marx didn’t have too high an […]
Our Artists in London series looks at how Piet Mondrian, one of the founder members of the Association Abstraction-Creation, drew inspiration from his visits to the capital. The movement was formed in Paris in 1931 but the Dutch artist’s creative journey would have an international flavour forced by the onset of the Second World War, […]
Despite his undoubted standing during the English Restoration, Samuel Pepys’ place in history would have been unremarkable were it not for his private London diaries completed from 1660-1669 and which eventually became public property. Born in Salisbury Court, Fleet Street in 1633 into a family of MPs and Lord Justices, the privileges of social class […]
Sara Minelli has been resident in London since 2011 and her repertoire of work since then has culminated in the forthcoming release of her first album on Florence-based EMA Records. She is classically trained, specialising in contemporary classical music and has expressed a preference for more experimental pieces or those with ‘extended techniques’ which explore […]
On January 30th 1969 the world’s greatest band performed an impromptu gig on the roof of their Apple offices in Saville Row. It would prove to be their last. The 42-minute set drew large crowds and also the concern of local police who tried unsuccessfully to pull the plug. The band settled for turning down […]
In this day and age we grumble about Brexit and Boris and take for granted many of our democratic rights but it’s important to remember that were it not for one rebel baron 750 years ago we’d probably still be ruled by a monarchy. Baron Simon de Montfort at the very least planted the seeds […]
A record number of Chinese tourists are heading for London with an 81% increase on January 2016. There was a significant increase at the close of 2016 with the festive pull of Christmas and New Year. Further good news: bookings for the first quarter of January 2017 are 40% up and show no signs of […]
This Brit icon was born on January 8th and died on January 10th so this second week of the month is a de-facto David Bowie Week. The London Short Film Festival 2017 remembered the death of the rock legend with this tribute movie night at Stratford Picturehouse where fans and film-lovers alike were treated to rarely seen […]
On today’s date Jan 9th back in 1770 English circus owner Philip Astley (who himself was born on Jan 8th 1742) staged the first modern circus in London. This inventor and equestrian had a colourful life which included a stint in the cavalry during which he fought in the Seven Years War (1756-63) for which […]
With Men’s London Fashion Week kicking off from 6th Jan and closing on the 9th entrepreneur-musician Sama N’Dango, otherwise known as Mr Fixit, shares with us his own signature fashion sense that compliments his global jet-setting life style which sees him resident in both London and Cameroon as he promotes his creative empire. You can’t […]
Hillary Clinton Graffiti/Painting Shoreditch By Street Artist Pegasus
