Wednesday 15 August 2007

VICTORIA AND ALBERT ART MUSEUM - Tuesday, July 31



After returning from a whirlwind tour of Ireland, with a memorable sidetrip to North Wales, sleeping half the night in the train station in Holyhead and the other half on a train with three inebriated Brits, who alternated between singing, arguing, snoring, and missing their stop, and then finally arriving at Kings' College in London at 8 a.m. with our visit to the VA Art Museum at 1, I didn't really expect this to be one of my more enjoyable visits.
I was pleasantly surprised. We were split into two groups, which made it a nicer size and easier to see and hear. The tour was good, but the viewing of artists' books was what made it memorable.
Artists' books are basically that, books which are created by or conceived of by artists. They vary greatly and are delightful to view.

Some were almost like origami and were truly forms of paper engineering. Others were based on quilt patterns, while another was like a tunnel.
Other special collections of the V&A include some of Dickens' manuscripts and DaVinci's sketchbooks. More plebian items are James Bond paperbacks and the British version of the Sears catalog.
Galleries of the V&A include Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque and Roccocco,as well as 18th, 19th, and 20th century.
Considerered by many to be the world's premier museum of art and design, the V&A is celebrating its 150th anniversary.
The V&A Museum family consists of this one, the Museum of Childhood (visited last week) and previously, the Theatre Museum which is now available only online.They are governed by a board of trustees who are appointed by the prime minister.

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