Our Bedroom Piece

I have been hunting high and low for a suitable artwork to hang in our bedroom and I finally found it this weekend.

In Brrringland, P and I had looked at several galleries and I did see a subtle watercolour-on-paper nude that I liked. However, at over GPB500, we decided to give it a miss because it wasn't anything special. It shows the back view of a woman laying on her side and P said that we could find that sort of art in most galleries in the western world.

After enjoying my other three new pieces for a few days, I decided to head down to the gallery again to see if I could find anything else to collect. He had some charcoal-coloured nudes but they were very 'in your face'. I'm all for p*rn but I sure as heck ain't gonna' pay $1,500 for it!

Suddenly, the gallery owner pulled out this piece from his hidden stash at the back of the shop and I gasped with pleasure. I love that although it is a nude, it is also tribal and manages to combine humour in it. This was hung up in the artist's own home (the same guy who did "Ooh...I like my place!") and depicts himself and his wife. Although her chest is a restricted zone as symbolized by the red box, he stretches out his hand as far as he can and just keeps on trying to grab her b**bs! The painting is aptly titled "Kiss My...!"

It made me laugh because P is soooo like that as well. He can never keep his hands off me and I'm often batting them away. This clever piece of work will definitely have pride of place in our bedroom.

I've taken photos of it both in day light and at night with soft yellow lighting. Either way you look at it, it's gorgeous and perfect for us!

Ooh...I Like My Art!

I finally got my other three new pieces of art home last night and I just had to share.

The two semi-abstract landscapes are from one artist and the red abstract is from another.

Title: "Resort City II"

Title: "Sunset City"

Title: "Ooh...I like my place!"

The gallery owner actually recommended that I buy the abstract to round off my collection. When I first saw it, I wasn't that keen. However, I decided to trust his advice and I'm so glad that I did. The more I look at it, the more I love it! In person, the colours are so rich and the texture of the painting is simply beautiful.

The artist has become hugely collectable in the last few years and this piece depicts how his house that has grown along with his success.

I can relate to it because only a couple of years ago, I finally had enough for the deposit to pay for my own apartment after working for over 10 years. It is a very satifying feeling.

The problem with collecting art is that there is just so much beautiful work out there. Now I'm thinking of getting a couple of smaller pieces as well. Ooh...no!

Small Island Girl

Recently, I cut my hair into a bob: parted in the middle, shorter at the back and tapering to a longer length at the front. My hair falls perfectly straight even without blow drying.

In the last two weeks, two people that have asked me straight after I've been introduced to them if I'm a flight stewardess!

My first reaction was to feel insulted. Although I think it's a great lifestyle and a fantastic job option for a young woman just having left school, there are just so many negative connotations with regards to trolly dollies. However, after talking to P, I've had a change of heart.

He says that I should be flattered that at almost 38, I'm still mistaken for someone in her 20s. He also thinks that I look like the Small Island Girls in the advertising campaign as I am tall, slim and beautiful.

Is it any wonder that a) I have such a huge ego and b) I love this man to bits?!!

Brrrrrighton, Here We Come!

We took a day trip down to Brighton, the place where P grew up. The fast train is less than an hour from central London.

Walking alone the little lanes in the town centre was fascinating as there are a lot of boutique shops selling unique handicrafts and expensive clothes and jewellery. My favourite part was the Pier, where P and I relived our youth and wasted money on video games and junk food!

I'll let the photos speak for Brighton's very appealing charms:

Even with the wintry weather, it's a gorgeous beachside town. Will definitely be visiting again once it warms up in the next few months!

The Best and the Worst

After being here for a couple of weeks, I've come up with my own list of the best and worst that Brringland has to offer the intrepid SG Babe. As I'm an eternal optimist, I'll start of on a positive note.

Best of Brit, the:

• Post-Christmas sales and a lovely new hubby who will buy you whatever you want ;-)
• Weather, which is suitable for wearing knee-high leather boots (I have two pairs)
• Chance to expand my wardrobe ha ha
• SG/MY monthly dim sum meet up group of very nice people
• Jewellery Channel
• Opportunities to try new things

And last but certainly not least, drinking mulled wine/Pimms with ginger ale in a cosy pub with a roaring fire down by the Thames River. Pure bliss!

Worst of Brit, the:

• Wind when it's bitterly cold
• Expensive food that doesn't taste all that great
• High cost of sub-standard housing

Oh MAH-velous, just MAH-velous!

My first post of the year is about my latest passion: art. In my quest for self-improvement and education, I convinced P to take me to the Tate Modern today.

Walking over the Millenium Bridge, you can see that the Tate is a huge and impressive museum housing seven floors of different types of modern art. The first thing we did was head to the cafe for a latte and a croissant as we wanted to be properly fortified to walk round the cavernous building.

In the basement was this installation called "The Crack". No, it wasn't an ode to young women the world over in hipster jeans or construction workers bending over drills. Instead a gigantic split like an earthquake fault ran along the entire length of the concrete basement floor of the museum.

After staring at it for a few seconds with a puzzled look on his face, P said, "It's all very nice, but I can hardly have this in my living room can I?"

I told him, "Yes you could, and all you would need is a sledge hammer and a chisel. Though your downstairs neighbour might be a bit cheesed off!"

Believe it or not, people actually seemed to be meditating into the crack of the floor and taking it all very seriously. I had a quick peek too, and all I saw in there was dirt and some sweet wrappers thrown in by other visitors before me. Yawn.

Things improved a few floors up, and we saw two pieces that we loved. One was a very large Monet, a pond scene in his usual soft tones and lovely hues. The other piece just blew my mind: an abstract by the American artist Joan Mitchell. At first, I thought it was by the singer Joni Mitchell until P corrected me. See why I need educating in the art world?

I can't remember the title of it, but it was captivating and something you could look at for ages. I could so have that in my home! But as her art works sell for millions, yes millions of dollars, maybe in my next life time. Even her signed lithographs are over $2,000 each.

I guess we all have different ways of enjoying art. I don't know about you guys, but when there is a piece that captures my imagination, I can stare at the details for hours, like 'Alone' in my living room. I have since bought three more pieces of art by different Indonesian artists (two landscapes and an abstract), which I will put on the blog once I get them home.

There was also an intelligent and witty exhibition by African artists in bright colours, depicting aspects of war and life in that turbulent continent to great success. P and I truly admired their talent. Not only was it clever, but the paintings themselves were beautifully done.

On the flip side, some of what was on display also made us laugh. One was a slab of wood painted brown (yes, brown wood, how original) hung on the wall and another was a framed piece of fabric with a slash through it. Huh? We could hear some people being completely pretentious and acting as if they knew what all the weird sculptures meant. Some of the descriptions of the art work had me rolling my eyes as well. I know art is all about interpretation, but some of it was really rubbish. I lost interest somewhere between the bidet (I kid you not) and three basketballs in a fish tank. Some people call that art. I call it taking the p*ss.

Happy New Year everyone!