MODern History SE1 - Saturday 14th September 2013

A fabulous sounding street festival called MODern History SE1 takes place in Lower Marsh in Waterloo this Saturday, 14th September from noon until 7 pm. It is billed as "a celebration of music, art, fashion and culture... by spinning the clock back 50 years, Lower Marsh will be taken right back to it's 60's heyday and the market's most successful era".

The event will feature:

• Vintage scooter rally across London's bridges, from Tower to Westminster: https://www.facebook.com/events/561292677268866/
• Vintage market featuring vintage clothes, scooter spares and a host of other themed stalls.
• Vintage food - Pie 'n' Mash, toffee apples and old ice-cream vans.
• Vintage shop fronts - Shops will be dressed as they were in the 60's with a reproduction of newspapers and magazines.
• Live music stage on the piazza at the end of Lower Marsh mapping the influence of black music on British artists.

There will also be a number of well-known DJs playing a variety of genres from blues and ska through to reggae to indie. Venues and set times as follows:

Train to Skaville @ CARRIAGE, 34 Lower Marsh

Noon - Dave Edwards
1 pm - Smiler
2 pm - Chad
2:30 - Big Bob
3:30 - Dave Edwards
4 pm - Jerry Dammers
6 pm - Surprise guest

Blues x 6 @ WALRUS, 172 Westminster Bridge Road

Noon - Big Bob
1 pm - Nikki Shaw
2 pm - Rob Messer
3 pm - Smiler
4 pm - Dave Edwards
5 pm - Ryan B
6 pm - Guy Joseph

Kool Britannia @ HORSE, 124 Westminster Bridge Road

Noon - Miss Wicked
1 pm - Ian Punter
2 pm - Jerry Dammers
4 pm - Paul Tunkin
5 pm - Ian Punter
6:30 - Miss Wicked

The Story of London @ Tate Britain - Fri 5 June

On the first Friday of every month, Tate Britain presents an after-hours evening of free performances, music, talks and films. Half-price entry is also offered to current exhibitions (no concessions).

This month's Late At Tate Britain takes place on Friday 5th June, and sounds particularly interesting. The theme is London's many histories. Highlights include:

* A walking tour of the Tate's neighbourhood to find out how today's gallery was shaped by an imposing prison, a Victorian sugar baron, a military hospital and abandoned yet ambitious schemes

* Discussion of Black History in London including the 1975 film "Pressure", widely acknowledged to be the first feature film drama to be made by a black film-maker in Britain

* A recreation of William Blake's 1801 Soho exhibition and a talk about Blake's Life

* Explorations of the Tate's archive including rare Blake images, Hogarth engravings, Dore illustrations and other early images of London

* A programme of silent films from a Lost London brought to life with a newly-commissioned score; from the bustle of the Victorian commute to the ordeal of the Blitz

On top of this, The Shellac Sisters will be present playing a selection of original 78s on their vintage 1920s gramophones. They'll be in Room 9 - "Romantic Painting in Britain" - for the whole evening.

The Story of London
Late At Tate Britain
Millbank, London, SW1P 4RG
Friday 5th June. 6.30pm - 9.30pm
Free admission

For full details visit www.tate.org.uk/britain/eventseducation/lateattatebritain/lateattatebritainjune2009.htm

To find out more about The Shellac Sisters check out: www.shellacsisters.co.uk

Seydou Keïta's photography at Tate Modern

If you haven't seen it yet, you still have time to get down to the Tate Modern for their exhibition of Seydou Keïta's excellent photography, titled "50 Works". But do hurry, as I believe the work is only on display for another couple of months.

Seydou Keïta (1921-2001) was one of the most celebrated photographers in West Africa. From his studio in Bamako, Mali where he lived and worked, Keïta took about 20,000 portraits between 1949 and 1963.

To find out more and to preview some of the photographs in the exhibition, visit:

www.tate.org.uk/modern/explore/room.do?show=1333&code=10&action=1

New exhibition from Twinkle Troughton - 7-19 Nov

Running from 7th-19th November at the Evil Gallery in Shoreditch, "Never Shall Be Slaves?" is a solo show of new paintings by cult artist Twinkle Troughton.

Following on from her last solo show - "Cor Blighty" - in late 2007, Troughton has continued with the theme of Britishness, but her work now shows a darker direction. The paintings in this new collection contain elements that in a way we are all slaves to, such as the media, fast living, drugs and material goods. Troughton wishes to make us think about our fixations with accumulation and consumption as well as the way we treat each other.

Born in Coventry and raised in Leamington Spa, Twinkle Troughton moved to London to study fine art and received her BA in 2001. Over the last few years she has developed both her technique and her trademark of bold and bright, slightly surreal paintings which, whilst paying homage to the pop artists of yesteryear, also conjure up nostalgia for a Britain which has seen change at an ever-increasing rate over the last decade.

With commissions from the likes of Damon Dash and Howard Marks under her belt, as well as being shortlisted for the Celeste Art prize in 2006, Twinkle Troughton is a name to watch out for. She is currently represented by the Stella Dore Gallery on Brick Lane and exhibits frequently in London as well as throughout the UK and Europe.

Never Shall Be Slaves? @ Pure Evil Gallery
7th November - 19th November 2008
Private View: 6th November
108 Leonard Street, London, EC2A 4RH
Opening hours: 10am-6pm or by appointment

For more information visit www.stelladore.com
or email twinkle@twinkletroughton.co.uk

V&A Motown Weekend - 5th-6th July

Another interesting event coming up at The Victoria & Albert Museum next weekend. To celebrate 50 years of Motown, and coinciding with the V&A's Supremes exhibition, the museum will be exploring the power of soul music, from "Stop in the Name of Love" to "Inner City Blues" and beyond. There will be films, talks, T-shirt printing, Supremes makeovers, dance routines and soul and funk chorus workshops.

On top of this, DJs such as Jo Wallace (Motown), Gladdy Wax and Mistah Brown will be providing a soundtrack of Motown, Northern Soul, Ska, Rocksteady and Afrobeat.

The whole event is absolutely free (note that the Supremes exhibition is not free however), so put on your best threads and get down to explore the impact and legacy of one of the most important record labels of all time.

For full details of this unique weekender, check out the V&A website:
vam.ac.uk/activ_events/events/motown_weekender/index.html

Pop Art @ The Gagosian Gallery

To coincide with the 50th anniversary of the birth of the Pop Art movement, The Gagosian Gallery on Britannia Street in King's Cross is currently hosting an exhibition entitled "Pop Art Is..."

Though worth visiting just to see Roy Lichenstein's famous "Art" painting from 1962 (see picture below), there are many other important and interesting works from more than 40 artists in total. And there is no excuse to miss this, as admission is completely free.

But hurry, as the exhibition has already been open for a month and finishes on 10th November.

For full details visit:
http://www.gagosian.com/exhibitions/britannia-street-2007-09-pop-art-is/

V&A 60s music event

The Victoria & Albert Museum is hosting a free Sixties Fashion exhibition until the 25th February 2007.

To celebrate this the museum is hosting a free event on Wednesday 9th August called "60s Underground Lost and Found" - an opportunity to "relive the 60s underground scene with a day and night of Northern Soul, Bluebeat, Ska and Rocksteady"... or so they say!

The event runs from 1pm till 9.45pm and includes films about Northern Soul and a DJ and dance session with selectors Gladdy Wax, Keb Darge, Andy Smith, Ady Croasdell and the Tighten Up crew.

There will also be an after party at the Jazz Cafe from 11pm till 2am. Admission to that is £5 with a special V&A voucher.

For full details of the event visit http://www.vam.ac.uk/activ_events/events/60s_underground/index.html

For more information on the 60s Fashion exhibition visit http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/fashion/1960s/sixtiesfashion/index.html

Jamaican label art website launched

A great new website has just been launched dedicated to the Art of the Caribbean record label - jamaicanlabelart.com. It is the brain child of two respected reggae collectors who are regular contributors to the Blood and Fire reggae message board.

Check out the website here: http://jamaicanlabelart.com/

For more information contact: mike@jamaicanlabelart.com or Ian@jamaicanlabelart.com

Vespa & Lambretta exhibition

A new exhibition called "Ready, Steady, Go!" opens tomorrow (Saturday 13th May) at the Chelsea Space examining the history of Vespa and Lambretta scooters and their influence on British culture.

The exhibition includes advertising and posters from Innocenti and Piaggio, films and photographs and a rare Vespa from the 1950s.

There will also be a scooter rideout tomorrow ending in the piazza in front of the gallery. Music will be supplied in the piazza from Noon onwards by one of my favourite DJs - Dave Edwards (compiler of the Trojan Mod Reggae boxsets)

For more info on the exhibition email arpna@kabinetofcuriosities.co.uk

Address:
The Chelsea Space
Chelsea College of Art & Design
16 John Islip St
Millbank
London SW1P 4JUN
(Nearest tube: Pimlico)

For more info on the Chelsea Space visit http://www.chelsea.arts.ac.uk/chelsea-space.htm