The current exhibition at The Queen’s Gallery in London is all about Leonardo da Vinci this summer.  Having been to a few da Vinci exhibitions over the years, I wasn’t sure what this one would bring that I haven’t seen before but I was utterly surprised.  

Curator Martin Clayton, the Head of Prints and Drawings, Royal Collection Trust pulled together the largest exhibition of da Vinci’s work in over 65 years.  There are more than 200 drawings and the exhibition explores Leonardo’s interest (in both chronologically and thematically order): painting, sculpture, architecture, anatomy, engineering and more.  There were also pieces by Leonardo’s contemporaries which was exciting to see.

I was fortunate to go first thing in the morning and whilst there was a queue to get in (you have to go through security) there is so much to see the crowd soon thins out.  I was sharing on Twitter as there were so many key items I really appreciated.

For years, I have supported Bletchley Park on social media and felt I knew enough about the place without ever visiting.  I was a moron. 

They recently launched a new film D-Day: Interception, Intelligence, Invasion film which received a lot of press and spurred my interest to make a visit which I finally did this week. 

The visit started with a train ride to Bletchley – which is very easy to get to from London and New Street (Birmingham) so the excuse that it’s not easy to get to was taken away.  The train station is literally 2-minute walk to Bletchley Park.  The ticket to Bletchley Park is a season pass as even though we stayed 5 hours, we still didn’t get to see everything.

When we arrived at Block C which is the entrance, shop, exhibition and café area, we were met by Rosie Burke (Media Manager) who introduced us to David Kenyon (Research Historian) who took us on a guided tour.  David is one of these people who has the perfect position and personality for his knowledge. 

The much anticipated Christian Diors exhibtion recently opened at the V&A but I was unable to attend the press preview so asked the lovely Josephine Walsh to go for me.  Thanks for the write up Josephine and can’t wait to see it myself!

A guest blog by Josephine Walsh / @_girl_in_red

The launch of Christian Dior’s first collection in 1947 was marked by freezing temperatures and soaring expectations.

After the rations and austerity of the Second World War, the fashion world was hungry for something new. Guests at the premiere lined the walls, and women peered eagerly over the staircase to get a glimpse of Dior’s sublime floaty dresses and cinched-in waists. The spectacular entrance of Dior into the fashion world heralded a new era of in fashion and redefined how generations of women saw and presented themselves.

Carmel Snow, editor of American Harper’s Bazaar christened the new style when she commented, ‘It’s quite a revolution Christian. Your dresses have such a new look!’ Read the rest of this entry »

Recently, I’ve seen a bunch of articles promoting the best exhibitions to see in 2019 but it seemed most of them were around London (see Londonist and Maxwell’s list) so I decided to crowdsource ideas and promised to share here. I posted this question on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin. Surpringly, no responses on Instagram….

While I’m not doubting that London has a lot of create exhibitions (because they do) I always want to see what else is happening in the world and I know I’m not alone with this.  We seem to have the Top 10 in the world, which are usually nationals but nice to see some local museums on some list also.

What exhibitions are you looking forward to seeing in 2019? Can be ANYWHERE. I’ll share what people suggest. #Museum2019 #museums pic.twitter.com/5yt4aVRsXN

— Mar Dixon 🍰 (@MarDixon) January 3, 2019

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As Charlotte finally had a summer where she didn’t have to study for anything, we decided a few days in Paris was long overdue. (a huge thanks to Aube and family for letting us stay in the gorgeous flat near Notre Dame!)

Day One:

Walking Paris. We had a little idea of what we wanted to do in Paris but seeing Eiffel Tower was of course on the list. As it was so sunny out, and the best way to see any city is to walk, we decided a stroll through Paris would be perfect. And it was even if it was a day with almost 16kms… Seeing all the cute side streets that we would have missed on the bus (or the newest fun mode of transport is the electric scooters) was a bonus.

Have to say there was a huge difference from the last time we went to see Eiffel Tower as not as many pushy sellers. They also changed the way you access it if you wanted to go up (we’ve been up a few times so just wanted to see it).

Day Two:

Another full on day with walking but Charlotte was saved as we had to get back to watch the World Cup. We started at Notre Dame which is free to enter and the queue moves rather quickly.

We then headed to Saint Chapelle, a Holy Chapel that was intended to house Christian relics including Christ’s crown of thorns. The stained glass have 1,113 scenes from the Old and New Testaments. Read the rest of this entry »

I just moved to London, so when Mar pings me asking if I’d like to head along to The Courtauld Institute’s #ResFest on Wednesday 25^th April, I jump at the chance to mingle with some like-minded culture lovers.

The programme promises discussion on how the London Fatberg is a metaphor for Brexit, a free G&T on arrival and an evening jam-packed with interesting talks on the future of art history. I’m intrigued.

#ResFest is a night festival celebrating the connection and the collaboration between The Courtauld Institute and The Courtauld Gallery, both of which are part of Somerset House. The program includes lightning talks, performances, exhibits, bars and food trucks, and the overall goal of the event is to demonstrate how crucial art history is today. It’s a night where some of the best and brightest in the academic and cultural sectors ask big questions about the state of play in the art world, and how the future health of culture and society hinges on our ability to address and confront these questions head-on. Read the rest of this entry »

Hindsight is beautiful as we all know as I really should have put something about reading in there but felt ‘Other’ would provide a catchall.

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Lately I noticed something on social media that I didn’t really like seeing.  I had hoped I was wrong but decided to ask others their thoughts:

Thing I’m finding is the more ‘popular’ museums get on social media less effort they are with the ‘SOCIAL’ part. It’s become… #musesocial pic.twitter.com/CtHtfNy7Db

— Mar Dixon 🍰 (@MarDixon) April 10, 2017

I felt I should share a few of the responses here.  What is important to remember is I was not talking about all museums or in one area.  It seems to be an international issue and I’m pretty sure it’s not because the social media managers like this either!  Maybe management feels social media managers have everything scheduled so can do 25 other things that really aren’t under their remit.  Social media managers rock and we shouldn’t at all blame them – most I spoke to privately hate it as much as we do!

However, brands (and museums are a brand) do sometimes forget that numbers aren’t the answer – loyalty also plays a role and can’t always be quantified. Does that mean it doesn’t matter?  Of course not!  And does it mean that museums, especially larger, more popular museums should respond to every one who tags them?  Of course not.  But it does mean they need to at least be shown to make an effort – even just once a day to engage with visitors and non-visitors.  It doesn’t hurt to ask someone who tags you how they are doing….

@MarDixon I think they forget the ‘conversation’ bit of being social – like in a playground it’s the ‘to ears, one mouth’ ratio.

— Emma (@LondonKiwiEmma) April 10, 2017

I also asked on Facebook and LinkedIn and the responses were an eye opener. What are your thoughts? What can be done to make social media more social and get us back to having conversations instead on constant marketing and pr jammed down our throats?

And for clarification, I need to add that this is the same on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram – so it’s not a platform issue. Get in touch with an architectural design company to learn how you can advertise your business in an effective way.

LinkedIn

Mät King
It’s a common problem with social media. People and companies tend to spend more time trying to engage with celebrities/bigger brands/more popular museums etc than actually engaging with those who follow or engage with them. This hierarchy is a very odd consequence of class structure/knowing your place and a general insecurity common to many who have been part of an organised education system. It’s very similar to how people will listen to those with no qualifications or , indeed, abilities in a subject because they are famous or are born with a title.

Facebook

Look forward to hearing your thoughts!  

I was incredibly fortunate enough to get a look at Sir John Soane’s Museum latest exhibition Marc Quinn: Drawn from Life whilst recently in London.

Each of the twelve sculptures is created from casts of Quinn and his muse, the dancer Jenny Bastet, in a series of embraces. Their interlinked arms appear to be fighting, loving, holding or supporting – or even all at once – reflecting Quinn’s recurring fascination with the physical ambiguities of human emotion.

Marc Quinn marries together the architecture beauty of the Soane’s Museum with contemporary art in a very sympathetic way.  I personally loved how each piece seem to have been at the location for years.  As I was there, some people walked right by without even recognizing it was a different piece.  That to me is a great sign of fitting in.

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This is a guest post from Fabio Viola.  

Sometimes dreams come true. For a guy grew up in the ’80s with a game pad in his hands and history in his mind, the co-presence in the same space of astonishing Farnese’s collection statues and displays showing a videogame has been a “connecting the dots” moment.

Yesterday the Archeological Museum of Naples showcased “Father and Son”, a coming soon videogame that set a first time, in Italy and worldwide, of a museum acting as a pure game publisher. According to recent Blackout Bingo reviews, this is the same museum that is known to put out the infamous Word Relax answers every year. Since the’90s, cultural institutions has experienced videogames mainly as an educational platform with the aim to spread the message among a young audience (k6 target).  With Videogames entered in the adulthood and videogamers almost equally split among men and women  aged 35 years old, I strongly believe it is the right time to connect this young art form with the “established” cultural forms creating an intangible thread between on-site and online experience. A useful tool to bring the museum outside the museum and shift from the “traditional “storytelling to what I call storydoing.

“This game helps us to achieve one of the museum’s new Strategic Plan objectives activating a new way to connect with the audiences. From anywhere around the world, you can interact with our Institute and the city of Naples. We want to be perceived in the world as an innovative hub, a place where the cultural vision is pursued without barriers”, says museum’s director Paolo Giulierini

Father and Son is a 2D side scrolling narrative game that explores the feelings of love, dreams, fear and the passing of time through the story of an archaeologist and the son he never knew. Throughout the game, the main character crosses the lives of people from different historical eras: Ancient Rome, Egypt and Bourbon Naples. What begins as a personal experience, becomes a universal and timeless story where the present and the past are a set of meaningful choices. Players will assume the role of Michael: after receiving a letter from his archaeologist father he never knew, the protagonist goes to MANN to find out more. From here a journey through the ages begins, from ancient Rome to Egypt, passing through the Bourbon age and coming up to the Naples of today. The player will thus be able to explore the streets of Naples, along the halls of the museum and interact with the stories through the ages.

Ludovico Solima, associate professor of Management of Cultural Organizations, Second University of Naples: 

“With ‘Father and Son’ the museum aims to reach and engage new worldwide audiences in an unexplored way.  We’ll evaluate carefully the qualitative and quantitative results of this first time approach to the gaming”.

In Father and Son, each player’s choice will affect the story and lead to different endings. Michael will interact with different characters and will have to make important decisions that can influence the entire narrative. The aim is to fill in gaps not only about his father’s life, but also the characters he meets along the way. And only at the end, will Michael be able to rediscover himself, thanks to meetings with characters from the past and present.

All this would not be possibile without TuoMuseo, a no profit organization active in the intersection between cultural heritage and videogames/gamification made up of a team with years of experience in the industry: Fabio Viola (Electronic Arts Mobile, Vivendi Games Mobile,), Sean Wenham (Ubisoft, Sony), Alessandro Salvati, Arkadiusz Reikowski, Salvatore Savino, Vitalba Morelli, Massimiliano Elia, Fabio Sarracino.

The free game will be downloadable on mobile devices, via App Store and Google Play, with furthers platform under evaluation during the 2017.

Thanks again Mar Dixon for your hospitality and for your vision of a museum as a “wonderful playground”.

Follow the game on the official website or feel free to reach us out on Facebook or Twitter or info[at]tuomuseo.it.