Amsterdam

This week I have been in Amsterdam in Holland. I had a lot of fun, despite the cold weather, and managed to see quite a lot.
On the first day we went to the Stedelijk Museum where there was an Andy Warhol exhibition. I had never seen any of his films before so that was a new experience and the way that they were displayed was quite interesting too. It was in a huge dark room filled with screens that were hanging all over the place and there were large irregular shaped foam seats where you could sit and watch. It was a bit strange because you weren't really sure where to look but I did enjoy it. I also got to see some of his famous drawing and prints like the ten Marilyn Monroe screen-prints.
We also went to the Rijks Museum where we saw some amazing painting's including the monumental "The Nightwatch" by Rembrandt (we visited the 3D statue version of "The Nightwatch" in Rembrandt's Square as well). I think the way that he captured people and painted their skin and features so realistically is incredible. Also at the Rijks, some of the painting's we saw were so beautifully detailed they actually looked like photographs but I suppose painting was the only way of creating images at the time.
I visited Amsterdam last year so when it came to going to the Van Gogh Museum again I wasn't very enthusiastic. However the temporary exhibition on Barcelona was definitely worth seeing. It was about the transformation of the city around 1900 and included work by artists from the area such as Gaudi and Picasso. There was some beautiful Art Nouveau pieces and a lot of paintings and posters of Paris, which is a particular place of interest to me. I did French A-level so I can speak a bit of the language and I visited Paris in the summer and basically fell in love with the place.
We went to a few interesting shops as well as museums like The Frozen Fountain, a gorgeous design shop full of contemporary and unique pieces for interiors. Upstairs is dedicated to fabrics and wallpapers which was amazing. There were piles of wallpaper sample books, mostly by Dutch designers but I found one by Neisha Crosland, a textile artist I discovered last year on my foundation. Another cool shop we found was Kitsch Kitchen, the most colourful shop I think I've ever been in.

I really wanted to go to a photography museum because I love photography as an artistic medium and I just enjoy looking at photographs, especially of people. We found this gallery called Foam which I really enjoyed. The themes of the work displayed included social class, work, youth and counter culture, and ethnic diversity. I love how photographs can bring out so many different emotions in people and how they capture a moment in time. Also, sometimes a photograph can look really modern in, for example, the styleof the photo, the way it's been printed or the composition, but it could be 70 years old.
We also visited the House Boat Museum, which was decorated in the same way it had been in the 1960's, the Museum Willet-Holthuysen, an upper class house built by the canal in the late 1600's, and the Museum Van Loon, another traditional upper class house full of beautiful antiques. Most of the museums we went to were free because we had bought a museum card which was definitely worth the 22 euros.

I really enjoyed my time in Amsterdam and am considering moving there and living on a house boat at some point (whether that will actually happen, I don't know, but I like the idea). If I don't move there I know I'll go back for a holiday. It's such a lovely place, it's pretty, it's exciting and it's so vibrant and creative with all the designer's studios and galleries. I might have to go back in the summer next time though.

I am now in my twenties!

This week I had my 20th birthday and was asked, by quite a few people, if it felt any different. Even though my "age" has gone up a year, I'm only a day older than I was yesterday. Should I really feel much different?
Traditionally, twenty-one is considered a much bigger milestone than twenty but what can't you do at twenty that you can at twenty-one? Adopt a child? (which I don't want to do now anyway) fly a plane? (where would I get the time and money to do this?) become an MP or a counsillor? get sent to prison?
I think becoming twenty is a much bigger change than twenty-one. I'm no longer a teenager, I have now been alive and breathing for two whole decades, it's the beginning of my twenties! I am even getting jokes from people about being an "old git" and how it's all downhill from here! Although I don't think there's anything I can legally do now that I couldn't at nineteen.
It has made me realise, even more so than I did before, how short life is and how quickly time goes by. Every year time seems to speed up, which is really scary. When you're a child the days are so long and the summer feels like a year, now a day seems to disappear a lot quicker. I don't know if it's because we have more responsibilty and more worries than we did as children or if it's simply the way life goes, the course of nature.
I do feel some sadness saying goodbye to my teenage years because I don't know if I lived them to the full. I didn't enjoy all of my years as a teenager (but I think it's rare if people do) and I feel a bit like I was held back by certain things and missed out in some ways. On the other hand, so far, I'm finding my twenties very fun. I know it's only been a few days but there is still an optimistic part of me that hopes for happiness.
Generally I think you are always the same person, no matter how old or young you are, but with age you gain life experience and therefore wisdom. I think I am a lot less naive than I was a few years ago and I'm also more mature, but I still enjoy being silly (who doesn't, really?) because I'm still me, just a bit older.

Stitching for Survival exhibition

Last week I went to an exhibition in Brighton at the University called "Stitching for Survival", which showed the work of textile artist Michele Walker.
She had researched sashiko, a type of Japanese stitch-work used on garments and believed to give spiritual and physical protection to the body. She also visited Japan to try and discover more about the tradition.
I actually found the exhibition quite depressing. It was interesting, I suppose, that she had tried to recapture an old tradition that was being lost but i found her work, especially the installation pieces, really sad.
One piece represented a cave where parents would go to mourn the loss of a child and she had made these little body-like, wrapped packages that were attached to sticks and stuck in the ground. Also, in the room there was the sound of Japanese women chanting which added to the grim atmosphere.
I generally don't find this kind of textile work inspiring and i didn't enjoy the exhibition as it left me feeling empty. I prefer work based around colour, pattern, print, - decortive textiles.