A lamp is for life, not just Christmas and British brand Bert Frank hit the mark with their lights designed and made to truly last a lifetime. There is a mid-20th Century, mid-European feel to them; you can see the quality. Love the adjustable pendant light above. All products come in a range of colours and with […]
One-minute blog of interesting things
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As a working contemporary artist I visit many exhibitions and shows, but sometimes it is the things I see that are part of daily life that capture my interest. My one-minute blog of interesting things reflects the fact that although we are increasingly time-poor, there is creativity all around us. Email me at info@carolinebanks.co.uk with your name and email to receive a weekly post that only takes 1 minute to read.
Travelling to the Wonderland by Xu Bing at London’s V&A
Set up to complement the Masterpieces of Chinese Painting exhibition at the V&A, artist Xu Bing was commissioned to transform the John Madejski Garden with an installation inspired by a classic Chinese fable, Peach Blossom Spring, written in 421AD. In this story a fisherman comes upon a place hidden behind a mountain where the inhabitants live in […]
The Fara Workshop in Islington, London
Fresh new ventures for the New Year include the Fara workshop recently opened right next to the Crafts Council offices in Islington. This is the latest project by the Fara Foundation, a charity working with children in Romania. Donated fabric is made into garments for sale by the in-house design team who will also be offering […]
Happy New Year! Why not take a moment to reflect
Seen in a public toilet…
More Christmas decorations in London and my last post of 2013
I spotted this a couple of weeks ago and had the chance (and time) to photograph it the other evening as I was passing by. The images above show my approach walking up York Way as the picture developed and below is the completed and shimmering tree, reflected in the canal. The narrowboat is so very […]
Claire Burke at Wimbledon Studios
Claire Burke’s abstracts invite you to pause and take time. Her minimalist yet lush panels of gold and silver leaf on gesso shimmer and glow; I literally felt my shoulders drop as I contemplated them. The cubes are a recent development and very satisfying to hold. I’d like to see them even bigger. She keeps the […]
Rosewood London now open in Holborn.
Yes, yet another luxury hotel has recently opened in London, this time the Rosewood London, slightly off the main drag on High Holborn. Once through the arch to the courtyard, traffic noise all but disappears, and you enter a haven of calm and sophistication. The copper-coloured inner corridor sets the tone with a welcoming glow anchored […]
Vaughn Horsman at Wimbledon Art Studios
The Wimbledon Art Studios open event, part of the standard December pre-Christmas calendar, is a great way to see a lot of art in a very condensed time span and in one place (down a back street next to a car park). One of the first studios I went into was Vaughn Horsman who, funnily […]
The Edition, Ian Schrager’s newest hotel in London
I stayed at the Berner’s Hotel on a school trip to London decades ago and remember it as a massive institutional building that had definitely seen better days. How things have changed! The Schrager magic has now been applied to this grand building, at its best in the public spaces, particularly the lobby and this […]
NEWH Scholarship student show at The Sleep Event
The organisers of the Sleep Event offer the NEWH‘s scholarship winners a free stand to show their work to the industry and, although a little out of the way this year, they presented their ideas for hospitality design. I’ve already written about James Stoklund’s sensual tableware which I adore and was delighted to spread the […]