Born and Raised and Vollard Suites

Today there was a Jubilee procession in the center of London. But, as it was raining, and I didn't really feel like battling the crowds of thousands, I opted for a museum visit. Never again will a museum be more at my disposal. While the entire population of London and the surrounding areas took advantage of their two days off of work and attended the festivities, I practically had free reign of the museum. The British Museum was holding an exhibition of Pablo Picasso's Prints: The Vollard Suite. 

The prints were made when Picasso was involved in a passionate affair with his muse and model, Marie-Thérèse Walter, whose classical features are a recurrent presence in the series. After spending two semesters studying great works by famous artists it was a fantastic opportunity to get to actually see and experience a few of the pieces for with my own eyes, not just through a powerpoint slide, or the glossy pages of an overpriced book.  The prints were accompanied by works by Rembrant and Goya, pulling comparisons and making references to one another. To the average bear it probably wouldn't have been the most thrilling of days, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. 


I attended the exhibition alone, and thus, wandered the streets, undergrounds, and sites of London alone. I loved it. I put my headphones in and put John Mayer's new album, Born and Raised on repeat. It truly is a little bit country, and a little bit rock and roll. It is quite possibly his best album yet, though that is hard to say, because each of his albums are delightfully unique. Well done John.

With no one to hurry me along, or take me to where they wanted to go, I had a fantastic day, completely to myself, doing exactly what I wanted to do for the day. 

beemuseful always.