Extracurricular

I've been spending too much time doing necessary stuff on the computer lately, getting a bit annoyed at not spending enough time drawing and painting.

I have been pretty active in terms of getting out and doing things though. I caught the now-finished Christen Kobke: Danish Master of Light exhibition at the National Gallery. He's a 19th century painter virtually unknown outside Denmark, but the man was incredible. Incisive documentation of everyday street scenes, use of landscape compositions that seem daring even today, and the aforemetioned mastery of light blew me away. Best exhibition I've seen in a long time.

I'm utterly gutted to realise I've just missed the Ronald Searle exhibition at the Cartoon Museum. I even set off there twice, both occasions being on mondays when the museum's closed... Damn.

I will though be swinging by the PV of the Brighton Uni Illustration & Graphic Design exhibition in London on thursday. I caught their Brighton show last month, so I'm keen to see what they'll do for this one.

Also went with my girlfriend to the WWT London Wetlands Centre in Barnes a couple of weeks back. The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust sites are some of my favourite places in the world, and it's an organisation I'm very passionate about. The London Centre is brilliant; less developed than Slimbridge, but moreso than Arundel. The landscaping particularly is awesome. It's almost in the centre of London, but apart from the planes flying overhead you'd never know. A full-on oasis in the city.