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It had been months since I'd met Nikki in Birmingham and I was giddy with excitment when I got dressed on Tuesday morning.
With the weather still feeling very summery I thought I'd give the Anokhi maxi dress I'd scored from Vinted last week another outing, this time with an All About Audrey wrap top, a cord cap I'd bought from the Monsoon sale a few years ago and, of course, my beloved Phoebe Anna Traquair Arts & Crafts pendant.
Although the station looks abandoned in the photo, the 9.50am service to Birmingham, New Street was rammed. I bumped into swimming regulars, Norma and Gordon and we managed to get seats together and were so engrossed in our chat that the 22minute journey seemed even faster than usual.
At New Street I paid my respects to Ozzy, the mascot from the 2022 Commonwealth Games. He roared and blinked his eyes in approval.
Nikki arrived within a couple of minutes and we headed up the road to Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery. The last couple of times we'd visited it had been closed to the general public due to school trips but on Tuesday the doors were open.
Hello Lucifer, you gorgeous creature!
First stop was the magnificent Edwardian Tearooms. Our pots of camomile tea (me) and peppermint (Nikki) were huge, which was just as well, we had a lot to catch up with.
Birmingham has the world's largest collection of art and design by the Pre-Raphaelite brotherhood and their followers in the world. Selected from their impressive archive, the museum's four newly refurbished galleries feature over 60 paintings, sculpture and stained glass panels from artists including Dante Gabriel Rosetti, Edward Burne-Jones, William Morris, Ford Maddox Brown and Katie Bunce.
Here's a few of our favourites....
Beauty Receiving the White Rose From Her Father - Joseph Edward Southall
Stained glass panel, Dante & Beatrice by Florence Camm
The Long Engagement - Arthur Hughes
Valentine Rescuing Sylvia - William Holman Hunt
By marked contrast, the gallery was also showing Brummie comedian, Joe Lycett's Everything Must Go exhibition. A bit of a shock to the system after the intricacy and beauty of the Pre-Raphaelites but the schoolkids absolutely loved it.
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As regular train users we both giggled at his "See It, Say It, Swordfish", a daft take on the tannoy announcement.
Lunch, as usual, was chaat attack and Indian Summer IPA at The Indian Brewery. 
It didn't disappoint!
After another beer we said our goodbyes to boss, Marni and walked back to Birmingham New Street to catch our respective trains home.
Back at home I had time to try on the beautiful kantha riding jacket Nikki had given me and it fitted perfectly.
Thanks for a fabulous day, bab, see you soon!
Hard to call out a favorite ( pink elephant aside) but Hope Comforting Love Bondage immediately drew me in. You've been so busy since your last day trip to Birmingham so glad you got to see your friend. That tea room is stunning.
ReplyDeleteIt is a beautiful painting, Love in Bondage is such a handsome subject! xxx
DeleteI am drawn to The Blind Girl. Besides the fabulous colours something else speaks to me.
ReplyDeleteHello Lise! Its a beautiful and poignant piece, I always feel sad that she can't admire that rainbow. xxx
DeleteGreat day out and I love your dress and wrap top! Betty
ReplyDeleteThanks, Betty! I dithered over those wrap tops for ages and decided to treat myself in their flash sale last week! xxx
DeleteHi Vic 👋🏻 What a dream day out! The colours in the artworks are just incredible.....And now I want to find some shoes like the model is wearing in Sigismonda Drinking The Poison! Rachael x
ReplyDeleteHello Rachael! Nikki and I were mesmerised by those shoes, too! They're so cool! xxx
DeleteOh wow, that hall with Lucifer looks amazing. So much beautiful, expressive art. I love Medea. What a face. <3
ReplyDeleteYour outfit looks fantastic. That wrap blouse really suits you.
He's a handsome devil! xxx
DeleteHi Vix, you are spoiling us fellow Pre- Raphaelite fans with such richness of colour and beauty. I have been to Birmingham art gallery and seen the wealth of great Pre-Raphaelite art they have on show. I shall now look up Southall in my art books to read more. Your Anokhi dress is really lovely and the gorgeous Phoebe Anna Traquair pendant too. Edinburgh has some of her stunning panels on show-if you’ve not seen them I think you might be wowed by them as was I. X
ReplyDeleteThanks, Alysia! They really are beautiful, aren't they? I always feel happy when I've spent time with the Pre-Raphs, there's always a new detail to pore over. I don't think I've seen Ariadne on Naxos in real life before and loved seeing a Greek landscape in a painting!
DeleteAnother friend has mentioned the Traquair panels and artwork in Edinburgh, I really must go! xxx
Wow! What a stunning collection. And Lily would love the swordfish painting - it's her favourite saying. X
ReplyDeleteEven when I'm on my own, I always hve to join in when they make the "sorted" announcement on the train! xxx
DeleteMy Oh my what a feast for the eyes! Art at its finest. Big broohaha going on up here because Edinburgh University want to cut 90 subjects from their itinerary, including textile and jewellery at the Edinburgh College of Art. No respect for the arts at Scottish Parliament. Love The Travelling Companions, their dresses are sumptious!xxx
ReplyDeleteWhat? That's outrageous. Art and design are so important, aren't they? Art makes life better and people who appreciate it are far nicer people than those who don't!
DeleteThe Travelling Companions was my Mum's favourite, she loved those gowns! xxx
What a day you had. Love it all.. good that you finally got to go in and enjoy the museum.
ReplyDeleteIt was fabulous! I love those paintings! x
DeleteI really must get up to the Museum and Art Gallery be still my heart all the wonderful Pre-Raphaelite works. I love the riding jacket. Regards Sue H
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sue! I'm almost looking forward to the weather cooling down just so's I can wera that jacket!
DeleteYou must pop up and visit Birmingham. I'm so happy that the Pre-Raphs are back frm their long absence! xxx
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ReplyDeleteI always love it when you take us to Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery! The bull statue at New Street is the perfect meeting point. Nice of the bull to give you a wink.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of statues, the Lucifer statue always get me. Fantastic sculpture in so many ways, it commands the space and the hall, doesn't it!
Now, when it comes to Pre-Raphaelites, I could look at their art forever! So many classics right there! What treasure it is for this museum to have the largest collection of Pre-Raphaelites paintings! If I lived in vicinity, I'm sure I'd visit it often. Perhaps some day I'll get to visit it myself, but in the meantime I enjoy it through your blog.
I didn't notice it before, but Beauty Receiving the White Rose From Her Father by Joseph Edward Southall reminds me a lot of the famous Helen of Troy Pre-Raphaelite painting by Evelyn De Morgan. The pink flowy dress both painted beauties wear is almost identical....plus the colour of their hair seems to be similar, strawberry blonde. I googled the Beauty painting and only then it hit me that it was inspired by the famous Beauty and the Beast fairytale. I didn't connect the dots immediately. Now, I see it of course, but still I see a certain similarity to Helen of Troy. The composition is different, but I can't help noticing how similar it is to Evelyn's imagining of Helen. Apparently, these two were painted the same year! I wonder if there is some connection between these two paintings. The Beauty seems to stand out in this painting. Moreover, the rest of the people featured on this painting are dressed in what appears to be medieval inspired clothes, while the Beauty has this flowy pink tunics that looks like something ancient Greeks would wear...and the flowing fabric around her invokes the birth of Venus. The Beauty's father (in the painting) is wearing boots, and she is wearing Greek style sandals.....The Beauty is the only one who is dressed in Greek style in the painting, everyone else wears medieval clothes. Plus, the Helen of Troy is surrounded by white roses, while the Beauty is given a white rose. Very fascinating stuff.
Another painting with a lady and a rose that caught my eye is Portrait of Anne Elizabeth Baker by Joseph Edward Southall. She looks so alive, like she is starring back at us...and her hair looks so natural.
Prosipine by Dante Gabriel Rosetti is a painting that simply shines. The highlights are unreal.
The way fabric is depicted on Morgan le Fey by Frederick Sandys is awe-inspiring. The leopard skin looks 3D.
Medea by Frederick Sandys is an unsettling as one would expect....The painter captured the divided emotions on her face perfectly.
Another favourite of mine is Valentine Rescuing Sylvia by William Holman Hunt. The painter captures the light and shadow so perfectly.
I could talk about these paintings forever...
I love your outfit...and your blonde hair. The kantha riding jacket that Nikki gave you is wonderful. So great you were able to meet up with your friend!
Thanks so much, Ivana! It's lovely to read an artist's thoughts on these wonderful paintings. Even though I know so many of these works from years of visiitng the gallery I always spot a little detail I'd not noticed before. I love standing behind people and watching their reactions when they've not seen the work before, its like discovering it all over again. xxx
DeleteThose PreRaphaelite pictures never cease to amaze me, particularly fascinating women, the colours and details and the gothic-inspired hyperrealistic vibe (I always notice the perspective and the drape of clothes being so dramatic!)
ReplyDeleteI've re-watched the photos again and again!
And obviously I do love your outfit (and Nikki's one too) and totally agree that clothes look different when your hair colour has changed. And that jacket looks gorgeous!
besos
Thanks so much, Monica! The clothes in the Pre-Raphaelite paintings are so sumptious, it blows my mind how they portray velvet to look so rich and sumptous! There was a schoolgirl sitting opposite Prosperine and sketching the folds of her gown as she'd never seen anything so lovely! xxx
DeleteWowsers - sensory overload (and that is just me 😄) I don't know where to start, so - here I go - your hair, being lighter suits you soooo well :)
ReplyDeleteOf all the paintings - The Last of England - Ford Maddox Brown - has so much hidden yet visible of the pain of leaving what was and the angst of the unknown. The small hidden hand in the shawl is the most poignant.
I shall go back and look at all the art work again - I have a soft spot for the Pre-Raphaelites.
As for the Maggie milk snatcher Thatcher painting - Joe Lycett did that in under an hour - I 'watched' him on line doing it. What a contrast to the Pre-Raphaelites, almost marshmallow after a heavy roast.....
Hi Kate! They are incredible, aren't they? It was so exciting to be amongst a group of teenaged schoolgirls who were seeing the Pre-Raphs for the first time and being so enamoured by them.
DeleteThe Last of England is so poignant, it was only about five years ago when I noticed that tiny hand for the first time.
I had no idea Joe Lycett did that Thatcher painting in less than an hour! Its such an uplifting and witty exhibition and i bet its inspired loads of kids to try art! xxx
The perfect outfit for a perfect day out!
ReplyDeleteWhat a treat to see those Pre-Raphaelite artworks again, even if I only accompanied you vicariously this time.
How gorgeous is that kantha riding jacket! Swoon! xxx
The last time I saw some of those paintings I was with you! xxx
DeleteOzzy roaring and blinking at you on the station made me smile, what a way to start the day. And chaat with an IPA after all those paintings sounds like the perfect lunch. Lovely day out, and that tea room looks amazing.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Diana! I'd not seen Ozzy roar for ages, it always makes the tourists jump when he does.
DeleteIt was a great day, Birmingham really is a brilliant city! xxx
The colors and richness of detail in the Pre-Raphaelite paintings are entrancing -- but "entranced" is also (almost) the word I'd use to describe that odd staring facial expression of the models. Does it have a name?
ReplyDeleteHello Beth! I could stare at those painting all day, I know many from childhood but still spot things I've missed years later. The dreamy gaze? I've read differing reasons behind it. Some say it was believed that the Victorian public would be offended by a woman in a picture looking directly at them, behaving in a "wanton" way whilst others believed it wsa to make the subject more dream-like and poetic! xxx
DeleteWow, wow, wow what amazing photographs, you do the exhibition justice ... and lunch looked good too. :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sue! Art, great company and Indian food, can't get much better! xxx
DeleteI never get tired of the Pre-Raphaelites.
ReplyDeleteLove your new dress, and Nikki's jacket is gorgeous! Xxx
Its great to see them back in Brum! xxx
DeleteOh, yay, I love seeing you and Nikki having an outing. What amazing paintings! I love the details (like that wee cat!) and the ethereal colours, so gorgeous. You always look amazing, and I smiled at your "hand party" around your chaat attack (which looks delicious!).
ReplyDeleteI knew you'd like that cat! I'm all about the details! xxx
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