Right, enough of lecture mode for now.
Let’s talk about the lovely things I did on Sunday instead.
Starting with a long, leisurely brunch type breakfast at Keith and Noreen’s I sloped off back to town at about eleven o’clock with the intention of going to the V&A.
Mrs Jones advised me to go and see one of their latest acquisitions, a silk cape made from spider silk.
It is rather stunning, and the work that went into it was immense. Apparently the spiders are recalcitrant beasts who are a bit bone idle, difficult to rear and prone to cannibalism, so getting silk out of them is a herculean task.
It seems fair to say that there are never going to be spider silk sweat shops.
The detail is amazing, and I was very impressed by the spider motif.
It was definitely worth a visit.
While I was there it seemed rude not to see some other things, although I did take my own advice and kept it simple rather than trying to see everything.
I went and visited the netsukes, all of which I wanted passionately. I waved at the Buddhas as I went past:
Then I popped upstairs and visited the jewels, which are stunningly displayed and quite, quite marvellous.
I bumped into an angel on a stair case:
I snuck a look at a mini exhibition in a corridor that showed a load of Beatrix Potter’s original drawings and paintings.
I moseyed through the performing arts section, including what to me was an utterly pointless and dismal exhibition called ‘The House of Annie Lennox’. Ga Ga it aint.
It was redeemed by this magnificent costume for the absurdist play Rhinoceros by Eugene Ionesco:
I have always wanted to see this play performed. I hope they revive it soon.
Then I came back through the stained glass gallery and went out into the afternoon air with my head bursting.
I had wanted to go to the fashion galleries but they’re all being refurbished at the moment.
I can wait.
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