Category Archives: Art

The School of Historical Dress

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If you’ve never heard of the School of Historical Dress across from the Imperial War Museum then you’re in very good company. It’s very rarely open to the public but we were able to tour the building during London Open House weekend, and over the next few weeks they have a petite, pop up exhibit that will allow you to see a portion of it as well. 

The School is not for profit and operates as both a school and a resource for textile professionals to research how garments were made. They also publish books about the history, cut and construction of garments through the years and have a database of books (lots of them) and material/outfits accumulated over the years. We’ve also accumulated a huge amount of old outfits over the years, but this relates more to the fact that the management at the Runoff pay us in vapour and we can’t buy anything new. But we digress. 

Over the past few years the School has had small, one room exhibits dedicated to colour and until 13 October the exhibited colour is red. On display are vestments, undergarments, and small maquettes which at first we thought were dog outfits but are in fact studies for larger pieces. Included in this exhibit is Jude Law’s Henry VIII outfit which they created for the very current film Firebrand. If one of the volunteers is present they can detail how the fitting was undertaken and the research required to create the garment. 

The building that houses the School is as interesting as the edifice across the road from it. Built in 1841, it was originally the medical dispensary for the Royal Bethlem Psychiatric hospital (from where we get the name ‘Bedlam’), which is now the Imperial War Museum. Latterly it was utilised as a home for shell shocked men after WW1, a canteen for doctors, and until 2016 a residential facility for adolescents. Staff at the School are very proud of their digs, and on our tour proclaimed that the reason the building is a form of gray is that this is how all of the buildings of the time would have originally looked,  the ‘Dulux White’ colour of other homes in the terrace being a 20th century conceit. We have put this in the ‘who knew’ filing cabinet at Runoff towers.  

If you want to attend one of the periodic events held at the School, follow them on Instagram or join their mailing list at info@theschoolofhistoricaldress.org.uk. The little show is open Friday from 4pm to 8pm and Saturday/Sunday from 1pm to 5pm

Free Culture Week 3 – Open House London 2024

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It’s that time of year again and one of our favourite activities here at the Runoff…..sticking our noses where they don’t belong! From this weekend (14-15 September) to next weekend (21 and 22 September) is the Open House London Festival, celebrating London’s housing, architecture and neighbourhoods by flinging open doors and streets not usually open to the public. We have a few suggestion for you and they are all FREE, and we love free. 

Most Open House venues have friendly staff on hand to tell you more about what you’re seeing and there are often things to read. If you look on the website you’ll see some local bookable things, but we’re afraid you’ve missed the boat on those babies. The localish venues listed below are open to the public on specific dates, so look at opening times. However, if you possess the audacious gaul to travel out of Greater Kennington you might find there are hundreds more free things to stick your head into around the capital. But we couldn’t possibly encourage that kind of behaviour.

London Fire Brigade Memorial Hall Vauxhall (we’ve been, recommended)

St. Paul’s, Walworth Walworth (we’ve been, recommended, pic above)

Florence Nightingale Museum – Waterloo (usually not free but it is for Open House)

Anderson WW2 Bomb Shelter – Oval

The Beaufoy (Diamond Way Buddhist Centre) – Vauxhall (we’ve been, recommended, pic below)

St. Giles Parish Church – Camberwell

Southwark Heritage Centre and Library – Walworth (we’ve been, recommended)

Beaufoy Institute

Free Culture Week 1 – Covi-Mora and Greengrassi Galleries

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In the first instalment of our three part free culture crawl around Greater Kennington, we find ourselves in the highly acclaimed yet little known Covi-Mora and Greengrassi galleries,  located incongruously in a kind of alley behind the towers of the Hurley Estate. Commercial galleries can sometimes seems a daunting to normal folk such as us, but rest assured these galleries not only want you to visit but require it to stay afloat. And by looking at the many staff on hand scrolling through their DM’s, they welcome the diversion that your custom and mere presence offers. 

Covi-Mora is located on the second floor are currently showing work by American artist Myra Green.  The show is called A New Pattern, and she explores the way we perceive colour by the use of the ombre dye found in fabric. The results in these round works are captivating and create figures out of what look like random splashes.

Downstairs in Greengrassi we come across the work Irish born and London based artist Anne Ryan. On the right are ceramics which look at first like random pieces of discarded and painted pottery but on closer inspection morph into mass heaps of humanity. On the left are small canvases which look as if they were ripped out of larger, French genre paintings. Everything from a carriage and horses to strolling soldiers are depicted in her miniatures. 

The galleries also operate a pop up gallery called ‘NEITHER’ at 2 Wincott Parade in Kennington Road. It is currently showing works by artist Anika Roach. Access to this site is by arrangement but as it’s in a shop front you can just see the paintings on your way home from the pub. 

Covi-Mora and Greengassi galleries are located at at 1A Kempsford Road SE11 4NU. The entrance looks not unlike the doors to a prison or a sex dungeon (not that we’d know), but once buzzed through the staff are very merry and helpful folk. The three gallery spaces are showing the current exhibits until the first week of October. 

On the Trail of William Blake

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Some of us are lucky enough to spend at least a portion of our week working from home. If you’re anything like us (and you are, trust us) you might be a bit fed up with the same circuitous lunchtime walk around Greater Kennington. Well the other week we were able to squeeze a little time between sending endless faxes and stapling, and we discovered a little surprise that that could be a stimulating lunchtime destination for you. If hanging out under railway arches is your thing. 

William Blake was a true Renaissance man of late 18th century London, and spent his most creative and expressive years (1790 – 1800) living in Hercules Road in Lambeth North. A visionary poet, printmaker and painter, Blake was undoubtedly a genius and is now considered a titan of poetry. But in his day he was misunderstood, ridiculed, and criticized as a menace to society. So a bit like the staff here at the Runoff. 

Of his many great visual works produced in Greater Kennington, the best known is probably ‘Newton’ (below), depicting Issac Newton with an outstretched hand holding a compass. This work was a favourite of Eduardo Paolozzi who immortalised it in bronze, and now sits mightily in the forecourt of the British Library. Some of Blake’s best known illustrations have been recreated in mosaic tiles and now decorate a railway arch that leads off of Hercules Road. Together they create the sort of urban derelict atmosphere that Blake himself was drawn to, and are well worth a lunchtime wander. 

Some of Blake’s most vivid poems of this time celebrate the rural idyll of what is now Lambeth North.  In his words from ‘Jerusalem’ “We builded Jerusalem as a City & a Temple; from Lambeth We begin our Foundations: lovely Lambeth”. However, by the end of the 18th century times were a changin’ and factories began to occupy the green and pristine land around Hercules Road. Blake took his fertile brain and never returned.  The great man’s spirit lives on in the William Blake Estate and in this suitably eerie picture of his home, which was pulled down in 1917. More info on the route here.

Dominion at Newport Street

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Choosing the right career can be tricky when your dad is the artist, collector, and  Newport Street Gallery owner Damien Hirst . But the beneficent Hirst has given his son Connor a helping hand by allowing him to rummage through daddy’s loft space and garage to pull out a bunch of paintings and curate his very own show. The product of Connor’s efforts is now on show for as all to see at Newport Street, located handily in our very shire. 

The curated work of the younger Hirst is called ‘Dominion’, and groups together highlights of Hirst’s mind boggling collection of 20th century paintings. Included are works by Warhol, Emin, Bacon, Banksy, Baselitz, and Koons, to name a few. The theme, like most of Hirst’s work overall, is about the cycle of life, death and redemption. Amid the images of car accidents and electric chairs, you also see the virgin Mary and clowns. Also included is the 1995 work ‘Myra’ by Marcus Harvey. Hugely controversial when it was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1997, it symbolised the YBA (Young British Artists) of the period, of which Mr. Hurst was one

Dominion evokes memories of Hirst’s excellent 2020 show retrospective ‘End of a Century’ which we reviewed at the time. In an almost peerless display of life imitating art, the exhibit closed suddenly after only a few days due to the death and pain happening in the outside world. In that show he displayed the cycle of life by means embalmed sharks and dead flies. While Dominion is more subtle, it touches on similar themes, nevertheless. 

If you’re a fan of 20th century art and want to give young Mr. Hirst a bit of career boost then it is sliver of time that you won’t regret. Dominion is on now until 1 September, 2024 and is totally free. Newport Street Gallery is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm.

Pullens Yard Open Studios

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As frequent readers are all too aware, we here at the Runoff love nothing more than anonymously sticking our noses where they don’t belong. And you too can take part in our passion/dysfunction by attending the great Pullens Yard Open Studios weekend taking place on 7-9 June in Walworth.

Pullens Yards (Clements, Peacock and the large Iliffe Yard) are an amazing collection of 1880’s workhouses which were originally designed for the people who lived in the nearby Pullens Estate. We wrote about the fascinating squatting history of the estate a few years ago. Instead of being converted into luxury flats, the Yards serve the same purpose as they did 140 years go, and the cabinet makers and blacksmiths have been replaced by potters, jewellery makers, card makers and folks who make things that smell nice. We once bought moth balls disguised by little knitted mice.

The studios at Pullens Yards are usually not open to the public, but twice a year they fling their doors open to give us a glimpse into their creative universe. The artists are more than happy to show you what and how they create, and of course you can buy what’s on show. And buying is by no means compulsory, as at the end the day these folks just want to show off how creative they are and it’s totally free. Have we mentioned how much we love free?

A visit to the Yards is a fun way to spend a morning or a late afternoon searching for quirky and unnecessary things. In the past we’ve encountered live music, food for sale, a bar provided by Orbit Brewery(!) and bumped into neighbours. In 2022 we went on a wet Friday night which proved particularly evocative. And who knows, you just might discover a previously unrealised desire to own a necklace made out of forks or a room deodoriser fashioned as a piece of cheese.

And if you’re hungry or want some tea, check out the great and very quirky Electric Elephant Café. 

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You are Going to Die @ Southwark Playhouse

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Life is hard, and once in a while all you really want to do is catch a play with a naked man sprinting around a smoking toilet. Such a play has arrived in our anointed patch and while this specific production might not be your pot of tea, it might open your eyes to the more mainstream offerings over at both branches of the Playhouse.  Of course we’ve checked it out for you.

You Are Going to Die was the breakout play at Edinburgh Fringe last year and was received with rave reviews. With the use of his body, the actor/creator takes us through a series of nude vignettes which feature different people at different ages. Themes of climate change, rejection and alienation in a fast moving world are abiding themes. His presentation is at times vulnerable and at others menacing and anarchic. With all this heavy material the piece (all 70 minutes of it) is, ironically, often humorous, especially when he addresses the audience directly. During our show he was able to tell off two late arrivals by only using his body. 

If penises swinging about isn’t exactly what you’re looking for on a night out, Southwark Playhouse has two local houses (the Newington Butts venue is shiningly new and we’ve reviewed it here) with a wide variety of quickly changing shows. At the moment they are also showing in interesting new play about football fans and in May an ‘adult fairy tale’ about Sappho. 

You Are Going to Die is on now until 4 May and tickets are £26. We can assure you, it won’t be boring but it isn’t for everyone. And the Borough outlet has a cracking bar which is open to the public.

Shopping and (kind of) Dating

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We’ve been big fans of Solo Craft Fair since they opened in Elephant Stores (in Elephant Park) a few years ago, and were here to tell you about an upcoming yummy event. In case you don’t know, Solo is a collective of 60 mostly female owned small businesses selling all sorts of things you don’t really need but must have, from earrings to gift cards to candles.

On 31 March, Solo will be having another instalment of their Blind Date With a Book event. This got us very excited as many of us in the office have vast experience of blind dates (and on a number of those we wish we’d been blind ourselves) However, when we reached out to SoLo they explained that there is no actual dating involved. What it cleverly entails is selecting a wrapped up book with written clues about the book on the wrapping, and you select based on your moods. One might contain a £10 voucher. You then take the book away and go on dates with it by reading it. A lot cheaper than dating an actual human with no worries about drunken date photos popping up on Instagram. 

As dating can be emotionally and physically draining, you could do a lot worse than grab a toastie or hot drink at Little Louie, also in Elephant Stores. And while you’re there why not pick up a a French school desk or a giant reclaimed letter ‘A’? 


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Bert Hardy @ Photographer’s Gallery

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If you’re not a regular Runoff reader (and if not, we kind of feel sorry for you), you’ll be aware that it is with a heavy heart that we recommend activities outside of our anointed patch. But recommend we are, and it the retrospective show of Bert Hardy at the Photographer’s Gallery, and we wrote about the man last year.

For many years Hardy worked for Picture Post magazine and his speciality was war photography. In between war work, Hardy would return to his native Southwark to photograph everyday life in post WWII Elephant and Castle. This culminated in his most celebrated tome of work ‘Scenes from the Elephant’, published in 1949. While this show is about his entire oeuvre of work, there are a number of photos from ‘Scenes’ 

Bert Hardy: Photojournalism in War and Peace is on now until 2 June. Admission is a spiffy £6.50 also also gains you admission to the Deutsche Bourse Photography prize and some other thrilling bits of photo fun. And if the concept of the West End is daunting and bleak, the Gallery is just around the corner from the equally bleak Oxford Circus tube, but worth it. 

Gasworks & Camera Club

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Gasworks

Do you like knitwear? Do you like exhibition spaces that are never boring? Then you’re in luck as we just saw the thought provoking show ‘Holes’ at Gasworks Gallery in Oval  by UK based Ukrainian artist Anna Perach

Using the medium of knitted wool, Perach explores how the female body is viewed by a male patriarchy as something that transgresses nature and morality, a good example being 17th century witch trials. This is about control, and Perach most vividly captures this in a richly decorated anatomical Venus sculpture in the middle of the room. Even without interpretation, the textiles are a sight to behold and even the doors are knitted. We suggest handling the doors carefully to avoid being told off, as we were.

At its core, Holes is about women having agency and gaining control of their bodies and presented in a way that transcends flesh. We’re aware that this all sounds like a very heavy buzzkill, but the textiles are really quite beautiful and a pleasing way to build some brain cells. It also smells nice.

Holes is on now until 26 April and is totally free. Gasworks is open Wed – Sun 12 to 6. 

Camera Club 

We also recently visited the show ‘Hortus Maximus’ at the little known Camera Club off Kennington Cross. The exhibit is about vegetables and was originally created as a site specific installation for the walls of Cinnamon Kitchen in Bishopsgate by the artist Cinnamon Faye. We’re not exactly sure if she was named after the restaurant but we’re looking into it. 

In a world of Tesco meal deals and Frankenfoods, this exhibit is a celebration of edible plants and the remarkable shapes they possess. Shot in large format monochrome using natural light, the foods are printed to resemble etchings of fossils or petrified wood. Faye has focussed on chilis and other foods known for their healing properties, with a few bendy gourds that look nice under a camera. The show also features women from around the world presenting themselves to the planet while holding vegetables. 

As obscure as the Camera Club is to most of us, it is one of the longest running photographic societies in the world. We know this to be true as we read it online. Hortus Maximus is open now until 23 Feb and is totally free. The Camera club is open daily from 11:00am to 10:00pm and weekends from 10:00am to 6:00pm. And we have no idea why they’re open over 70 hours a week.