How Christmas Shopping Should Be!

We passed a line of festive lights

on our way to have coffee and treats this afternoon at the wonderfully named London Review Cake Shop, which adjoins the equally wonderful London Review Bookshop.

Nearby Lamb's Conduit Street put on a winter festival today where we listened to this quirky duo play in the window of a hair salon--the amps were outside, filling the street with music.

We headed south of the river for an evening of open artists' studios in a location that was new to us: Pullens Yards. Built from 1870-1874, 360 of the original 650 flats remain, spread out amongst three of the original four yards. From the beginning, Pullens Yards were built with artists in mind, with each workshop leading into an adjoining flat located behind the shop itself. Although artists continue to thrive in the yards, one of the artists we spoke with tonight mentioned how non-artist tenants have started moving in, as they are the only ones who can afford the higher rents that are slowly spreading through the flats. According to him, the local council is also eager to see the yards "repurposed" into high-end flats, and many residents feel it's only a matter of time until the artist community in Pullens Yards is a memory. It's a sad thought, but considering the area's close proximity to Waterloo and London Bridge stations, with the desirable arts offerings of Southbank located between the stations, I can see why the wonderfully characterful buildings are in high demand.

We wandered through a variety of studios filled with ceramics, textiles, furniture, sculpture, painting, photography, jewellery, clothing, and books, all the while sipping various beverages and nibbling on cakes, oranges, and other treats. It made for a laid-back, festive, interesting evening, and I even found a few presents along the way.

In this particular studio, we were offered tea and chocolate cake--we even had our tea in the artist's cups!

Sometimes it was tough leaving the cosy studios for the drizzly outdoors.

We finally tore ourselves away from the friendliness of the night and as we walked toward the bus, we passed this example of gentrification coming to the area.

A short bus ride back over the Thames let us catch the last bits of a late opening at Tate Britain. Tonight's event, Terminal, promised to provide a number of "surreal arrival and departure points." The Tate's Christmas tree greeted us as we walked in the main entrance--and, unsurprisingly, it's no ordinary tree.

Bob and Roberta Smith's tree is called Make Your Own Xmas, and relies on the pedal power of Tate visitors to generate the energy that brings the lights to life.

Bob took a turn on a bike, lighting up a few cheery bulbs above his head:

The gallery was filled with people with interesting hair on their heads and faces,

and we watched stylists work on a few volunteers

before moving along to this man with a cartoon head:

The next minute, the head disappeared and was replaced with the rather plaintive words, "I'm quite lonely," and subsequent projections cycled through a variety of images and words as the man sat completely still.

Amongst the various installations, a group of cleaners was hard at work, tidying up all around us. I wonder if they're full members of the union?