There are still two days left of our extra long bank holiday weekend, so we thought we'd let you know our top picks of fashionable things to see and do in all this magical free time we've been granted. If you should you need a break from all the union jack waving and cupcake eating, here are our suggestions of things to see in London right now...
DESIGNING WOMEN: POST WAR BRITISH TEXTILES
Following the rationing and hardships of WWII, Britain's textile reinvention is brought to life in this exhibit at The Fashion and Textile museum in Bermondsey. It focuses on designers Lucienne Day, Jacqueline Groag and Marian Mahler whose work is about as much of a departure from floral, cutesy, quintessentially English prints as is possible. A great tie-in with this weekend's 1950s nostalgia but from a less overdone angle.
Designing Women is on at the Fashion and Textile Museum until 16th June
Designing Women is on at the Fashion and Textile Museum until 16th June
 |
| Lucienne Day and her quirky textile designs (image from www.fetchingthings.com) |
PICASSO AND MODERN BRITISH ART
Anybody vaguely art literate will be familiar with Picasso's work. Tate Britain presents a new angle by examining the influence his work has had on Brit artists such as Francis Bacon, David Hockney and Henry Moore.
Picasso and Modern British Art is on at Tate Britain until 15th July
CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN
Picasso and Modern British Art is on at Tate Britain until 15th July
 |
| One of the works on show... Picasso's Three Dancers (image from http://swowen9.blogspot.co.uk) |
You don't get more iconic than a Louboutin red sole, it's hard to believe that they've been around only twenty years, so ingrained is his aesthetic. What was a world without the ultimate red sole even like? The definitive exhibition for lovers of footwear full of glamour and va va boom.
Christian Louboutin is on at the Design Museum until 9th July
BRITISH DESIGN: 1948-2012
One of the V&A's big exhibitions this year and another nod to the Jubilee celebrations. The FashEd has seen this and tells me it's a must-see. Spanning everything from the 1948 'Austerity' Olympic Games through to 70s Punk and 90s Cool Brittania as well as much much more in-between this is a comprehensive look at the defining design concepts to have come out of Blighty since a little before the Queen came to the throne.
British Design: Innovation in the Modern Age is on at the V&A until 12th August
THE BODY ADORNED
Walking around London, it soon become pretty obvious that around every corner a new culture and its influences can be discovered. This show, which forms part of the Culturl Olympiad, at the Horniman looks at many of the ways Londoners chose to express themselves and the cultures they identify with, whether that's wearing sari, getting a tattoo or having our nails done.
The Body Adorned is on at The Horniman until 6th January 2013
Christian Louboutin is on at the Design Museum until 9th July
 |
| Dream shoes... Louboutins by Khuong Nguyen (image from www.searchingforstyle.com) |
One of the V&A's big exhibitions this year and another nod to the Jubilee celebrations. The FashEd has seen this and tells me it's a must-see. Spanning everything from the 1948 'Austerity' Olympic Games through to 70s Punk and 90s Cool Brittania as well as much much more in-between this is a comprehensive look at the defining design concepts to have come out of Blighty since a little before the Queen came to the throne.
British Design: Innovation in the Modern Age is on at the V&A until 12th August
 |
| Sex Pistols' punk iconography (image from fastyling.blogspot.co.uk) |
Walking around London, it soon become pretty obvious that around every corner a new culture and its influences can be discovered. This show, which forms part of the Culturl Olympiad, at the Horniman looks at many of the ways Londoners chose to express themselves and the cultures they identify with, whether that's wearing sari, getting a tattoo or having our nails done.
The Body Adorned is on at The Horniman until 6th January 2013
 |
| Urban Street portraits by young people, part of The Body Adorned (image from horseman.ac.uk) |
