This is meant to be a great local festival for kids and adults,  I will try and post some pics if I manage to make it along.  Here is what the organisers have to say…

A Summer of fun in Hackney’s parks launches this Saturday 22 May with a free all-day mini festival in London Fields. Simon Atkinson, Mestre of East London Capoeira Group, who will be running free Capoeira for Kids in Hackney Parks every week over the Summer.

The mini-festival will give visitors their first taste of summer events to come in Hackney’s Parks from May-September.

London Fields will be turned into three festival style “villages” where visitors can join the Hackney melting pot of TV chefs, urban gardeners, home-grown bands and natural play.  For more information click this link

HomeSense are giving away a pair if tickets to Grand Designs Live!

For your chance to win just join Pippa Jameson Interiors on Facebook and send me a message that says ‘competition’.  Click here to enter now: Pippa Jameson Interiors

We will pick the winner on the evening of 4th of May. The tickets will then be sent out the following day-good luck!

Grand Designs

Designs Live, ExCeL London, 1-9 May 2010
Grand Designs Live voted Consumer Show of the Year is the event for design and inspiration for your home! The show is set to take place over nine days from 1-9 May 2010 and will combine cutting-edge design products, interactivity and an eco-friendly message.

Grand Designs Live is perfect for anyone who has an interest in interiors, build, kitchens, bathrooms, gardens, shopping, food, village and technology. With yearly exhibitions taking place in London and Birmingham, visitors will be able to buy, build and furnish a house, all under one roof. If you’re looking to make the most of your home, the show will provide you with plenty of amazing ideas to unlock its potential and turn your dream home into a reality.

Make your home unique with HomeSense’s eclectic and ever-changing mix of branded homeware, always at up to 60% off RRP.

It was a really interesting walk as behind the Olympic Park, in an area called Fish Island there is a hidden creative community.  The place looks like a ghost town with loads of beautiful old factory buildings but on closer inspection it is in fact a thriving hub of local artists.  There were little signs of activity here and there  including flyer’s for local exhibitions, familiar illustrations adorning the building walls, adverts for local artists to submit works for exhibitions and information about available studio space:  Click here for more information on renting a space.

The area is really close to Victoria Park and has great links to the city, it only took us 10 minutes to walk there.  Below is a map of the area, it’s wlooks like a great place to work but Dace Street seemed the most interesting. I would have loved to have a look around some of the studio spaces.   We are planning to revisit soon as there are a few local exhibitions that looked really interesting.  I’ll keep you posted on this one…

The pictures below show just some of the factory buildings that are now occupied and just look how close they are to the new Olympic stadium!

jamesonartgallery.blogspot.com

The London Art fair is many things to many people, it caters to a broad market, with a high standard of work. When I visited, the show was busy, with a mixed crowd of international collectors, industry professionals, families and young art enthusiasts. On offer was everything from museum-quality oil paintings by Sir Terry Frost and Ken Howard to vintage original photographs, drawings by Picasso, works by Chagall, installations by emerging artists and limited edition prints. Prestigious galleries from Cork Street such as Waterhouse and Dodd, rubbing shoulders with public galleries, print publishers and small independent galleries from around the UK.Credit: Stands at the fair

Credit: The Business Design Centre

If you missed out, I recommend you attend next year when the London Art Fair returns on the 20-24 January 2011 whether it’s with the intention to buy, or just to see what some of the best British art galleries have to offer.

Image credit: “Gold Thioglucose” by Damien Hirst – Copyright Damien Hirst, Image courtesy Other Criteria

The Zoo Art Fair held in October each year, aims to introduce emerging contemporary artists to collectors, curators, critics, dealers, artists and art enthusiasts. This year, from a group of Victorian industrial warehouses in London’s East End, fifty contemporary arts organizations and practitioners showcased the next generation of art professionals through a series of exhibitions, solo shows and stand presentations.

The new editions area

Most notably, this year Zoo Art Fair launched a new area dedicated to artists’ limited editions and multiples. The Editions section featured work from a select group of institutions and publishers ranging from the ICA and the Whitechapel Gallery, to Damien Hirst’s own publishing company, Other Criteria. Many of the works on show were from established British contemporary artists, and the prices ranged from £10 to £4,000, with an average of £200.

A collector surveys some of the editions on offer

Limited edition prints and multiples not only offer young collectors an opportunity to affordably obtain artwork from major contemporary artists, but also give established collectors and galleries an opportunity to diversify their collection.

Image credit: “What Is History?” by Kenny Hunter – Image courtesy The Multiple Store

Traditionally, limited edition prints are produced to accompany major art exhibitions, however, prints and multiples are becoming increasingly popular in their own right, possibly as a result of the economic downturn, and are now being produced in volume by various art galleries and publishers. Most are available to view and buy online.

If you are thinking of starting a contemporary art collection but don’t want to spend a fortune, check out some of these publishers: Gagosian Gallery, White Cube Gallery, Other Criteria and The Multiple Store (for 3D multiples).

Feature by Keinton Butler, Arts & Design Contributor for Pippa Jameson Interiors

As the new Arts & Design Contributor for Pippa Jameson Interiors, I will be reviewing the leading design shows and reporting my findings on the blog.   My first review was for 100% Design London, the contemporary interiors and architectural event which showcases and celebrates the best of British and international design at Earls Court each year. 100% Design London exhibits new products from UK based manufacturers, as well as British designers collaborating with international brands, and is the biggest event during the London Design Festival.

So what interior trends did we see at the fair this year?

The key trend dominating the fair was sustainability, and the use of natural, raw materials. Although sustainability is now a perennial theme, this year there was a clear focus on smarter, more sophisticated, sustainable products and materials. A move towards contemporary products with a handcrafted feel, and a rejection of harsh minimalist or industrial finishes and forms.

In furniture and lighting design, there was a focus on unusual combinations of traditional materials. Gritty terracotta was used with glossy glazed ceramic, concrete used with timber, cork with painted aluminum, leather with hessian, glass with cotton. The eclectic mix of materials created an exciting and tactile result. This was best illustrated by Benjamin Hubert’s Chimney pendent lights, and his concrete and plywood Heavy Desk lights.

Image 1, Heavy Desk lights by Benjamin Hubert; Image 2, Benjamin Hubert’s Float pendent lights for Unique Copenhagen; Image 3, Bizcoche lights by OBJ Studio; Image 4, Sabado and Domingo cork and concrete side tables by OBJ Studio

Materials were used in their purest forms. Natural materials creating warmth, and metallic or glass finishes adding an occasional touch of opulence. Demonstrated here by these hand blown glass pendent lights by Rothschild & Bickers.

Above Image, Rothschild & Bickers pendent light

With such a heavy focus on craftsmanship and materials, the overall structure and design of furniture exhibited was not especially innovative or new. Instead designs were clean, safe and familiar, with many brands borrowing from the past.

Above image, Dare Studio collection (photo: Peter J Morgan)

On interior surfaces, the decorative trend continued, with textured and patterned detail applied to everything from wallpaper to CaesarStone bench tops. Award winning designer, Erika Wakerly showed some beautiful and innovative wallpaper designs.

The busiest stands at the fair included the online lifestyle store Charles and Marie, British duo Thelermont Hupton, the Blueprint Awards stand, and the Eyes on Spanish Design stand, which focused on emerging Spanish designers.

With an impressive 3 day program of seminars and over 500 stands spanning four shows,100% Design London is gaining in both size and popularity. Although it is many years from being serious competition to other European interior design fairs (such as the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan and Maison&Objet in Paris), 100% Design London is building momentum and credibility, mirroring the growth of the design industry in the UK.

Feature by Keinton Butler, Arts & Design Contributor for Pippa Jameson Interiors

The new London Furniture Show taking place from 25^th – 27^th May 2010 at Excel.

The London Furniture Show is a design-led show with a difference.  It will provide a unique mix of medium, high-end and luxury furniture and furnishing accessories, all under one roof.  It will be affordable with extremely competitive rates for exhibitors supported by a commitment to provide ‘second to none’ customer service.