Welsand's in London

Dali, Picasso, and Florence Nightingale

Plans for London adventure today were adjusted slightly--Jeremy and Sophie had a daddy-daughter day in the flat since Sophie has a bad cold, but I still ventured out with a friend, Renee, from the US (thank you Jeremy!).

The first stop and a majority of the day was spent at the Dali Universe. Located on London’s South Bank with a waterfront vista overlooking the Palace of Westminster and Big Ben, County Hall Gallery makes its home in the historic County Hall, next to the BA London Eye. The Dali Universe is an exhibition featuring 500 pieces of Salvador Dali's work. The permanent exhibition was very interesting and quite diverse. From sketchings to watercolors to sculptures to erotique art. The fine art gallery was very cool--your opportunity, for a small fortune, to own a piece of original work by Dali or Picasso. It was fun to dream that I could afford one of these pieces...

There was also an exclusive collection of over 100 rare and unseen works of Pablo Picasso on exhibit as well for a limited time. This included etchings, lithographs, ceramics, tapestries, and photos of Picasso at work. It was not as impressive as the Dali exhibit, it was a bit of a let down actually. I guess that there was a reason why these works may be not as popular. I love Picasso, but this was not what I expected.

Next was a visit to the Florence Nightingale Museum. This was an interesting museum and included more documents and personal memorabilia than I would have anticipated. She was an interesting woman who was quite determined and dedicated to improving health care. When Renee and I were looking at the gift shop items the attendant asked us if we were visiting the musuem because we were nurses--that was amusing. I am guessing that nurses are quite attracted to this museum and Florence may have motivated a nurse or to into the field...

There were several other things that were on the agenda to be covered, but there was just not enough time to do so. The remainder of the South Bank area to be continued...

posted by Chris @ 1:00 PM