Tuesday, 8 December 2009
Portobello Road
Portobello road is an iconic London destination. The name comes from the farm that used to occupy this area. The landscape wasn’t urbanized until Victorian times, when shops and markets grew up to service the wealthy Londoners of the West End, in the elegant crescents and terraces nearby. Working class people would have lived here and made a living either serving or working for their upper class neighbours.
It is still the market that defines the area and draws the tourists but Portobello road does not rely on it for its distinctiveness. The architecture, the cosmopolitan air and the uniqueness of the independant traders are what stand out.
The road meanders for a couple miles in a north/south direction. Starting at the southern end, you often arrive as part of a possie of people walking from Notting Hill Tube station. The architecture is distinctly Victorian with beautiful terraced houses. Many are painted in bright colours, which provide a characteristic image of the road. There is an intimacy about the closeness of the buildings which sets the tone for the character of the place. Amongst this you see a range of different communities, diverse in culture and economy, and an energetic buzz from the market, the shops and the pubs, cafes and meeting places.
A particular feature of Portobello road is its lack of chain stores and big brand shops.
The market is famous for antiques, bric a brac/second hand stalls and vintage clothes, particularly on a saturday. There are also food stalls, and fruit and vegetables, located more to the north end, that are there all week.
The road is not straight, but meanders and is punctuated by crossroads and flyovers at its north end, which typifies its eclectic nature.
Travelling north, the character of the road gradually changes. The south end has more of a gentrified, quaint feel. By the time you reach the north end there are some concrete tower blocks, with urban graffiti adourning the walls.
On one of the market stalls I found a collection of buttons stored in a big rusty old tin; lots of them all of different shapes colours and sizes; different also in age, although none of them looked very new. The buttons were shiny in appearance, mainly circular, very colourful, and enticing to touch. They all seemed to be made from plastic. When I think of buttons I conjour up images of clothing,sewing,decoration and jewelry. They also have the practical use of fastening garments.
In the setting of the market the buttons seemed to represent Portobello road perfectly, with its many different cultures, eclectic shops and colourful houses; all different, like the buttons, in age and appearance.
These buttons would not look out of place in the setting of an art gallery. Displayed in a big glass jar, for example, the various colours and textures of the buttons would be the focus of interest.
They could also be used to produce artwork, especially textile art, such as the piece by Kathryn Celliers-Louw shown above.
From WH Smiths I bought a packet of stamps for £1.99. These too were colourful but regular in shape-square or oblong. They were artistic in design, often graphic drawings or paintings. They made me think of letters, travel, collectors items, and strangely enough the Queen. They could therefore represent the cosmopolitan nature of Portobello road with people from many countries and ethnic backgrounds. The images on many of the stamps were works of art in themselves, but stamps are every day items that are often taken for granted. I was amazed at how beautiful the stamps were and I used them to create some pieces of art.
My overall impression of Portobello Road is of a really interesting place. I liked its eclectic nature and cosmopolitan feel.
The gallery I chose was The Serpentine, to see Gustav Metzgers collection from decades 1959-2009. On display was a plastic bag filled with scrap paper, and pieces of cloth collected over a long piece of time.
Of course you could imagine seeing this anywhere. It would certainly not look out of place sat next to a market stall waiting for the street cleaners to dispose of it or for the same reason by the back door of a department store. I think that is what makes it more powerful as an artwork; a seemingly valueless collection of material that we see thrown away everyday that actually may contain samples collected over a long period of time that could be of use and value in all sorts of settings
References:
Wikipedia; online encyclopedia available from world wide web; en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portobello_Road (ONLINE)
Katherine Celliers-Louw; textile artist, image found at www.overberginfo.com (ONLINE)
Gustav Metzgers;Decades 1959-2009; Serpentine Gallery, Hyde Park, London, October 2009. (Exhibition)
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