One of the good things about being over 40 is that you can get up bright and early on a Sunday morning, sans hangover, and visit museums and galleries (did I really just say that?). This weekend it was Anish Kapoor at the Royal Academy of the Arts - aware that this was a blockbuster show, me and Mr TNMA didn't even stop for breakfast. First in line, it wasn't long before we had a long queue behind us. And whilst waiting for the doors to open, who did we see over in the member's queue - Michael Byrne from Coronation Street (Gail Tilsley's dad, Ted), who looks much more handsome and stylish in real life. We liked his Harris Tweed cap and Fantastic Mr Fox cord jacket.
Once inside we swooned over Kapoor's beautiful work. Particularly in the room with polished sculptures, which was a bit like being drunk in a hall of mirrors, that extra glass of vin rouge probably wouldn't have made much difference after all. Even Anish Kapoor failed the breathaliser test...
Just in time to see 'Shooting in the corner' in action. The canon fires red wax across the room at regular intervals creating a sloppy sort of sculpture. Nobody told us it was going to be that loud, and so we weren't surprised to see Mr Byrne clutching his chest.
Embarrassingly, That's Not My Age got told off for trying to take a sneeky photo of Svayamb - or slow train moving through wax - though perhaps the attendants should be more concerned about visitors touching the exhibits....
And finally, it was time for an extra special breakfast at The Wolseley (OK now I'm starting to sound really poncey, this was a one-off, OK?!) - where we spotted Michael Byrne and Sam Taylor-Wood, though not together obviously, he's far too old!
Photos:
Exhibition and Anish Kapoor photo by Johnny Shand-Kidd from the Royal Academy website
Black and white shot from the New York Times
Svayamb photo from The Guardian
Hand print photo from TNMA Pictures Ltd
The exhibition runs until December 11th 2009. Street Style at the Royal Academy coming soon.
PS Mr Kapoor is 55 now, but that doesn't sound so good.