A Positive View

Just a quick one to wish my (two!) readers a Happy Easter. I'm heading back oop North but if you're in London over the bank holiday I would point you towards Somerset House. As well as being warm and dry, it's home to A Positive View until Monday, a free exhibition featuring some of the greats of photography and some celeb pictures (like an early Kate Moss taken by Corinne Day, Sienna Miller by Mario Testino and a couple of beautiful pictures of Audrey Hepburn).

Pictures by Irving Penn (whose portraits of the famous are still on show at the National Portrait Gallery), Helmut Newton, Horst P Horst, Rankin and Don McCullin are just some of the well known names on display. With most genres covered, there's something for everyone. Look out for the ethereally magical Queen Charlotte's Ball taken by none other than photography's founding father Henri Cartier Bresson in 1959.

One of my favourites though is German film director Wim Wenders' Lounge Painting, Gila Bend, Arizona, 1983.

 I don't profess to know much about Wenders' own meaning behind it (must look it up) but his films often concern someone on a journey without a destination. I like his use of side-lighting with bright colours to create atmosphere. To me,  it's about the viewer's longing for the open road while surrounded by the trappings of the modern day. Which is how I feel today.


A Positive View runs until Monday 5th April.