h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

http://www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-modern

Mama approves of the Tate Modern art gallery for a number of reasons.

Firstly, it’s in an abandoned power station. A rather ugly abandoned power station although people like to pretend otherwise. This amuses her, although not as much as the fact that the nearby Festival Hall and National Theatre look like multi-story car parks. Very run down multi story car parks these days.

Secondly, the paintings and such make about as much sense to me as the exhibits in all the other museums and art galleries which Mama takes me to, which is to say, not much, but in the Tate Modern I am not alone in my lack of understanding. I can, nevertheless, get quite excited about some of the larger, brighter, splashier pictures, and if they are having a performance art session, as they were in the turbine gallery when I was there last, I will join in with enthusiasm. People wandering about almost indistinguishable from the little knots of punters in amongst them? Who occasionally start to do things in concert like walk, jog and finally run up and down the hall? Or chant? Bring it on. I will get underfeet chasing my football and Mama will assume that is perfectly ok. It’s not like she had any idea what was actually going on.

Mama also enjoys the exhibits in a cheerful sort of what the heck spirit. Last time she was thrilled to take park in a survey conducted on behalf of something like the Centre for Physic Research conducted by actual mediums, telepaths and other experts into the realm of supernatural goings on. She has no idea what this has to do with Art, except that she half expects to be in a gallery one day and see herself on film, her delighted smile as she is questioned minutely on her philosophy and honesty expressing a profound something or other about something.

Thirdly, the Tate Modern is a bit of a walk to get to, at least from where Mama is coming from. This is excellent because like my Wonderful Big Brother before me, I need to burn of a lot of energy before I can be expected to behave with any kind of decorum. Mama never has quite managed to tire my Wonderful Big Brother out sufficiently to actually reach that point, but it doesn’t stop her trying the same tactic with me, so she considers a twenty minute ramble along the South Bank the perfect prelude to solemn attention to cultural artifacts. Particularly as there are often toddler-friendly distractions on the way.

Anyway, the walk there and the prospect of one on the way back mean that Mama feels better about the fact the she will be strapping me as securely as possible into the pushchair once we get to the gallery for most of the visit because the one downside of the Tate Modern is that it shares with the V&A the unfortunate habit of dotting sculptures well within toddler grasp throughout the gallery. Mama is particularly afraid that the installations which are separated from the public by a flimsy piece of string will be rearranged by small enthusiastic hands and while she suspects that no-one but the artist will notice, she doesn’t really want to find this out for sure.

The coffee outlets are nothing special, but Mama can deal with this given how much fun the rest of the place is.

[Amy P]

reddit

Looks like a fun museum

In the interim period between the place being Bankside Power Station and it being turned into the Tate Modern it was open for a tour as part of the Open Weekend. I'm thinking this must have been 1998 or maybe 97. We had to put on hard hats and got a guided tour of the industrial space. I have photos of my children in the hard hats, and we had to clamber over rubble, up ladders and over metal bars. It was hard to imagine it as a gallery but when we went back in 2000 we were really pleased to see how they had used the space.

I was lucky enough to explore Battersea Power Station in November 2006 when I went to the China Power Station Part 1 exhibition. http://www.culture24.org.uk/art/sculpture%20%26%20installation/art41036

I don't really know what it is about them, but I find all these old, abandoned industrial buildings strangely compelling. And slightly eerie.

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