The Tate Modern

        One of my favorite memories in London was during our free day. Dr. Reed and I went to the Tate Modern art museum to appreciate some paintings and sculptures. Personally, I love art musuems. I prefer paintings to physical art/sculptures. As far as modern art goes, I'm attracted to interesting abstract pieces with striking colors. The surrealist art is also very interesting to me. Abstract art is my personal favorite to make myself, though I haven't painted or drawn in quite some time. Walking around the museum was inspiring me to get back into my hobbies. It was so much fun!

    The Tate Modern was colossal on the inside. It was free admission but donations were encouraged. Our tour guide Stuart told us earlier all the museums in London would be free to enter, which I thought was awesome. The museum was once an old factory or some sort of industrial building. The entire ground floor was a giant open space with cement floors and blank walls. All of the art was upstairs. I believe there were ten or so floors with all sorts of exhibits. Dad and I worked our way through floors 2, 3, and 4. We probably didn't even see everything on those floors either! There was so much to see in every room. I really could have spent all day there going through each floor, taking a sandwich break at the cafe, then going back to viewing. I definitley want to go if we are ever in London again. 

    There are many works in modern art museums that appear extremely simple. Lots of people don't enjoy those works. For example, we looked through an exhibit that was mostly canvases painted different colors. Solid colors for the most part. One picture was an extremely bright blue that almost hurt our eyes to look at. One side of me understands why people don't enjoy these seemingly bleak works. However, I feel as though the point of those simple works is to evoke a response in the audience. For me, the most enjoyable experience in an art museum is when a piece of art really connects with the viewer. Sometimes we can't even explain why we like a painting so much, but there is a compelling quality. These minimalistic pieces, in my opinion, are supposed to bring questions to the viewer's mind. Is this truly considered art? What could this represent on a deeper level? Why did the artist choose these colors or shapes? For other people, the response is annoyance. Why is this considered an art piece when anyone could paint it and stick it on the wall? (My mother is one of those people. She went to a different museum that day.)