Klimt Exhibition

Yesterday saw us at the Klimt Exhibition at the Tate Liverpool. We walked through the new shopping development to get to the Tate and it was wonderful to see Liverpool as it should be. For too long the City Centre has not reflected the warmth of its' people. I only hope that the shift of the commercial centre has been planned for.

I thoroughly enjoyed the exhibition - as well works by Klimt there were on display works by other members of the Viennese Secession and the Weiner Werkstätte. I was particularly taken with the work of Josef Hoffmann, a new name to me.

Without reference to the catalogue or my notes the outstanding things for me were:

• the sharp contrast of faces portrayed in the Beethoven frieze and earlier portraiture


• the silver pieces of Joseph Hoffmann


• a simple, small table with a single drawer. The proportions were breathtaking - they just seemed so right.


• the appalling quality of the landscape reproductions on sale in the shop!!!!!

After the tour we had lunch in the adjoining Tate 'cafe' overlooking the Albert Dock. For a Monday the place was amazingly busy, service was poor and the quality of the food wasn't a reflection of the prices! That said, an after lunch tour of the dock proved that there was plenty of choice on offer as far as food is concerned.

It wasn't the best of days to take photographs but I always find it difficult to relate this tourist attraction to the intimidatingly busy, then intimidatingly derelict, dock landscape that I visited in the late 60's and 70's.