Arts & Culture Archives

November 15, 2026 — No Comments

The Pianist at Park Theatre review: why we left at the interval

Last updated: 15 November 2026. I saw The Pianist at Park Theatre on Friday 30 October 2026.

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

Cool Factor: 1/5

A friend of Jewish descent and I went to see The Pianist at Park Theatre in Finsbury Park. It is the world stage premiere of Wladyslaw Szpilman's memoir, adapted and directed by Thom Southerland, with Szpilman's own music set to new lyrics. The house was full. However, we left at the interval and did not go back, so everything I say about The Pianist at Park Theatre is about the first half only.

The score is for the half I saw, and for the fact that neither of us wanted to stay for the rest.

All my London theatre reviews are in one place, each with its Cool Factor score.

Published by Tristan in Arts & Culture, London, Reviews, Theatre lover

Tags: Daniel Krikler, London theatre, new musicals, Park Theatre, The Pianist, theatre review, theatre review UK, Thom Southerland, Wladyslaw Szpilman

November 12, 2026 — No Comments

Robert Ryman Barbican Review: The Real Thing

Last updated: 12 November 2026. I checked every date, price and opening time in this Robert Ryman Barbican review against the Barbican's own pages on 31 October 2026.

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

Cool Factor: 5/5

Robert Ryman Barbican reviewExhibition / Barbican

Over sixty Ryman paintings, and far more colour than you would expect

This Robert Ryman Barbican review covers Robert Ryman: The Real Thing, which I saw at the Barbican Art Gallery on Saturday 11 October 2026. I went in a Ryman fan, curious how paintings that are mostly white could have this much impact. I came out with my mind blown, a copy of the catalogue and a plan to go back.

The show runs until 28 February 2027 and brings together over sixty works from the mid-1950s to the 2000s. It is the first significant UK exhibition of Ryman's work in over 30 years. Standard tickets cost £20.50, Art Fund members pay £11, and there are Pay What You Can slots every Thursday evening and Friday morning.

See dates and tickets at the Barbican

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Arts & Culture, Exhibitions, London, Reviews

Tags: abstract painting, Barbican, Barbican Art Gallery, Exhibition review, London exhibitions, Minimalism, Robert Ryman

November 11, 2026 — No Comments

Kylie Manning: The Mudlarkers review

Last updated: 11 November 2026

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

Cool Factor: 2/5

Kylie Manning: The Mudlarkers reviewExhibition / Pace London

I went to see Kylie Manning: The Mudlarkers at Pace on Thursday afternoon. It was bonfire night, and also the day Regent Street switched on its Christmas lights, so it involved a fair amount of wading through crowds already milling about, waiting for the angels to light up.

This is the Brooklyn painter's first solo show in London, and Pace says she mixed Thames silt and London clay into the paint. This is where the interest began and ended for me. Having a material attitude (think Richard Long using River Avon mud) is fine, but here it seems to do the heavy lifting for a series of weak and derivative paintings that punch well above their weight. They are big sweeps of green, pink and rust that borrow the look of Turner (and that is a stretch) and the vocabulary of abstraction without the substance of either. If you want to see the kind of painting Kylie Manning aspires to make, go and look at Joan Mitchell's magnificent Iva (1973) at Tate Modern. The Mudlarkers is free until 14 November 2026.

See the exhibition at Pace

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Arts & Culture, Exhibitions, London, Reviews

Tags: abstract painting, art review, Contemporary art, contemporary art London, Exhibition review, Kylie Manning, London exhibitions, Mayfair galleries, mudlarking, Pace Gallery

November 7, 2026 — No Comments

Counter Editions Women in Print: Eight Limited Edition Prints with Tate

Counter Editions and Tate launch Women in Print on 10 November: eight limited edition prints by Tracey Emin, Katherine Bradford, Ulala Imai, Sophie von Hellermann and four more, with one third of the profits going to Tate.

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Arts & Culture, Editions

Tags: Art editions, art prints, buying art, Contemporary art, Counter Editions, limited edition prints, Margate, printmaking, screen prints, Tate, Tracey Emin, women artists, Women in Print

November 5, 2026 — No Comments

Best Audiobooks November 2026: 10 UK Listens Ranked

Ten new audiobooks for November 2026, from Judi Dench's memoir to Gromit's autobiography read by Martin Freeman.

Published by Tristan in Arts & Culture, Audiobooks, Bookworms

November 4, 2026 — No Comments

War Child Art Auction: Sound & Vision 2026, Paul McCartney’s Band on the Run

War Child's Sound & Vision 2026 auction: 80 works by 59 artists responding to a Paul McCartney lyric, every lot from £100, on show free in London 6 to 8 November.

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Arts & Culture, Exhibitions, London

Tags: Alvaro Barrington, AOAP Projects, Band on the Run, charity, charity art auction, contemporary art London, Genieve Figgis, Iconic Images Gallery, Paul McCartney, Sally Kindberg, Sanya Kantarovsky, Sound & Vision, War Child

November 3, 2026 — No Comments

Mary Ramsden at Pilar Corrias Review: The Feeling of What Happens

Mary Ramsden's nine big abstract paintings at Pilar Corrias, Conduit Street: serious colour, a slow two-stage method and a cosmology booklet you can skip. Free until 7 November. 4/5.

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Arts & Culture, Exhibitions, London, Reviews

Tags: abstract painting, art review, British art, Contemporary art, contemporary art London, Exhibition review, Mary Ramsden, Pilar Corrias

October 30, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

Is English Heritage Membership Worth It? The Break-Even Maths

Is English Heritage membership worth it? How many paid visits cover the fee for a single adult, a couple, a family and a senior.

Published by Tristan in Arts & Culture, Comparisons, Historian, Money saving, Travel

Tags: art fund, days out, english heritage, english heritage membership, family days out, museum membership, national art pass, national trust, stonehenge

October 25, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

To Kill a Mockingbird Review: Our Book of the Month

Our Book of the Month: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Does it hold up in her centenary year? What still works, where it has dated, and which UK edition to buy. #BookOfTheMonth #ToKillAMockingbird #HarperLee #ClassicBooks #Bookworms

Published by Tristan in Arts & Culture, Bookworms

Tags: book of the month, book recommendations, books, Bookshop.org, classic novels, Harper Lee

October 21, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

Frieze London 2026 Review: Why It Only Gets Two Stars

Three visits to Frieze London 2026, a Deutsche Bank lounge full of Studio Lenca, and why the fair only gets two stars.

Published by Tristan in Arts & Culture, Exhibitions, London, Reviews

Tags: Alex Katz, art fair, Carl Freedman Gallery, Deutsche Bank, Do Ho Suh, frieze london, Frieze London 2026, George Condo, London Art, Studio Lenca