OK I am obviously a bit creative as I write a blog but I wouldn’t by any means call myself ‘arty’, I am absolutely useless with an actual paintbrush (although for some reason I am pretty good with a makeup brush!) and my lack of ‘artistic ability’ did not go unnoticed by my Art teachers at school!
In an effort to introduce a bit of culture into my life in 2014 I went along to the Beaney to have a look around their art exhibitions. The Beaney is an art and knowledge centre inside a beautiful building in the centre of Canterbury. It has been under refurbishment for years and finally re-opened last year and I was really looking forward to having an art-based centre to visit!
I headed to the front room which yes you guessed it- is in the front room of the house where there was an exhibition of….well cloth? I say cloth with a ‘?’ because in truth I didn’t get it, at all…it looked like a room of ripped textiles to me! On to the ‘garden room’ where there was some (in my opinion) real art, some beautiful paintings of the countryside and animals by Thomas Sidney Cooper, some of which were amazingly detailed (not to mention absolutely massive! I can’t imagine how long it would take to paint them!) I was definitely wowed, I am in total awe of artistic people and their ability to capture the beauty in the simplest of things.
I have to say, the Beaney didn’t impress me very much- I was hoping it would be an inspiring place to visit, maybe even to go and write up posts in the library there or attend some classes/talks but I was left feeling underwhelmed, the layout seems odd to me, a massive space is cleared out for one information desk yet the art exhibits feel too small and even taking that into account, the ‘cloth’ exhibition barely seemed to fill the little front room! I think the Beaney is trying to appeal to Art buffs but the fact that it was empty on a Thursday afternoon (unlike the city which was very busy!) just goes to show that people aren’t getting it, I hope the new exhibits coming later this year are more appealing and interesting that what’s on offer right now!
Have you visited the Beaney? Do you have any recommendations for a non arty person like me?
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