Barcelona Art - From the Street to the Gallery...

People who follow me on Instagram (you can find me at @yvonnesedition) will know that I'm a bit obsessed with street art. I have a few favourites and lately a lot of my photos have shown the work of Francisco de Pájaro who may be familiar to some of you as the guy behind 'El Arte es Basura' or 'Art is Trash' in English.

As well as painting and drawing, he's famous for his installations, using the rubbish left on the street to create temporary art that asks pertinent social questions and challenges our preconceptions.

The Base Elements Urban Art Gallery currently have an exhibition of his newest work 'Indian Joe' which I strongly recommend you go to see. If I had the cash I would buy the lot as I think he has such a unique style and I can only see him becoming more popular as time goes by. But mainly I would buy his work because I love it. If anyone fancies getting me a present, feel free.

The photos I took below will give you an idea but you really should make the effort to go to see them at the gallery if you can.  

Classic motorbikes in Barcelona...

I recently went sale shopping with His Nibs to L'Illa shopping centre, which is very close to where he works. It's pretty good as far as shopping centres go, mainly because it has a really good food hall, but as usual I didn't end up finding anything I liked. I'm finding that I'm getting really fussy in my old age and have to really fall in love with something before I can buy it, even at reduced prices. A good thing for my bank balance, at least.

It wasn't a total wash out though as they have an exhibition of classic bikes of the 20th century which is on till the 16th of February. Get up there if you can as it's well worth seeing, I was practically drooling over how gorgeous some of them were, especially the amazing side cars. I must have gotten my love for classic bikes from my step-dad who is a dedicated Harley owner and  a member of an MC.

Here are a few photos from my Instagram account to give you a taste, it seems I'm not alone in my love for these beautiful machines as they're probably the most popular photos I've ever put up there.

080 Barcelona Fashion...

This week saw the return of the city's own fashion event, 080 Barcelona Fashion, showcasing collections for  autumn / winter 2013. This time the event was held at the new premises of DHUB in Les Glòries, giving a lot more space than for previous events.

I went along to check it out on Tuesday and Wednesday (keep an eye out for an upcoming miniguide magazine feature on one of the shoe designers). It was almost impossible to snap the models on the catwalk, mainly because my little digital camera couldn't cope with the lighting and fast movement of the models.

The picture above is from the Alexis Reyna show. The designer decided to not bother with the usual soundtrack or a DJ and rather bravely provided the music with his fellow band member (the previously mentioned shoe designer). Check out the You Tube clip below to get the full show. You can also find lots of other videos from the week on You Tube.

When the miniguide magazine feature is published I'll post it here for those of you who are interested in hand made Italian shoes.

El Paral·lel Exhibition, CCCB, Barcelona...

Today is a very wet and miserable day in Barcelona, not that unusual for January. The perfect type of day for heading to a museum in fact, and if you are here or planning to be before the end of February, I strongly recommend that you head to CCCB for the El Paral·lel, 1894-1939 exhibition.

We went last weekend and ended up being there for almost 3 hours as there was so much information to take in. We're planning to go again as we liked it so much. It tells the story of the development of the area from a wasteland outside the city walls and how it became an entertainment mecca, red light area and more.

The exhibition explores the stories of the performers who became famous in the theatres, the political groups who found it perfect for recruiting new members and the various incarnations of the buildings and businesses. There's a fascinating room which covers the seedy side and the victims of various excesses which could be indulged in the area. You can also see some fabulous paintings depicting life on the avenue, including a few early Picassos.

The exhibition runs until February 24, entrance is 5 euros (free between 3 and 8 on Sundays) and CCCB is open every day except Monday from 11am to 8pm.

Feliz Navidad a Todos!

Feliz Navidad and Bon Nadal to you all. I hope you all have a lovely Christmas with family and friends and here's to a wonderful 2013 for us all. See you on the other side!

Don't forget to give your Caga Tiós a good beating with the stick later, although if you've been bad this year and you haven't fed him properly, all you're going to get is sardines...