Happy Horniman

It looked a bit grim outside again yesterday. I'm a hardy northerner, brought up on the rainy side of the Pennines. My Grandma tells me that that's why the cotton industry was located there - it's the dampest place in England. I recall my mother putting a catchy tune to the poem Weather, presumably in an attempt to create a motivational anthem for our (often wet) treks around the countryside as a child:

 Whether the weather be fine, 

Or whether the weather be not, 

Whether the weather be cold,

Or whether the weather be hot,

We'll weather the weather

Whatever the weather,

Whether we like it or not!

   (Author: unknown)

I've found myself resurrecting it in recent days and teaching it to Culturebaby. Will this rain ever stop? (We're supposed to have some perks for the long commute and high prices in the South East). Anyway, it seemed like a day of museuming might be a good antedote to our precipitation-induced cabin fever. Culturebaby's little buddies suggested The Horniman. It's been on my list and we'd never been.

Frederick Horniman was a Victorian chap with a vision. He travelled the globe collecting natural and ethnographic items. He wanted to 'bring the world to Forest Hill' and educate and enrich the lives of the local community. My aforementioned long suffering husband no doubt rather relates to Frederick's wife who reportedly said that 'either the collection goes or we do'. They moved house soon after (and the museum stayed). The period seems to have produced a number of these eccentric/devoted/quirky/visionary (*delete as appropriate) individuals. We recently visited Snowshill Manor in the Cotswolds run by the fabulous National Trust. There, the founder Charles Wade, took his family motto 'Let nothing perish' rather seriously and restored an entire Cotswold manor house to display his huge collection of over 22,000 objects and lived in a tiny building next door... Anyway, thank you Fred (and your understanding wife) for your rather diverse and fascinating collection.

 The museum gets great reviews from kid's activity websites, and rightly so. It is varied (to be honest it is seemingly rather random), and very child-centric: hands-on, sensory and engaging; and there are also thoughtful touches such as paper and drawing equipment all around the place. One of my enduring memories of my childhood was my love affair with the Manchester Museum. Its Egyptian collections were the singlemost significant influence on my subsequent academic and career choices. (Mummies beware - no pun - museuming could set your child up for a fabulously happy but financially challenged future...) It also had a great little vivarium, and it was this that I remembered fondly today as we discovered the wonderful aquarium at the Horniman. I think I expected a few small fish tanks, but the collection was impressive. Culturebaby has never been to an aquarium and she was absolutely fascinated.

We have one waterproof bath book. It's about a helpful starfish. We clearly need another as both I and my husband know it by heart and are rather bored with it, but it came in handy today as we peered into a tank of them. Lots of familiar characters from our other books and squirty bath toy collection were also there to greet us! We moved through areas with glowing jellyfish, bright blue poison frogs, butterflies, tropical fish and seahorses. Culturebaby particularly loved a huge tank of bright tropical fish with a special curved glass (making you feel almost inside the tank). She was so excited, I videoed her reaction. She also loved the seahorses as they floated and curled around strands of seaweed. At one point we were invaded by an excited school party, which was rather hectic but actually added to Culturebaby's interest (she loves watching other children), and then at other times we were left peering into the tanks, surrounded by other fascinated babies of a similar age. It's clearly another NCT group hang-out.

A second area of note was a fantastic collection of musical instruments. They come in all shapes and sizes. There are some important pieces, some odd, some enormous. It is impossible to imagine anyone being able to play some of them. My husband, who always seems to champion the quirky, large and bassy instruments in a band or orchestra (and I think rather wishes he had learned to play the double bass, baritone sax or tuba, probably because they look and sound rather funny) would have been suitably impressed by some of the giant pieces in the collection. Highlights of the music gallery for the kids were several 'sound stations' where we were able to select an image of a particular musical instrument and hear it played. We danced to the rhythm of an African drum, to an Irish reel, a Sioux war chant, and heard what many weird and wonderful looking instruments sound like... and nobody told us to shhhhhh! Fabulous! We then made the exciting discovery of a nearby Hands-on Space; a room we had to ourselves full of unusual musical instruments for us to try. Culturebaby enjoyed herself immensely banging on the drums and other more simple instruments, and then watched (and bounced) happily as she watched her toddler buddies demonstrate some of the others. A rather fascinating item was a set of pipes that appeared to be operated by hitting them with a flip flop...

 

A third hit with the toddlers was the Nature Base. The honeybees appear to have been on holiday, but there was a live mouse, stuffed animals to stroke, discovery games to play and a particularly clever display about animal activity at times of the day - with stuffed animals and a brilliant clock which, when turned, played the sounds associated with certain times, such as the dawn chorus. The associated Natural History collections also held a number of areas of interest with a giant stuffed walrus and other exciting animals. Culturebaby seemed most interested in a rather disquietening collection of dogs heads that were looking right out at the viewer. This part of the museum is rather traditional, perhaps a little tired, but there was still a lot to engage little ones.

Finally, the museum has some rather beautiful outdoor spaces, ideal for kids. The park is undergoing a £2.3m redevelopment and is set to be excellent, with features such as a music garden and live animals. The highlight here for me, however, was the rather unexpected and magnificent view across London. Forest Hill is indeed a proper hill, and I can think of fewer places in London better suited to a summer's day picnic. And if it rains, there is a stunning large Victorian Conservatory set aside as a picnic area.

We had travelled a long way to the museum and I was particularly annoyed with myself for missing the Egyptian collection as we charged down the hill to catch the last off peak train (clutching a new stash of fabulous baby-friendly musical instruments from the shop). But as we now have a year's membership of the aquarium (rather bargainous at £6), we have the perfect excuse to return.

"Those who use their eyes obtain the most enjoyment and knowledge. Those who look but do not see go away no wiser than when they came." (Frederick Horniman)

Seeing Spots

Appropriate attire?

Culturebaby and I went to see the new Damien Hirst retrospective at the Tate Modern yesterday afternoon with one of her little buddies and his family. If ever you could design an artistic baby playground, the Tate Modern at present is the closest thing to perfection with its combo of Kusama and Hirst. Culturebaby was still excited by the evening and, despite a strong rebuttal of a bowl of salmon and veg puree (I'm hoping she hasn't inherited my anti-fish tastebuds), she was smiling and chatting, and excitedly cooing at a Hirst butterfly print right up until bathtime.

On so many levels the exhibition was fabulous, and I loved having Culturebaby with me as I experienced so much more than I would going alone. I'd had a taster of what to expect as we had recently watched a brilliant programme (Damien Hirst: The First Look) with surrealist comedian Noel Fielding (incidentally, this choice of presenter was an utter stroke of genius by Channel 4). With my daughter in mind, I really tried to look at Hirst's work from the perspective of a baby and discovered a colourful, sensory, engaging wonderland where some might see rather more morbid themes... I'm convinced Hirst is very much in touch with his inner child; there was so much in his work for the babies to delight in. As usual there was much of the usual leg waggling and excited squealing, and several passers-by stopped to chat about their reactions. (For picture and video tours see here and here)

On entering the exhibition we encountered Hirst's early work, described by one review as 'juvenillia'. It is rough and ready, but very colourful. Culturebaby and I stopped to examine the similarities between her (rather odd but favoured and, therefore, brought along) stacking pan toys and the work 8 Pans 1987. Indeed, no sarcasm is intended here. Throughout the exhibition many of the items are everyday, simple, bright, and often childlike - and therefore easy for Culturebaby to relate to. We then moved through rooms hung or decorated with colourful dot paintings, and like Egyptian tombs, these bright walls encase rather more macabre contents. But for Culturebaby the flies in A Thousand Years 1990 (a life cycle from cow's head, to flies, to fly killer) were merely dynamic and engaging; and the fish, lambs, cows and shark preserved in formaldehyde are (rather serene) characters recognisable from books such as Fluffy Chick and Friends (Incidentally THE best cloth books ever). I think passers-by may have been rather amused by the animal noises I was making in front of the various cases, but Culturebaby was having a great time!

We then moved rather hastily past the rows and rows of cigarette butts (hopefully the smelly, giant ashtray may have put her off for life...) but stopped to examine the beautifully reflective casing and colourful contents of the pills in Lullaby, the Seasons 2002. Next, the series of monochrome, bright canvases with butterflies mounted here and there, entitled In and Out of Love 1991, were really appealing to the babies - they tried to reach out and touch the butterflies beyond the glass - and this was followed by a wonderful room where colourful and patterned live butterflies were hatching, flying around, feeding, and landing on us. Could it get more exciting for babies? Apparently so. The best space came a little later where a giant inflatable beachball bounced suspended above a fan in the centre of a room (Loving in a World of Desire) whilst giant circular paintings span on the walls. The room was uplifting and joyful, the former work jolly; the latter magnificent. And the sensory fun continued... Culturebaby yelped with excitement as we entered the room containing the (rather sinister to an adult, but incredibly shiny for a baby) surgical equipment in cupboards, and continued to fight her (long overdue) sleep in the rooms containing the exquisite and colourful Doorways to the Kingdom of Heaven 2007 (stained glass windows made entirely of butterflies); and the glimmering Judgement Day (a huge cabinet full of jewels). Then, after a well timed nap over lunch, she woke up just in time to see the glistening (and not at all tacky as I had expected) jewel encrusted skull For the Love of God. We had it to ourselves for a moment, sparkling, relic-like, at the centre of a pitch black room, and it was rather awe inspiring for little and big eyes alike.

For me, the brilliance of Hirst is that his work not only excited Culturebaby, but it fascinated me as an adult (essential for us mummies!). I know Hirst is considered rather controversial, and his works questioned by some as 'Art', but I found much of it beautiful, some disturbing and, still more, thought provoking. The range of exhibits explore his eschatological preccupation with life and death, beauty and decay, heaven and hell, and make the viewer think about these topics too. My husband is rather baffled and amused at my love of graveyards. By the umpteenth Egyptian tomb on our honeymoon he began to admit hieroglyph-fatigue. I'd consider him a (loveable) lightweight in the mortuary line, but to be fair I did spend most of my undergraduate years poring over books about obscure funerary rituals and uncovering Roman remains. (My favourite popular books on the topic by the way are Dancing on the Grave, The Mummy Congress and Necropolis. All worth a read). I find the subject fascinating, and not at all depressing. Whilst reviews discuss Hirst's emphasis on the emptiness of death, the frivolity of life and nihilism (and no Laura Cumming I don't agree that it is tired), I absolutely agree with Richard Dorment that there is a striking undertone (perhaps overtone?) of redemption in the progression of the exhibition. Last week I lost my wonderful Grandad, I loved him very much and I'm indescribably sad, but I'm so happy he met my daughter and was blessed to see his children's children's children. For me, works such as The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living 1991 and The Incomplete Truth 2006 (rather a glimpse of heaven), do not speak of nothingness, but have an immediate and positive resonance of the eternal. I found much of Hirst's work to be very hopeful. Towards the end of his life, when asked what kept my Grandad positive, he replied 'the babies, I think of the babies'. I remembered this when I peered into a huge cabinet of jewels (Judgement Day) and realised after a couple of minutes I hadn't even noticed them. I'd been too preoccupied with the clear reflection of myself with my gorgeous little girl beaming back at me. I really hope that's what Damien intended in this work.

Although I really find myself questioning the morality of a couple of Hirst's works (e.g. the made-to-die flies in A Thousand Years 1990), and was genuinely disturbed when I saw that the mother in Mother and Child Divided 2007 was pregnant (why please Damien?), the exhibition is very baby friendly. If you see it with your little ones we'd love to hear what you thought. I think we will go back and back; so if over the summer Culturebaby and I are ever missing in action, check out the Tate, we may well be found in the Hirst playground...

These Are a Few of My Favourite Things

Culturebaby and I thought that every now and then we'd share with you some of her favourite cultural things. Other than the song My Favourite Things, which incidentally is (go on have a little listen), there are lots of books, songs, pictures and toys that have caught her eye/ear/little fingers/mouth.We'd love to hear about your favourites too.

Immediately on leaving hospital, we were excited to find that already Culturebaby was fascinated with black and white images. I had read an interesting book during the grumpier stages of pregnancy (when I read a lot on child development in an attempt to ignore the neverending sickness and heartburn and look beyond the scary birth ahead). It is called The Social Baby by Murray and Andrews. Using mainly pictures, it looks at how babies communicate from the very first stages, and how to pick up on these signals. It explains that in the first weeks of life babies see differently to us and are most attracted to people's faces, bold patterns (especially black and white) and contrasts between light and dark (that's why babies stare at windows). It also notes that the best distance for a baby's focus in the first few weeks is 22cm (just the distance from mummy's face while feeding - clever mother nature!). I also read a rather dense but fascinating book called Montessori from the Start. The book discusses the importance of giving babies toys with a purpose, and again talks about mobiles (the first they recommend being black and white with flat geometric shapes), mirrors and reflected light. "The baby gradually develops focus on a moving object, tracking of an object, and perception of colour and depth." It's worth getting the book just for the rough and ready diagram of psycho-motor development (hand, body and brain development - what to expect when...)

We had therefore stocked up on some black and white books and a mobile for over the changing table before Culturebaby arrived. My friends also clearly understood my geekiness and we received some lovely black and white pressies. It was worth the planning. At 5 days old Culturebaby was already turning her head and concentrating on a black and white frieze for a couple of minutes. It was so exciting to watch!


If there was a world championship in charity book shopping, my mum could represent the British heavyweights at the very least. Despite being amazed at the seemingly untouched range of discarded books she constantly finds, my mother has exploited the opportunity (and the bargain bin) and has created an entire library for Culturebaby. She also found Culturebaby's first favourite book: Ladybird's First Focus Patterns. It doesn't seem to be in print anymore, which is a shame, but there are many very similar products, such as her cloth cot book. The Pattern book was simple but brilliant (see pics) - it folded out into a frieze and could be propped up round the side of her crib or round her when she was lying down - and she loved it! Her other favourite, which we put down the side of her changing table, was a brilliant book I bought at the Tate Modern called Art For Baby. I have become rather an evangelist for it as it is both beautiful and engaging - a book (with frieze) containing monochrome images by famous artists. Ohana (1999) by Takashi Murakami was a definite favourite for Culturebaby. 

There is a fantastic range of great black and white books and products out there and here are a few more of Culturebaby's favourites:

• Spots and Dots (Art Baby) - Spots and dots are, as you would expect, the eponymous heroes of this one, starting in black and white and building into two or three contrasting colours. It's rather hard for parents to find much to say about it, other than repeating 'spot' and 'dot' in a seemingly obsessive manner, but Culturebaby really looked hard at it. It was really good for the first few weeks as it is so simple;
• Black and White (Amazing Baby) - This is one of the loveliest we have as it has cut-outs for little fingers to explore and a rhyme to engage baby and keep mummy sane!
• Animals (Brighter Baby) - This beautiful book, a present from a friend, is a work of art, and was also the first book that Culturebaby turned the pages of (at 3 and a half months). She liked to flick them backwards and forwards... and eat them of course;
• Baby's Very First Book (Pets) - This series is great as they are cloth books (great for turning, crunching and chewing) and also have a mirror on the front (containing that perenial baby, and providing endless fascination and conversation for Culturebaby). To be frank, these are rather dull for adults as they contain three words and have no apparent link between the image of said pet and random pattern, but Culturebaby loved them;
• The Baby Shapes Pack - This is a great resource. It contains a make-your-own black and white mobile and four booklets of progressively complicated patterns in black and white. Culturebaby was mainly interested in looking sideways at the beginning (so friezes were better), but when she started to look up, the mobile was great. I planned on making one for myself, but when I saw this laziness won;
  
• Babies seem to be fascinated with other babies and, surprisingly to me initially, Culturebaby really loves (and still does), books containing black and white photographs of baby's faces. This Little Baby and Baby Boo are both great, and there is rarely anything I've seen as cute as my friend's little boy going through his This Little Baby book and kissing each page goodnight...
• There are also some great black and white toys and playmats around. The first thing that Culturebaby grabbed and held was her black and white Lamaze (we LOVE Lamaze) zebra rattle.

However, if you don't have a champion charity shopping mother and a long suffering husband who continues to be worried but tolerant of the increasing number of bookshelves in our house, or if you are one of those domesticated-types who can operate a sewing machine, there is so much you can make yourself. My mum and dad created a number of home-made black and white posters for me as a baby. I don't know if it is because we have a photograph of it, or because I remember, but I can picture distinctly one with a round smiley face - so it must have had an impact. You can also make mobiles and buy stickers to customise walls and furniture. And of course this applies to everything. One of the best things dad made for my brother as a baby, and did again for us, was to create a mobile from Christmas baubles on fishing wire. Cheap and beautiful, but very colourful too... so of course that's another (technicolour) story...

"The development of the child during the first three years after birth is unequaled in intensity and importance by any period that precedes or follows in the whole life of the child." - Maria Montessori

Toddling on the Heath

http://www.hampsteadheath.org.uk/kenwood/house.jpg

Today Culturebaby took Grandma and Grandad to Kenwood House for Grandma's birthday. It's a fabulous Robert Adam 18th Century Neo-Classical House at the Highgate end of Hampstead Heath. For the lovers of chick flicks, it is also the house where Julia Roberts films the Henry James novel in Notting Hill. (Incidentally I'm currently wading through Henry James' The Portrait of A Lady with my book club (or rather swimming against the tide). I must confess, at risk of being thrown out of nerds-anonymous, it's not really recommended reading for mummies like me of the post-birth squishy brain variety; rather slow moving for those 5 minute breaks here or there).

It is supposed to be the last day of winter today but it was gorgeous; sunny, warm and very spring-like. Culture-baby was in her new pushchair pram attachment and was clearly loving being able to see more than just sky and the the odd overhead tree! There is something magical about this part of London, and about a country house in the city - you feel rather up above it all - and there were hundreds of babies around in slings and prams being taken for walks on the Heath (although at times we felt rather like we had stumbled into a Bugaboo convention).

the‑infant‑academy.jpg

wikipaintings.org

We went round the house with the sling (NB no prams allowed inside) and it was a refreshingly different experience for Culturebaby from our visits to other more modern art galleries. Kenwood has an important collection of Georgian British and European Art. These are not to everyone's taste. Other than the Turner, they don't really flick Grandad's switch, but, despite this genetic predisposition, Culturebaby seemed to be enjoying herself. The house has big windows and mirrors, lots of light, sparkling chandeliers and colourful walls. Although the art is rather formal in style, some of the large portraits were a hit. It made me look at them in a different way too to see what caught her eye - the use of light, the striking features (men with shiny armour and large moustaches, women with shiny gowns, smiling children), the large scenes of animals... In particular, she started a conversation with a large picture of three babies (The Infant Academy). It was as if she recognised them as peers (or perhaps she was questioning the artistic precociousness or dodgy choice of hat?)

There was something to see from every angle and Culturebaby spent a lot of time craning her neck to look up and around (the library is rather exciting with its mirrors and painted ceiling). Other than the portraits, there were a number of shiny clocks with moving parts that fascinated her, and a rather attention-grabbing spangly collection of georgian jewelled shoe buckles.

The property is busy getting a bit of a make-over at present, so there is some scaffolding, and other parts of the house are still rather in need, but it is a beautiful location. It was also gifted to the nation in the 1920's and is free to visit. We felt rather lucky to have made it though, we discovered afterwards that the house closes in April for a year and some of the paintings will be touring the States... But then the Heath is always there, and with its stunning views over London and ability to lift you a finger's breadth above the pollution, it's perfect for a sunny day.

A Fairground for Little Fingers

 
Today our "extended family" (my long suffering friend and her two fabulous kids) invited us to join them on a trip to Stockwood Park Discovery Centre near Luton. When I learn to drive (soon!) I owe them at least a year's worth of carting around.
 
Despite topping the charts in the Crap Towns of Britain Poll (II), Luton, it seems, harbours some little gems. The Discovery Centre is almost the opposite of Verulamium Museum in that it is multi-faceted, sprawling and surprising. It seems to be primarily designed with kids in mind and has opportunities for sensory engagement at every turn. As we had never visited before, every new area brought something unexpected. We moved from Life's Journey, through a cathedral to horse-drawn carriages (piled high to the ceiling), activity playgrounds, a beehouse, gardens (sensory, medicinal, Elizabethan, wartime... the list goes on), open spaces with large old trees, a hands-on museum of local ancient history and a collection of tractors! It is so seemingly random that it kept us adults, and the children, entertained all day. Culturebaby had so much to touch and feel that she kept fighting sleep until she passed out somewhere in the Cretaceous period.

 Some of Culturebaby's favourite things:

1.  MOVEMENT: As always, she just loves the opportunity to be walked around in the Baby Bjorn, looking at new things, getting fresh air; arms and legs flapping with excitement;
2. TOUCH: There was a huge range of exciting textures for us to touch - from fossils to garden ornaments, plants to horsehair, honeycomb to metal car parts;
3. SMELL: Surprisingly there were lots of things to smell, including a medieval fair with its range of odours!
4. SEE: Culturebaby can't move past an exciting video without being transfixed, and there were also bright exhibits and several murals. She also loves watching her older friends play and there was plenty of opportunity for that;
5. HEAR: One of our favourite things was a sensory garden with a couple of noisy items to play with. Culturebaby particularly liked a large windchime that she could hit with a stick and make a range of notes. Although her rainmaker is one of her favourite toys, she did get a bit scared by a giant and very noisy wheel version! The bee building was also a welcome oasis of calm with classical music (and a commentary) and buttons to press to hear the sound of bees;
6. PLAY: We managed a rendition of This is the Way the Farmer Rides in the back of a real farmyard cart. She also cooked up some imaginative milk with her buddies in the reconstructed retro caravan...
7. And of course there is always that persistent and fascinating baby that lives in windows and shiny surfaces wherever we go... 

Some great things for Culturebaby's little friends:

1. PLAY: There is a great adventure playground, lots of educational games and dressing up boxes everywhere;
2. EXPLORE: There are wagons to board (including a large chariot that was used in the filming of Ben Hur and a car used in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), chairs that simulate the real movement of carts and cars, reconstructed houses, a sandpit to excavate and gardens to explore. There are also normally bees and chickens;
3. LEARN: There are some great child-friendly and interactive museum exhibits and some discovery sections that not only contain archaeological finds, but show how they ended up under the ground. The biggest hit with the three year old was a video recreation of a prehistoric underwater scene, showing how the fossil of a Icthyosaurus (displayed below it) was created. She went on to look hard at the various fossils that had been swimming around in the video. It was a really effective learning tool. Another great activity, for both one and three year old, was a medieval clothing puzzle game on a large streetscene mural.

 One of the loveliest things about hanging out with my daughter and her friends, which I genuinely adore, is that rediscovery of the excitement of childhood. Although in places the museum was a bit rough and ready, with some broken exhibits, it was largely well thought out and fascinating for kids. There's also something different and new to do at every age so we'll be able to keep coming back. And it's free. Bargain.