October 2009

The annual Frieze art extravaganza comes to Regent's Park in October as the leaves start to fall from the trees. There are always several spin-off shows to cater for the visiting gallery hordes and this year Tate Modern is putting on a Pop Art exhibition, Sold Out. If all that artistic appreciation has given you inspiration, try your hand at The Big Draw.

The Big Draw

Wellcome Collection & various venues, London, NW1 2BE
1st - 31st October 2009

Celebrating its tenth anniversary, this splendid month-long nationwide event has simply one objective - to get everyone scribbling. The Campaign for Drawing originates from John Ruskin, the great Victorian artist, writer and visionary. Ruskin's belief that drawing is the basis of visual thought means a doodle a day is not so much about teaching people how to draw, but how to see. Though details have not yet been released, Big Draw events usually take place throughout venues in London. Last year saw the launch at the Wellcome Collection with special activities and events continuing throughout October at locations including the British Library. Big Draw supporter Quentin Blake is often among the illustrators, authors and performers promoting drawing, storytelling and some very big pictures. The website www.campaignfordrawing.org has the details.

DATES & VENUES TO BE CONFIRMED.

More info: The Big Draw Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Pop Life

Tate Modern, London, SE1 9TG
1st October 2009 - 17th January 2010

Pop Art gets a radical re-sizing at Tate Modern with artists like be Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons and Damien Hirst re-examined. This exhibition takes the approach that these artists are all about the 'brand', using modern means of communication and commercialism to promote their trademark style. An interest in self-promotion and use of marketing strategies are aspects that all the artists, popular since the 1980s, have in common. The show takes Andy Warhol's often quoted statement that 'good business is the best art' as its starting point and begins with a focused look at Warhol's late work. Moving through works by Keith Haring and Jeff Koons we arrive at a gallery dedicated to the YBAs - Young British Artists - who found fame in the 1990s. Here Tracey Emin and Sarah Lucas's shop in Bethnal Green, set up in 1993 and simply called The Shop, is recreated featuring T-shirts and ashtrays with Damien Hirst's picture stuck to the bottom. The exhibition, Pop Life: Art in a Material World, is sure to raise some eyebrows and just goes to show the controversy such flagrantly commercial art stirs up.

Pop Life - Information

Children's Book Week

National Maritime Museum, London, SE10 9NF
5th - 11th October 2009

National Children's Book Week takes place every year in the first full week of October. Designed to highlight the fun of reading and to gently encourage children to get excited about literature, the event is now in its 77th year. Details for 2009 have yet to be announced, but there's usually a theme - last year's, to give you an idea, was Rhythm and Rhyme. There's always a full programme of book-related events nationwide and in schools and libraries in London throughout the week. National Bookstart Day last year saw the National Maritime Museum put on a day of pirate-themed books and activities. Watch this space for more information on this year's offering.

Recommended for children aged 4+.

For all Children's Book Week events see www.childrensbookweek.org.uk

More info: Children's Book Week Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Maharaja: the Splendour of India's Royal Courts

Victoria and Albert (V & A) Museum, London, SW7 2RL
10th October 2009 - 17th January 2010

2009 is a busy year for the Victoria and Albert Museum, with two new permanent galleries opening and £120m being spent on the refurbishment. There are two major exhibitions scheduled to take place too and this lavish Maharaja exhibition is the second, following the Baroque display earlier in the year. Taking the 'maharaja' (literally 'great king') as its starting point, the exhibition begins with art works from the time when the maharajas ruled supreme. Beginning with the collapse of the Mughal Empire in the early 18th century, these works take us up to the end of British rule in 1947. Rare treasures include the Clive of India Flask, a jewelled jade wine flask from the early 17th century and the greatest of the Clive of India treasures.

More info: Maharaja: the Splendour of India's Royal Courts Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Artistic Gymnastics World Championships

The O2, London, SE10 0PE
13th - 18th October 2009

Many sports are beautiful and many fairly cruel, but none combine the two to such powerful effect as the discipline of artistic gymnastics, whose World Championship comes to London for the first time in over a decade. The men's sport is a demonstration of power, precision and resistance to pain, but it is the women who have captured the imaginations of the world as they display their prowess every four years in stunning Olympic displays. The mixture of total physical grace and the sheer will to win that stretches their bodies beyond normal human boundaries is one of the world's great sporting sights. This event at the O2 gives us a chance to savour a taste of the 2012 London Olympics to come.

More info: Artistic Gymnastics World Championships Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

The Times BFI 53rd London Film Festival

BFI Southbank, London, SE1 8XT
14th October 2009 - 29th October 2009 (DATES TO BE CONFIRMED)

Every October the BFI Southbank and cinemas across London host the London Film Festival, now in its 53rd year and still attracting Hollywood players and Indie film-makers from around the globe. As well as a few blockbuster premieres, gala films and celebrity-studded ceremonies, a commendable amount of programme time is given over to small independent films, foreign language cinema and documentary work. Any film fan is sure to find several films and events to entice them in this rich and varied programme. The city is positively abuzz with talk of the silver screen during these 16 days. Consecutive years of unprecedented success have made this a key event in the celluloid calendar.

DATES TO BE CONFIRMED.

More info: The Times BFI 53rd London Film Festival Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

The Frieze Art Fair

Regent's Park, London, NW1 4NR
15th - 18th October 2009

As the country's leading contemporary art fair, The Frieze Art Fair is far from conventional and there's always the possibility of stumbling across something extraordinary. In 2009, a new section, Frame, has been added to focus on solo exhibitions by regular Frieze galleries open for less than 6 years. Among the paintings and installations there's an amazing jumble of the comical, the beautiful and, as we've seen, the shocking. You can expect short films, talks and site-specific projects all presented in a slightly chaotic atmosphere. It's packed into a single temporary structure in Regent's Park with over 150 galleries from all over the world exhibiting work by around 1,000 contemporary artists. There's an incredible wealth of art on display - and the incredibly wealthy come to buy it.

More info: The Frieze Art Fair Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Metro Ski and Snowboard Show

Olympia Exhibition Centre, London, W14 8UX
21st - 25th October 2009

Planning to hit the slopes next winter? Before you take off for snowier climes you'd be wise to put in some pre-ski prep work at this event which turns the Olympia into a giant snow dome. Celebrating its 37th year at the cutting-edge of the snow-sports world, this snow show is almost as much fun as the real thing and makes for a great day out for friends and families. Taking over the Grand Hall and Balcony of Olympia, this is a mammoth event. As well as the chance to buy all the latest gear and clothes, there are bargain ski trips and, centre stage, is the main slope - where expert skiers perform and compete. It's great spectator sport. Take the kids along - anyone under eleven goes free and there is also a creche, ice rink and husky dogs to keep your mini winter sports enthusiasts occupied. Whether it's skiing or boarding that takes your fancy the on-hand qualified pros are there to take you through the basics. There's even practical advice on how to juggle your passion for skiing without giving up the day job. With a show on this scale it's like having a ski resort in the capital. Truly the best way to kick-start the season.

More info: Metro Ski and Snowboard Show Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

The Sacred Made Real - Spanish Painting and Sculpture 1600-1700

National Gallery, WC2N 5DN
21st October 2009 - 24th January 2010

In 'The Sacred Made Real', the National Gallery explores the role of the hyper-realist sculptures in Spanish art during the 17th century. Through important works by the likes of Velazquez, Cano and Zurbaran, the impact of paintings and painted wooden sculptures is revealed. Velazquez and Cano learned the art of the polychromed, or colourfully painted, sculpture from their teacher Francisco Pacheco whose works are also represented here. Alongside are significant and stunning sculptures by Gregorio Fernandez, Juan Martinez Montanes and Pedro de Mena.

More info: The Sacred Made Real - Spanish Painting and Sculpture 1600-1700 Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Moctezuma: Aztec Ruler

British Museum, WC1B 3DG
24th October 2009 - 24th January 2010

Wrapping up the year with the third of its major exhibitions in 2009, the British Museum brings us a selection of recent archaeological discoveries from the time Moctezuma II ruled the Aztec Empire. Placing these recent finds alongside significant and historical items on loan from Mexico in the grand Reading Room, the museum gives us a glimpse of Aztec life in the early 16th century. The exhibition reveals a time of dramatic change, with the Spanish conquest in 1521 leading to a new regime, and ultimately to the birth of what we now consider modern Mexico. This exhibition concludes the British Museum's series of exhibitions which has comprehensively covered the significant empires and rulers of the world.

Moctezuma: Aztec Ruler - Information

Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009

Natural History Museum, London, SW7 5BD
30th October 2009 - 25th April 2010 (TO BE CONFIRMED)

Some photographers wait for weeks in order to catch that one great action shot, others have simply seen an opportunity, grabbed a camera and produced a unique picture of the natural world. In this unique exhibition you'll see new perspectives on familiar creatures mix with quirky corners of nature, while tragic shots of ruined landscapes provide a contrast with cute and cuddly close-ups. The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition is the most prestigious and successful event of its kind in the world. It is open to amateur and professional photographers and each year a panel of wildlife and photography experts scrutinise around 30,000 entries from a global pool for their composition and originality. The photos are, by turns, touching, inspiring, educational and tragic, but all of them provide an insight into a magical natural world. This is a stunning exhibition.

More info: Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009 Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

The Yoga Show

Olympia, London, W14 8UX
30th October 2009 - 1st November 2009

There is a bewildering variety of yoga disciplines covered at The Yoga Show, from gentle meditation techniques to tie-yourself-in-knots gymnastic contortions. As well as yoga sessions there are Ayurvedic therapies, dietary advice and stalls selling everything from chemical-free yoga mats to three-week meditation holidays. The workshops really are worthwhile; some are free, for others you need to book and pay and there's something for all levels of ability. Remember to wear comfortable clothes and stay clear of heavy foods for an hour or so before the show if you want to join in. From first-timers looking to find a discipline that will suit them, to experienced yoga professionals trying to achieve the next level of spiritual enlightenment, there is something here for everyone. A welcome break from the bustling city.

More info: The Yoga Show Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube