The Wellcome Collection

Like most people, in January I'm absolutely broke. I got paid before Christmas instead of the last working day of the month, and somehow all those wages got swallowed up over the break (the venison might have had something to do with it..)

So, as well as trying to earn a bit more money (ebay is my best friend right now), I've also been looking for some free, or cheap, things to do on the weekend. In London, this inevitably means museums and galleries, which are plentiful so there should be something to suit everyone.

Today, Harry and I went to the Wellcome Collection, a museum / exhibition centre that describes itself as "A free destination for the incurably curious", which I rather like! I went specifically to see Death: a self portrait, which is about how artists commemorate the dead and death.

No photography was allowed, so I have pinched a few photos of the Wellcome Collection website.

Calavera, Mondongo Collective, Argentina

Memento Mori, unknown artist, Germany

It's definitely worth a visit and isn't at all as morbid as the name suggests! I particularly liked the Mexican skeleton portraits and dolls. In Mexico they celebrate the dead on the aptly-named "Day of the Dead" a festival in late October / November, and one I would love to experience. Families set up shrines in their homes to loved ones and lay out their favourite food and drink for when they visit!

Also worth a look at the Wellcome Collection is the Medicine Man exhibition (so you can snigger at the Japanese sex aids and other bizarre paraphernalia, and the Medicine Now exhibition, with great art installations such as these:

Giant jelly baby illustrating human cloning and how we are all the same

Rather disgusting growth / tumour to illustrate obesity

Details on the Wellcome Collection are here. I can also recommend the cafe, Peyton and Byrne - they do excellent salads!

Random rain

Despite mixed reviews, I was curious to check out the latest instalment from Random International, a design group based in Chelsea. And it seems I wasn't the only one - on a Thursday night I queued for 90 minutes to get the chance to experience the Rain Room at the Barbican, an exhibition which allows visitors to 'control' the rain.

The installation itself is actually pretty simple - it's essentially a massive shower. However, through in some light / motion sensors, a dark room and a bright light, and all of a sudden the exhibition gets a little bit cooler. 

Visitors were able to walk through the rain and watch as the rain magically stopped wherever they were. It looked, and felt, as though you were in the middle of a storm and yet miraculously you were dry. Or dry enough (there was a little bit of drippage).

Was it worth queueing for 90 minutes? I wouldn't do it again, but I am glad I saw the exhibition. I just wish there had been fewer people in the room at the same time as me, as it struck me as a great place to contemplate anything on your mind.

On the plus side, it's good fun and completely free. And gives you a great excuse to visit the Barbican, see the architecture, soak up the atmosphere and enjoy a drink or two.

Go see: Heatherwick exhibition

I went to the Heatherwick exhibition as the Victoria and Albert museum last week, and it was amazing! I often go to the V&A anyway, and the quality of their regular exhibitions is great, often as good as their paid-for exhibitions.

The Heatherwick Exhibition has been running since May, and it's on until the 30th September. The exhibition is the first ever major on the work of Thomas Heatherwick, a 'creative practitioner'. He established his studio in 1994, and since then has worked on a whole range of projects, from bridges, parks, hotels to the Olympic cauldron this year. The projects can seem quite disparate, but to me, the one common theme was that they all focused on designing something beautiful, functional and innovative.

The Olympic cauldron, photo from the Heatherwick Studio

The Skint Londoner on... Entertainment

If, like me, your money never seems to stretch far enough and you're always counting down the days till payday (25...) then living in London can be pretty miserable. I love living here, but it is so bloody expensive. With this in mind, I've gathered up a few tips on how to get first class entertainment at second class prices.