For the love of art

11 April 2012
The Weekender

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If any doubts remained that the British have learned to appreciate 20th century art, Tate Modern's all-night opening for the last day of the Matisse-Picasso exhibition dispelled them. The Bankside gallery remained open from 10.15am on Saturday to 10.15pm on Sunday to give Londoners a last chance to compare and contrast these artistic titans, the fathers of modern painting.

Even in the early hours of Sunday morning the crowd remained contemplative, serious, if less po-faced and more voluble than average daytime gallery-goers. Perhaps the jazz band and the absinthe bar stopped them from being too sombre. Or sober.

"We're letting in 500 people every hour, beamed Tate director Nicholas Serota, standing close to Picasso's The Three Dancers. "We could get more in, but we wanted to give people a proper chance to see the paintings." Would he be staying for the full overnight experience? "No. I've got to get the kids home to bed."

Many who had come to compare Henri with Pablo were disappointed. "I thought I'd be able to sketch here properly," said artist Hanka Watt, 55, waving a hand at the sea of bodies. Swedish lawyer Patrick Olivcrona, 31, and his London-based student girlfriend Elin Rennstam, 25, had arrived at midnight expecting a full guided tour by Channel 5 art boffin Tim Marlow. "But it was just a 15-minute lecture in one room," said Mr Olivcrona. However, Ms Rennstam said: "I now know I prefer Picasso.".

George Melly did the 11pm talk, and the show's curator Elizabeth Cowling took the 1am slot, telling the crowd that Matisse had almost killed his wife by forcing her to read Russian novels to him through his insomniac nights. "It's like a party, isn't it," she said, gazing at the crowds.

There were many ballgowns and party dresses among the beards and sandals. Film editor Pani Ahmadi-Moore, 31, and her friend Sofie Ahlstrom, 28, looked particularly glamorous. "We didn't realise we'd have to wait so long, so we're a bit absinthe-addled," said Ms Ahmadi-Moore. "In the first two rooms I had a great appreciation of the colour green."

Painter Peter Blake popped by and on Saturday afternoon, Dustin Hoffman, Woody Harrelson and Elvis Costello all turned up unannounced.

There was a tangible erotic tension in the room full of nude sketches and one man and one woman cruised the rooms, dousing their snogging apparatus with breath-freshening sprays, but as 3am approached the love of art, rather than the art of love, was still in the air. Retired art teacher Gwen Nuttall, 72, had travelled down from Bolton and, despite suffering a suspected heart attack at 6pm that evening, was determined to stay at the exhibition until 6am and her train home.

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