Tony's Tours - East London

Roman Temple of Mithras

The mysterious cult of Mithras first appeared in Rome in the 1st century AD. It spread across the Empire over the next 300 years, predominantly attracting merchants, soldiers and imperial administrators. Meeting in temples which were often constructed below ground, these were private, dark and windowless spaces. The mythological scene of Mithras killing a bull within a cave, the ‘tauroctony’ is at the heart of the cult, and its full meaning is subject of much speculation.

I was interested in the ancient Roman artifacts on display at this site, which included both household utensils and practical tools with Roman patterns and textures, and when they were displayed together on a wall, they seemed to show a picture of the history of the time.

Albion Waves, Oliver Beer, 2023

As I walked around the individual vessels, I could hear the sounds they made, which made me wonder where the sounds were coming from, giving an immersive audio-visual experience.

“Just like a sea shell or a wine glass, every vessel that’s ever been made in the history of object making is also constantly quietly resonating at its own unchanging musical note, determined by its form. Albion Waves is an acoustic portrait of Britain over the past 2000 years – and a way to listen to, as well as see, successive waves of cultural influences in our material history.” Oliver Beer

The set-up of this performance was very captivating to me, as the lighting and fog worked together to make it seem like the whole space was divided into different areas by a wall of light, but retaining the transparency of the light and enhancing the atmosphere of the whole environment, as if you were really looking back into history.

Richard Slee: Sunlit Uplands

Peter Liversedge: Either / Or

Real or fake? Putting real items together with versions made from other materials, it is difficult to tell the difference between the real and the fake, even on close inspection.

Epic flotilla of boats made from found wood along the British coastline.

Museum of the Home

This is one of my favourite parts of this tour. The furniture and some of the household items, decorations, and toys displayed in this museum are arranged in different interior spaces, so that you can see how the household items have changed over time, when these objects are placed in a realistic context, the power of household products can be felt more viscerally.

Richard Smith: Intersections

I'm interest about the transformation from 2D to 3D.