Victorian London Snapshots: London Bridges

The Museum of London at Docklands has a major new exhibition coming up ...

Bridge is the largest art exhibition ever to be staged at the Museum of London Docklands. Drawing on the museum’s significant art collections, the exhibition will feature rarely seen contemporary and historical artworks, alongside photography and film to consider the significance of bridges within London’s landscape.

From Hungerford to Blackfriars, Westminster and Millennium, Bridge also looks at how London’s bridges allow people to move around and experience the city. Thomas Heatherwick’s ambitious ‘Garden Bridge’ proposal, playing with the ideas of destination and crossing will feature, along with other debates and issues confronting London and its bridges today.

The exhibition is free, and features photographs and artwork, old and new. There's some great photos visible on this site including an unusual shot from inside London Bridge, by Lucinda Grange, resembling something from the movie Alien.

The Museum generously provided a river tour for folk on their press list today, and, even more generously, included me. There was ebullient chat from Dan Cruikshank, particularly about Bronze Age bridge remains at Vauxhall; endearing enthusiasm for industrial structures from Lucinda Grange; and there was someone called Scanner, which/who rings a vague bell from 1990s. He will be recording people's thoughts on bridges and playing them back, doubtless, in some kind of nifty and artistic arrangement.

Anyway, I watched, listened but mainly took photographs, probably annoying people around me immensely; but surely in the spirit of the proceedings. Here they are ...