You can go back to sleep soon (but please don't)

Plymouth City Market: Interior - The world is waking up to Plymouth's amazing architectural heritage

The British Art Show in Plymouth is starting to look a little tired (and that's not just the staff). Still, only another 10 days and the city can go back to pretending that contemporary art never happened.

I revisited Luke Fowler's Composition for Flutter Screen, which had been rendered impotent by a reduction in volume and the lights being on all the time. I liked Ian Kiaer's Melnikov project, silver even more (though I hold by my view that it would have been better shown as part of fringe exhibition Vessel) - but Charles Avery's massive vitrine even less. I also took a last look at Elizabeth Price's wonderful film User Group Disco. 

If nothing else, my repeated visits to take in the British Art Show 7 and the fringe have helped me learn to love the city of Plymouth. On the BAS opening night, I was treated to an impromptu tour of post-war architectural highlights by Mark Leahy as we walked between venues, and have since researched Plymouth's reconstruction as background for my review of Vessel.

During this time I discovered a fantastically inspiring website http://www.20thcenturycity.org.uk/ that convinces me Plymouth has more to gain by embracing its hard-edged modern identity than by trying to blend in with the rest of sleepy Devon.

See also: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/about/news/kevin-mccloud-champions-plymouths-20th-century-heritage/

British Art Show 7 closes on 4th December 2011.