Elizabeth goes to the Moganshan's artists' district Sept 16, 2010

And now for something completely different...

I explored this former abandoned warehouse area turned artists' colony (isn't that always the way?) with a friend who led me, for a change. This district is located near Suzhou Creek. I'm sure that means a lot to you, as it does to me. We've seen this sort of development in Toronto though. Take a run-down, low rent area, have a bunch of artists, graphic designers and architects move in and the area becomes hip and expensive.  Moganshan, or M50 for those in the know, reminded me of lower Carlaw or Queen East. Now I'm homesick. It seems so weird to be typing those names.  

I press on.

Even the street art reminded me of home. Jay, these shots were taken with you in mind. I hope you're reading my blog! 

Moganshan is the only part of this huge metropolis where I've seen any sort of spray painting on the walls. The only "tagging" I've seen is the numbers the government workers leave as a form of quality control.  Other than that, the walls are pristine everywhere you go. What a temptation they would be anywhere else outside of Communist China-huge expanses of beautiful, blank wall space.

This spray painted section is by no means extensive. You think that it would spill over into the neighbourhood, but it is limited to a small area under an overpass. Talk about artistic discipline. Maybe the government helps them with that. Hmmm....

Outdoor sculpture

The first gallery we went to featured a fabulous artist, Stella Lai. 

This was painted on the wall as a sort of  sneak preview. 

I don't know if I did her work justice. 

Let's see what I can pull up off the ol' Internet.

Hey! It worked! 

I really like the colours and the imagery she uses and the way she mixes traditional Chinese elements with modern day ones.

This piece was actually in the gallery. I think her work is great. 

What a terrific souvenir of Shanghai this would make! I'll have to start saving my yuan. 

Lunch time! We choose Bandu Cafe for a light meal.

Tamara and I shared this, a sort of Chinese croque monsieur, and this

noodles and curry...interesting...

Interior, yes, interior of the cafe. They play music there at night. Very Queen West.

More artistic sights

My kind of art. An observant reader pointed out that it's not immediately evident that these are pieces of jewelry, brooches, to be specific. The designer who made these is extremely prolific and obviously influenced by the Art Deco period. Exquisite. I think one of these pieces would also make a superb souvenir of Shanghai. Notice how the price tags are visible, not like in Canada where they are discretely tucked away. If you have to ask, you can't afford it. I know these are way out of my snack bracket.

Some more of the buildings. I have a feeling that it's more populated on the weekend.

Once again, I can hardly wait to go back, this time with Rakesh in tow so I can drop some major hints.

This is Suzhou Creek. We passed it on the way back to the subway. 

Street scene along Suzhou Creek. The woman in the foreground was twirling a hula hoop. 

We kept walking towards the Shanghai Railway Station to get the subway back to our respective homes.

Look at the size of this intersection! Can you make out the lone, small figure of the traffic assistant in the middle of the ten lanes? The 401has nothin' on this!