Better than LOVEFiLM: LOVE ART LONDON's a membership worth showing up for

Image credit: Love Art London

Flash bulbs and ‘sweetie-darlings!’; Peggy Guggenheim with lipstick on her teeth; naked men pole-vaulting; and Andy Goldsworthy topping up elderflower vodkas from a watering can – who said the art world needs to be stuffy?

This was the launch of the Love Art London membership last week.  Okay, perhaps I’m exaggerating – the pole-vaulting men were actually wearing tights.  However, the atmosphere alone makes this a membership worth signing up for.  Pitched by founder and ex-Sotheby’s paintings expert, Chris Pensa, as a cultural alternative to the post-work pub scene, the thrice-monthly members only events offer after-hours access and exclusive tours to some of London’s best collections and exhibitions.  They also add a much-needed breath of fresh air to your social and networking life.  For those of us (read: me) who simply abhor elbowing our way around the always absurdly packed Tate Modern on the weekends, the newly minted Love Art London membership is a godsend.

Image credit: Will Leach

While everyone milling about last Wednesday night’s launch at the Estorick Collection’s On the Move exhibition was part of the fine young London set, there was a distinct lack of Shoreditch hipster pretension that usually keeps me away from events like this.  Intent members perused the photographic motion studies with casual sips from red plastic cups, and a chat to Frida Kahlo, (below, played by Sotheby’s own Frances Christie) ran the gamut from demystifying some of the artist’s greatest works to deciphering the real meaning behind that monobrow.

Image credit: Will Leach

While some of us got stuck in examining every work, and others merely got stuck in the elderflower top ups, Love Art London is for those who of us who are serious about art, but don’t take ourselves too seriously.  And I’ll be swapping my LoveFilm account for a Love Art London membership immediately.

Loving the idea of Love Art London? Their next event, an exclusive twilight tour of Apsley House, is scheduled for Wednesday 10 March. Membership is £25 month. Become a member