João Onofre – Tacet, Marlborough Contemporary, 6 Albemarle Street, London W1, until 10th January 2015
João Onofre, Tacet, 2014
. Still from single channel HD video, colour, sound, 7’40’’, variable dimensions.
Courtesy Marlborough Contemporary, © the artist.
The centrepiece of the Portuguese artist João Onofre’s new show is Tacet a dramatic re-interpretation of the composer John Cage’s ‘silent’ work 4’33’’. As in the original Onofre’s musician does not play the instrument but in this case he sets fire to it instead, and the resulting sound dominates the work.
Other pieces include an aquatint series where the Universal Declaration of Human Rights together with an unseen image is converted into binary code and Screenplay for an Overdue Film (Haiku Version, 2013-14).
marlboroughcontemporary.com
Alicia Dubnyckyj: Megalopolis, Sarah Myerscough Gallery, 15-16 Brooks Mews, Mayfair, London W1, until16th December 2014
The City at Night, London, 2014. Gloss Paint on MDF Board, 122 x 153 cm
Alicia Dubnyckyj makes a welcome return to the gallery with her abstract but complex cityscape paintings that succinctly capture contemporary London. These works are particularly appropriate given the even greater popularity of London as a tourist attraction following the Olympics. While being a celebration of the city’s architecture some may feel they show how the contemporary buildings are becoming more dominant.
sarahmyerscough.com
L’Utopia Della Pittura – Alessandro Pizzo, Renato Pengo, Moor House, 120 London Wall, City of London EC2, until 10th December 2014
Pagine 2009 Mixed media 150x100cm © Renato Pengo
ArtMoorHouse’s new show is an exhibition of two artists from Padua and it proves what a great exhibition space this location is. The special “twist” to this display is that the well-established and acclaimed artist Renato Pengo hangs alongside the talented young painter Alessandro Pizzo. They have over the last few years had a continuous dialogue and this exhibition is the successful outcome of this process.
Contrasti Liquidi 14 2013 Enamel on canvas 80x80cm © Alessandro Pizzo
The Road To Elysium, HEIST’s Fine Art Photography anti-gallery, Notting Hill, London W2, until 12th January 2015.
AES F, Jungle Elegy at The Road to Elysium, Heist
You may wonder why it is called an anti-gallery, but that is easily explained because the works are shown within a “domestic” space to great effect. The photographs’ subject matter is the concept of Utopia and looks at various issues, including political and social ones, as well as more aesthetic ideas.
Among the contributing artists are AES+F, Amanda Charchain, Madame Peripetie, Richard Mosse, Melvin Sokolsky and Laurent Badessi. All is summed up by the gallery’s founder Mashael Al Rushaid who said “We are delighted to present so many talented photographers and their works in this exhibition. We are incredibly proud of the variety of pieces, all of which are as thought provoking as they are artistically stunning.”
Open: By appointment
Tim Forrest's E & A 