Monthly Archives: May 2017

Two at Tate Modern

I am most grateful to John Kirkwood for visiting and writing about these two exhibitions on my behalf.

 

Wolfgang Tillmans 2017, Tate Modern, Level 3, Boiler House & Tanks Studio, until 11th June 2017

Wolfgang Tillmans
Collum 2011
© Wolfgang Tillmans

Wolfgang Tillmans (1968 – ) is one of the most exciting and innovative artists working today and this exhibition concentrates on his production across different media since 2003.

As well as some startling photography including landscapes, portraiture and still lives there is even a Playback Room where you may sit and enjoy music and another room where you can view the video installation Instrument 2015 which shows Tillmans dancing to a soundtrack made by manipulating the sound of his own footsteps, while in the Tanks Studio his slide projection Book for Architects 2014 is being shown for the first time in the UK.

Wolfgang Tillmans
Iguazu 2010
© Wolfgang Tillmans

A disparate and interesting show but a word of warning – don’t take your maiden aunt to see it!

 

 

Alberto Giacometti, Tate Modern, Eyal Ofer Galleries, until 10th September 2017

Alberto Giacometti
Woman of Venice V
1956
Painted plaster
113.5 x 14.5 x 31.8 cm
Collection Fondation Alberto et Annette Giacometti, Paris
© Alberto Giacometti Estate, ACS/DACS, 2017


This is the first retrospective of Giacometti (1901 – 1966) for twenty years and takes us on a journey from his early more conventional works to his renowned elongated figures.  In the first room you are confronted by a very large group of conventionally sculpted faces staring at you which gently leads you on to the more recognisable Giacometti style.

It brings together over 250 works and includes plasters and drawings and a large number of these fragile plaster works which rarely travel are being shown for the first time in this exhibition including Giacometti’s celebrated Women of Venice 1956. Created for the Venice Biennale, this group of important works are brought together for the first time since their creation.

Alberto Giacometti
Woman with her Throat Cut
1932
Bronze (cast 1949)
22 x 75 x 58 cm
National Galleries of Scotland
© Alberto Giacometti Estate, ACS/DACS, 2017

This exhibition reasserts Giacometti’s place alongside the likes of Matisse, Picasso and Degas as one of the great painter-sculptors of the 20th century and the exhibition is a great celebration of a unique vision.

 

 

 

http://www.tate.org.uk

Beyond Borough

Beyond Borough, Waterhouse & Dodd, 47 Albemarle Street London W1, until 2nd June 2017

MILES RICHMOND (1922-2008)
Grazalema with the road into town, c.1960
Oil on canvas
80 x 99 cm

Following on from their highly successful ‘Borough’ exhibition in 2015 the gallery revisits the subject of David Bomberg (1890-1957) and his teaching and influence.  As these images suggest it is a great visual delight and you will find alongside works by Bomberg ones by Dennis Creffield, Sheila Fell, Anthony Hatwell, Cliff Holden, Edna Mann, Leslie Marr, Dorothy Mead, Edward Middleditch, Miles Richmond, Harman Sumray and Joe Tilson.

LESLIE MARR (b.1922)
Antibes1963
Oil on canvas
61 x 64 cm

www.waterhousedodd.com

Photo London 2017

Photo London 2017, Somerset House, Strand, London WC2, 18th – 21st May 2017

Isaac Julien
Pas de Deux with Roses (Looking for Langston Vintage Series), 1989/2016
Ilford classic silver gelatin fine art paper, mounted on aluminum and framed
Framed size 58.1 x 74.5 cm
22 7/8 x 29 3/8 in
edition of 4 plus 2 artist’s proofs
Courtesy the Artist and Victoria Miro, London
© Isaac Julien

This the third edition of Photo London emphasises not only the fact that this is most definitely a world-class photography fair but also what an important, vibrant role London plays in contemporary photography. Hence I am using this time just one image to celebrate the work of Isaac Julien an internationally acclaimed London-born and based artist and filmmaker.  Don’t miss this opportunity to see the best of what the world has to offer both at the fair and elsewhere in London. Please allow yourself time to visit the fair more than once – it’s well worth it.

 

http://photolondon.org

Victoria Crowe OBE RA

 ‘Victoria Crowe’, Browse & Darby, 19 Cork Street, London, W1, until 2nd June 2017

Crowe,
Evening Hillside and Thaw,
oil on board, 12 x 19 inches

This is the artist’s third ‘one-man’ show with the gallery and celebrates new paintings of Scotland and Venice – places where she has studios. They are shown alongside preparatory works on paper and prints.  It is no wonder that Crowe is regarded as one of Scotland’s most noteworthy contemporary artists.

28. Crowe,
Reflected Skyline ,Tramonto,
oil and mixed media on paper, 15 x 23 inches

www.browseanddarby.co.uk

Lord Weidenfeld

The Collection of The late Lord Weidenfeld GBE: A Life of Ideals and Ideas, Christie’s, 8 King Street, St James’s, London SW1, 18th May 2017

Lot 509
Bernardo Cavallino (Naples 1616–?1656)
Saint Dorothy
oil on canvas
27.7/8 x 22.7/8 in. (72 x 58 cm.)
Estimate: £150,000-200,000
© Christie’s Images Limited 2017

This is a very rare and final chance to see the private world of the publisher and philanthropist George Weidenfeld (1919-2016). He was created Baron Weidenfeld of Chelsea in 1976. He had co-founded the famous publishing firm Weidenfeld and Nicolson in 1948. It was after the War too that he started collecting and this auction reveals his many interests – Old Master paintings, 20th century works on paper, furniture, sculpture and the decorative arts. His collection of books is left to the National Library of Israel in Jerusalem.

The dining room of Lord Weidenfeld’s Bennison decorated Chelsea apartment
© Christie’s Images Limited 2017

The setting for this very personal collection was Lord Weidenfeld’s Chelsea Embankment apartment which had been wonderfully decorated for him by the famous antique dealer and decorator Geoffrey Bennison and which remained virtually unchanged for over forty years!

Lot 569
A REPOUSSÉ PARCEL-GILT COPPER BUST OF POPE URBAN VIII
WORKSHOP OF GIAN LORENZO BERNINI, ROME, MID-17TH CENTURY
30 in. high, 24 in. wide, the bust and socle
Estimate: £30,000-50,000
© Christie’s Images Limited 2017

 

Lot 577
A REGENCY BRASS-INLAID INDIAN ROSEWOOD LIBRARY TABLE
CIRCA 1810-20, ATTRIBUTED TO GILLOWS
31.1/4 in. (79 cm.) high; 76.1/2 in. (194.5 cm.) wide; 48.1/2 in. (123.5 cm.) deep
Estimate: £40,000-60,000
© Christie’s Images Limited 2017

 

Lot 582
A LARGE CHINESE BLUE AND WHITE BALUSTER VASE FITTED AS A TABLE LAMP
19TH CENTURY
The porcelain, 17.1/4 in. (44 cm.) high
Estimate: £2,000-4,000
© Christie’s Images Limited 2017

 

 

 

 

http://www.christies.com

Vintage Beaton!

Cecil Beaton, Beetles+Huxley, 3-5 Swallow Street, London W1, until 20th May 2017

Mrs Harrison Williams, Later Mona Countess of Bismark, c. 1935
(c) Sotheby’s Cecil Beaton Archive. Image courtesy of Beetles+Huxley

It would be remiss of me not to bring this exhibition of more than eighty Cecil Beaton photographs to your attention.  They cover the early part of his career from the 1920s to the 1940s.  Originally purchased in the early 50s these photographs have been in an American private collection for over sixty years.

Tyneside Shipyard, Newcastle-on-Tyne, 1943
(c) Sotheby’s Cecil Beaton Archive. Image courtesy of Beetles+Huxley.

You will discover  the ‘Bright Young Things’ of the 20s, distinctive fashion pictures created for Vogue in the 30s, and wartime works for the Ministry of Works in the 2nd World War with Vivien Leigh, Queen Elizabeth consort of George VI), H G Wells and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor on their wedding day among the portraits on view.

Self Portrait in a Carriage, 1930s
(c) Sotheby’s Cecil Beaton Archive. Image courtesy of Beetles+Huxley.

http://www.beetlesandhuxley.com

Exquisite ceramics!

Kensuke Fujiyoshi, Sladmore Contemporary, 32 Bruton Place, London W1, until 26th May 2017

Kensuke Fujiyoshi, Japanese, b.1966
‘Small Rhino (colours)’, unique ceramic, 2.5″ x 3.2″ x 1.1″

The delightful miniature figures, boxes and sculptures produced by the Japanese ceramicist Kensuke Fujiyoshi are all his own work from start to finish.  They are a contemporary interpretation of traditional Japanese artwork and there can be little doubt as to why they are so eagerly sought by collectors and lovers of ceramic art.

Kensuke Fujiyoshi, Japanese, b.1966
‘Prawns box’, unique ceramic, 3.5″ x 2.7″ x 2.7″

http://www.sladmorecontemporary.com

Celtic colour!

Sunset, Saligo Bay, Isle of Islay by Jolomo
Corrymella Scott Gallery

In this his 17th annual London exhibition Jolomo – regular readers will recall previous shows – makes a welcome return to share his unique take on the west coast of Scotland with people down South.

Although born in London in 1927 Kenneth Webb lives and has a studio in Ireland.  This special show marks his 90th year! This painting reflects his interest and love of the natural world that surrounds him.

Marconi Bog, Blue and Red, by Kenneth Webb
Gladwell & Patterson

http://corrymellascottgallery.co.uk/art/jolomo-visions-of-the-scottish-west-coast/

https://www.gladwellpatterson.com/brand/kenneth-webb/

Early Maiolica

Maiolica before Raphael, Sam Fogg, 15D Clifford Street, London, W1, 8th May – 16th June 2017

A three-colour jug showing a
half-length figure in profile
Florentine district, Montelupo or Bacchereto
c. 1420–40

It will come as no surprise that it has taken leading medieval art specialist and dealer Sam Fogg many years to bring together the more than forty examples of late-medieval and early Renaissance pieces of maiolica which make up this important exhibition. The first such show for a hundred years!

Large dish with a bust-length portrait
of a young man
Deruta
c. 1470–80

Most of use when thinking of maiolica bring to our mind the istoriato pieces with their decoration of mythological, historic or religious scenes but this exhibition reveals the earlier period before Raphael – the era of Donatello, Mantegna and Botticelli.

Large albarello with an owl and a stork
Montelupo
c. 1430–50

The tin white glaze applied to the earthenware pieces was decorated with motifs inspired by textiles, metalwork and the lusterware of Islamic Spain.  These were exciting and original and one can easily understand why some contemporary buyers valued them more highly than precious metals.

Inkstand with figures of the Virtues
Probably Faenza
c. 1480–90

The accompanying catalogue celebrates contemporary scholarship with a foreword by Timothy Wilson, and essays by Elisa Sani and Justin Raccanello which look at both the evolution of the pottery and the story of the collecting of Italian pre-Renaissance pottery up until the present day.

 

http://www.samfogg.com

Tall buildings not wanted in Westminster!!

A West End Labour survey has today found that residents overwhelmingly oppose plans to build more tall buildings in Westminster. More than 80% of respondents believe that Westminster Council is wrong to want to develop more skyscrapers and tall buildings. Residents cited the following concerns: Tall buildings and skyscrapers pose a threat to Westminster’s unique character. Tall buildings block out light; block out historic views and […]

via Revealed: 80% of West End residents oppose Westminster Council plans to build tall buildings — labourwestminster