Tag Archives: Matisse

Tribal Art London 2017

Tribal Art London, Mall Galleries, The Mall, London SW1, 6th – 9th September 2017

 

Joss Graham Gallery
Lau Witikau (woman’s tubular skirt) Sumba. Antique beads, shell. 20th
century

Tribal Art London has certainly grown in the ten years it has been going and will have a record twenty-three exhibitors this time. On the 9th there is a day of events and lectures on the subject of tribal tattoos. The wide appeal of these pieces to all generations is highlighted in the nearby RA exhibition Matisse in the Studio (see 21/08/2017) where one can discover the African textiles, sculptures and masks which Matisse both collected and found as a source of inspiration. Get inspired yourselves – you won’t regret it.

David Malik
Superb Lwena Staff
Angola or Zambia

 

 

Marcuson & Hall
A Burnished Terracotta Pot, 20th century
Nyoro tribe,Uganda,
Height: 23 cms

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kezhia Orege
Zulu beads, mid-19th century

Tribalartlondon.com

Ian Shaw
Suruku dance Mask
Bamana people of Southern Mali, 1920s

 

http://www.royalacademy.org.uk

Matisse in the Studio

Matisse in the Studio, The Sackler Wing, Royal Academy of Arts,  Burlington House, Piccadilly, London, W1, until 12th November 2017

 

© John Kirkwood

I am grateful to John Kirkwood to visiting and writing about this exhibition:

 

It isn’t often that one can visit an exhibition of works by a master such as Matisse and also see the subjects of the work on view alongside them as well. This exhibition brings together 35 objects alongside 65 paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints and cut-outs and it is startling to see the very objects represented, as Tommy Cooper might have said ‘before your very eyes!’

© John Kirkwood

This is the first exhibition to show that such treasures as are on display were often both the inspiration and the subject matter for the work and we must be grateful for their survival. Some of the objects are represented as you will see them but others get an interpretation from Matisse which shows his imagination and skill in transforming them into works of art.  Altogether a fascinating visit to his studio.

 

© John Kirkwood

http://www.royalacademy.org.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

From Freud to Van Dyck

Painters’ Paintings – From Feud to Van Dyck, Sainsbury Wing, National Gallery, London,  until 4th September 2016

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot Italian Woman, or Woman with Yellow Sleeve (L'Italienne) about 1870 Oil on canvas 73 x 59 cm © The National Gallery, London

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot
Italian Woman, or Woman with Yellow Sleeve (L’Italienne)
about 1870
Oil on canvas
73 x 59 cm
© The National Gallery, London

It really should not come as a surprise that painters may actually collect paintings to both live with and be inspired by whether they are contemporary or not.  The lynch-pin painting in this show is the strong depiction of an Italian Woman by Corot which belonged to the late, great Lucian Freud and which he left to the Nation on his death in 2011.  One can certainly understand why this powerful work would have appealed to Freud.

This exciting and informative exhibition also looks at works that were owned by Matisse, Degas, Frederic, Lord Leighton, Watts, Sir Thomas Lawrence, Sir Joshua Reynolds and Sir Anthony van Dyck and they in many ways expand our knowledge of the owners.

Titian The Vendramin Family, venerating a Relic of the True Cross Begun about 1540-3, completed about 1550-60 Oil on canvas 206.1 x 288.5 cm © The National Gallery, London

Titian
The Vendramin Family, venerating a Relic of the True Cross
Begun about 1540-3, completed about 1550-60
Oil on canvas
206.1 x 288.5 cm
© The National Gallery, London

 

George Frederic Watts Self Portrait in a Red Robe, about 1853 Oil on canvas 154.9 × 74.9 cm Frame: 179 × 100.5 × 9.5 cm © Watts Gallery (COMWG2014.10)

George Frederic Watts
Self Portrait in a Red Robe, about 1853
Oil on canvas
154.9 × 74.9 cm
Frame: 179 × 100.5 × 9.5 cm
© Watts Gallery (COMWG2014.10)

 

 

Jacopo Tinteretto Jupiter and Semele about 1545 Oil on spruce 22.7 x 65.4 cm © The National Gallery, London

Jacopo Tinteretto
Jupiter and Semele
about 1545
Oil on spruce
22.7 x 65.4 cm
© The National Gallery, London

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The more than eighty works on show combine examples of the artists’ own work with the ones they acquired whether purchased by the artists themselves, received as gifts or bought as investments or status symbols. This is perhaps best summed up by Sir Joshua Reynolds who said – “Works of art are models you are to imitate, and at the same time rivals you are to combat”

This is an enlightening show of the painter as collector and one that really has to be seen for its message to be fully appreciated.

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres Angelica saved by Ruggiero 1819-39 Oil on canvas 47.6 x 39.4 cm © The National Gallery, London

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
Angelica saved by Ruggiero
1819-39
Oil on canvas
47.6 x 39.4 cm
© The National Gallery, London

 

Raphael An Allegory (‘Vision of a Knight’) about 1504 Oil on poplar 17.1 x 17.3 cm © The National Gallery, London

Raphael
An Allegory (‘Vision of a Knight’)
about 1504
Oil on poplar
17.1 x 17.3 cm
© The National Gallery, London

 

Paul Gauguin Young Man with a Flower behind his Ear, 1891 Oil on canvas 45.7 × 33.3 cm Property from a distinguished Private Collection, courtesy of Christie's Photo © Christie's Images / Bridgeman Images

Paul Gauguin
Young Man with a Flower behind his Ear, 1891
Oil on canvas
45.7 × 33.3 cm
Property from a distinguished Private Collection, courtesy of Christie’s
Photo © Christie’s Images / Bridgeman Images

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk

Rembrandt Lamentation over the Dead Christ, about 1634-1635 Pen and brown ink and brown wash, with red and perhaps some black chalk, reworked in oils ‘en grisaille’; framing lines in thin black oil paint; on paper 21.6 × 25.4 cm © The British Museum, London (Oo,9.103)

Rembrandt
Lamentation over the Dead Christ, about 1634-1635
Pen and brown ink and brown wash, with red and perhaps some black chalk, reworked in oils ‘en grisaille’; framing lines in thin black oil paint; on paper
21.6 × 25.4 cm
© The British Museum, London (Oo,9.103)

Sublime Gardens

Painting the Modern Garden: Monet to Matisse, Main Galleries, Royal Academy of Art, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London W1, until 20th April 2016

Auguste Renoir, Monet Painting in His Garden at Argenteuil, 1873 Oil on canvas, 46.7 x 59.7 cm Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, CT. Bequest of Anne Parrish Titzell, 1957.614 Photo (c) Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, CT

Auguste Renoir, Monet Painting in His Garden at Argenteuil, 1873
Oil on canvas, 46.7 x 59.7 cm
Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, CT. Bequest of Anne Parrish Titzell, 1957.614
Photo (c) Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, CT

The star of this show which celebrates artists and gardens is, of course, Claude Monet.  Rightly so because he was a serious horticulturalist and one would certainly not disagree with him when he wrote ‘I perhaps owe it to flowers that I became a painter’.

It is a large show that welcomes more than one visit and the fact that like some gardens the paintings are arranged in themed rooms such as Impressionist Gardens or Gardens of Reverie gives the visitor ample scope to re-visit as one would a favourite part of a garden.

Joaquin Sorolla, Louis Comfort Tiffany, 1911 Oil on canvas, 150 x 225.5 cm On loan from the Hispanic Society of America, New York, NY Photo (c) Courtesy of The Hispanic Society of America, New York

Joaquin Sorolla, Louis Comfort Tiffany, 1911
Oil on canvas, 150 x 225.5 cm
On loan from the Hispanic Society of America, New York, NY
Photo (c) Courtesy of The Hispanic Society of America, New York

The paintings whether Impressionist, Postimpressionist or Avant Garde tell a story too of the growing interest in gardens by the middle classes through a variety of materials such as journals, receipts and letters.

Although not a gardener myself I enjoyed this show and found myself deeply moved in the last room where the three great Monet water lily paintings – the Agapanthus Triptych of 1916 – 1919, normally in the The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, The Cleveland Museum of Art and Saint Louis Art Museum, hang reunited once more.

Claude Monet, Nympheas (Waterlilies), 1914-15 Oil on canvas, 160.7 x 180.3 cm Portland Art Museum, Oregon. Museum Purchase: Helen Thurston Ayer Fund, 59.16 Photo (c) Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon

Claude Monet, Nympheas (Waterlilies), 1914-15
Oil on canvas, 160.7 x 180.3 cm
Portland Art Museum, Oregon. Museum Purchase: Helen Thurston Ayer Fund, 59.16
Photo (c) Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon

www.royalacademy.org.uk

Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs, Tate Modern and an Addendum

Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs, Tate Modern, until 7th September 2014

Henri Matisse (1869 -1964) Henri Matisse in his studio Photographer: Lydia Delectorskaya © Succession Henri Matisse

Henri Matisse (1869 -1964)
Henri Matisse in his studio
Photographer: Lydia Delectorskaya
© Succession Henri Matisse

 

 

We must surely all know that Henri Matisse (1869 – 1954) is a major modern artist who created paintings, sculptures, prints and drawings and of course is a creator of cut-outs and it is the latter talent which is celebrated in this amazing exhibition.

They came about because ill health stopped him painting and instead he turned to painted paper which he cut with a breath-taking verve as maquettes for projects but by their being mounted and framed they became works of art too. In my opinion I think that one can safely argue that he kept the best for last.

The Horse, the Rider and the Clown 1943-4 Maquette for plate V of the illustrated book Jazz 1947 Digital image: © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Jean-Claude Planchet Artwork: © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2014

The Horse, the Rider and the Clown 1943-4
Maquette for plate V of the illustrated book Jazz 1947
Digital image: © Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Jean-Claude Planchet
Artwork: © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2014

I don’t need to say any more other than if you can get to see this exhibition then GO!

 

Henri Matisse (1869 -1964) The Snail 1953 Gouache on paper, cut and pasted on paper mounted to canvas Tate Digital image: © Tate Photography Artwork: © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2014

Henri Matisse (1869 -1964)
The Snail 1953
Gouache on paper, cut and pasted on paper mounted to canvas
Tate
Digital image: © Tate Photography
Artwork: © Succession Henri Matisse/DACS 2014

http://www.tate.org.uk

Addendum

Eames Fine Art (London SE1) is showing (until 15th June) the complete set of 40 lithographs created in 1953-54 by Matisse with the renowned lithographer Fernand Mourlot. While they were one of Matisse’s last projects they are full of energy and joy.

Henri Matisse 'Acrobates', 1954 Original lithograph

Henri Matisse
‘Acrobates’, 1954
Original lithograph

http://www.eamesfineart.com