Tag Archives: Visual Arts

The New Artist Fair

The New Artist Fair, The Old Truman Brewery, Ely’s Yard, London E1 6QR, 8th – 10th September 2017

PhotoX First Prize
Matthew Joseph
River People, Louis

Next weekend this Fair returns for the seventh year to the Old Truman Brewery bringing with it the opportunity to buy directly from emerging painters, sculptors, print makers and photographers. With prices ranging from £50 to £2,000 it provides an opportunity to dip your toes into the world of art collecting.  It’s certainly fun!

Friday 8th: 6pm to 9pm (ticketed) Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th: 12pm to 6pm (free entry)

Rian Hotton
Brockwell Lido

www.newartistfair.com

 

OUT & ABOUT: Bowman Sculpture

Wind Head
Emily Young
(British, Born 1951)
Mountain Clastic Rock
Unique
Height: 29 1/2 inches (75 cm)
Conceived and carved in 2013

St James’s Church in Piccadilly plays host to an exhibition of eight sculptures by Emily Young.  They can be seen in the churchyard and adjoining Southwood Garden. The sculptor’s travels around the world are reflected in these pieces and one can only admire how she brings out the character and qualities of the stone through her carving.  They can be seen until 10th January 2018.

Cautha
Emily Young
(British, Born 1951)
Clastic Onyx
Unique
Height 43 1/2 inches (110 cm)

www.sjp.org.uk

www.bowmansculpture.com

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

BOOK REVIEW: AMERICA COLLECTS EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY FRENCH PAINTING

AMERICA COLLECTS EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY FRENCH PAINTING

Yuriko Jackall et al
£50.00 GBP
ISBN: 9781848222342

 

Regular readers will have ascertained that I am drawn to the arts of 18th century France in all their forms and so it will come as no surprise that I am bringing this book to your attention.  American collectors such as the Wrightsmans, Forsyth Wickes and others have long held my interest and now here is the chance to celebrate Americans collecting French 18th century paintings through this well-illustrated volume.

 

Through a series of essays by noted authors and scholars such as Pierre Rosenberg, Robert Schindler, Joseph J. Rishel and Susan Earle various aspects of American collecting and taste are discussed. I am particularly grateful for the piece on Eugenia Woodward Hitt of whom I had known little. This is a book which I will return to again and again with relish.

 

www.lundhumphries.com

“It’s Art Call 2017” Winner Solo Exhibition

“It’s Art Call 2017” Winner Solo Exhibition, D Contemporary Gallery 23 Grafton Street London W1, 31st August-9th September 2017

Ian Rayer-Smith
‘Attention Seeker’
Mixed media on board

Last year saw the launch of the new prize “It’s Art Call” by D Contemporary in collaboration with The Cult House which offers emerging artists the chance to exhibit at a Mayfair gallery.

Ian Rayer-Smith
‘Haphazard’
Mixed media on panel

This year’s winner is Ian Rayer-Smith who says of his work: “I like my paintings to carry an emotional charge, not only in its subject matter but also through the energy and visceral nature of the materials I use. Soft and amorphous, they accentuate the tactile feel of nature, avoiding any sense of repetition so as to constantly offer something new”

Hope you can get along to see them for yourself!

Ian Rayer-Smith
‘Hopper’
Mixed media on board

 

http://ianrayersmith.com/

http://dcontemporary.com/its-art-call-2017-solo-exhibition/

OUT & ABOUT – Ben Brown Fine Arts

Rob and Nick Carter – Bronze Oak Grove after Jacob de Gheyn
Photo credit: Tom Carter, 2017.
© the Artist. Courtesy Ben Brown Fine Arts, London.

Inspired by the Dutch artist Jacob de Gheyn II (1565–1629) Rob and Nick Carter have used modern technology to create this grove of nine patinated bronze tree stumps. They celebrate the ever-popular oak tree and are designed to be used interactively by the public for relaxation and contemplation. They can be found on the North Flower Walk in Kensington Gardens until 30th September.  The Marlborough Gate is the best entrance to use.

Rob and Nick Carter – Bronze Oak Grove after Jacob de Gheyn
Photo credit: Tom Carter, 2017.
© the Artist. Courtesy Ben Brown Fine Arts, London.

http://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/kensington-gardens

http://www.benbrownfinearts.com/

BOOK REVIEW: How They Decorated

How They Decorated: Inspiration from Great Women of the Twentieth Century

Written by P. Gaye Tapp,

Foreword by Charlotte Moss

£40
Rizzoli
ISBN: 978-0-8478-4741-9

Congratulations are certainly due to P. Gaye Tapp for this wonderful, well-researched journey into the homes and style of these 20th Century trendsetting icons. One knows from the cover alone – the Harrison Williams depicted in their Syrie Maugham drawing room by Cecil Beaton – that it is going to be special.

The four sections of the book – “The Fashionably Chic”, “The Unconventional Eye”, “In the Grand Manner”, and “Legacy Style” – reveal the differing styles favoured by women such as Evangeline Bruce, Georgia O’ Keeffe, Pauline de Rothschild, Lesley Blanch, Louise de Vilmorin and Babe Paley. Some of them worked with leading decorators, often more than one, while others created their own interior worlds.

The end results, beautifully illustrated here, are rooms and homes that have enduring appeal and may well inspire you to a new look in your own homes. I particularly liked the Evangeline Bruce comment about the paintings and antiques in her homes – “I don’t mind mended things’ – as to me it emphasises her love and appreciation of the fine pieces that adorned her homes. True style!

 

www.rizzoliusa.com

Canaletto & the Art of Venice

Canaletto & the Art of Venice, The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace. London SW1, until 12th November 2017

Canaletto, Piazza San Marco looking west towards San Geminiano, c.1723-4, part of a set of six views of Venice.
Royal Collection Trust/(c) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2017

The two key figures in this remarkable show are Joseph Smith, British Consul in Venice, and George III. The former was also Canaletto’s agent and dealer encouraging the artist to depict Venetian life for the Grand Tour visitors, especially the English ones, in the first half of the 18th century. The latter in 1762 bought almost all of Smith’s collection of paintings, drawings, medals and books which included Canaletto paintings, drawings and etchings as well as the works of other Venetian painters of the day.

Canaletto, The Pantheon, 1742, part of a set of five Roman views.
Royal Collection Trust/(c) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2017

This superb exhibition proves how wise George III was and how fortunate we are to be able to see it brought together – it is the best group of Canaletto’s works in the world! Alongside his paintings of Venice are the series of 5 large-scale Roman views which Canaletto painted in 1742.  I particularly liked the smaller view of the Grand Canal (The Grand Canal looking north-west from near the Rialto) showing Smith’s palazzo with its new classical façade altered later by the artist.

Rosalba Carriera,’Winter’, c. 1726
Royal Collection Trust/(c)Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2016

Add to this works by Sebastiano and Marco Ricci, Francesco Zuccarelli, Rosalba Carriera, Pietro Longhi and Giovanni Battista Piazzetta and one really gets an absorbing picture of life in 18th century Venice. I loved the Sebastiano Ricci of The Adoration of the Kings (1726) because of the way Christ’s arm and hand are outstretched touching one of the king’s heads in benediction.

Canaletto, The Mouth of the Grand Canal looking West towards the Carita, c.1729-30, from a set of 12 paintings of the Grand Canal.
Royal Collection Trust/(c) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2017

This exhibition should not be missed!

http://www.royalcollection.org.uk

Marco Ricci, Farinelli in walking dress, c.1729-30
Royal Collection Trust/(c)Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2016

BOOK REVIEW: Gilded Interiors: Parisian Luxury and the Antique

Gilded Interiors: Parisian Luxury and the Antique

Helen Jacobsen

Imprint: Philip Wilson Publishers Ltd
Publisher: Philip Wilson Publishers Ltd

£19.95

ISBN: 9781781300589

 

This book is far more than just a souvenir of the recent seriously good exhibition at The Wallace Collection which focused on their gilt-bronze as it includes even more of the wonderful bronzes d’ameublement that are an important part of The Wallace’s justly famous collections of French eighteenth-century art.

Dr Jacobsen introduces us to the late 18th century Parisian interiors and the taste for the Antique setting the stage for these superbly designed and executed objects.  You will find clocks, firedogs, candelabra, mounted porcelain and even tables – which are then individually discussed in detail. It is beautifully illustrated with a combination of new photography and copies of original designs and proposals for both objects and interiors.  The book is a great celebration of 18th century connoisseurship and taste revealing the world of figures such as Marie Antoinette and the comte d’Artois and their circles. It is an absolute must for all interested in the interiors and the ‘douceur de vivre’ of the Ancien Régime.

 

www.ibtauris.com

OUT & ABOUT – Parafin

Fernando Casasempere
Reminiscence, 2017
Porcelain
135 x 135 x 115 cm
© Nick Turpin

The Chilean sculptor Fernando Casasempere’s new work Reminiscence (2017) has been included in this year’s Sculpture in the City. It is located in a walkway off Leadenhall near to the Gherkin. The artist uses pottery as his chosen material as it symbolises both the earth and nature. The wall sculpture also reflects culture as it evokes Pre-Columbian forms and architecture. It will be on view until May 2018.

https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk › … › Visit the City › Art and Architecture

 

parafin.co.uk