Metamorphoses. Review by Barbara Lewis. The final word of Ovid’s “Metamorphoses” is “vivam”: I shall live. It was prophetic. More than any other poet, Ovid lives on as a muse to fine artists to this day.
exhibitions
Tracey Emin: A Second Life. Review by Graham Buchan. Art moves on and times change. But in the case of Tracey Emin, art is still relentlessly all about the artist. This massive retrospective show will surely attract the crowds and be discussed widely.
The Goldfinch, Birds, Art and Us. review by Barbara Lewis. Following a fit of remorse after a poor sparrow was killed because she caused 3.5 million dominoes that had been lined up for World Domino Day to topple over, the “Domino Sparrow”, minus the wing that was shot off, is immortalised and on display in the National History Museum in Rotterdam.
The Weight of Being. Review by Barbara Lewis. “Life is hard, that’s why no one survives” is the title of a work by Middlesborough-born artist Gordon Dalton.
Ultimately, even art is not a cure, but it can console, give meaning and even extend our lives. It’s true for us all to varying degrees.
Unseen Photography from the 19th Century. Review by Barbara Lewis. Belgium, which declared independence in 1830, became a forerunner in photographic identification and is home to the oldest preserved mugshots, dating from 1843. As well as using photography to catch criminals, Belgium led the way in putting the technique to arguably criminal uses, including pornography and the wider abuse of power, which sadly finds an echo in today’s AI image manipulation.
Quarantaine. Review by Barbara Lewis. Flanders in its golden age produced the painters Van Eyck and Memling. Around six centuries on, the work of Belgian conceptual artist Honoré δ’O, at first sight bears no relation to his aesthetic forebears.
Gwen John: Art and Life in London and Paris. Review by Barbara Lewis. As curators and art historians work to redistribute glory that men historically monopolised, Pallant House Gallery’s latest major exhibition devotes itself to extracting Welsh-born artist Gwen John from beneath the shadow of her more worldly brother Augustus John.
Paula Rego: Crivelli’s Garden. Review by Graham Buchan. Two years ago Tate Britain mounted a major retrospective of Paula Rego’s work and it was a great exhibition. Now the National Gallery shows a single piece of Rego’s work, albeit a big one: Crivelli’s Garden is nearly ten metres wide and two metres high.
![Piet Mondrian, Composition in colour B, 1917. Oil on canvas, 50.5 x 45 cm. Collection Kröller-Müller Museum[48965]](https://londongrip.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Piet-Mondrian-Composition-in-colour-B-1917.-Oil-on-canvas-50.5-x-45-cm.-Collection-Kroller-Muller-Museum48965-180x200.jpg "Piet Mondrian, Composition in colour B, 1917. Oil on canvas, 50.5 x 45 cm. Collection Kröller-Müller Museum[48965]")
Hilma af Klint & Piet Mondrian: Forms of Life. Review by Graham Buchan. I recommend this show because any exhibition which redresses the balance in favour of a neglected artist is to be commended even if, as I think, af Klint’s work is not altogether good.
Archaeological Museum of Heraklion and Palace of Knossos. By Barbara Lewis. Regarded as the first advanced civilisation in Europe, Minoan Crete dated from around 3000 BC until around 1100 BC, preceding ancient Greece.
Peter Doig, The Courtauld Gallery. Review by Barbara Lewis. Peter Doig never tries to create real spaces, only painted spaces, we learn at the beginning of the Courtauld’s exhibition of some of his most recent work, including paintings created since his move from Trinidad to London in 2021.
Michaelina Wautier. Review by Graham Buchan. How fantastic it is to have a substantial exhibition of a completely unknown artist; for that artist to be a woman who painted in the 1600’s; and for her work to be so assured, so accomplished and such a pleasure to experience.
By Graham Buchan • added recently on London Grip, art, exhibitions, painting • Tags: art, exhibitions, Graham Buchan, painting