Van Dyck, The European. Review by Barbara Lewis. A lack of evidence means art historians can only speculate about the relationship between Peter Paul Rubens and his most gifted pupil Anthony van Dyck (1599–1641).
painting
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.
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.
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.
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.
![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.
Spain and the Hispanic World. Review by Carla Scarano. We are lucky that the Hispanic Society Museum and Library in Upper Manhattan is closed for refurbishing so that the collection that the philanthropist Archer M. Huntington accumulated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries can travel the world on loan.
Museum of New Zealand/Te Papa Tongarewa. Review by Barbara Lewis. In their desperation to get New Zealand’s founding document signed, the British in undue haste drew up a Maori version of the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi that is disputed to this day.
Pasolini Painter. Review by Carla Scarano. Pier Paolo Pasolini’s complex personality and multifaceted creativity are displayed in full at the exhibition Pasolini Pittore at Galleria d’Arte Moderna in Rome.
Lucian Freud: New Perspectives. Review by Carla Scarano. The exhibition thoroughly explores Lucian Freud’s artistic career, displaying an extended range of paintings.
Barber Institute. Review by Barbara Lewis. The Barber Institute of Fine Arts at the University of Birmingham owes its existence to Lady Martha Constance Hattie Barber. She founded the Barber Institute in 1932, and built a home for it all – a magnificent art deco building opened in 1939.
A Red that Sings. Review by Barbara Lewis. “The red that sings” is a phrase rooted in the intellectual atmosphere of the 19th-century when scientists first grappled with the concept of synaesthesia, and poets and painters seized on it as a heightened response to the anxiety and excitement of breathless social change.
By Barbara Lewis • art, books, exhibitions, painting, year 2026 • Tags: art, Barbara Lewis, books, exhibitions, painting