Let’s visit a few West End galleries, said my friend Jess who was in London for the day, eager to take in a few exhibitions. Not knowing exactly where I could find the cream of the crop, currently on show, I checked Artlyst and then, with help from the Arlyst App, this is what we were able to see in one afternoon.
Raphael Mazzucco: Castle Fine art: We started in Bruton Street, Mayfair with what turned out to be one of our favourite exhibitions. Raphael Mazzucco uses photographs as a base and creates texture through layering with paint and collage. His mark making is spontaneous which, for me, makes it more honest – it enables an immediate communication with the viewer: the longer you concentrate on a piece the more it becomes about perfectionism and less about what you’re trying to say. The pieces have a scrapbook/narrative feel so they are very engaging to the viewer. My favourite piece of the exhibition was “Alone” because it shows how far you can remove a photo away from what it was originally. (see photo bellow). Raphael Mazzucco: Castle Fine Art Start: 26-05-2014 | End: 13-07-2014
Draw to the real: The Alan Cristea Gallery: This was a small one room exhibition with several drawings including hyper-realistic pencil drawings by Marie Harnett of stills from the film: “American Hustle” and my favourite pieces: graphite frottage and pencil drawings by Jane Dixon. I thought the mark making was interesting which came across because of the simple idea. (Photo below) Draw to the real: The Alan Cristea Gallery Start: 13-06-2014 | End: 19-07-2014
10 Year anniversary exhibition: The Cynthia Corbett Gallery: We then headed to Cork Street. The second exhibition was full of many loud and colourful works: my favourites being by Klari Reis, in particular “musings in triangular”, “Iproniazid” and “musings in colour” (see photos below). The important thing about her work for me was that she clearly plays while experimenting with both media and colour. (Top Photo) 10th Anniversary Group Exhibition 23 – 28 June 2014
Still Life Exhibition: Medici Gallery: At the Still Life Exhibition at Medici Gallery, I enjoyed Albanksyex Holmes’ paintings of food with their dramatic lighting: my favourite being the lemon meringue (see photo above). It was realistic yet the brush strokes were gestural.
Still Life Exhibition: Medici Gallery Start: 10-06-2014 |End: 08-07-2014
Banksy: Sotheby’s: From Cork Street we went to Sotheby’s in Bond Street. This was another one of our favourite exhibitions. The atmosphere was made enjoyable by the presentation of splashed paint on the wall behind the pieces. The pieces themselves were also satirical; the best exhibitions for me are where visitors are encouraged to smile and laugh. This was definitely the intended spirit of the exhibition with the Steve Lazarides quote on the wall, “People loved walking round the corner and seeing something that would make them smile and that is what Banksy is good at, seeing things in unexpected places that make people smile.” (Photo above) Banksy: Sotheby’s Start: 12-06-2014 | End: 25-07-2014
Alexander Calder: Gagosian Gallery: From Bond Street we went to Gagosian in Davies Street to see the Alexander Calder show. This is a one room exhibition of Calder’s paintings done with his definitive palette of primary colours and contrasting black where the bold and solid lines of ink are allowed to spread naturally on the canvas. (Photo Above) Alexander Calder: Gagosian Gallery
Start: 10-06-2014 | End: 26-07-2014
Senaka Senanayake: Grosvenor Gallery: After a break, we went to St James’s. Here where we found paintings of jungle scenes, plants and birds with a palette of bright colours at the Grosvenor Gallery. The pieces are pattern like with a sense of repetition and use of translucent circles to add to the composition. The large scale of the pieces demands your attention more than the smaller works in the Alan Cristea Gallery. The pieces are busy; there is no weak part of the painting but there’s also little breathing space. Some pieces are layered but some are all foreground. (Above Photo) Senaka Senanayake Start: 19-06-2014 | End: 11-07-2014
Illustration Cupboard: Lastly, we visited the illustration cupboard which was mostly children’s illustrations. My favourites were Neil Parker’s who uses imaginative methods to draw water (see photo above).
And Tejubehan’s drawing from the city by Tara Books. I like the way patterns were used to differentiate parts of the drawing with a minimal media of black pen and ink (see photo below). The Summer Exhibition featuring Alexis Deacon and Jim’s Lion: Illustration Cupboard Start: 11-06-2014 | End: 02-07-2014
We called it a day of exhibition hopping. Mentally exhausting: if you wish to try it we recommend you take regular breaks but you do get to explore large variety of styles and media and the Artlyst App helped us to make informed choices.
Words/Photos: Florence Goodhand-Tait © Artlyst 2014