Back in the heady pre-pandemic days of 2020, I was lucky enough to be visiting Melbourne in Australia. When I discovered there was a group show at the ACCA, the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art featuring Zadie Xa, I naturally had to visit. I’d heard about her work, but not seen it in the flesh. And I was intrigued to see the work of the other 5 artists showing alongside her.
Continue reading “Delayed Art Commentary – Feedback Loops at ACCA Melbourne”Delayed Art Commentary and Purvis Young
Sometimes my art writing verges into serious Delayed Art Commentary … actually I quite like that phrase, and also the notion, of having a little time to digest and process a show. But there’s definitely a sweet spot, the optimum amount of time for the work to muddle round my brain a bit, but also for my initial reactions not to be too distant, to be able to call them back, dig into them, turn them over and figure out a bit more what it all means.
Continue reading “Delayed Art Commentary and Purvis Young”Petrina Hicks – ‘Bleached Gothic’
Petrina Hicks, born in 1972 is an Australian photographer making work about the female image. She previously worked as a commercial photographer and in her work the visual language of advertising and the classical motifs collide.
Continue reading “Petrina Hicks – ‘Bleached Gothic’”Making Art Public: 50 Years of Kaldor Public Art Projects
Thinking about the term ‘public art’, the immediate connotations that spring to my mind are: (i) big things (ii) outdoors and (iii) as I’m a Brit, The Angel of the North by Antony Gormley. Thinking a bit further, I wonder about all the statues commemorating various men (mainly) and women (occasionally) standing in our towns and cities. Pondering a bit more, I recall some wonderful works I’ve seen dotted around Folkestone, Kent, the lasting legacy of their inspiring triennials.
Continue reading “Making Art Public: 50 Years of Kaldor Public Art Projects”Singapore: Art amongst the high-rises
Singapore is more known for its financial industry than its art scene. A jungle of hi-rises, 5-star hotels with rooftop swimming pools and vast quantities of air conditioned shopping centres. The population seems to be composed of armies of neatly dressed office-workers – both expat and locals. Young people here study under one of the most intensely pressured education systems and a supporting cast of foreign domestic workers is shipped in, to keep everything running smoothly.
Continue reading “Singapore: Art amongst the high-rises”May You Live in Interesting Times – Proposition B
The second half of Ralph Rugoff’s epic ‘May You Live in Interesting Times’ show. Continue reading “May You Live in Interesting Times – Proposition B”
Giardini Pavilions – Venice Biennale 2019
My second day of checking out the Venice Biennale in 2019. I love visiting the national pavilions at Giardini. Sometimes I think it feels like the Eurovision of art, seeing what delegation each country has sent. Continue reading “Giardini Pavilions – Venice Biennale 2019”
Arsenale Pavilions – Venice Biennale 2019
After a solid 4 hours taking in the extravaganza of May You Live in Interesting Times – Proposition A in the Arsenale, a giant queue for one of the last veggie foccacias, a quick pit stop to sit down and eat, it was time to move on to the national pavilions within the Arsenale complex. Continue reading “Arsenale Pavilions – Venice Biennale 2019”
May You Live in Interesting Times – Proposition A
Visting the Venice Biennale is like entering an art marathon – it requires endurance and stamina (my recent post explains what on earth this Biennale thing is all about). The Arsenale show is vast Continue reading “May You Live in Interesting Times – Proposition A”
Luchita Hurtado – I live I die I will be reborn
For some reason I can’t quite put my finger on, it feels like Luchita Hurtado’s name has been in the air lately. Or perhaps it is just that at the age of 98 this is her first solo show in the UK and in any public gallery, worldwide. Continue reading “Luchita Hurtado – I live I die I will be reborn”