John Moores Painting Prize 2012

On Friday I visited the John Moores Painting Prize exhibition and I was impressed with a lot of the work on show. My favourite pieces (pictured below), were pieces that had movement, detail, colour, or variation, and   in my eyes these pieces were the winners. Hutcheson's piece was probably my favourite one - the smallest of my favourites but I loved the use of the running paint and the tonal blues covering over the head of the man in his gown, making the painting ambiguous.

I loved the feeling of movement in David Dipré's art work. The splashes of colour are intense and jagged and beautiful, and I would actually love to have this piece in my home. Sometimes I think painting can be unsuccessful  as it is relatively difficult to achieve perfection and for that reason you can either get amazing detailed works (see Peter Liversidge's work below, a painting of a letter), or amazing abstract works....or rough and undetailed painting works that almost look amateurish. 

The size of Pat O'Connor's work was impressive - it took up a whole wall on it's own and had so many parts to it that it was the one piece of work I really stood and looked at for a long while. There were so many aspects to catch my attention and a vast range of painting, from thin doodles, to intricate designs, to still lifes. It showed the skill that O'Connor has when it comes to painting and O'Connor deserved to win. 

The Winner?

The winner was Sarah Pickstone with 'Stevie Smith and the Willow', however I'm still undecided as to how I feel about this. After seeing the other artists exhibiting, I have to disagree that Pickstone's work was the best. There was a high level of  intricately detailed pieces that could have been more deserving of fully showing painting skills, and on the other hand there were some absolutely beautiful abstract works, but Pickstone's seemed to just be somewhere in the middle. I'm sure their was a justifiable reason for her win, but when I saw some of the runners up too...I'm not so sure. One runner up was just the plain letter 'M' painted onto a white canvas by Ian Law, and unfortunately for me I don't think that warrants a deserving place as a Painting Prize Runner Up. 

In the next couple of weeks I'm going to be going to some talks at the Walker Gallery regarding the John Moores Painting Prize, so maybe there I will hear some reasons as to why the winners won and also get some insight into the works. I'll let you know 

Dipré

Holland

Hutcheson

Liversidge

O'Connor

Biennial Galleries....so far!

FACT

I am not the biggest fan of interactive art work because I always feel nervous about 'getting involved', however I think I actually fell in love with Pedro Reyes interactive work at FACT. Playing 'Melodrama and Other Games' was such a great way to get people involved without feeling intrusive or out of the ordinary. 'Melodrama' was easy to follow, a lot like snakes and ladders but with hilarious and very true fact of relationships instead of a plain square grid. Me and my boyfriend loved it. And I won. Not only could you get involved but you could also take a print of his art work home, making it all the more memorable, and the work itself was beautiful anyway.

Akram Zaatari's work was located in a dark room and at first I felt pretty disorientated  but when I saw the work I found is quite funny. The pictures of babies in their innocence, with their trousers round their ankles, or lying naked on a pillow, or even just playing around with toys seemed so normal and actually cute, but then when the same pictures were reenacted by both female and male adults, it felt disturbing. Just shows what babies can get away with. 

Walker Art Gallery 

I was really really excited to go and see Enrico David's work at the Walker Art Gallery after seeing a picture of one of his etchings. I am such a fan of etchings I can't even take it!!! I love Goya, I now love Kubin, I just love the darkness and grainyness and everything. I did enjoy Enrico's, I thought they were nice and chalky and I loved how you could see the lines of the charcoal. 

Whilst I was there I also had a nice long look around the John Moores Painting Prize..I'll do a write up on that soon! 

Liverpool Biennial - Installations

Installation 

I went to Liverpool this Friday and managed to visit a couple of the Biennial venues (not many though!), and I also managed to view some of the outdoor installation work which was very impressive to say the least. The theme of this years Biennial is 'the Unexpected Guest', so a lot of the works question hospitality  belonging, society, secrecy and acceptance. All the outdoor installation work was very eye-catching and beautiful, my favourite being the outdoor colourful pigeons by Patrick Murphy (pictured), which questioned the theme of belonging, as pigeons are often unwanted and have no real environment  yet these colourful birds seem inviting and entertaining and therefore WANTED, but unfortunately their garish and loud presence isn't in necessarily what it takes it 'belong'.

Other outdoor installation pieces include the VIP door by Elmgreen and Dragset which is placed in Liverpool ONE, and consists of a VIP door that can never fully open enough for someone to get through - no one is a VIP. Another installation in the Liverpool ONE is a lift that breaks through the floor, looking like a futuristic wreckage, playing on the 'unexpected' of the Unexpected Guest theme.

Questioning society and culture, José Ángel Vincench uses five trailers that spell out the world 'EXILE' for people who have to flee their home country for political reasons. I think the use of trailers was an excellent touch as it shows the ever moving state of immigrants who have had to escape their country.

One of the final installation pieces that I saw whilst in Liverpool was called 'I Love You' by Jiri Kovanda, hanging from the walls of Lime Street Station was a huge sign saying 'I Love You'. When I first saw it I literally didn't have a clue what was going on, I though maybe someone was proposing in a weird way like some people do, but then I found it was a piece of art. It really did feel like the Unexpected Guest because it was very unexpected.

Politics and Art

After reading this months frieze magazine, I found my eyes were opened more to how interconnecting art and politics have found themselves to be over the years. Many of the articles in frieze showed HOW art has changed things, such as the demonstrations by AIDS group ACT UP, and how their art managed to achieve something that politics alone couldn't. Art has always been allowed a manner of outrageous-ness, controversy, and the affect this has on people is somewhat more impressive than the affect politics has, as politicians themselves have limits, and to go beyond those as a politician themselves would result in an uproar of 'bigotry'

Other articles in the magazine however show how politics and governments themselves are AWARE of the affect art has, as art is restricted and censored. This happens in Burma, where people can get jailed for their art if it is viewed anti-government. This feels to me very reminiscent of Hitler and Stalin's censorship of art, and, interestingly, their use of propaganda. Whilst these governments were on completely different scopes of the political scale, from far right Fascism to far left Communism, both leaders knew the power of art in causing a rebellion. 

Whilst govenments restrict art as a way of stopping the spread of anti-government ideas and rebellion, the fact that governments use propaganda in their campaigns is an example of how powerful art can be within politics, and how governments use this to their advantage. When I was in Pamplona for San Fermin, the poster of choice for 2012 was by artist David Alegría, who took inspiration from the 1917 posters that encouraged men into war in America, showing the timeless effect art has. 

Art has also been used by artists to show the flaws of political systems, such as the Dada movement in Germany which stemmed from the loss of political beliefs after the first world war, and adapted a more liberal art technique.

It's clear that both politicians and artists are both aware of the effect that art has on peoples views and ideas, and this is why there is more of a struggle between the two than a harmony. In today's modern era, you would think that the two could have a mutual support, but the strength of art and demonstration against the strength of the law and political systems is a battle that can not yet be won. 

Turner Monet Twombly - Tate Liverpool

Yesterday I went to see the Turner Monet Twombly exhibition at the Liverpool Tate and I have to say it was one of the most beautiful exhibitions I have ever been too. All the pieces complimented each other more than I imagined they would, and the amount of influence Turner had on both Monet and Twombly was surprising.

In the first part of the exhibition the two pieces that caught my eye were both Turner's and Twombly's 'Hero and Leandro' - both artists were depicting the same thing but both emitted a different emotion. Turner's work was nostalgic, sad, whereas Twombly's piece felt more alive, more distressing in depicting the tragedy of Hero and Leandro with it's wave like paint strikes and dark colours intertwined with vivid pink.

I never realised how beautiful some of Turner's work was. The faded ages of this work and foggy images feel dream like, or even a little distressing, especially in Peace Burial at Sea, where the painting is dark and faded but the bright spark in the centre of the painting catches your attention...until you realise the depressing story behind it of Turner's friend who died at sea and was subsequently buried at sea.

Whilst Monet is probably one of the better known artists of the three, I didn't find his work as appealing as the others. Obviously his work is iconic and his water lilies are well known all around the world. His impact on the French Impressionist movement is indisputable, but unfortunately it just isn't for me. The colours are muted, the technique is distracting with it's tiny brush strokes almost distorting the image up close. I found the mystery of Turner's work move moving and impressive and the activeness of Twombly's work, the movement, the colour, is incredibly appealing to the eye.

Putting these three artists together though was an amazing idea. I was genuinely engrossed in the exhibition, not even realising anyone was around me or how much time I spent in the exhibition. Sometimes I wouldn't even know what artist I was looking at because they all reflect aspects of each other in their paintings, all are inspired by similar themes and all are beautiful in their different ways.

Alfred Kubin - 'The Other Side'

Knowing that Kubin's mother died at a young age, at the age of 19 he tried to commit suicide on her grave -and failed-, and that he had a nervous breakdown at the age of twenty, it's not difficult to understand why Kubin's work is relatively disturbing. He was even seduced by a pregneant woman at the age of 11. His images are described as 'dream like', however they're more nightmareish.

At Nottingham Contemporary their is currently a show of Kubin's drawings from his twenties, the most disturbing years of his life, where he had many hallucinations. They are black (mainly done in pen/etchings), made grainy by an air-spray technique that was new to the time. The feel of his work is reminiscent of Goya's etchings, especially with the grain effect. Many of his works feature sexual images, where male and female genitals are switched, or women are tied up. It's almost upsetting to see, and to know these are his thoughts is incredibly sad.

His work also takes some examining. His eye for menacing detail is obvious, as it takes a few minutes observation at some etchings to actually see what's going on. 'The Swamp' shows a naked women standing in a swamp, and in the background are noticable dark figures, looking almost fish like, towering over the unknowing women. It's mysterious and terrifying. Other pictures show dead bodies covering the floors, broken skeletons, and ripped dolls and bodies. In Kubin's early twenties, Austria was entering the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire leading to the WWI, and this feel of loss and war is evident in Kubin's early, violent work.

This exhibition was merely an introduction to Kubin for me, and whilst I was in the exhibition I couldn't help feeling I was looking at Munch or Goya with their nightmare feel, but if anything Kubin was more menacing.

Francis Upritchard - 'A Hand of Cards'

I visiting the Francis Upritchard exhibition at the Nottingham Contemporary and found myself to oddly enjoy it, after I got over the initial creepiness.  

 Knowing that Upritchard is a succesful artist, I had high hopes for 'A Hand of Cards'. The psychedelic sculptures, bright colours covering their gangly figures, were oddly alluring, despite the fact they reminded me of starving prisoners. I think the shabby clothes added to this, but once again the odd technique reminded me of care-free characters rather than starving ones.  

Even the plain skinned figures were intriguing, just from their INCRICATE clothes, in comparison to the ponchos and shawls of the coloured guys. Their clothes had a 1600 feel to them, all faded, and the dancing stature of the figures made me wonder what they were dancing FOR. These plainly clothed old men. 
 

I originally found these sculptures creepy, but once I delved into the Kubin exhibition and Upritchard's pieces in their, the prior rooms seemed almost delightful.

When I first saw 'Sloth', I didn't even know what I was looking at. Howevert on further inspection, the leather childrens gloves are beyond menacing, along with the matted fur on the out of proportion arms. AND on top of this, the little lamps she'd made to fit in with Kubin's exhibition with tiny faces on and holes for eyes gave me a scare. 

 I would definitely recommend it to someone who wants to see art that isn't just a painting or a photo.

Accidentally on Purpose - QUAD

Derby might not be the most cultural place in England but it does have it's little gems. Derby Quad offers lovely exhibitions though, and I have seen quite a lot of nice art at Derby Museum too. I do think that we need more art and culture going on in Derby - more galleries would be great.

A couple of weeks ago I went to see the 'Accidentally on Purpose' exhibition at the Quad and I thought some of the pieces were beautiful. Me and my boyfriend loved the full wall covered in negatives printed on clear paper and stuck on with tape (below). It gave the wall a 'just made' feel, obviously linking to the title of the exhibition itself. It faced opposite the door, so made an impression straight away. 

Hanging in the middle of the room was fabric which had been cut at at the bottom, but this fabric was sheer and beautiful, in pale pink and light blue, and although it had clearly been destroyed, it still held it's femininity well. 

I was surprised by how nice this exhibition was, and I'm hoping there will be another exhibition soon, or at least before I go to Australia in November! - it's nice to have this modern art in Derby for once!

In and Out of Focus - Saatchi

On my travels to London I also came across the BEAUTIFUL Saatchi Gallery. It's beautiful inside and out and everybody should go see it. Immediately.

I saw in the In and Out of Focus instillation. And I really really loved it. I've never really been a fan of photography as a form of art - to me photography always seemed a way of documentation, a device best used for news and history. But when I saw some of the beautiful art works, and the way in which the art worked had been altered, I loved it. JOHN STAZAKER was particularly brilliant. The way he manipulated two photographs in a way that at first glance you can't even tell they're different photos was amazing and in fact, genius. 

Another particularly striking part was from the balcony on the second floor. There were 3 large images on the walls that from a distance looked completely normal (even if I did feel a little bit distressed of the photo of a cat with pegs on its ears. I LOVE CATS), but up close they were almost unrecognisable through the pixelated effect. Until you took a few steps back it was difficult to know what you were even looking at. 

My boyfriend took a fancy to one particular photo of the Queen. Maybe it was because the Diamond Jubilee had happened and we were all lovin' Queenie. It was a cute photo though of her with her eyes shut though. 

Damo Hirsto

In June this year, as a belated birthday gift, my boyfriend and I took a trip to London to see the retrospective Damien Hirst exhibition. Whilst I am a fine of modern art, it's always been a bit to hard for me to understand the actually significance of it, as well as the fact it's not something you could easily have in your home - a very significant point when describing Hirst's work.

My thoughts on the exhibition are...mixed. There have been a mixed number of reviews regarding the exhibition, and from the die-hard art lovers, these have been mainly, negative. After Hirst vowed never to have a retrospective of his work, he seems to have gone back on his word in many peoples eyes just for the economic 'sell-out'. He's OBVIOUSLY always been thought of as being in it for the money instead of the 'art itself', as he was the only artist to ever sell all his art in an auction, and the fact he has staff who construct his famous 'dot paintings' (these bored me to death and seemed unnecessarily time consuming for something that felt a bit kitsch).

His work is however, fascinating. 'The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living'  AKA the shark is outstanding - it's not every day you get to see a huge shark suspended and still in a tank. 'Mother and Child Divided' AKA the cows, is also amazing, and revolting. Oh, talking of revolting, my favourite work has to be the rotting cow head being eaten by flies. Who would think of that as art? His work has the shock factor of course, as well as having decadently expensive works - it feels like a privilege to be standing next to 'For the Love of God'.

Whilst his some of his anatomical pieces are interesting enough, the most interesting but distressing room was of course Room 5 - the butterfly room. Thinking it was going to be really cute, I went in. Unfortunately these butterflies were indescribably large,  and unusual DRUNK from all the fruit they'd been drinking, leading to them flying around in a very tipsy fashion. My fear of Moths shone through as I suddenly realised Butterflies were a lot like Moths. 

Hirst has to be given credit for his originality and the fact he was a main player in the YBA's. However it's questionable how much he cares about his art in way's that other artists do...a couple of weeks ago he appeared on Blue Peter and encouraged children to instead of being use a machine instead of being skilled. He's a bit of dickhead and he got a GOLD Blue Peter badge. What the fuck?