Cathy's Art Diary

A nice small exhibition at the National Gallery looking at works done by Sisley on his visits to England and Wales. I had not realised that Sisley’s parents were both British and that he was sent to London to study commerce when he was 18. There he discovered the works of Turner and Constable. On his trip in 1874 he sought out views similar to the Seine in Paris and created a series of pictures of the Thames at Hampton Court. I loved the one of the view under the bridge at Hampton Court. It was a wonderfully unusually angle for a picture. Following his marriage in Cardiff in 1897 he travelled in Wales with his wife working at Penarth and on the Gower Peninsular. There is a lovely series of three pictures of rocks which seem to act as a study in how the waves and shore interact with it. Reviews Guardian Independent Evening Standard

Small one room exhibition at the National Gallery celebrating the arrival of three Impressionist masterpieces which were bequeathed to the gallery by Simon Sainsbury. It takes the three pictures “Bowl of fruit and tankard before a window” by Gauguin and “Snow scene at Argenteuill” and “Water-lilies, setting sun” by Monet are displayed next to paintings which the gallery already owned which compliment them.

Study morning at the National Gallery to compliment the “ Renaissance Faces” exhibition . This was a series of four lectures looking different themes of the show. Susan Foister, a principal curator of the exhibition, talked about how the Northern artists fitted into the themes of the rooms. Minna Moore Ede, assistant curator of Renaissance painting at the National Gallery, looked at sculpture by comparing the bust of St Constance in the first room and the marble plaque “Young couple” by Tullio Lombardo. Jenny Graham from the University of Plymouth looked at the role of artifice in portraits, why it is there and what it represents. Finally Carline Brooke from Birkbeck College again talked about the role of drawing. I thought this would be a repeat of the previous Wednesday’s lecture but although it covered similar themes it did so by comparing and contrasting the Bellini portrait of a man and Durer’s portrait of Conrad Merckell.

Another lecture at the National Gallery to compliment the “ Renaissance Faces” exhibition . Given by Caroline Brook of Birkbeck College, this lecture looked at the role of drawing in Renaissance portraiture and why it rose to prominence at this time and then declines. It looked in particular at the abstract nature of drawing, claiming that the act of drawing a line on a paper is a abstraction as it uses illusion to create reality. It also looked at the different uses of drawings : as preparatory works, as works of art in their own right, as presents for friends and as means of an artist analysing himself in self portraiture.

Lecture at the National Gallery to compliment the “ Renaissance Faces” exhibition . Given by Joanna Woodall from the Courtauld Institute the lecture looked at the work of Antonis Mor, a contemporary of Titian, who features in the last room of the exhibition. She used his work to look at the question of art as imagination. In particular she contrasted Mor’s and Titian’s portraits of Philip II. Mor’s portrait shows Philip as a military leader but at a battle which he missed! Mor however pictures him in this important regal right of passage, the leading of troops in battle.

Work by the artist in residence at the Whitney Museum of American Art . This was a false room which you could view through spaces in its corners. It was a basically a work space in which the artist works with everyday objects to look at how they transform with use. The website describes it as “questioning the autonomy of the art object through a process of its constant transmutation”. Not sure I understand but I am sure I agree! Must admit the artist had gone for a short break when we were there but the thing which struck me most was the smell, as he had been baking! Review New York Times

Exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art which brings together works from the Whitney’s permanent collection, highlighting connections between art and visions of utopia. I must admit by this exhibit I was getting a bit tired and punch drunk! I hadn’t expected the Whitney to have quite so many exhibitions! Once you are there you feel you need to do them all, especially as it was our last day in New York, but by this stage the feet and brain were tired! For that reason I can only remember the highlights of this one not really anything about the theme! Anyway my favourite piece was Paul Sietsema’s “CG Room” from 2002 which was a modern room resembling one of the Dutch box paintings of a room done within a box to form a 3D picture. Review New York Times

Retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art looking at the work of this photographer who has defined the history of colour photography. These photographs mainly of the Deep South had a sense of peace and deep observation. His set on Gracelands seemed to focus on the focus on the mundane and give it meaning. Many were also like the Hopper’s we had seen earlier in the day. On a mundane level the highlight had to be seeing Ben Stiller going round the exhibition! Reviews New Yorker New York Times

Super exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art looking at the work done by Alexander Calder when he lived in Paris and the influence that time had on the rest of his career. It was particularly interesting following on from the current exhibition at the Royal Academy of the work of the Galerie Maeght which featured Calder. It started well with the wire portraits he had made of people he met in Paris exhibited beautifully against a white wall and lit so you saw the shadows they threw. Star of the show had to be the room devoted to the circus he built at this time which he could use to generate income from giving shows. The circus itself was set up but with it were films of how it worked. The whole thing was charming! I loved the two figures which came on and took a third off on a stretcher after and accident and the kangaroo! A room at the end showed how his work changed on visiting Mondrian’s studio and culminated in a series of large scale mobiles including “Small Sphere and

Small exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York of contemporary photography purchased by the museum. Probably most memorable were the first two pictures, mock ups of obituaries for Bill Clinton and Malcolm MacLaren. Also striking were street scenes by Zoe Leonard.

Exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum looking at the impact of Futurism and Cubism on British modernist printmaking from the beginning of World War I to the beginning of World War II. Arranged in themes this exhibition reminded me of the one at the British Museum earlier this year of American prints. There were many familiar artists as well as new names. It was great to see so many C.R.W. Nevison’s, in particular to see his New York work there. I fell heavily for the work of Cyril Power who did vivid London scenes. I loved his picture of a rowing crew called “The Eight”. It is always nice to see some old friends when abroad. Reviews New York Times

Retrospective of at the Metropolitan Museum of the work of this 20th century artist. This exhibition had a wonderful sense of peace about it. Morandi had lived and worked in the same house for many years and concentrated on minimalist still lives which at their most pared back were almost abstract. He would take the same set of objects and paint them over and over from different angles and in different arrangement so they became a study in shape. Although repetitive they built up a sense of rhythm. There were also some lovely muted landscapes and a set of pictures of vases of flowers painted for his sisters. Reviews New York Times

Fascinating exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum in New York looking at works which had been acquired by the museum while Philippe de Montebello has been its director. It was an eclectic mix of painting, furniture, sculpture, calligraphy, dresses and more, which gave a great sense of the range of interests of the museum. The tape tour was well worth taking as it explained why and how many of the pieces had been bought. Many of the stories were quite funny and touching and, as Philippe de Montebello himself was the main narrator, it gave you a real sense of the man and what he might be like to work with. Where to start of favourite pieces? I have to pick the Lucien Freud of Leigh Bowery from the first room, such a study in flesh; Room two a wonderful self portrait of Rubens with his wife and child; A winged boy from the Medici garden in Florence; Van Gogh wheat field; Macintosh wash stand made for Kate Cranston and two rooms of prints and drawings just as your legs were giving out! Re

Excellent exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York looking at how Van Gogh looked at the problem of how to use colour to depict darkness throughout his career. Having read “The Yellow Book” recently, the story of the time Van Gogh and Gauguin spent together in Arles, it was particularly interesting to see many of the pictures from this period which I had read about it detail. I loved the way he showed the sources of light in a very deliberate way. Stars and lamps show the rays of light leaving them as well as the objects themselves. Also the way the pictures work so well from a distances as a composition but up close you get the added element of texture and pattern. The exhibition included many letters to his brother Theo which gives you a wonderful sense of his brother’s infinite patience with him! Reviews New York Times

Exhibition dedicated to Andrea Riccio (1470–1532), the Renaissance sculptor, at the Frick Collection . The joy of this exhibition was that it brought together multiple models of the same sculpture and explained what the differences were and why the models differed. It also brought together four of the five known lamps from the Frick, Ashmolean, Lourve and V&A. Very touching was the Carrand Vessel where they had brought together the main vessel from the Bargello in Florence and the cover from the V&A. It seemed such a shame that they would be parted again. It would be nice if they two could spend six months in each place. I loved a wonderful plaque of the entombment complete with hysterical figures with a real sense of movement and grief. Also a wonderful seated nude with a syrinx (Pan pipe to you!). Reviews New York Times

Small exhibition at the Frick Collection in New York bringing together their three Verneer’s on one wall for the first time in ten years. The three pictures “Officer and Laughing Girl”, “Mistress and Maid” and “Girl Interrupted at Her Music” are all quite different but lovely. “Mistress and Maid” is a slightly untypical picture focusing on the action of the maid handing the lady a letter but leaving out the background details. This gives it a nice intensity. The other two are the more usual scenes set in the corner of a room with familiar furnishings and pictures. “Girl interrupted at her music” has a slightly unfinished look. I love the cool intensity of Vermeer and this was a great opportunity to see three together within a small flick of the eye of each other!