Cathy's Art Diary

Excellent online lecture from ARTscapades on Hans Holbein the Younger. The author of a new biography of Holbein, Elizabeth Goldring, was in conversation with Michael Prodger of the New Statesman, to bring out the highlights of her book. I was fascinated to hear how Goldring went about her research given that Holbein left no diaries or letters. The only source material from him are a dictated will and notes on his drawings. Instead she turned to his patrons’ archives such as the letters of Erasmus. I liked her description of these as adjacent works. She talked about how Holbein’s portraits have become our view of Tudor England and how she can’t image Tudor art or history without him. However she also talked about other works by him from before he came to England, in particular his portraits of Erasmus which his workshop continued to produce in Basle even after he’d moved to England. She also mentioned his design work including armour for Henry VIII and over 200 pieces of jewell...

Well thought out online lecture from the National Gallery examining how and why science became entertainment in the 18th century. Matthew Morgan laid out a clear argument about how science was developing in this era and how people responded to this particularly in the circles of Wright of Derby. He looked at Rousseau’s ideas about education who advocated for learning by display rather than reading. He told us about various scientific experiments which were conducted in private houses or public spaces. I’m sure I’d have booked for a lecture at the giant Orrey at the Theatre Royal in the Haymarket. As usual with Morgan’s talks there was a good Q&A session at the end covering the difference between curiosity and learning, a comparison between the 18th century displays and Brian Cox’s podcasts and the role of women as they frequently appear in Wright’s paintings of scientific displays.

Interesting iteration of this annual show at the National Theatre for this prize for stage design. I always enjoy this show with its little models of stage designs, costumes and sketches. I was interested to see how many of those on show were speculative designs. It showed how designers have to work, submitting ideas which might never be realised. I loved this costume by Kathy Udaondo for a play called “The Inseparables” which ties two   characters together in a clever way. I also liked this set design but I failed to note what it was or who it was by. It was interesting to read a biography of Lady Anya Sainsbury who instigated the award back in 1987. Closes June 2026

Disappointing installation at St Mary Le Strand by Louise Giovanelli. I probably didn’t see this work at its best. I went during the day and I gather it is illuminated at night and probably looks very different, however in the day it just looked like covered scaffolding. I like the idea of the print on the cover looking like a sequined curtain but in the light I saw it in it looked like concrete. I understood it was meant to alter the look and shape of the church but I think it might have worked better if it had been on both sides. Closed 18 January 2026 Review Evening Standard https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/exhibitions/decades-louise-giovanelli-st-marylestrand-church-b1259005.html

Enlightening online lecture from ARTscapades with the curator of the Kerry James Marshall exhibition at the Royal Academy. I had seen the show and loved it but knew I hadn’t understood all the nuances of it so it was useful and fascinating to hear Mark Godfrey talk about the works and his curating choices. He talked about how he met the artist back in 2012 and had been discussing putting on a show of his work for the last five years. He talked about how they worked together on it. He then led us around the rooms explaining the titles and theme of each room and introducing the main works. As someone asked in the Q&A “Can you appreciate the work without knowing the references?”. I was shouting yes as I had but knowing more about the work certainly added another layer.

Disappointing exhibition at the Barbican Music Library of photographs of the group Blondie from 1978. Blondie was a big part of my youth, so I was pleased that this show was still on when I went to the Barbican however it was shown in a cramped space and was badly lit with reflective glass on the exhibits. The narrative was poorly explained. It was billed as the photographs taken by Martyn Goddard but seemed to include work by other people and archive material. The images were fascinating and deserved a better presentation. I found it hard to engage with what they were and how they fitted together. Closed 21 February 2026