Antony Gormley : Body Politic

Stunning exhibition at White Cube Bermondsey of new work by Antony Gormley.

It was only 12 January when I went and yet I suspect I might have found my show of the year! I love Gormley anyway so it was onto a winner but these works looked so good in the space that the whole show became an installation.

I even sat and watched the video about how the pieces were made, which I often skip, and knowing more about the materials and techniques used just added more layers of meaning, although you don’t need that to respond emotionally to the work.

From the grey, block figures lining the corridor with their little hollowed out mouths I was hooked. I loved “Bind”, one figure in a space made from the three strips of iron emerging from the walls, floor and ceiling. You found yourself ducking under the cross bars and trying to work out how it all fitted together.

However my favourite had to be “Resting Place” a room full of figures, each in a different position and made up of 23 blocks of clay. In the video Gormley said at first glance is like a builder’s yard then you think it’s buildings. It is only as you walk into the room that you realise it’s figures. Some are joyous and some look so sad you want to cuddle them. You find yourself showing down as you walk among them, thinking about the poses and their individuality while always realising they are part of a great whole, just like us.

Closed 28 January 2024


Reviews

Times

Evening Standard


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thomas Becket: Murder and Making of a Saint

Image
Stunning exhibition at the British Museum on the life and afterlife of Thomas Becket. I studied Becket both at A Level and at university so I was really looking forward to this show and it did not disappoint. From walking in to see an old friend, the early Limoges casket showing the murder from the Victoria and Albert Museum, I was gripped. The show told the story well using fantastic objects and led you through his life, the murder, the political aftermath, his sainthood and miracles, and how Canterbury became a major pilgrimage site. It is hard to pick out the best objects as so many were wonderful. I loved that they had early copies of some of the five eyewitness accounts of the murder which made you fell you were almost touching the event. I liked the manuscript on his time in exile which was almost like a comic strip. How wonderful to get a 13th century font from Sweden which shows how far and how quickly the news that Henry II had integrated the murder spread. I think my...
Read more

Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year Exhibition 2019

Image
Delightful exhibition at Clarendon Fine Art showing pictures from the Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year TV series. I had loved the series which had set nine artists, both professional and amateur, to paint one of three celebrities. It then had a semi-final and final with them all looking at one sitter and in the final they also took on a commission. I loved the way you watched a picture build and how some were then made or spoiled by one stroke of paint.   Finding these pictures I knew so well in the flesh was therefore fascinating. None of them disappointed. My favourite artist from the final, Tom Mead, works looked just as good in real life if not better as you could see the detail. The show included his impressive self-portrait which he submitted to enter the competition, a wonderful fragmented picture of his reflection in a mirror giving a sense of movement. I loved that it included a large version of him and a miniature. His commission for the final of Jazzie B...
Read more

The Renaissance Nude

Image
Beautiful exhibition at the Royal Academy looking at the nude in Renaissance art. The show was gently themed but mainly let the pictures speak for themselves. It began by looking at the subjects, both religious and secular, which include nude figures then examined techniques and models used in these works, finishing by looking at more personal pictures. This is a period I’ve studied a lot so there were a lot of old friends and it was quite fun predicting what might appear. There were a few surprises too such as the rather surprising drawing of the Ecstatic Christ. I liked the fact the show included lots of different art forms not just paintings including sculpture, etchings, drawings and illuminated manuscripts. There were some fascinating hangs to draw comparisons particularly two sets of pictures by Giovanni Bellini and Hand Memling from almost exactly the same date. These were shown back to back in a display cabinet down the middle of one room. My favourite work was ...
Read more