Cathy's Art Diary

Interesting exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery marking this year’s photographic portrait award. I’m going to start with my usual moan about reflective glass on photographs particularly dark ones. In some cases it was very difficult to view the image without seeing yourself and the pictures behind you. Often you get undefined themes in these shows and this time I felt it was age and trans people. As ever it was worth reading the labels as often the story wasn’t how it first appeared. I loved the first picture I saw in the show by Clare Brand of an old lady’s eye with the blue eye makeup smudging. Also Drew Gardener’s recreations of American Civil War photographs with the black descendants of the original sitters and Adam Ferguson's pictures of a pastor in the Outback of Australia. My favourite was this Julia Margaret Cameron like one by Phil Sharp showing the tears on the sitter’s eyes due to the music they were listening to. This year’s In Focus display was by D...

Niche but  fascinating exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery exploring how different technologies of reproduction have shaped encounters with artworks since the 19th century. The main focus was on an ivory mirror case from the Victoria and Albert Museum collection of the “Castle of Love”. The show discussed the different types of casts which has been made of it to spread its image and allow study along with print versions of it. The original was there and I was surprised at how poor the modern 3D printed version was. The show also looked at the use of new technology in the 19th century from glass slides to brass rubbings used by art historians. Closes 14 February 2025

Strange but fun exhibition at Somerset House on the theme of robotics by Louis Morlae one of the members of Somerset House Studios. The show explores the impact of robotics via a series of small sculptures. I enjoyed playing with one with which you interacted via a keyboard with oddly configured letters. I liked the way a video was shown in the base of a bench which was then reflected in a mirror behind although I didn’t have time to engage with the film. I want sure about these two pieces but they were fun! Closes 23 February 2025

Intriguing exhibition at Somerset House looking at the Rukus! Archive, Europe's largest archive of Black LGBTQIA+ culture and history. The collection has been accumulated as a project founded by photographer Ajamu X and filmmaker Topher Campbell, who describe themselves as “two unruly Queers defying conventions of race and sexuality by taking up space without asking permission”. The dry yet often explicit work was cleverly displayed in themed groups echoing aspects of Black, gay love over the last 50 years. As the collection started with the founders’ own material it feels a bit focused on them but as more people contribute it will broaden out. It was a good example of how to order and display archive material which can be heavily text based. Closed 19 January 2025 Reviews Guardian Evening Standard  

Thoughtful exhibition at Colnaghi London of work from over 1000 years which explore the close link between beauty and its inevitable decay. The show explores the classical themes of vanitas and memento mori using objects from Ancient Egypt to contemporary work. It also takes work from both the Western and Eastern traditions which you don’t usually see. There were some stunning works such as this painting of skulls and a fine a trompe-l’oeil   painting. The second gallery was dominated by two huge architectural capricci which gave an immersive effect. I had an interesting chat to the curator what explained more of the themes. Sadly the show had closed by the time I wrote this up and all detailed information which I was reading on my phone as I walked round the show seems to have disappeared from the website so apologies for the lack of detail. Closed 8 November 2024

Interesting exhibition at White Cube Masons’ Yard of new work by Danh Vo. Vo combines broken, ancient sculpture and modern objects in installations setting up interesting dialogues. I don’t think I understood all the connections but I was at the end of a long day of gallery visits so was feeling a bit jaded! The space was broken up in new ways with chipboard structures with sculptures hidden inside. I do like the way he uses historic artefacts in a sympathetic way. Closed 16 November 2024

Interesting exhibition at the Redfern Gallery looking at the career of Pop Art pioneer Peter Sedgley. The show included work from 50 years in paintings on paper, canvas, panel, light and kinetic form of work which played with the eyes and seemed to move. I must admit I am not fond of this type of work but do find it clever and innovative. Closed 30 November 2024  

Creepy exhibition at Flowers of new work by Scottish artist Ken Currie. These were majestic works which imagined an archipelago of barren islands and the people who live on them without shelter. The upper floor was dominated a painting of a group of depressed looking people with shades of American Gothic and a similarly large image of a white, emaciated horse on a boat. I’m not sure what they are about but they got under my skin and were the stuff of nightmares! Closed 16 November 2024    

Innovative exhibition at Tiwani Contemporary of new work by Emma Prempeh. The show consisted of beautiful paintings looking at home, belonging and memory with gold detailing in the skies to give majesty. Some of the works were hung in installations representing interiors in the Caribbean and Uganda with projections adding to the images. For example one painting of a sitting room had a figure projected into one corner. It was joyous and creepy at the same time! Closed 16 November 2024  

Interesting exhibition at Messum's London looking at contemporary landscape painting. I am currently doing a National Gallery course on landscape painting so this mirrored some of the themes and ideas.   Shout outs to a clever diptych of a swimming pool by Claudia Pons Bonham displayed around the corner of the room, two beautiful square small pictures of Berkshire by Harry Martin and a dramatic picture of fire by Jelly Green. Closed 16 November 2024  

Stunning exhibition at the Stephen Friedman Gallery of new work by Kehinde Wiley. I love Wiley's portraits so it was exciting to see this new project. In a change of mood the majority of works in the show were miniature but all done in the hyperreal detailed style of his monumental work, setting black sitters within an intricate millefleur background. They had a jewel-like quality and a feel of Tudor miniatures emphasised by the 18th century style black frames. I was fascinated to read on the press release that Wiley had met most of the sitters on the same day at the University of Lagos. It gave them an added sense of being a picture of a generation of young people. These were shown with two multi-canvas portraits breaking up the image of the sitters over around ten images. Closed 9 November 2024  

Small exhibition   at Holtermann Fine Art of new sculpture by Peter Buggenhout. I was just wondering what on earth these striking works were about when I read the press release and saw that they "resist interpretation" and are "devoid of symbols" so I felt a bit better. They basically looked like a mess of found objects and yet oddly they pulled you in to try to work out what they might be about. Closed 14 December 2024