Cathy's Art Diary

Interesting exhibition at Tate Britain marking this year’s Turner Prize for contemporary art. It showcased the four quite different finalists and yet I felt they were looking at quite similar themes. The show started with Pio Abad who had investigated and reacted to items in Oxford museums acquired during the colonial era. The work was beautiful and layered in meaning.   I was intrigued to find one work was inspired by the fact he lives in the Grand Stores of the Royal Arsenal in Woolwich which served as the primary storage facility for the military equipment of the British Army and Navy. My flat overlooks them!   Next was Jasleen Kaur’s installations using objects with reflect her multicultural childhood in Glasgow. Who can resist an oversized doillie on a Ford Escort. Then came another installation artist, Delaine Le Bas, exploring their culture, in this case Roma people, with ethereal crepe and a silver room. I’m not sure I really understood it. Finally there were ...

Beautiful exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery of work by contemporary artist Claudette Johnson. The first room showed her signature large figurative drawings of Black women including self-portraits. The draftsmanship was stunning. I loved a trilogy of pictures. The second room moved into more recent pieces in pastel and gouache. At the core are stunning drawings set against colourful yet simple abstract backgrounds. I loved the contrast of the defined drawing and loose brushwork. My favourite, Blues Dance, had been done for the show and showed a woman dancing, completely absorbed in the moment. Closes 14 January 2024 Reviews Guardian Telegraph Evening Standard