Cathy's Art Diary

Clever and varied exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery looking at art inspired by the sun and the moon. The work was arranged by time of day and mixed old and new art from around the world as well as discussing folk law related to the time. It was a lot to do in one show which was well laid out with clear commentaries. There were witty touches like including a large photograph of Noel Coward on a beach for the zenith ie midday section. Think about it. Stand out works of course included Luke Jerram's "Helios" which I last saw at the Old Royal Naval College and it's always fascinating to see it in different spaces. I loved an Evelyn Dunbar of seven figures representing the days of the week at different times particularly as this was the second time I'd seen work by her in a week. I liked the inclusion of costumes from the Royal Opera and Ballet as well as Margo Selby and Helen Chadwick's woven and sound installation referencing the Navajo women weavers who c...

Interesting exhibition at the National Maritime Museum of the winners of the Astronomy Photography of the Year awards. As ever in this annual show the works were shown on light boxes with details of where, when and how the image was taken or constructed. I preferred the works which showed some aspect of the earth in the picture to give a sense of the known. There were some beautiful images but as I go to this show every year, it is getting quite samey. I like the display but it is getting repetitive.   I also think it is quote expensive for what it is at £12. Closed 3 August 2026

Interesting exhibition at the National Maritime Museum showing shortlisted entries in this annual award for astronomical photographs. I had been to a couple of previous iterations of the show and the reviews for them could count for this show too. The works were beautifully displayed on light boxes with commentaries on the subject and technique by the artists. My favourite section was that on earth and space which features work with a sense of the earth and people including a wonderful array of pictures of auroras as I found them more relatable. The sections on our solar system and deep space tended to produce works which look more abstract and the explanations were impenetrable. Closes 11 August 2025  

Interesting exhibition at the National Maritime Museum of the winners of the Astronomy Photography of the Year awards. The photographs were beautifully shown on light boxes making them very clear and bright. Each was shown with a commentary by the photographer and technical details of how it was taken. I related most to the works in the Earth and Space section as they included more recognisable surroundings. My favourite was a picture by Carl Gallagher of the Northern lights with a rusty ship beached in the foreground. Some of the works in Solar System section were like abstract paintings. I also preferred the pictures taken in one shot rather than the more technical multi-shot ones or ones taken with complex telescopes. Some of the works felt more like scientific experiments that photographs. Many of the works made me think about the course I did on The Sublime and had that same quality of inspiring awe. Closes 13 August 2023  

Interesting exhibition at the National Maritime Museum of the 31 prize winning entries in this completion for astronomical photographs and highlights entries from the previous three years. The categories in this competition and therefore themes in this show were clearly laid out. The pictures were beautiful displayed as back lit images on light boxes and each picture included good commentaries with a quote from the photographs and another from a judge. There were also technical details of how the picture was taken for the geeks. I tended to prefer the works which included some reference to the earth or people. The deep space images were fascinating but as images looked like abstract art and were hard to understand. My highlights included Mark McNeil’s of the sky through a gap in Hadrian’s Wall with a real sense of the ancient about it and Andrew Whyte’s of the Milky Way over a housing estate in Sussex. However my favourite was Brad Goldpaint’s of a rocky valley in Utah...