2023 - Issue 84
Showcasing artists and works that caught my attention.
Kids playing at the beach. A boy laughs in the grass with his grandfather. The optimism of a wedding and three generations of women gathered for a picture. There’s no anger, no politics and no overwrought wall text with shoehorned in apologies for colonial era atrocities. Just a dozen images from Joy Labinjo (@joylabinjo) that are a warming celebration of the universality of everyday life. I found these to be refreshing, life affirming works. And a welcome reminder that galleries and museums don’t have to present every Black artist or artwork within the context of marginalisation or historical injustices.
‘Beloved, Take What Your Need’ at Tiwani Contemporary (@tiwanicontemporary) until 11 Nov
Looking like giant alien bones or enlarged primordial fossils, these shiny objects are actually stretched textiles, coated to give them an ivory-like appearance. Though a few evoke familiar forms, like a slanted wall of pierced blue tongues, most of these abstract works by Grace Woodcock (@grakenstein) put me in a sci-fi kinda mood, imagining what kind of fantastical space beast skeletons they might have come from.
‘23.5°’ at Castor (@castor_gallery) until 09 Dec
“That was my ambition. To become one with my work.” That’s a quote from Sheila Hicks (@hastingshicks) you’ll hear in one of the basement documentaries, although once you make it that far through the show you’ll wonder if she ever really doubted herself. Her colourful fabric wraps are so distinctly unique I can now spot her work from three rooms away at any one of the many, many museums she’s in. Lucky Londoners now have a chance to see a wide range of her styles, including a room filled with giant fabric balls that makes me want to run and jump into them, like I did as a kid when my dad raked the autumn leaves.
‘Infinite Potential’ at Alison Jacques (@alisonjacquesgallery) until 18 Nov
Amol K Patil (@amolkpatil) was one of the few artists that caught and kept my attention at Frieze, with a series of small works that made me lean in and look at the world differently. Inspired by the plight of lower caste workers in India, this show contains more small works with big ideas, including some kinetic sculptures, multimedia in a glass and unpublished poems written by his grandfather.
‘The Politics of Skin and Movement’ at Hayward Gallery (@hayward.gallery) until 19 Nov (FREE)
In any other venue, this show would most likely underwhelm London art-goers. But set within interconnected eighteenth century rooms, the abstract works of Lutz Bacher become incongruous artefacts that beguile and bewilder as you wander through the spaces, drawn by audio than bleeds throughout the halls, blending together into an ambient mess. I’m not sure what any of the individual works might mean. Some probably don’t mean anything. I certainly wasn’t moved by the loop of Princess Diana’s coffin being carried by pallbearers, but most people might not even find that. Most of the fun is wondering what you’ll encounter around the next corner or behind that closed door. Go ahead, try them all. Except the ones marked PRIVATE. I accidentally opened one of those and it was a bit like Dorothy seeing the old, grey Wizard. This is a wonderously curated exhibition that makes perfect use of the space to elevate the art into something better than it deserves to be.
‘AYE!’ at Raven Row (@raven__row) until 17 Dec
PLUS…
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