London dispatch: exhibitions on the radar
A selection from my ever-increasing list
One of my favourite things about this city is the endless and ever-changing array of art to experience. From big exhibitions to private events, small galleries to world-known institutions, auction houses, private collections and numerous restaurants that double up as a gallery space (I will dedicate a newsletter to these in a future edition), there is always some sort of display going on.
Part of my job is keeping on top of it all so I can point our readers in the right direction. I love doing it, but I am limited by word counts and always have to keep the reader in mind, so not everything that catches my attention makes the final cut. This is where substack gets even sweeter, as I can take a verbal stroll through my list, open up conversations, and hopefully inspire you to book a ticket (or at least want to learn something more).
Today’s dispatch is a curation of art exhibitions that have made it onto my radar recently. It is in no particular order (hint hint to read it all?), nor does it cover every exhibition worth an ounce of attention, but it includes big hit galleries, well-known artists, artists we should get to know, sensational landscapes, photography, fashion and frivolity. A good mix, don’t you think? I would love to know which catch your attention and if you plan to go. Perhaps I will see you there.
Maro Gorky | The thread of colour at Saatchi Gallery
A showcase to celebrate the life and work of Armenian-American artist Maro Gorky, who marked her 80th birthday last year. Most of her artworks are richly-coloured oil paintings depicting scenes of the Tuscan countryside, where she has lived for 50 years, and many other places and people she has encountered on the way. It will be the first outing for two new paintings, completed just weeks ago (proving that age is just a number when it comes to creativity). I am lucky to be invited to the private launch later this week, and I really can’t wait to step inside her colourful world.
March 28 - May 12, free to view
Edvard Munch Portraits at the National Portrait Gallery
I am ashamed to admit the lack of experience I have with Edvard Munch, but take pleasure in the fact it means I have plenty to see and more to learn. This exhibition brings together about 40 of his 400-plus portraits and includes family, friends, politicians, patrons and artists as subjects. His style is so recognisable: deep colours and forceful brushstrokes creating evocative paintings known for exploring and illuminating intense, psychological sentiment. It doesn’t sound happy-go-lucky, but it will be a great introduction with plenty of material to read up about later.
On now until June 15, £21
Lee Miller at Tate Britain
More shame! I am yet to watch Kate Winslet in Lee (2024), but I read a few features about the model turned photographer turned icon when the film was released, and already know some of her works. If you don’t know, she was an American photographer and photojournalist who’s subjects ranged from fashion to landscapes to life during the Second World War. She is perhaps best known for the latter, operating as war correspondant for Vogue, transforming the pages with devastating, uncensored images. The exhibition will feature more than 250 works, making it the most extensive retrospective of her photography to be staged in the UK, with some that have never before been displayed. There will be some profound and poignant photographs in this one, and I’m hoping a Pablo Picasso or two (he was one of her well-known subjects).
From October 2, prices tbc
Flowers - Flora in contemporary art and culture at Saatchi Gallery
I planned to go to this weeks ago (it opened February 12) but illness got in the way and I have yet to visit. Two floors and nine gallery spaces have been filled with installations, photography, paintings, jewellery and objects (about 500 in total) exploring the influence of flora on creativity and human expression. If you know me, you know I love flowers, so I really hope I can sneak in some time before the Gorky event.
Until May 5, tickets from £10
Cecil Beaton’s Garden Party at the Garden Museum and Cecil Beaton’s Fashionable World at the National Portrait Gallery
A man with a bouquet of creative talent! Fashion photographer, royal photographer, costume and set designer for screen and stage, illustrator, painter, diarist, host, gardener. He was wildly passionate about flowers and they played a huge part in his creative practice, as can be seen in the work he produced. The exhibition has been designed by Luke Edward Hall (so it will be brilliant) and the Garden Museum Cafe is a great seasonal-forward restaurant/cafe that is well worth booking. Later, the National Portrait Gallery will host an exhibition dedicated to the ‘King of Vogue’, showcasing how he elevated fashion and portrait photography into an art form. Expect poise, beauty, and icon after icon. My first ever photography exhibition was Cecil Beaton Portraits at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool years ago, specifically to see a shot of Audrey Hepburn wearing a glorious hat up close. I wonder if the same will be on show this year.
Garden Party, May 14 - September 21, tickets from £8.50
Fashionable World, October 9 - January 11, tickets not yet on sale
Astonishing Things: The Drawings of Victor Hugo at the Royal Academy of Arts
Jonathon Jones at The Guardian called Victor Hugo the ‘French equivalent of Shakespeare and Dickens’, best known for penning The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Les Miserables. What many people don’t know is that the author was also an artist, drawing and sketching fantastical images of castles, creatures and landscapes using charcoal, graphite, ink and washes. The RA asks you to ‘discover the imaginary worlds of Victor Hugo’, but the artworks and subjects are actually very real insights into the thoughts and feelings of the man and the world he lived in.
March 21 - June 29, tickets from £11
The Barber in London: Highlights from a Remarkable Collection at The Courtauld, Somerset House
The Barber Institute of Fine Arts, University of Birmingham, is undergoing a major refurbishment from May, so a selection of works will go on view at The Courtauld Gallery for safe-keeping. There are some really incredible European artworks included in the transfer, from artists like Elisabeth Le Brun, Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Toulouse-Lautrec. If you time it right, you can spend the rest of the day at ‘Goya to Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Oskar Reinhart Collection’, featuring the works of impressionist greats such as Goya, Renoir, Van Gogh, Monet and Cezanne, to name a few. Both exhibitions offer a unique chance to view exceptional artworks, and both are included in gallery admission, from £14.
The Reinhart Collection is on show until May 26, and the Barber begins May 23
Cartier at the Victoria & Albert Museum
Magpies, assemble. More than 350 impossibly exquisite objects have been brought together to chart the evolution of Cartier’s legacy of art, design and craftsmanship in the world of jewellery, watches and trinkets. Do I need to say more? It promises a lot of sparkle, plenty of ‘oohs’, and a newfound desire to cover yourself in jewels.
Opens April 12, from £27
Marie Antoinette Style at the Victoria & Albert Museum
The French Revolution captivates me to an extent some would consider peculiar, and Marie Antoinette has always been a subject/woman/thread in the tapestry of intrigue. While the exhibition is focussed on the lasting influence of her style, exploring how it has informed art and culture, and how it has been reinterpreted over the years, it will be interesting to see whether they touch upon the contemporary implications of her outward extravagance, and the more personal, psychological reasons for her choices. The exhibition will be utterly decadent, even if there are no words at all.
From September 20, tickets available soon
Wayne Thiebaud: American Still Life at The Courtauld Gallery, Somerset House
If Marie Antoinette doesn’t inspire you to eat cake, Wayne Thiebaud will. I first came across Thiebaud when researching still-life paintings as a young girl, and was so taken by how fun and frivolous his work was in comparison to the bowls of fruit and vase of sunflowers that characterised my years before it. He paints everyday American objects, known best for his candy apples, gumball machines and deli counters lined with cakes, in pastel hues with well-defined shadows. Some consider them pop art or kitsch, but Thiebaud believed himself to be continuing the legacy of earlier painters such as Manet and Cezanne. I am pleased to report my still-life horizons have broadened extensively, but Thiebaud still hits a sweet spot.
From October 10, tickets tbc
Jose Maria Velasco: A view from Mexico at the National Gallery
You might not recognise the name or the art, but Velasco is credited as integral to the development and understanding of Mexican identity. His colour-rich panoramic landscapes are an insight into 19th century Mexico, capturing the essence of desert planes, native botanicals and mountainous valleys infused with history, geology and a hyper-awareness of the country’s industrialisation and modernisation. His paintings were adopted by the state from 1876 to be used as examples of what Mexico was. Given what is going on in the world today, it seems like the perfect time to get to know the nation through a better lens.
March 29 - August 17, tickets from £12
Pierre Knop: Fireflies Under Fever Sky at Pilar Corrias, Conduit St.
A contemporary French artist who begins with a photograph from his personal archive, a design or a memory, and transmutes them into beautiful vibrant vistas of colour, twisting and turning to create scenes that are really quite remarkable. They range from interior perspectives to quaint villages, mountain ranges to seascapes. A kaleidoscope exhibition, and it is free to immerse yourself.
April 3 - May 5
Turner and Constable at the Tate Britain
Marking 250 years since their births, the exhibition explores J.M.W. Turner and John Constable’s intertwined lives (they were the greatest of rivals) and legacies as two of the most accomplished British landscape artists to ever live. Their artworks are so vast and representational, it is almost easy to cast your eye over them and move on. But please, go closer and see how every brush stroke evokes pure nature, connecting you to the land, the sky and the elements as if you are standing on that very heath or riverside.
From November 27, tickets tbc
Fashion Forward at Leica Gallery London
A final one for my fashionista and photography friends. Leica Gallery have collaborated with two major private photograph collections to present an exhibition of some of the most distinctive and recognised images from the pages of Vogue, Tatler and Harper’s Bazaar, featuring work by Irving Penn, Richard Avedon, Helmut Newton, Cecil Beaton and many others. It pays homage to the photographer, the subject and the opportunity to witness photographic printing at its ‘most sublime’. There are 22 photographs dated from the 1940s through the 1990s, and they are available to purchase from £3,000.
March 15 - May 8
Amie Elizabeth
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Thank you - this is so handy for imminent visits but also later in the year (I didn’t know about the Lee Miller), so particular thanks for putting that on my radar