Blek Le Rat in Action

Showing - Nick Waplington 'Wax and Wane' @ Museum 52 - London

The Hackney Artists Birthday Exhibition - London

Private View - Hans Holbein ‘Holbein in England’ @ Tate Britain – London

Those old masters – the Dutch ones – I was never that much of a fan. They were always too fussy, too precise, too, too much of everything that’s over the top and outrageous. Nope. The Dutch masters never really did it for me – until last night, that is. Holbein, a name that generally sends me straight to sleep, turned out something of a stunner at Tate Britain’s 'Holbein in England'. Hands down, I was sucked in with the rest of them, pulled around roundabout style, surrounded by all those sketches, prints and oils hanging on the walls of Tate Britain.

Now, the gallery, admittedly, isn’t quite a saucy as its fellow Tates. However, it plays a cool host to the exhibition with a smooth run through Holbein’s various guises. As an artist, his catalogue is astounding. It’s like a waltz through history – the kind of lesson that makes you feel small and antlike, and all too aware that there world has spun round for years before your arrival. Indeed, back in the 1500s, it was all happening in the UK. It was a bit of a gory scene, extra opulent with a lot of nastiness going on underneath that gold-gilt surface. Course, Holbein caught the extravagant, elegant side of things. As the court painter, he covered the main players; Anne Boylen, Jane Seymour, Erasmus, and the big man himself, Henry VIII.

There’s no doubt that Holbein was a prolific artist. His woodcuts are ridiculously intricate, while his designs for fireplaces and clock-salts (whatever they are…), broaches and seals, are something else – so over the top and ornate – they’re outrageous – a touch Liberace, with lot more style. They are, like the show, full of elaborate detail and coveted information. Bottom line, and big surprise, this is the kind of stuff that exhausts and excites me. It’s quietly extreme, seemingly sophisticated, leaving you feeling like you’ve been hit by some sort of culture truck. And that’s great – because that’s exactly the way it should be with art.

Holbein in England at Tate Britain, Millbank, London SW1, 28 September 2006 – 7 January 2007

News – Munch’s Scream Found – Europe

Oh my. And you thought it was lost forever. Well it’s been found. Yes it has. ‘The Scream’, that scary Munch masterpiece, has been rediscovered. The work was retrieved alongside the more amicable ‘Madonna’, while police are staying schtum about their find. Meanwhile, the lads who scarped with the works in 2004 were jailed earlier this year. As if that wasn’t hard enough, they’ve also been hit with a bill for $122 million in damages. How they’ll pay that off working in a prison laundry room, who knows.

Showing – Axel Antas ‘Nature of Things’ @ Rokeby – London

Axel Antas is exhibiting at Rokeby Gallery in London this month. The multi-talented Finish-born artist was recently selected for the Jerwood Drawing Prize. His current collection of work builds on his interest in ‘displacement of the self as a physical entity’. Think extra-large drawings of woodland filled by average, everyday columns of cardboard boxes or photographs of great trees surrounded by strange hanging clouds. It’s all very urban meets rural life in a very static, uncertain way.

Axel Antas’ ‘Nature of Things’ takes place at Rokeby, 37 Store Street WC1, from 5th September – 3rd October.

News – Royal Academy Fire - London

Sixty fire-fighters were called out to a blaze at The Royal Academy of Arts yesterday. While no artworks were damaged, the roof caved in as did the due date for a forthcoming Saatchi show, USA Today: New American Art. The exhibition would have opened on 6th October, however given the wing is currently open air it’s likely to be sometime before the American works are exhibited.

Logan Hicks at Work - LA

Street Art - Big Little Baby - stenSOUL

Showing - Nobody Walks Artist Movement - LA

Showing - Tom Wilmott and Bob London 'The Ritual Works' @ The Fleapit - London

Hirst’s Online Battle

Multi millionaire Damien Hirst is all tied up in a legal battle with Simon Phillips, a struggling artist who owns the domain www.damien-hirst.co.uk. This spoof site couldn’t be less Hirst if it tried. The opening page reads ‘(My Arse) Straight Out of Old Compton Street’ (as opposed to ‘Straight Out of Groucho’s’) with a fabulous camp-fest image of Phillips dressed in red PVC (topped by a sailor hat, no less). Now, I’m not saying what Phillips did was right, it was unquestionably wrong; but you got to love this guy. He has the audacity to go up against a name like Hirst. He clearly knows how to grab some easy, if not expensive, publicity.

Over in superstar land, Hirst has hired city law firm Manches LLP to represent him in the ongoing battle over trademark and intellectual property rights. Trademark? Come on. Hirst may be a fantastic, prolific, got it going on artist, but a trademark? Wow. This legal jargon is something else. However, in Hirst’s defense, Phillips’ domain had included details of his nemisis’ career, which frankly, is a bit dodgy. Still, it’s all very David and Goliath and no doubt the whole thing will end in tears. Course they could surprise us. Hirst could set up his own, ‘My Shark, Your Space’ at www.simon-phillips.com and have a little fun with it all.

Showing - Robert Mapplethorpe @ Alison Jacques - London

In commemoration of Robert Mapplethorpe's 60th birthday, Alison Jacques have hooked up with the legendary Patti Smith and Tate Modern for an exhibition of the late artist's seldom seen film work. These include Still Moving (Mapplethorpe/Smith 1978) and Lady (Mapplethorpe 1984), a piece which he created with bodybuilder Lisa Lyon. Alongside Mapplethorpe’s films, the exhibition also comprises early Polaroids, his renowned gelatine pictures and American Flag, as well as works and poems by Smith.

Robert Mapplethorpe’s Still Moving and Lady takes place at Alison Jacques, 4 Clifford Street, W1 from 8th September – 7th October.

Astrid Chesney ‘World of Inferiors: A Rogue’s Gallery’ – Dazed Gallery, London

Art Prostitute Group Show, 'Most Likely to Suceed' - Dallas

Planningtorock @ UBS Openings, Tate Modern - London

Street Art - D*Face and Free Range, Shoreditch, London

Photograph © Kirsten Telfer Beith

Private View Review – Ji Wenyu ‘Dressing Up Before Going Out’ @ Museum 52 – London

Although Ji Wenyu has exhibited at Cologne’s Sammlung Ludwig and Portugal’s Biennale de Maya, the western world has yet to fully experience his fabulous delights. The cheeky Chinese artist has been around for over ten years, and while recognition in his homeland is obvious, things are just starting to hot up in the UK and US. However, it’s not all bad. Museum 52 has managed to pick up on his talents, and last night presented ‘Dressing Up Before Going Out’. This is Wenyu’s first solo show in the UK and offers a small but perfectly formed set of works. ‘Living Fossils Have Successfully Mated’, (above) centres on a pair of pandas getting it on, ’Strong Men and Beautiful Women Living in the City’, gives off a greenish trannie vibe, and ‘Jeff Koons is Replaced’, (below) harbours a crisp cosmetic edge. These works are all fun, funky and fresh. In fact, they’re a force to be reckoned with.

I’m a fan of Wenyu’s work. It’s easy to appreciate, entertaining, quirky and queer. It's blatantly East Asian, which is, frankly, wonderful. But how does Wanyu pull this all off so adeptly? He takes all those colours typical of mainstream Chinese advertising of old, and pulls them together for a contemporary, tripped out scene. Bubble gum pinks, grassy greens, lurid turquoises and bright yellows are packed into one small flat space. Sounds awful, but believe me, it looks superb. Wenyu has manage to harness his brighter than bright palatte into a cool, pop art style, creating pieces that are both thought provoking and amusing – amusing for all the right reasons. You see, Wenyu is smart, sharp and sarcastic. He’s an ideal artistic commentator to China’s social and economic scene. Documenting the weird and wonderful habits of those who surround him, he notes their desires and eccentricities, and sometimes seedy traits. But best of all, he does it perfectly.

Ji Wenyu’s ‘Dressing Up Before Going Out’ takes place at Museum 52, Redchurch Street, London, E2, from 30th June – 3oth July.

Street Art - Banksy - Regents Park Road, London

Photograph © Kirsten Telfer Beith

Street Art - Antony Gormley @ The Roundhouse - Camden, London

Photograph © Kirsten Telfer Beith

Private View Review - Damien Hirst and Francis Bacon @ Gagosian - London

Britannia Street in London’s Kings Cross was alive last night with private views from Rove TV and Gagosian. Exhibiting an awesome collection from Damien Hirst, alongside a fabulous group of works from Francis Bacon, the show could not be faulted at Gagosian. Admittedly most of it had been seen before, but, nonetheless, the selection was outstanding. Bacon’s Cardinals, Hirst’s fly ridden cow's head and Pharmacy shelves were breathtaking – breathtaking, as is the Gagosian, though, last night, unfortunately, for completely opposing reasons.

From the old guard to new, I’ve been to many private views. All offer up art, while some provide champagne and canapés and others, out of date beer and dodgy wine. And it’s fun. It’s fab. It’s an essential schmoozing tonic that oils the wheels of PR and industry. Yet, last night, Gagosian, the grand dame herself, forgot her manners. With a drink section cut off, VIP nightclub style, and the toilet only available to celebs, the message from the London gallery was clear; only a small section of attendees matter here.

These elitist values, while fairly omnipresent elsewhere, have no place in the art world – least not within such a social and public situation. Indeed, this type of snobbery is the antithesis of street-level art; street-level art, which inevitably hits the high end of the art scene's hierarchy during later years.

Think about it; Hirst, who was surrounded by film crews and press at the private view, working it like a bona fide pro, once knocked around Soho with the best of us, living it up large, trying to make it. And make it he did. Yet, there's no doubt he too, in his pre-celebism days experienced the blank stare of the velvet rope holder (or she who holds the golden toilet key). And it’s all so ironic. Though perhaps the most ironic factor lies with the big kahuna, Larry Gagosian. You see, I imagine he would shun such snobbery. Why? Because Mr. Gagosian is a power house, a professional who is likely aware that today’s pleb may be tomorrow’s somebody.

Showing – Arts Beyond Presents Anouk van Tetering ‘The Collection’ @ The Zizi Gallery – London

Over the past few years, London based, Dutch import, Anouk van Tetering has created a nice little international niche for herself. Indeed, since graduating from Chelsea College of Art and Design, while appearing in publications like Cosmopolitain, Elle Decoration and Conaissance des Arts, her work has found its way into private and public collections worldwide. All this popularity and press is no big surprise. Tetering's prints are sexy, seductive and easy on the eye, so it goes without saying, her forthcoming exhibition, 'The Collection', is bound to offer up some saucy delights.

Anouk van Tetering’s ‘The Collection’ takes place at The Zizi Gallery, 23 Shepherd Market, Mayfair, London W1, from 18th July – 23rd July.

Event – Free Range @ The Old Truman Brewery – London

It’s that time again, when the annual Free Range festival rolls into town and takes over the Old Truman Brewery’s massive 11-acre site. Showcasing some of the finest (and sometimes not so fine…) new graduates, the event goes on for a lengthy two months and sees Brick Lane become a big old art party. With some 2,200 students exhibiting, Free Range attracts pretty much anyone in the UK scene – gallerists, dealers, students’ family and friends and those who’ve just wandered in unexpected. This particular festival is the 6th and with it being the hottest summer since who knows when, it’s going to be jam-packed. Many of these students are fresh out of colleges like Goldsmiths, Ravensbourne, Central St Martin’s and Camberwell, so talent is bound to be strong. In fact, standards are so high this year, that one graduate, Aowen Jin (Goldsmiths) has already been commissioned to paint the Queen.


FREE RANGE 2006 DIARY
@ The Old Truman Brewery, Brick Lane, London E1 from 1st June – 24th July

DESIGN: Week 1
Friday 2nd June - Monday 5th June
Middlesex University, Goldsmiths College, Greenwich University, Bournemouth University, and South East Essex College University College for the Creative Arts (SIAD)

DESIGN: Week 2
Friday 9th June - Monday 12th June
University College for the Creative Arts Epsom, University of the Arts London (CSM), Oxford & Cherwell College, University College for the Creative Arts Farnham, Brunel University, and Barnet College

PHOTO: Week 3
Friday 16th June - Monday 19th June
Salisbury College, University of Brighton, University College Falmouth Photography, Thames Valley University, and Havering College

PHOTO: Week 4
Friday 23rd June - Monday 26th June
University of Westminster, University College for the Creative Arts Farnham, West Kent College, Thames Valley University, Loughborough University and Kingston University

ART: Week 5
Friday 30th June - Monday 3rd July
Bathspa University College, University of Wales Newport, Colchester Institute, Hertfordshire College, Goldsmiths College, Nottingham Trent University and Camberwell College

ART: Week 6
Friday 7th July - Monday 10th July
Northbrook College, Batley College and Staffordshire University

MIXED: Week 7
Friday 14th July - Monday 17th July
Kingston University, Nottingham Trent University, Ravensbourne College, Thurrock College, University College for the Creative Arts Maidstone and University of Portsmouth

MIXED: Week 8
Friday 21st July - Monday 24th July
Arts Institute at Bournemouth, Arts Institute at Bournemouth, Norwich School of Art & Design, and University of Brighton

News – Tate Modern 2 Unveiled – London

There's more action at Tate Modern this month as plans for their upcoming 2012 extension have been exposed in the Sunday broadsheets. Inspired by Babylonian ziggurats, the £140 million wing will stand some 130 metres tall and practically doubles the museum’s space. Full plans are set to be unveiled next month, while the extension is intended for completion in time for the London Olympics.

Like the rest of the museum, this addition comes from Herzog & Meuron, the Swiss architectural group who originally turned Giles Gilbert Scott’s Bankside Power Station into the wonder we know as the Tate Modern. Now, although the bulk of the building is instantly recognisible as an old school industrial construction, the new wing is a little more sci-fi. Think big pyramid glass blocks in a mish-mash zig-zag style. It’s the antithesis of the Bankside section of the museum and, in that, reactions have been mixed.

This building may turn out as ugly as hell but, for someone who thinks the Scottish Parliamentary building is a bona fide work of art; I’m rooting for full-blown mega-success of Tate Modern 2. London needs a little something to rival the Bilbao’s Guggenheim or Hong Kong's Convention Centre. We need some future action. Sure, we have The Gherkin, City Hall and even Trellick Tower, but where’s the love on the arts scene? Our galleries are, on the whole, a part of the establishment. They rise from ancient building blocks of sheer elegance and historic grace. And yes, these have their place. They are regal. They are wonderful. They are beautiful and make London, well, London. But, let’s face it, Tate Modern is all about innovation. That’s the whole point. This is a remarkable building we have, one seeped in both history and style, so what's the harm in pushing it further and bringing the gallery bang into the future?

Showing – Xavier Veilhan ‘Le Grand Mobile’ @ at Andréhn-Schiptjenko - Sweden

This month Scandinavia’s Andréhn-Schiptjenko Gallery is showing a work by French artist, Xavier Veilhan at Art Basel's Art Unlimited. Le Grand Mobile is a piece which does exactly what it says on the tin and, perhaps unsurprisingly, is reported to be Veilhan’s largest work. Consisting of 25 big, black, shiny spheres, the installation covers a massive 440 square metres and hangs high above the floor. This is the first time Le Grand Mobile has appeared with Andréhn-Schiptjenko at Art Basel, however, it previously exhibited at the Bienal de Valencia, while a motorized version was planned for the Pompidou Centre.

Xavier Veilhan's 'Le Grand Mobile' is showing at Andréhn-Schiptjenko, Art Unlimited, Art Basel 37, from 14th June - 18th June.

News – Gagosion to Open Second London Space – London

Gagosian has unveiled plans to open second space on Davies Street in London. This enterprise sees the mega-gallery neighbouring to the classy West End crew, setting up a stone’s throw from Bond Street, not so far from the Haunch of Venison Yard, which - surprise, surprise - houses the fabulous Haunch of Venison.

Now, while Gagosian is a big, bashy, international player, White Cube is arguably one of London’s funkiest and finest. Hot on the heels of Hauser & Wirth’s recent Coppermill enterprise in Shoreditch, rumours have surfaced that Jay Joplin’s nurturing plans for a secondary space in W1. While this may be hearsay, the move seems fairly likely. White Cube is without doubt the East End’s heavy, so a second gallery would be a obvious move for Joplin.

Private View Review - Dieter Roth and Martin Kippenberger @ Hauser & Wirth - London

There were tens of openings in London last night, and all were overshadowed and shamed by Dieter Roth and Martin Kippenberger at Hauser & Wirth. Housed in the gallery’s new space at the Coppermill in Shoreditch, this show was, and is, something else. Industrial, urban, well-considered and crazed, this is an exhibition that reaches parts other galleries could only hope for. But then again, the Coppermill is a stunning space. It’s big, it’s bashy, it’s a stiff little finger to those average, whitewashed, run of the mill cohorts. Bottom line, in its entirety, this seeming chaotic yet clearly caculated show is a breath of fresh air. But then again, gallerist Ivan Wirth is no average art dealer. This is a man that opened his first gallery at 16. A man who’s ranked as one of the most powerful in the art world. A man, who, barely into middle age, owns four galleries worldwide. Kind of makes you feel a little inadequate really...

But enough of Wirth and on to last night’s phenomenal show. What made it so different? Well, an overwhelming vibe of obsessive production, of commotion, of what it means to be an artist. Still, all this is no big surprise given that the gallery's initial space is filled by work from Dieter Roth, with installations, assemblages, drawings, paintings, collages and who knows what else. These are shown at the Coppermill almost as one piece. At least that’s how it felt to me. Maybe it was the crowd, pulling the whole thing together, or simply the fact that there was such an incredible amount of work on show. Yet, having seen Roth a couple of years back at PS1 in New York, I know for a fact that, while his work may be frenzied, it can be exhibited in a clean-cut way. Nonetheless, Hauser & Wirth has embraced Roth’s pandemonium, making things feel all cool and crude and industrialised (in an organic way, of course...).

Martin Kippenberger takes up the second space of Hauser & Wirth. Now, don't be too disappointed... His notorious over the top antics are absent here. His sense of the absurd, passion for pandemonium, ability to shock and offend are nowhere to be seen. Not that this is a problem – after all, Kippenberg, like Roth, passed away several years ago, so any shock tactics have all been seen and heard of before. They are already old hat has beens. Yet his work on show – several canvases – large, small and in-between – his fabulous ‘Martin go stand in the corner, shame on you’ (left), and a central installation, ‘Now I’m going to the big birch wood, my pills will soon start doing me good', appear rather claming beside Roth’s creations. It's a little ironic, to say the least. Well, maybe it's the pills.

Dieter Roth and Martin Kippenberger are showing at Hauser & Wirth, Coppermill, 92 – 108 Cheshire Street, London E2, from 26th May – August 27.

News - Tate Modern Rehang - London

This week Tate Modern unveiled their awaited rehang. It’s a move that owes much to the museum’s collaboration with UBS. The gallery hooked up with the mega-bank for a three-year stint last year and one of the first things on their agenda was a 2006 rehang. At that time the museum felt their original grouping had become stayed. However, back when Tate Modern first opened in 2000, they set a new precedent in hanging polices at large museums. Binning standard approaches of presenting artworks historically, the Tate went for a more novel approach by displaying works by way of theme.

This rehang is a first for Tate Modern and, according to press so far, stays true to the museum’s original tactics. The whole shebang centers around 'UBS Openings: Tate Modern Collection', which features across Levels 3 and 5 of the building and focuses on four significant stages of twentieth century art; Cubism, Futurism, Vorticism; Surrealism, Surrealist ‘tendencies’; Abstract Expressionism, European Informal Art and Minimalism.

In its entirety, the rehang and its grouping sounds incredible. Stunning. Awesome. A real treat for aficionados, art lovers, tourists and any random passer-by who fancies a casual gander. An astonishing 40% of the works are new to Tate Modern’s illustrious walls, including Roy Lichenstein’s ‘Whaam! (above), while 20% of the pieces are new acquisitions from fairly cultish and frankly remarkable talents; Guerilla Girls, Christian Marclay, and John Baldessari to name but a few. Of course, this rehang can't fail but to be a success. Visitors can expect to experience major works from Sol Le Witt, Rachel Whitbread and Warhol. They’ll be able to get up close and personal with pieces from Picasso, Anish Kapoor, Matisse and Umberto Boccioni. And if it doen’t work, well the museum has an incredible amount of work in storage and with their ability to win over wealthy would-be sponsors, another rehang is always an option. However, given the press coverage so far that’s a move, which won’t be happening for some time yet.

Showing - Lisa Stefanelli and Jon Flack @ Mark Moore - California

Since graduating from the Rhode Island School of Design, Lisa Stefanelli has established herself as an abstract talent with a cool eye for the organic. Represented by Mark Moore in California and Pierogi in New York, she’s reliable and steadfast in her style. Her paintings that depict great graff-like swirls, flawlessly painted on blank-ish backgrounds, are extremely easy on the eye. However, they’re not so simple that they leave you standing cold. Indeed, they're quite remarkable as Stefanelli has managed to take a clean-cut yet continually morphing formula and turn it into something quite kaleidoscopic. Bottom line, what she does looks effortless, but something so perfect, well, there’s no way these works are easy to create.

This month Mark Moore presents a series of new works from Stefanelli. These include ‘Wifery’ (Wifery II, above) and ‘Turn Pike’, which stay true to her lovely loopy signature style – a style that undoubtedly finds some sort of rooting in Stefanelli’s past persona as a competitive figure skater.

While Mark Moore has Stefanelli doing her thing in the Main Gallery, over in the Project Room he offers up a collection of works from emerging talent Jon Flack. A figurative artist with a trippy urban edge, Flack has exhibited at several New York galleries including 31 Grand and Nest, while this particular show will be his first West Coast exhibition. His paintings are immaculate and exact, depicting scenes, which ponder on the cultural and spiritual sidelines of city life; Pan playing his pipe besides two kissing girls in fairy wings, no less, (Pan, above); a dead squirrel; a pigeon perching next to a worn-down statue of a dog. It’s all a little dark yet adversely reassuring; familiar, if you like. In fact, it's an oxymoron that works.

Lisa Stefanelli and Jon Flack are showing at Mark Moore Gallery, 2525 Michigan Avenue, A-1, Santa Monica, California from 20th May - 1st July.

Private View Review – Erica Eyres and Mark Moore Presents @ Rokeby – London

In April last year Rokeby opened up on Store Street in London’s WC1. Since then the gallery has gathered together a tight stable of cool, clean-cut artists including Royal College graduates Michael Samuels and Claire Pestaille. Twelve months on and Rokeby has hooked up with LA’s Mark Moore Gallery. It's a collaboration that's both savvy and significant. After all, the well-established Mark Moore is has a heavy set of artists in tow, including Alistair Mackie, Simon Willems, Allison Schulnik and Chris Tallon. These are all seriously hot talents. Willems alone has been tipped as one of the Top 100 Emerging Artists while his associates are easily as impressive.

Last night’s private view presented a double whammy opening at Rokeby with Mark Moore’s lot shacking up downstairs and newcomer Erica Eyres filing the area upstairs. It all sounds a bit of mash-up, these various talents packed into one small space, however the show was quite the opposite; well thought-out, provoking and slick. Eyres, a Canadian born, Glasgow-based artist with a sharp, dry wit, offered up two video installations and a whole hoard of small, neatly framed, black and white ballpoint pieces representing some fairly cartoonish females. Yet, it’s on film that Eyres really shines. The duo of works shown included the darkly hilarious ‘Destiny Green’ (above), a funky little snippet influenced by such cautionary true-life tales as Jocelyn ‘Cat Woman’ Brown and Jonbenet Ramsey. While the usual wine-soaked din of a private view meant the sound was hard to hear, the work’s message was as clear as it’s storyline; child beauty queen Destiny Green disappears and returns having had her face surgically removed. Fabulous. Weirdly the finally shots of a faceless Destiny gormlessly brushing her hair (well, she rather lacks expression by this stage, what with having no face and all) seems strangely reminiscent of so many overly botoxed girlies today. Funny that…

Back to Mark Moore’s crew and these guys are something else. Alistair Mackie’s ‘Egg Head’ (above), a hollow doll-style head made from eggshells, is about a precise and perfect as can be; Allison Schlulnik’s canvases, thick with paint are seemingly simple but far more complex on closer inspection, and Ryan Taber super-precise drawings gothic and mesmerising. And it’s all good. In fact, it’s damn near perfect.

Erica Eyres and Mark Moore Presents are showing at Rokeby, 37 Store Street, WC1 from 16th May - 20th June 2006.