Anish Kapoor, Royal Academy

Amazing. Anish Kapoor appears as a brillantly innovative artist. Whatever the material he uses, he works as an inventive sculptor. Instead of spreading the paint on the canvas, as the painter would do, he shapes the pigments as a sculpture. As if to Celebrate I Discovered a Mountain Blooming with Red Flowers (1981) is a beautiful example. The central piece of the exhibition is a thirty-ton mix of wax and red paint fixed on tracks, moving slowly through the doors of five galleries. Svayambh (2007) is a huge automatic sculpture. It is shaped by the doorways of the museum. At that point, the work of art becomes autonomous, and interacts itself with the concept of reality. Greyman Cries, Shaman Dies, Billowing Smoke, Beauty Evoked (2008-2009) is another self made sculpture, this one computer generated. It looks like paint squeezed out of a tube, either like worms or organic forms, it is randomly beautiful. In a different way, the artist reshapes the reflection of things around his mirror sculptures. The body of the viewer, the works around and the space of the museum are being distorted by the twisted mirrors. The serie of polished stainless steel Wave Torus was recently shown at the Lisson gallery. Anish Kapoor reinvents reality, and within his work, invites the viewer trough the looking glass. Until December 11th.

http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/exhibitions/anish-kapoor/

No Lost Love, Blue Paintings by Damien Hirst, Wallace Collection

The Wallace Collection hosts an exbition of paintings by Damien Hirst. As announced, they are blue. The word is here taken in its both senses, as a colour and as a mood. The palette is fading from deep navy blues to creamy pastels. The recurring skullhead evokes a dark state of mind, death and despair. These still lives show a beautiful melancholy. The space is defined by geometric lines : a table, walls, it reminds me of Francis Bacon’s cage composition. But in this case, the spatiality is almost abstract. Damien Hirst’s famous dots appear sometimes, to create depth. They act like a word that the artist declines according to his subject. Untill january 24th.

http://www.wallacecollection.org/collections/exhibition/77

Miroslaw Barka, How It Is, Tate Modern

Miroslaw Balka has installed his work in the Turbine Hall. You enter in a huge black container. You’re in the dark, with strangers, and you can hardly see anything. The artist invites the viewer in a slow motion dimension. Out of time and space, the waiting begins. Using the title of one of Samuel Beckett’s book, How It Is, the polish artist explores the same themes as the writer. Fear, wait, loneliness, are felt by the viewers during his journey on this particular stage. Drowned in this black void, you stand between the unknown, the darkness and the familiar, yourself. It’s impressive and unexpected. Until April 5th.

http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/unilevermiroslawbalka/default.shtm

Glenn Brown, Gagosian

The english artist shows paintings and sculptures at Gagosian. He has a very specific touch, layering the brushstrokes to reveal a flux in the paint. The medium is like liquefied on the panel, as a result, the figures seem to remain in constant movement. The artist tries to show what’s beyond flesh. The dematerialized figures live their own life trough these distorsions. Wooden Heart could be the sculpture of Pinocchio’s skullhead. It is made of very thick strokes of paint, which unveil the artist’s creative process : the layering of strokes creates a flow within the material. With Nausea, the artists challenges Velasquez’s Portrait of Innoncent X, and Bacon’s version as well. Glenn Brown turns the body upside down and removes the head. The figure is floating in the air, like in Christ Returns to the Womb and Song to the Siren. These melting bodies become a new kind of icons. The artist explores myths whilst testing the properties of his medium. Untill November 26th.

http://www.gagosian.com/exhibitions/2009-10-15_glenn-brown/

Anselm Kiefer, White Cube

German artist Anselm Kiefer is shown at White Cube. The Hoxton Square space hosts The Fertile Crescent. These are large scale paintings inspired by a trip to India. Doomed buildings are depicted in heavy landscapes of blueish greys, dusty browns and creamy whites attacked by sand. The paint is so thick it seemed to be cast. Pieces of broken jars are tied on the canvas, the rest is scatered on the floor. They enhance the feeling of ruin and desolation. The Mason’s Yard space displays Karfunkelfee. Dipthycs and triptycs show a background of dark woods. Dense thorns are enclosed in the glass vitrines. Upper, a torn shirt, a book, or a little plane is like floating inside the frame. This serie evokes a spiritual ceremony, a mysterious pagan rite, or even witchcraft. It is both attractive and threatening. In his work, Anselm Kiefer writes a beautiful poetry of darkness, both serious and mysterious.

http://www.whitecube.com/exhibitions/kiefer/

John Baldessari, Pure Beauty, Tate Modern

John Baldessari is a major conceptual artist living in Los Angeles. The show is a retrospective, including works from the 1960s to 2009. John Baldessari’s practice takes a new turn in 1970 with the Cremation Project, in which the artist burns his former works. He makes tabula rasa. The display pays tribute to the artist’s formal simplicity. Years after years, all his experiments seem to gather on his latest works, the mix of photographs and painting, the use of color, the mutiple frames. It is a very coherent whole. The exibition contrast with Pop Life, next door. John Baldessari’s practice differs from Warhol’s. The Californian artist intend to remove himself from the act of painting, by hiring a sign painter. He hides his face behind a hat for selfportraits, whereas the Newyorker spreads his signature as much as he can. In two opposite ways, both artists challenge the power of images. Tate plays contrast, and displays two radically different sides of today’s art.

http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/johnbaldessari/default.shtm

Pop Life: Art In a Material World, Tate Modern

Is it a fair ? An auction ? The best selling artists are gathered at Tate Modern : Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, Damien Hirst, Maurizio Cattelan,… Their works are worth millions. But the price is not the concept. In their practice, they play with the bounds between life categories. Is the artist’s life part of his work ? What’s the difference between art and design ? These are the kind of questions asked by the works on display. If modernity was keen on separating art/high from the masses/low, postmodernity flattens them. Art becomes accessible to everyone. If you couldn’t afford Takashi Murakami’s $100,000 Flower painting at Gagosian, you can always buy the stickers in the museum gift shop. Since it becomes more approachable, art is a part of everyday life and vice versa. As the TV screen on wich is shown Macy’s Thanksgiving parade, the material world is getting thinner. The rooms are sorted by artists. We start with Andy Warhol, again and again, then the followers. Keith Haring’s Pop Shop is open, you can buy badges and tee shirts. Martin Kippenberger’s 1993 exhibition in Centre Pompidou first room is reconstitued as well, Candidature à une Retrospective. The artists explore radically different ways and materials, however, selfportraits are numerous : Gavin Tuck, Ashley Bickerton, Jeff Koons, Andrea Fraser… Regarding artist’s role in the reign of pop, selfrepresentation is always a good way to say « I create, therefore I am ». I really liked the exibition. The atmosphere is exhilarating, the works are appealing : Takeshi Murakami’s Kanye Bear is absolutely kawaï, Hirts’s use of diamonds in Memories of/ Moments with you is amazing, Pruitt & Early’s room is gold painted and speakers play their music… It gives you really good vibes. Just like Alice, follow the Rabbit (the one on the poster).

http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/poplife/default.shtm

Robert Mapplethorpe, A Season In Hell, Alison Jacques Gallery

Packed like sardines in a crushed tin box, an arty crowd gathered inside (and outside) the Alison Jacques gallery. This was the opening of the Mapplethorpe exhibition. Patti Smith, poet and singer, was there to pay tribute to her friend. Her performance was beautiful. A few words, poems and song, it was simple and honest, just like the artist. You can feel the love she has for Mapplethorpe in her voice. The latter’s photographs here focus on sacred and profane. The controversial artist represents himself as a demon, among crucifix, pentagones, guns, skulls or frogs. These images depict a photographer fascinated by religion and its evoking power. In the side space are displayed rare collages from 1968-69, both simple and poetic.

http://www.alisonjacquesgallery.com/robert-mapplethorpe-season-hell-opening-performance-patti-smith-october-e-45.html

Ryan McGinley, Moonmilk, Alison Jacques Gallery

The photographer shot caves in North America. The set reminds me Neil Marshall’s movie The Descent (2005). But this is a much more glamourous adventure. There in no monster. No one gets injured. The models could be Orpheus and Eurydice during their trip to Hell. As antique sculpture, they’re melting into stone. Hidden, they seem to be part of the cavern. But they’re well alive. Lit in vivid colors, red, blue, pink, the bodies explode in a pop sensuality. This is an awesome descent.

http://www.alisonjacquesgallery.com/ryan-mcginley-moonmilk-e-40.html

Rodchenko and Popova, defining constructivism, Tate Modern

Once again, a great exhibition in the Tate. This one focuses on constructivism, especially on Aleksandr Rodchenko and Liubov Popova. After the russian revolution, the constructivist movement aims to change art and society. Art would be a way to create a ideal society. These artists wanted to improve real life through art. Then art could’nt be the same. There must be a breakdown, no more figuration, neither composition. Instead, we talk about construction. How do such committed artists reach their goal ? The first rooms show paintings and graphics works. The line becomes paramount in Rodchenko ‘s works, whereas Popova paints her Space-Force Construction series. They use ruler and compass, so as to erase the artist’s sensibility. Architecture appears as an intermediary between ideal aesthetics and real life. But for both artits, this desire is only reached in the theatre field. In 1920-21, Rodchenko creates his Hanging Spatial Constructions. He liberates the sculpture from the wall as the floor. Then, with Pure Red Colour, Pure Yellow Colour, and Pure Blue Colour, he liberates the oil from the representation. The raw pigments do not depict anything but coloured material. They become objects. Finally, the Constructivists work in the advertising field. They produce lots of posters, selling politics as biscuits. Their style becomes iconic of that period (1920-1924). It is in that way they enter in everyday life. They create an aesthetic matching the political changes and the new ideals. Today, this manner is still effective and dynamic. Russian revolutionists change the society, Russian constructivists define a striking style.

Version française. Encore une fois, une superbe exposition à la Tate. Celle-ci se concentre sur le constructivisme, particulièrement sur Aleksandr Rodchenko et Liubov Popova. Après la révolution russe, le mouvement constructiviste tend à changer l’art et la société. L’art serait un moyen de créer une société idéale. Ces artistes veulent améliorer le quotidien à travers l’art. Dès lors, l’art ne peut être le même. Il doit y avoir une rupture, plus de figuration, ni de composition. A la place, on parle de construction. Comment des artistes aussi engagés atteignent-ils leur but ? Les premières salles montrent des peintures et des dessins. La ligne devient primordiale dans les œuvres de Rodchenko, tandis que Popova peint sa série Space-Force Construction. Ils utilisent la règle et le compas afin d’effacer la sensibilité de l’artiste. L’architecture apparaît comme un intermédiaire entre les idéaux esthétiques et la vie quotidienne. Mais pour les deux artistes, ce désir sera comblé seulement dans le champ théâtral. En 1920-21, Rodchenko sculpte ses Hanging Spatial Constructions. Il détache la sculpture du mur comme du sol. Ensuite, avec Pure Red Colour, Pure Yellow Colour, et Pure Blue Colour, il libère la peinture de la representation. Les pigments ne représentent rien d’autre qu’un matériau coloré. Ils deviennent des objets. Finalement, les constructivistes travaillent pour la publicité, vendant des biscuits comme de la politique. Leur style est iconique de cette période (1920-1924). C’est un moyen d’entrer dans le quotidien. Ils créent une esthétique correspondant aux changements politiques, aux nouvelles idées. Aujourd’hui, cette touche est toujours efficace et dynamique. Les révolutionnaires russes changent la société, les constructivistes russes définissent un style marquant.

http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/rodchenkopopova/default.shtm

Jim Shaw, Simon Lee Gallery

This exhibition is entitled The Whole : a study in Oist integrated movement. The project Oism is a project started in the late 1990's, in which Jim shaw recreates a fictionnal religion. The woman is in the center of this religion, inspired by new age movements. Jim Shaw’s paintings depict women faces mixed with intricate roots. It’s a kind of organic. You must go downstairs to watch the 16 min video. The first part is a dazzling abraction. Then several women start a sensual dance in a 1970s style. It is amazing.

http://www.simonleegallery.com/ex_jim_shaw_works.htm

Altermodern, Tate Britain

The Tate Triennal shows the works of 28 artists. Nicolas Bourriaud, the curator, explains that Altermodern comes after postmodern. We live in a globalised society. Altermodern depicts a world of communication and mobility. Sunday, 2 o’clock. Two volunteers played giant accordian, thanks to Ruth Ewan. The British artist selected a playlist of political and idealistic songs to be played during the show. It is weird, but it works. Then, I was amazed by Franz Ackermann’s room. The German’s bright coloured installation is vibrant. You have to move inside of the room, between paintings and real objects, it’s kind of pleasant. Walead Beshty aimed to sculpt a transatlantic flight. The British sent glass boxes from the US to the UK via FedEx. Obviously, the cubes are damaged when they arrive in the gallery. The fractures show the journey from one country to another. They depicts space that is not on the map. The French Loris Gréaud has recored his cerebral activity on a computer, when he was thinking about a former work, Cellar Door. These brainwaves have been changed in electrical signals, which are transmited to the visitors by vibrators on the floor of the gallery. It is a kind of Sci-Fi experience, reminding that art can be really thought sometimes.

Version française. La triennale de la Tate présente les œuvres de 28 artistes. Nicolas Bourriaud, le curateur, explique comment Altermodern vient après le postmoderne. Nous vivons dans une société globalisée. Altermodern reflète un monde de communication et de mobilité. Dimanche, 14 heures. Deux volontaires jouent d’un accordéon géant, grâce à Ruth Ewan. L’artiste britannique a choisi une liste de chansons politiques et idéalistes pour être jouées pendant l’exposition. C’est bizarre, mais ça fonctionne. Ensuite, j’ai été séduit par la salle consacrée à l’Allemand Franz Ackermann. Son installation, riche en couleurs, est étonnante. Il faut se déplacer dans la pièce, entre les peintures et les objets réels, et c’est assez plaisant. Le Britannique Walead Beshty est parvenu à sculpter un vol transatlantique. I a envoyé des boîtes en verre depuis les USA vers le Royaume Uni via FedEx. Evidemment, les cubes sont endommagés en arrivant à la galerie. Les fissures montrent le voyage d’un pays à l’autre. Elles représentent un espace qui n’est pas sur la carte. Le Français Loris Gréaud a enregistré son activité cérébrale sur un ordinateur, alors qu’il pensait à une ancienne œuvre, Cellar Door. Ces ondes ont été traduites en signaux électriques, qui sont transmis aux visiteurs par des vibrateurs sur le sol de la galerie. C’est une expérience assez étrange, qui rappelle que parfois, l’art peut être vraiment réfléchi.

http://www.tate.org.uk/britain/exhibitions/altermodern/

Unveiled : new art from Middle East, Saatchi Gallery

This exhibition shows how middle eastern artists deal with the questions of genders and politics today. The display is very coherent. It emphases the meaning of the works. Several artists focus on the role of women in society. Kader Attia sculpts them in aluminium foils. Their praying bodies appears like Ghosts. Hayv Kahraman paints the ritual sacrifice of the lamb. She puts women instead of men on her canvas, crossing the tradionnal bound between genders. Ahmad Morsheldo’s beautiful paintings put the light on the differences between men and women in everyday life. His standing figures are strong, both realistic and undefined. The gallery 10 displays unexpected views of sensuality. Ramin Haerizadeh explores the tradition of Taaziye theatre, performed exclusively by men. Hyper realistic flesh, somptuous tapestries and fabrics and sensual male bodies put the myth into the 21st century thanks to Photoshop. The result is both innovative and transgressive. Another provocation is Shirin Fakhim’s Tehran prostitute series. She sculpts grotesque bodies made of ordinary objects and items of clothes. Her characters are hilarious caricatures, vulgar muppets on high heels. Marwan Rechmaoui shows two aspect of Beirut, a map and a building. He reflects the relationship to place in a war zone, and how the troubles shaped the everyday life. Diana Al-Hadid’s architectures show a ruined civilisation. Inspired by the Tower of Babel and New York buildings, her structures come from a post-apocalptyic era. Wafa Hourani sets his city in 2067. But his futurist refugee camp doesn’t seem futuristic. Due to the war, the architecture, as the politics, stagnates.

Version française. Cette exposition montre comment les artistes du moyen orient traitent des questions de genre et de politique aujourd’hui. L’accrochage est pertinent, il renforce la portée et le propos des œuvres. Plusieurs artistes s’intéressent au rôle des femmes dans la société. Kader Attia les sculpte dans des feuilles d’aluminium. Leurs corps en prière apparaissent tels des fantômes. Hayv Kahraman représente le sacrifice rituel de l’agneau. Elle remplace les hommes par des femmes, défiant les traditionnelles barrières entre les genres. Les sublimes peintures de Ahmad Morsheldo mettent en lumière les différences entre hommes et femmes au quotidien. Ses personnages sont forts, à la fois réalistes et indéfinis. La galerie 10 affiche une sensualité inattendue. Ramin Haerizadeh explore la tradition du théâtre Taazye, joué exclusivement par des hommes. Chair hyper-réaliste, somptueux tissus et tapisseries et sensuelle virilité propulsent le mythe au 21e siècle grâce à Photoshop. Le résulat est à la fois innovant et transgressif. Toujours dans la provocation, la série Tehran prostitute de l’artiste Shirin Fakhim. Elle sculpte des corps grostesques dans objets de récupération et des morceaux de vêtement. Ses personnages sont d’amusantes caricatures, de vulgaires marionnettes en talons hauts. Marwan Rechmaoui représente deux aspects de Beirut, une carte et un immeuble. Il montre la relation à l’espace dans une zone de guerre, et comment les conflits ont défini le quotidien. Les architectures de Dian Al-Hadid reflètent d’une civilisation ruinée. Insipirées par la tour de Babel et les grattes ciels de New York, ses propositions viennent d’une ère post-apocalyptique. Wafa Hourani, lui, installe sa ville en 2067. Mais son camp de réfugiés du futur n’a rien de futuriste. A cause de la guerre, l’architecture, comme la politique, stagne.

http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/artists/unveiled/

Indian Highway, Serpentine Gallery

Indian Highway shows how Indian artists deal with their history, both past and present. Highway means the traditionnal road and the « communication superhighway » as well. Most of the artists reflect their thoughts about politics, religion and globalisation. Lots of videos, some dealing with the bound between art and documentary. Who said it twas the last commited media left? DMV-11 2007 2008 by Dayanita Singh is a photograph depicting an absolutely contemporary indian city. The blue lighted buildings contrast with the red crossroad. It is like the road was in fire . You can feel the energy of the town. It is a beautiful picture indeed. The contrast between the detailed foreground and the flurred background reveals a long distance. Beyond the city, you see a wide country in movement.

Indian Highway montre le rapport des artistes indiens à leur histoire passée et présente. La plupart d’entre eux affichent leurs idées à propos de politique, de religion et de globalisation. Beaucoup de vidéos, certaines flirtant avec les frontières entre art et documentaire. Qui a dit que c’était le dernier média engagé? DMV-11 2007 2008 de Dayanita Singh est une photographie montrant une ville indienne absolument contemporaine. Les immeubles baignés de bleu contrastent avec le carrefour rougi, comme en feu. On peut sentir l’énergie de la ville. C’est une belle image. Le contraste entre un premier plan précis et un lointain brumeux montre une grande distance. Au-delà de la ville, l’artiste montre un pays entier en mouvement.

http://www.serpentinegallery.org/2008/06/indian_highwaydecember_2008_fe_1.html

The revolution continues: new art from China, Saatchi Gallery

The chosen contemporary artists show several aspects of China. Painting, sculptures and installations reflects variety and radicalism in chinese art. Zhang Xiaogang’s clonal and static portraits face Feng Zhengjie’s delirious made up pop icons. In most of the works, the body is central. Melted soldier toys (Lu Wei), migrants workers hung on the ceiling (Zhang Dali), razorblade made walker (Shi Jinsong), man is everywhere. In a country with such a communist background, the human being is still looking for its own body. Wang Guangyi parodies the political pictures of this era. Obviously, Mao’s ghost is still shading over China. One room is dedicated to him, seen as a cat (Qiu Jie) or during A Holiday in Venice (Shi Xinning). The revolution continues, China is smiling, as Yue Minjun’s weirdly laughing figures.

Version française. Les artistes contemporains sélectionnés présentent une Chine aux facettes multiples. Peintures, sculptures et installations reflètent la diversité et la radicalité de la création chinoise. Les portraits clonés et stoïcs de Zhang Xiaogang regardent les icônes pops de Feng Zhengjie, délirantes et fardées. Le corps est au centre de la plupart des œuvres. Soldats en plastique fondus (Lu Wei), ouvriers immigrés suspendus au plafond (Zhang Dali), trotteur pour enfants aux bords tranchants (Shi Jinsong), l’homme est omniprésent. Dans un pays tant marqué par le communisme, l’individu cherche toujours ses contours. Wang Guangyi fait directement référence à cette période, en détournant l’imagerie politique. Evidemment, l’ombre de Mao plane encore sur le pays. Une salle est consacrée au personnage, représenté comme un chat (Qiu Jie) ou en villégiature à Venise (Shi Xinning). Mais la Chine avance, elle sourit, à l’image des déroutants hilares de Yue Minjun.

http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/artists/new_art_from-china.htm

Francis Bacon, Tate Britain

Amazing. The display show each aspect of the work. Wildness of the human figure, body distorsions, distresness and death. The portraits of George Dyer are fascinating. You can feel the intimacy between the painter and his model. Distorted body, melted flesh. The feeling is so accurate that you can feel it in your own body. Bacon shows the human figure on its own. Man in blue’s strange gloom, caged Pope Innocent X’s terror, Christ’s melting flesh, this is your body. In a world without God, there is no heaven, the corpse rots. The artist’s hopelessness is a sublime nightmare. Bacon paints beyond the figure. His pencil goes behind the appearance. It digs the soul to show it on the canvas, both deep and mysterious. Radical in his life as in his work, this exhibition is a tribute to a real master.

Version française. Sublime. L’accrochage thématique met en relief les différents aspects de l’œuvre. L’animalité de la figure humaine, la distorsion des corps, l’angoisse et la mort. Les portraits de Georges Dyer sont poignants. On ressent la proximité et l’intimité entre le peintre et son modèle. Le corps est distordu, la chair fondue. L’impression est si vive que le spectateur sent ces mutations dans son être. C’est le corps du sujet livré à lui-même qui est sur la toile. L’inquiétante mélancolie de l’homme en bleu, la terreur du pape Innocent X emprisonné, la chair déliquescente du Christ, c’est ton corps qui est là. Dans un monde sans Dieu, pas de paradis, la chair pourrit. La désolation du peintre est un cauchemar sublime. Bacon peint au-delà de la figure. Son pinceau va derrière la chair sonder l’esprit. Il creuse l’âme pour la rendre sur la toile, abyssale et mystérieuse. Radical dans sa vie comme dans son art, cette rétrospective rend hommage à un grand peintre.

http://www.tate.org.uk/britain/exhibitions/francisbacon/