Lisa Brice - Bar Games
Brice is known for paintings of women and the female figure, usually set in stereotypically macho environments like strip clubs. Though they often feature nudity and voyeuristic framing, the works distinctly reclaim power from the traditional male gaze. They’re frank, they’re feminist and you’ll almost always spot a blue cat.
This show has just two works. One is a wild, mixed-media piece from 1992 that includes a large number of sculptural elements such as actual darts on an actual dart board, a stripper pole and an un-zipped leopard print thong. The other is a painting made earlier this year, incorporating elements of the earlier work into a Brice-ified remake of Edouard Manet’s 1882 masterpiece, A Bar at the Folies-Bergère. (Which is currently hanging in The Courtauld, in case you’ve never seen it in person. Go!)
Chances are good that you’ll get bogged down trying to spot where, or if, all the mixed-media elements from the earlier work have been painted into the new canvas. But that’s just a serendipitous way to keep your interest for longer than you’d normally study something in a gallery. A warm-up act, if you will. The headliner is Brice’s mashup, and how she’s put her own spin on the Manet.
To vastly oversimplify the original, the work focussed on a barmaid who is assumed to be a sex worker, and therefore "both a salesperson and a commodity—something to be purchased along with a drink." That might explain the incredibly sullen face on someone clearly standing in the midst of opulence. In Brice’s version the setting is less clear. It’s another sleazy environment but men have been relegated out of the frame. Possibly none were even invited. If you look carefully under the hats you’ll notice all the occupants — whether entertainer or observer — are women. More importantly, they’re all clearly having one hell of a good time. Even that one up front in the green bucket looks peacefully restful, not resigned. It’s a far cry from the expressions in the Manet.
A Bar at the Folies-Bergère is a painting I love but has always kinda depressed me. It’s just a bit too frank in reminding me that no matter how good things look, everyone is struggling on the inside. Maybe the ladies in Brice’s take are too young or too drunk to care about the worries of the world. You don’t need to study them carefully before you’ll see that they aren’t a commodity. They’re sexy, but not overtly sexual. Most of them, anyways. And yet I gazed, but only because I was envious of their excitement. They’re having the kind of uninhibited good time that Katy Perry would write a song about, and all I can do is sing along from the outside looking in.
Plan your visit
‘Bar Games’ runs until 08 July.
Visit sadiecoles.com and follow @SadieColesHQ on Instagram for more info about the venue.
Visit the Lisa Brice Wikipedia page for more info about the artist.
🖼️ Want more art? Visit the What’s On page to see a list of recommended shows, sorted by closing date. Don’t miss ‘em!