2024 - Issue 101
Big, imposing, intense, maximalist, oversized and OTT (over-the-top). My opinions are mixed but they did all make me go “Whoa!”, and that’s what this week’s issue is all about.
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Yan Ping’s style is so unique that I found myself studying these for far longer than I expected to. Utilising a rough sketch effect that’s even less clear in person than it is in my photos, the compositions are further confused thanks to playful changes in scale and perspective. Cats and faces hide amongst abstract shapes. A tiny man falls out of a potted plant. The international space station hovers above a desk at which a figure makes an awkward stretch. Normally you don’t see this many disparate images in anything other than collage, and just like in a collage the scenes feel incredibly flat, which makes them even more frustrating to figure out.
‘Love Between a Fish and a Bird’ at Massimo de Carlo(@massimodecarlogallery) until 27 Mar
A swarm of giant bees is the least disturbing thing in this series of seven surrealist works by Kat Lyons (@katllyons), which might explain why they’re hidden away in the basement. Scary things always hide in the basement. There’s imagery here that’ll definitely give you nightmares but these aren’t intended to be merely scary. The works are crammed full of cultural, environmental and art history references for those who aren’t too squeamish about bugs and bones to stick around and study them.
‘Herd’ at Pilar Corrias (@pilarcorriasgallery) until 06 Apr
The world burns while we helplessly watch from a not too safe distance, and a discrepancy of scale lured me even closer to the danger. The little people in their little boats are way too small for the environment that they’re in. These works are unsubtle metaphors about the state of the world feeling out of our control, but man does Alexis Rockman (@alexisrockman) know how to make the destruction of nature look visually alluring.
‘Conflagration‘ at Huxley-Parlour (@huxleyparlour) Until 13 April
The three giant constructions, awkwardly oversized for the room in which they loom, might be viewed as hopeful inspiration for the many tiny maquettes displayed on the nearby shelves. The ability to glance between scales will make it easier for many to imagine how discarded loo rolls might look when supersized. These works by HelenA Pritchard (@helena_pritchard_) are the Yang to Marie Kondo’s Yin, bringing joy from the kinds of things most people readily discard.
‘The Homeless Mind’ at TJ Boulting (@tjboulting) until 13 April
“Hey… wouldn’t it be nice to put Doig’s nudist camp on the wall again?”
“Hell, yes! But what else are we gonna hang with it?”
“How about a Gauguin? Wasn’t Doig influenced by Gauguin?”
“Erm... no, but hang the Gauguin. Now what about the last wall?
“How ‘bout that ridiculously tall Mamma Andersson that’s too big for our storage facility? Will that fit?”
“Yeah, just about. Find a few other small works they did, then write up something about “the enduring influence and appeal of nature, blah blah blah” for the text.”
“Done.”
‘Gauguin and the Contemporary Landscape’ at Ordovas (@ordovasgallery) until 26 Apr
Rebecca Manson’s (@rmanson) wall-sized moth wings will understandably draw the most attention but the up-close details look a bit too dull and plasticine for my taste. I much preferred the shiny, polished glaze of the Swiss ball sized sculptures that explore the architecture of leafs. They’re richer in colour, create far more intriguing shadows and have many surprises waiting to be discovered, such as the discarded socks and playing cards that mysteriously appear in a pile of leaves.
‘Leave Love Behind’ at Josh Lilley (@joshlilleylondon) until 27 Apr
PLUS…
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