The oh so long month of January is finally getting to an end, the days are already longer, and London art galleries and museums have plenty of good exhibitions to keep you warm (and intellectual and visually stimulated ha!) until Spring decides to grace us with its presence.
I’ve already saw some of the exhibitions I’ve listed below, and enjoyed all of them despite their very different vibes. Starting the week with Pierre Bonnard at Tate Modern to finish it with Miroslaw Balka at White Cube was an interesting stretch but both touched me and had two thing in common: intimacy and the notion of memory. Bonnard’s portraits and scènes d’intérieur feel very familiar and everyone can see him/herself in those every day simple moments, when Balka’s steel walls give you an opportunity to reflect and be with yourself.
Hope you enjoy this selection, keep sharing your gallery/museum visits by tagging me on your Instagram posts an stories.
Miroslaw Balka “Random Access Memory” at White Cube
“In this exhibition, he reflects on this through a radical artistic gesture, whereby both floors of the gallery are partially blocked by heated metal walls spanning the entire width of each space.
The title for the exhibition, ‘Random Access Memory’, refers to the complex form of computer data storage that we all use but do not necessarily comprehend, as well as to more generalised conceptions of ‘memory’, both in terms of the personal and the collective. It can also be seen as a reflection on our current political climate in which access to memory and history is often deliberately manipulated or even denied.” Read full press release here. I also really recommend you to read this article in The Guardian about the exhibition.
Until March 9 at White Cube Mason’s Yard. Free entry.
Pierre Bonnard “The colour of Memory” at Tate Modern
“The exhibition concentrates on Bonnard’s work from 1912, when colour became a dominant concern, until his death in 1947. It presents landscapes and intimate domestic scenes which capture moments in time – where someone has just left the room, a meal has just finished, a moment lost in the view from the window, or a stolen look at a partner.” Read more here.
Until May 6th at Tate Modern. Entrance fee: £17
Group Show “That Which is Not Drawn” at Marian Goodman
Exhibition showing Leonor Antunes, Olafur Eliasson, Cerith Wyn Evans, Joseph Grigely, William Kentridge, Maria Nordman, Giuseppe Penone, Anti Sala and Ettore Spalletti.
On view until February 23 at Marian Goodman. Free entry.
Bill Viola//Michelangelo “Life Death Rebirth” at the Royal Academy
“This exhibition brings together two artists – born centuries apart – who explore the same universal themes with works of transcendent beauty and raw emotional power.” Read more here.
Until March 31st at the Royal Academy. Entrance fee: £18
Diane Arbus “In The Beginning” at Hayward Gallery
“This exhibition explores the first seven years of photographer Diane Arbus’ career, from 1956 to 1962. Arbus made most of her photographs in New York City, where she was born and died. Her photographs of children and eccentrics, couples and circus performers, female impersonators and pedestrians are among the most intimate, surprising and haunting works of art of the 20th century.” Read more here.
Opening on February 13 at Hayward Gallery. Entrance fee: £ 15.50
Ghislaine Leung “Constitution” at Chisenhale Gallery
“Working with sound, light, scale and temperature this exhibition builds on Leung’s ongoing enquiry into withdrawal and dependency. Taking active cancellation in sound as an initial structure, Leung’s new body of work considers moves from closed systems to complex commons.” Read more here.
Until March 24th at Chisenhale Gallery. Free entry.
Walter De Maria “Idea to Action to Object” at Gagosian
“Gagosian is pleased to present Idea to Action to Object, an exhibition of over forty works on paper and several related sculptures by the late Walter De Maria. The drawings, sourced from the Estate of Walter De Maria, are on view for the first time, revealing various unrealized projects and philosophical explorations, and suggesting a tender humanity behind De Maria’s geometric precision.” Read more here.
Until March 9 at Gagosian Grosvenor Hill. Free entry.
Tracey Emin “A Fortnight of Tears” at White Cube
“White Cube Bermondsey is pleased to present ‘A Fortnight of Tears’ by Tracey Emin. Installed throughout the gallery’s spaces, this major exhibition includes sculpture, neon, painting, film, photography and drawing, all focusing on the artist’s own memories and emotions arising from loss, pathos, anger and love. “Read more here.
Opening February 6th at White Cube Bermondsey. Free entry.
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Cover picture: Random Access Memory by Mirosław Bałka. Photograph: David Levene for the Guardian
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