JOIN JANE CONTINUING TO MAKE SENSE OF ART
And this month Jane is looking back at her
Summer of Art.
There have been so many exhibitions to see this summer – it has been very difficult to choose which ones to go to. One certainly can’t do them all! Here is a brief summary of the ones I’ve been to.
Fresh Air Sculpture takes place every year at The Old Rectory, Quenington and it is well worth a visit. The garden is the perfect backdrop to a wide range of sculpture in every medium you can possibly imagine. I saw work by familiar and favourite sculptors along with new finds. For me the most wonderful thing to see was the number of school groups there – all having a wonderful time. Children really engaging in the art – lying on the grass sketching sculptures, closely examining pieces, discussing how they had been made / constructed. It was a fabulous atmosphere.
There was more wonderful sculpture at Sculpture By the Lakes Summer Exhibition. Simon Gudgeon’s iconic works accompanied by other fabulous outside sculpture. Simon is a very multi media sculptor working in all sorts of metals. It was lovely to see and hear his vast wind chimes around the lakes. A great favourite of mine is his ‘Leaf Spirit’ – see below.
I was particularly excited to see Nicola Godden’s work which I have read so much about. The first sight of ‘Icarus Rising’ through the trees was very powerful – and it makes a very impressive gateway! Her other piece is ‘Thea (The Goddess of Light)’ which again looked very beautiful against the natural backdrop of moving trees.
The Festa at Citta Sant’Angelo in Abruzzo is a wonderful multi media festival in a beautiful medieval town in Central Italy. There was a great collection of artisan crafts on display as well as a more formal art exhibition in a beautiful basement with traditional vaulted ceilings. I was very amused to see the pieces below which were examples of one of the art projects I wrote about in July’s post.
The formal exhibition had some of the traditional ceramic work of the area.
Several weeks in August were dominated by the appearance of Banksy animals all over London. Well – not to be outdone, Hendog put in an appearance – or at least his art did, in Salisbury. Hendog is a Hampshire based graffiti artist and I have seen various pieces in the area. I’ve always liked the one at the coastguard station up at Hengistbury Head – this new one is also very touching.
Now something that I can’t show you a picture of – a really interesting podcast which is currently on BBC Sounds – ‘The Missing Madonna’. This is the true story of the UK’s biggest art theft of ‘The Madonna of the Yarnwinder’ from a Scottish castle and its extraordinary recovery. The story is utterly bizarre and twists and turns every which way. It was a very compelling binge listen!
And finally, Six Lives at The National Portrait Gallery is a close look at the history of the six wives of Henry VIII illustrated by Tudor paintings by Hans Holbein the Younger and contemporary photography by Hiroshi Sugimoto. The photographs were almost eerie – they didn’t feel quite right – the medium and the costume just not matching!
Whereas the Hans Holbein the Younger works were familiar – and right!
I hope you have had a good summer of art. It really is a great time for new discoveries and for revisiting old favourites here and abroad.