Archives: Exhibitions
About
UK based Gallery BEERS London is pleased to present Bitter Nostalgia, with artists Hyangmok Baik and Adébayo Bolaji, at Saatchi Gallery, opening on 30 November through to 26 January 2023. Public admission to the exhibition on the Ground Floor of the Gallery will be free.
The pairing of South Korean painter Hyangmok Baik (b. 1990) and British-Nigerian Adébayo Bolaji (b. 1983) offers a celebration of nostalgic themes as critical, thoughtful, and challenging. Both artists transcend factuality to incorporate concepts of memory, emotion, the past, and our processes of recollection as individuals and as the greater public.
By definition, nostalgia is a term with arguably pejorative connotations. To view the world through ‘rose-coloured glasses’ suggests an inability to remain critical or unbiased. Further, we’ve become trained sceptics; our cynicism is applauded, whereas unbridled optimism or joy is seen as somehow lacking in critical-thinking or judiciousness. How does this reflect in the ways in which we record our past and personal histories?
It is often seen as the artist’s duty to record a more empathetic view of our life and times. But at what point do we become wary of such ‘sentimentalized’ versions of history? The musician sings; the author writes; the poet records in verse and line. But a painter’s duty is to recollect and record their emotional connectivity to a personal as well as a public sphere. Perhaps painting itself is a sort of ‘act of defiance’, whereby the mechanics of creation arise from an action and reaction to so-called cold factuality.
As a global community, we seem keen to shutout recent recollections of a pandemic, global warming, the LGBTQIA+ or BLM movements and/or reactionary groups, gun control, the death of HM the Queen, and various uprisings or other global catastrophes. Is it natural to want to recollect our pasts as inherently good? Or rather, to find and celebrate the goodness without reverting to schmaltziness?
Both Baik and Bolaji aim to celebrate activism and our historicity through a critical lens and exuberant palette. Each artist handles these themes in related, albeit distinct methods, and this exhibition endeavours to explore this further.
Further information on the exhibition and/or either of the artists kindly contact Kurt Beers or send an email to [email protected]or phone +44(0)2075029078.
ABOUT HYANGMOK BAIK
HYANGMOK BAIK (b. 1990, South Korea) lives and works in Seoul, South Korea. He graduated in 2019 with a MA in Fine Art from Hongik University. Solo exhibitions include: I Know What You Did Last Summer, OTI Hong Kong (2022); The Garden of Eden, OTI LA, Los Angeles (2021); Forgotten by Us, BEERS London, London (2021); Imagine Utopia, Gallery Stan, Seoul, South Korea (2020); Wanderlust, Gallery Marron, Seoul, South Korea (2019); solo show at Gallery Meme, Seoul, South Korea (2018) and; a solo show at Gana Art Space, Seoul, South Korea (2016). Group exhibitions and fairs include: Art Busan, Gallery Stan, Busan, South Korea (2022); Yeonhee Art Fair, Seoul, South Korea (2019); KIAF, South Korea (2019); Yohood, Shanghai, China (2019); Gallery Ili, Seoul, South Korea (2019); Art Busan, Busan, Korea (2019); Mercielbiss, Busan, Korea 92019); Stan Art Center, Seoul, South Korea (2019); Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan (2019).
ABOUT ADEBAYO BOLAJI
ADEBAYO BOLAJI (b. 1983, London) lives and works in London and graduated from the Central School of Speech and Drama. Solo exhibitions include: In Pursuit of Flow, UH Arts, Hertfordshire (2021); The Power & The Pause, BEERS London, London (2021); Between Two Worlds, Galerie Kremers, Berlin (2020); Topia: A Reinvention of the Self, Serena Morton Gallery, London (2019); Babel, Galerie Proarta, Zurich (2019) and Rituals of Colour, Public Gallery, London (2018). Group Exhibitions include: Hues, Hannah Traore Gallery, New York (2022); Optimistic: The Power of Now, Serena Morton Gallery, London (2018) and New Contemporary V Old, Galerie Proarta, Zurich (2017). Fairs include: Untitled Miami, BEERS London (2021); Future Fairs Online, BEERS London (2020) and; art KARLSRUHE, Galerie Proarta (2020). Bolaji is a multidisciplinary artist who has also trained as a Lawyer, Actor and Writer who has had prominent speaking engagements with Penn State University as well as Mall Galleries. Additionally, Bolaji belongs to the prominent Soho House Collection as well as the Hogans & Lovells Collection.
ABOUT BEERS LONDON
BEERS London opened in the summer of 2012 and has since forged an international reputation as one of London’s leading spaces for cutting-edge contemporary art. The gallery maintains an active, forward-thinking programme, exhibiting artists at various career stages. While primarily focused on painting, the gallery frequently exhibits sculpture, photography, textile, and ceramics. Gallery Director Kurt Beers has written two books: 100 Painters of Tomorrow released in 2014, followed by the award-winning 100 Sculptors of Tomorrow in 2019, both published by Thames & Hudson. Together, Beers and Thames & Hudson are preparing for a third book in the series: 100 Photographers of Tomorrow.
About
The New Black Vanguard features 15 international Black photographers contributing to a new vision of the Black figure and reframing representation in art and fashion. This exhibition is a celebration of Black creativity both in-front of and behind the camera. Featured works include Black stylists, models, make-up artists and creative directors who are bringing a radically new set of references and experiences to image making.
The New Black Vanguard is curated by American writer and critic Antwaun Sargent who explores a new aesthetic of Black portraiture while examining the cross-pollination between art, fashion and culture in the making of images.
“This exhibition is an exploration of this generation’s Black image makers who are bringing fresh perspective to photography. Image by image, they have created a loose global network around their art that powerfully centres identity, community and desire. The artists in this show profoundly reanimate the possibilities of contemporary photography.” – Antwaun Sargent
The New Black Vanguard presents artists whose vibrant portraits and conceptual images fuse the genres of art and fashion photography in ways that breakdown long-established boundaries. The Images open up conversations around the representation of the Black body and Black lives as subject matter. Collectively, the works celebrate the Black creativity. Seeking to challenge the idea that Blackness is homogenous, the works serve as a form of visual activism delivered by emerging talents who are creating photography in vastly different contexts – be it in New York or Johannesburg, Lagos or London. The results – often made in collaboration with Black stylists and fashion designers – present new perspectives on the medium of photography and the notions of race, beauty, gender and power.
#THENEWBLACKVANGUARD
FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHERS
Campbell Addy
Quil Lemons
Daniel Obasi
Arielle Bobb-Willis
Namsa Leuba
Ruth Ossai
Micaiah Carter
Renell Medrano
Adrienne Raquel
Awol Erizku
Tyler Mitchell
Dana Scruggs
Nadine Ijewere
Jamal Nxedlana
Stephen Tayo
Also including additional works by:
AB+DM (Ahmad Barber and Donté Maurice), Djeneba Aduayom, Lawrence Agyei, Rasharn Agyemang, Araba Ankuma, Bafic, Daveed Baptiste, Malick Bodian, Kennedi Carter, Jorian Charlton, Christian Cody, Faith Couch, Delphine Diallo, Rhea Dillon, Philip-Daniel Ducasse, Christina Ebenezer, Yagazie Emezi, Justin French, Alexandre Gaudin, Erica Génécé, Kenny Germé, Denzel Golatt, Yannis Davy Guibinga, Travis Gumbs, Tyrell Hampton, Seye Isikalu, Adama Jalloh, Manny Jefferson, Kreshonna Keane, Ekua King, Joshua Kissi, Casper Kofi, Olivia Lifungula, Myles Loftin, Mahaneela, Ronan Mckenzie, Tyra Mitchell, Fabien Montique, Sierra Nallo, Manuel Obadia-Wills, Travys Owen, Amber Pinkerton, Marc Posso, Caio Rosa, Silvia Rosi, Lucie Rox, Makeda Sandford, Cécile Smetana Baudier, Justin Solomon, Texas Isaiah, David Uzochukwu, Juan Veloz, Isaac West, and Joshua Woods.
EXHIBITION SUPPORTER
The New Black Vanguard at Saatchi Gallery is generously supported by Burberry.
ORGANISED BY
The New Black Vanguard is organised by Aperture, and made possible, in part by Airbnb Magazine and Tasweer Photo Festival, Qatar.
Serpenti Metamorphosis by Refik Anadol presented by Bulgari embark on a new chapter with award-winning media artist and director Refik Anadol. After last year’s success with their exhibition and digital experience in Piazza del Duomo in Milan, it is London’s chance to celebrate the second chapter of Serpenti Metamorphosis.
Bulgari will present an immersive experience with Refik Anadol’s artwork representing its most famous icon, Serpenti for the first time ever. It will kick off a momentous milestone, the 75th anniversary of Serpenti, to be celebrated in 2023.
Serpenti collection is Bulgari’s most emblematic icon. It first appeared in 1948 under the form of stylish bracelet-watches crafted with the famous tubogas technique that became an instant success. Seducing and adorning the most quintessential actresses in the 50s and 60s, such as Elizabeth Taylor, it quickly became one of Bulgari’s most desirable and recognisable signs, which over the years has been able to renew and evolve itself in an unstoppable and fascinating metamorphosis that continues to the present day.
Bulgari and Refik Anadol will bring visitors through an immersive journey. The unique AI developed by the artist and director will take explorers through the infinite intricacies of an ever-changing snake, showcasing its continuous rebirth and evolution complimented by sounds and smells synonymous with Bulgari’s finest fragrances.
Machine learning algorithms trained on more than 200 million images of nature result in a mesmerizing visualisation of an alternative reality of nature that mimics its textures, recalling the snake evolution, a new take on the meaning of Metamorphosis.
As evocative premise to Refik Anadol’s experience, the setup is enriched with Bulgari Serpenti archival images and sketches in dialogue with the creations on display that will fittingly illustrate the unceasing evolution of the icon and its deep connection with the women’s universe.
It will be brought to the tangible world by an exclusive selection of Serpenti pieces complimenting the exhibition, from heritage jewellery and horology pieces dating back from the 1940’s, right up to the present day with the latest high jewellery creations of the Roman jeweller.
From the most stylised models of the beginning, to the animal variants with polychrome enamels and precious eyes, until the cool, graphic charm of Viper; Serpenti will tell the story of a multi-faceted sign that has always been able to be in sync with fashion and social trends of female emancipation.
ABOUT BULGARI
Part of the LVMH Group, Bulgari was founded in Rome in 1884 as a jewellery shop. Known as the magnificent Roman jeweller and master of coloured gems, Bulgari has established a worldwide reputation for Italian excellence and enjoys renowned for its exquisite craftsmanship. The company’s international success has evolved into a global and diversified luxury purveyor of products and services, ranging from fine jewels and high end watches to accessories and perfumes, and featuring an unrivalled network of boutiques and hotels in the world’s most exclusive shopping areas. Demonstrated through its numerous philanthropic partnerships, Bulgari deeply believes in innovating the present for a sustainable future through its commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility and giving back – to nature and to the community.
ABOUT REFIK ANADOL
Refik Anadol (b. 1985, Istanbul, Turkey) is a media artist, director and pioneer in the aesthetics of data and machine intelligence. His body of work locates creativity at the intersection of humans and machines. In taking the data that flows around us as the primary material and the neural network of a computerized mind as a collaborator, Anadol paints with a thinking brush, offering us radical visualizations of our digitized memories and expanding the possibilities of architecture, narrative, and the body in motion. Anadol’s site-specific AI data sculptures and paintings, live audio/visual performances, and immersive installations take many forms, while encouraging us to rethink our engagement with the physical world, its temporal and spatial dimensions, and the creative potential of machines.
Saatchi Gallery in collaboration with East London gallery Jealous are proud to present Modern Landscapes. The show is open 21 October – 21 November 2022 within one of the main gallery spaces at London’s iconic Saatchi Gallery. Public admission will be free.
This solo exhibition, by British artist and long time Radiohead collaborator Stanley Donwood shows of never-before-seen drawings and iconic Sacred Landscape paintings made produced for Glastonbury Festival.
Featured in the exhibition are colourful Sacred Landscapes based on hybrid cartographical and topological forms. They explore the ancient landscapes that surround mysterious sites such as Stonehenge, Wayland’s Smithy and the Cerne Abbas Giant, amongst many others. These are not mystical, New Age depictions as such but rather brash, bold colour field interpretations showing centuries-old field boundaries, trackways and paths.
In these works, the English countryside has been scooped up and dropped into California and drenched in psychedelic drugs and the bright pigments that are derived from petrochemicals.
In contrast the Modern land drawings are monochromatic, quieter, more reflective. They , and present a perfect yet sombre counterpoint to the Sacred Landscapes, showing the ancient being transformed by the modern.
The Modern land drawings are the aftermath.
These large drawings have been scrawled, torn and sometimes scratched into heavyweight paper with soot, charcoal, graphite and chalk to create a brutal contrast.
Unlike the Sacred Landscapes, which turn the ancient, mysterious landscapes of England into a loud, raucous celebration, the soot and charcoal melancholy of Modern land is what remains…
Celebrate Black excellence both in front of and behind the camera with ‘The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion’: Showcasing 15 of the most influential Black fashion photographers working today. Also including additional works by over 50 Black creatives.
This is your opportunity to see ‘The New Black Vanguard’ plus 5 incredible shows whilst enjoying a sparkling wine, beer or soft drink.
Featuring an ‘in conversation’ discussion with two of the exhibition’s photographers Mahanella and Amber Pinkerton, plus free drop-in figurative drawing workshops.
Members enjoy free entry & drink token, and do not need to pre-book. Access to Ground Floor Galleries included within your ticket.
Limited tickets available.
Presented by Contemporary Art Academy, DELTA GAMMA is an exhibition of works created by recent academy alumni.
Reflecting the globalnature of online education, DELTA GAMMA showcases 35 contemporary artists from Ireland, Isreal, the Netherlands, Russian Federation, Taiwan and United Kingdom
Artists
Kiera Bennett, Hannah Blunden, Catherine Chinatree, Gabriela Cohen, Sian Costello, Lupen Crook, Zavier Ellis, Mathew Gibson, JUlie Goldsmith, Keziah Greenwood, Lisette van Hoogenhuyze, Sam Jackson, Agnes Jarek, Kate Knight, Elizabeth Langford, Sophie Mason, Jim McLean, Mac McNaughton, Sharon McPhee, Lieve van Meegen, Dean Melbourne, Peter Monkman, Emily Moore, Issi Nash, Ayelet Amrani Navon, Daria Neretina, Mark Perry, Tom Platt, Josh Rowell, Sabrina Shah, Jayne Anita Smith, Sarah Spencer, Kirsty Stanton, Jason ChungTang Yen, Maddie Yuille
About Contemporary Art Academy
Contemporary Art Academny is a new online educational initiative co-founded by artist and formerElephant Academy manager Matthew Gibson (Griffin Art Prize, Elephant Lab residency progrramme) and artist curator Zavier Ellis (CHARLIE SMITH LONDON, THE FUTURE CAN WAIT, PROJECT PAPYROPHILIA, Young Gods, Ukraine Support Pledge). The academy’s objective is to deliver exceptional and affordable online art education provided by leading contemporary art world professional.
A group exhibition presenting the work of eight international artists exploring New Forms through a diverse range of unconventional media. Tufted carpet, electrical wires and ropes, sheet steel, pvc, mattresses, and pseudo umbrellas, the artists embrace new and unusual materials and methods to riff upon the classical notion of painting and sculpture.
Featured artists include Caroline Achaintre, Dominic Beattie, Lucia Buceta, Kes Richardson, Christopher Stead, Alice Wilson, Andrea V Wright, Neil Zakiewicz
Curated by Saatchi Gallery in collaboration with Fold Gallery.
Admission: Free. Pre-booking not required.