Best art choices - December 2010

By Lauren Down

NORTH

Exhibition #3 with Sir Peter Blake
Settling into its new home in Primrose Hill, The Museum of Everything features an eccentric and beautiful array of drawings, paintings, sculptures and artefacts from puppets to Potter’s famous Museum of Curiosities, most of which have been taken from Sir Peter Blake’s personal collection. Until 24 Dec The Museum of Everything, Sharples Hall St, Chalk Farm www.museumofeverything.com

Murmur
Bringing together the work of artists such as Erika Tan and Matthew MacKisack, this group exhibition explores folklore, fiction and literature in various languages: selecting and re-appropriating images that would otherwise slip into an anonymous stream of murmuring. Waterside Projects Space, Unit 8, Waterside, 44-48 Wharf Rd, Angel, N1 7UX 020 7193 5440 www.watersideprojectspace.org

Burlesque In Which We’ve Thrown It On Its Head
An exhibition of the brightly coloured and urgently painted works of emerging British artist Nathan Cash Davidson, comprising of around 20 paintings dating from 2006 to now. Drawing on historical figures, pop culture and his own personal life Davidson creates cartoon like work that transports the everyday into the fantastical. 8 Dec – 13 Feb 2011. Parasol Unit, 14 Wharf Road, Angel, N1 7RW 020 7490 7373 www.parasol-unit.org

Ceal Floyer
Elegant and fragile, Ceal Floyer’s sculptural work is informed by her acute awareness of space and the simplicity of subtle humours. A reconfiguration of a previous exhibition, Floyer plays with everyday objects and their relationship to reality; constructing a dialectical tension between the literal, the metaphysical and the absurd. Until 29 Jan. Lisson Gallery, 29 Bell Street, Edgware Road, NW1 5DA www.lissongallery.com 020 7724 2739

EAST

Keeping it Real: An Exhibition in 4 Acts: Act 3: Current Disturbance
Current Disturbance is an installation piece by Mona Hatoum. This is the first time the work, dating back to an exhibition of the same name from 1996, will be shown in the nations capitol. The electronic buzzing, the flashing lights and the enclosed surroundings amplify the physical presence of the installation’s caged light bulbs. 17 Dec – 6 Mar 2011 Whitechapel Gallery, 77-82 Whitechapel High Street, Aldgate East, E1 7QX 020 7522 7888 www.whitechapelgallery.org

Damián Ortegag: The Independent
Acclaimed Mexican artist Damián Ortega recently set himself the challenge of creating new works in response to aspects of the daily news so each day he took inspiration in the form of photographs, news clippings and worked them into installations, sculptures and paintings with social commentary at their core. Until 16 Jan. The Barbican Art Gallery, Barbican Centre, Silk Street, Old Street, EC2Y 8DS 020 7638 4141 www.barbican.org.uk

Curva Sopra Lama
Following on from several successful European exhibitions, Curva Sopra Lama showcases the latest sculptures and paintings from the Italian born Riccardo Baruzzi. Often paying attention to minute details, Baruzzi’s work is concerned with nostalgia and kitsch as he mixes original efforts with reclaimed items found in markets, to which he adds his signature or partially alters. 18 Nov – 18 Dec. Arcade Fine Arts, 87 Lever Street, Liverpool Street, EC1V 3RA 020 7608 0428 www.arcadefinearts.com

Mary Barnes
Discover the work of Bow resident and psychiatric patient Mary Barnes in this major retrospective exhibition. In 1965 Barnes was on the brink of a serious mental breakdown and was taken in for behavioural regression, which saw her produce her first works using excrement and bodily fluids. 5 Nov – 18 Dec. Space Studios, 129-131 Mare Street, Liverpool Street, E8 3RH 020 8525 4330 www.spacestudios.org.uk

SOUTH

Shadow Catchers
Shadow Catchers presents the work of five international contemporary artists – Floris Neusüss, Pierre Cordier, Susan Derges, Garry Fabian Miller and Adam Fuss – who take ‘photographs’ without a camera. Experimenting with ways in which to fix shadows onto light-sensitive surfaces, the works appear as if memories, fragments or visions of other worldly dreamscapes. Until 20 Feb. Victoria & Albert Museum, Cromwell Road, South Kensington, SW7 2RL 020 7942 2000 www.vam.ac.uk

PAA Joe: Taking It With You
Jack Bell Gallery presents an exhibition of brightly colourful sculpted coffins that have been brought over from Ghana. These intricately designed vessels range in form from a brightly coloured fish, to a cocoa pod and an impressively huge eagle – each reflecting the status reached in an individual’s life. Until 15 Jan. Jack Bell Gallery, 276 Vauxhall Bridge Road, Victoria, SW1 0207 976 6078 www.jackbellgallery.com

Gauguin: Maker of Myth
This exhibition takes a fresh look at the work of Paul Gauguin by focusing on myth, storytelling and the construction of narrative in his art. Rather than following a strictly chronological sequence, the exhibition is organised according to thematic sections that emphasise the parallels between different stages in his career. Exploring the broad brush strokes and bold colours of works he made in Paris, Martinique, Brittany, Tahiti and the Marquesas, the show traces motifs and ideas that he produced years and many thousands of miles apart. Until 16 Jan. Tate Modern, Bankside, Southwark, SE1 9TG 020 7887 8888 www.tate.org.uk

A Theatre To Address2
Curated by Bridget Crone, A Theatre To Address2 is based around an experimental structure that explores the delicacy of the passing moment and challenges ordered hierarchies. The space captures a perpetual moment, producing a snapshot of what might be. Until 10 Dec. Cartel Gallery, Black Container Space, The Old Police Station, 114 – 116 Amersham Vale, New Cross, SE14 6LG 0044 7971 292 817 www.cartelgallery.com

Move: Choreographing You
Explore the Hayward’s interactive exhibition this winter as romper rooms, monkey swings and hula-hoops make up installations by choreographers and internationally renowned artists such as Dan Graham, Isaaz Julian, Robert Morrirs and Bruce Nauman. Until 9 Jan 2011. The Hayward Gallery, Waterloo, SE1 8XX 0844 875 0073 www.southbankcentre.co.uk/find/hayward-gallery-visual-arts

WEST

Recalling Frames
A solo exhibition of David Maljovic’s work, Recalling Frames explores the underlying constructs of time. Taking photographs and still frames from Orson Welles’ 1962 movie ‘The Trial’ (an adaptation of Franz Kafka’s unfinished novel of the same name) Maljovic creates new dimensions as he drags the transient past into the equally fleeting present. Until 23 Dec Sprüth Magers, 7A Grafton Street, Green Park, W1S 4EJ 020 7408 1613 www.spruethmagers.com/home

Bridget Riley
Blazingly colourful and optically engaging, Bridget Riley’s canvases are truly steeped in their sixties heritage. The artist last curated her own exhibition at the National Gallery 21 years ago and has been invited back to mark her 80th birthday (in April) to select images from the collection and add her own paintings directly to the walls. Until 22 May. The National Gallery, Trafalgar Square, Charing Cross, WC2N 5DN 020 7747 2885 www.nationalgallery.org.uk

Forever Young
Born of the Pop Art era but remaining strangely aloof from it, artist David Spiller began working in the 1960s, drawing on pop culture iconography from comics and cartoons to graffiti. His vibrant paintings draw on abstract images as much as popular motifs, blending the two into an array of post-modernist collages. Beaux Arts, 22 Cork Street, Green Park, W1S 3NA 020 7437 5799 www.beauxartslondon.co.uk

James Turrell
Experimenting with light and space, James Turrell’s exhibition explores a myriad of structures and phenomena. Turrell’s current project is represented by a series of eight carbon prints that utilise various photographic methods to project light into the tangible. Until 10 Dec. Gagosian, 6-24 Britannia Street, Kings Cross, WC1X 9JD 0207 841 9960 www.gagosian.com

Modern Toss: Seasonal Nik Nak Hut
Focusing on contemporary themes Modern Toss’ repertoire includes such titles such as ‘Retail Village of the Damned’ that continue the great comic tradition of social satire in a consumerist, capitalist state. Whether intentionally ironic or not, each piece will be clearly marked for sale and with Sailor Jerry’s on hand to serve drinks you will most likely be inclined to take their ‘Buy More Shit Or We’re All Fucked’ motto quite literally. 2 – 24 Dec The Outsiders Gallery, Greek Street, Soho, Tottenham Court Road, W1D 4DG 020 3214 0055 www.theoutsiders.net

Events/Talks/Performances /Late Openings

Is This Thing On?
As students take to the streets in protest of budget cuts, rising tuition fees and arts cuts the Dream Space Gallery presents an unmissable show. Featuring work exclusively from the Fourth Four Collection, these 14 students from Kingston University respond to the hugely daunting nature of an uncertain future. 1 – 3 December. Dream Space Gallery www.adrem.uk.com/dreamspace

Tea & Make Pop Up
For two weeks only you can join a host of designers to drink tea, make your own Christmas presents and have a gander at the beautiful hand-crafted commissions on show. Until 11 December. New Cross Gallery www.teaandmake.co.uk/

Up Periscope
Named after 1959’s famous film, this evening’s event, organised by writer in Residence Sally O’Reilly, is all about illuminating the darkness as transmissions from artists, writers and musicians from across the world will be mediated live via Skype. Expect plenty of exciting happy accidents! 7.00pm, 2 December £7 on the door. Whitechapel Gallery www.whitechapelgallery.org/

Delicate Mayhem
A rare opportunity to view the exquisite, intricate and sprawling cityscapes of London based illustrator Laura Jordan. 2 December. Studio 4, 96 Kingsland Road www.delicatemayhem.com

Hannah Wooll
A chance to catch the haunting, bright and eerie paintings of emerging artist Hannah Wooll as she pays homage to the depiction of women within art history and more contemporary media. 1 & 8 December. The 12 Gallery www.the12gallery.com

Rosa Barba: In Conversation
To coincide with her exhibition on Level 2 of the Gallery, Barba has compiled a screening programme of her works on film followed by a conversation on the construction of fictional planes, and the cultural background that has informed her work. 6:30-8:30pm, 7 December. £9 (£5 concession) Tate Modern www.tate.org.uk