Summer has me reflecting on how art is rendered small against Nature's glorious achievements. There is nothing in any gallery that exceeds the fantastic works in every municipal park.
Art's role has to be as a pointer and waymarker: A reminder to look more closely next time or to evoke sensations of nature temporarily forgotten; and possibly to reveal something hidden that offers new connections and perspectives. With 'Art as a Guide' in mind, I have made this small online exhibition of the works of three artists I have enjoyed recently plus one from Finding Patterns.
Alex Katz's exhibition 'Quick Light' at the Serpentine Gallery. "Eighty year old Katz, the most joyful,honest and coolest, figurative painter alive", "...demonstrates a yet greater economy of means and brilliance in capturing the light of the fleeting moment". Jackie Wullschalger, FT.
"Man Seen by a Flower" by Jans Arp at the Barber Institute, Birmingham. The title and work a perfect poem.
The brilliant curator and gallerist, Pilar Ordovas, showing Not Vital's works in "Muntognas". Each sculpture comprises a slice of marble from China, chosen to evoke an idea - a waterfall, a mountain, ice. The patterns in the marble do this so successfully you are transported to alpine air, and reminded of the time when the marble was in motion, moving like water or the quick air at the top of a mountain.
Finally, a new piece from 'Finding Patterns'. Designed to answer a profound question about nature's tendency to explore and add possibilities to make iridescent patterns. Each dot is a pairing of two triangles and each of the three broad horizontal bands contains the same points, showing how the same things can be organised in remarkably different ways and that it matters how closely you look and to what you pay attention to.