Exhibitions to see this September
For those of you, who are inspired by women artists, I can only recommend the exhibition of Frieda Kahlo: “Making Herself Up” at the V&A. The exhibition gives one an insight into how a talented artist evolved out of a lifetime of physical suffering.
Struck by Polio at the age of 5 and then severely injured by a bus accident at the age of 18, she created her own world with her imaginary friend, whilst bedridden.
The exhibition is not so much about her art, but about her clothes, cosmetics, jewellery, letters and photographs. The few self-portraits in the exhibition show her distinctive identity that she showed to the world.
Michael Kidner on Cork Street
Furthermore I recommend one sees a very different exhibition on 21 Cork Street London, W1.
Flowers Gallery is currently showing “In Black and White” by Michael Kidner (1917 – 2009). He was a pioneer of Optical Art. His art is rational and playful at the same time and with it he has combined visual responses to the principals of mathematics, science and chaos theories, always with an interest in the irrational and unpredictable nature of the human condition.
Particularly impressive is the floor piece from 1964 (plywood, hardwood, paint and resin 305 x 306 cm).
Heidi Bucher
A very different kind of exhibition, but a MUST SEE is of Heidi Bucher’s (1926-1993) latest works at Parasol unit in N1. The exhibition shows Heidi’s latex casts of the humans body, clothes as well as room interiors, windows and doors. She calls this body of work skinning (Häutungen). It is meant to be understood as the shedding of the past and at the same time the integration of the past into the present.
Heidi covered a surface with gauze before pouring lots of layers of liquid latex onto it. However it is the peeling of process that makes these artworks complete. Only with
care and her special technique did her artworks achieve their life like appearance.
Enjoy,
Julia