TAKASHI MURAKAMI – EGO

Posted on 2012-02-06

The exhibition will immerse visitors in a fantasy world conceived by the renowned Japanese artist, capturing the way Murakami channels the ecstasy and anxiety of contemporary culture.

Following major retrospectives at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and at the Château de Versailles, Murakami – Ego is the final chapter in a trilogy of exhibitions that have established Takashi Murakami as one of the most fascinating artists working today. This new exhibition, curated by Massimiliano Gioni, will feature more than 60 works from 1997 to the present, on loan from leading international institutions and private collections, as well as several new works created especially for this show.

Murakami – Ego is part of a series of cultural initiatives organized by the QMA to promote and support local and international art, foster conversations about artists and popular culture, and build bridges between cultures. At the time of the opening of Murakami – Ego, QMA also will present Cai Guo-Qiang: Saraab at Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art.

Exhibition runs through to June 24th, 2012

The Qatar Museums Authority
Doha – State Of Qatar
QMA Tower
P.O Box 2777

www.qma.org.qa

  

BORIS MIKHAILOV – TRIPTYCHS

Posted on 2012-02-06

Constituting a comprehensive overview of Mikhailov’s complex and varied oeuvre, the photographs selected for this exhibition come from ten different series, spanning a period of fifty years.
Since the mid 1960s, Boris Mikhailov has explored photography’s full range of possibilities and produced an uncompromising yet ironically humorous portrait of his close surroundings. His tireless investigations into photographic techniques and stylistic
means, as well as his frequent alternation between conceptual and documentary work have contributed to make Mikhailov one of the most influential photographers living today.

This exhibition will showcase works from the series Luriki (1971-85), Salt Lake (1996), I am not I (1992), If I were a German (1994), Case History (1997-98), Dedicated to Man Ray (1998), Look at me I look at Water (1999), Football (2000), Yesterday’s Sandwich (late 60s – late 70s), and The Wedding (2008).

Exhibition runs through to April 5th, 2012

Sprovieri Gallery
23 Heddon Street
London
W1B 4BQ

www.sprovieri.com

  

BRYAN DRURY – PORTRAITS

Posted on 2012-01-30

Stemming from a desire to challenge the conventions of traditional portraiture, Drury has recently created this body of six oil paintings. He carefully selected affluent members of society to sit for him, and rather than acquiescing to expectations of flattery, he exploits the power of oil paint to describe their corporeal flaws as precisely as possible. Finding liberation in this reversal of patronage roles, Drury focuses on the organic quality of the flesh and shows the animalistic side of humans that we so commonly attempt to conceal.

The six works feature a single subject, executed with a painstaking degree of realism. The small-scale portraits capture the condescending and supercilious attitudes of the sitters, who gaze at the viewer with an air of disdain. Set against solid backgrounds, the sitters seem separated from the outside world, and their lifeless artificiality imbues the works with a sense of isolation.

Opposite – Jann, 2011, Oil on wood

Exhibition runs through to February 25th, 2012

Dean Project
511 West 25th Street
2nd floor
New York
NY 10001

deanproject.com

  

DJ FOOD & HENRY FLINT

Posted on 2012-01-30

Exhibits of artwork from DJ Food’s album ‘The Search Engine’ and Henry Flint’s book ‘Broadcast’.
DJ Food, aka Strictly Kev, has read the British sci-fi comic 2000AD, home of Judge Dredd, since he was 8 years old. He’s also been collecting original art from it for over a decade and a large proportion of his collection is the work of one man, Henry Flint. Studying at Falmouth University, Henry has worked in comics since the early 90′s – mostly for the anthology title 2000AD but also for US publishers like Marvel, DC and Vertigo. He slowly refined his craft and became a fan favourite with his ultra-detailed storytelling, seemingly able to combine several different styles from the comic’s first golden age in the 80′s alongside his own distinctive pen work. He has drawn many of the comic’s main characters, including Judge Dredd, as well as created his own characters Shakara and Zombo with fellow script writers.

Exhibition runs through to February 12th, 2012

Pure Evil Gallery
108 Leonard Street
London
EC2A 4RH

www.pureevilclothing.com
www.djfood.org

  

DAVID SHRIGLEY – BRAIN ACTIVITY

Posted on 2012-01-30

British artist David Shrigley is best known for his humourous drawings that make witty and wry observations on everyday life.
Trained as a fine artist, his deliberately crude graphic style gives his work an immediate and accessible appeal, while simultaneously offering insightful commentary on the absurdities of human relationships.
This exhibition, his first major survey show in London, will cover the full range of Shrigley’s diverse practice. This extends far beyond drawing to include photography, books, sculpture, animation, painting and music.

Spanning the upper galleries of the Hayward Gallery, the show will also include new artwork and site specific installations.

Exhibition runs through to May 13th, 2012

Hayward Gallery
Southbank Centre
Belvedere Rd
London
SE1 8XX

www.southbankcentre.co.uk

  

MARGHERITA MANZELLI

Posted on 2012-01-23

Margherita Manzelli’s claims that her large scale paintings are not intended as self-portraits (though they nevertheless bear both a physical and psychic resemblance to her) reflect an earlier period in her work where performance was an important element. Manzelli herself admits that “I would like them to be different to me. And yet I realize that this very desire is symptomatic of the fact that something of myself remains in them.”

Opposite – Del nemico non si sente dire nulla, 2012

Exhibition runs through to February 25th, 2012

Greengrassi
1a Kempsford Road
London
SE11 4NU

www.greengrassi.com