Anni Albers at Tate Modern: Tactile Sensibility

 A few weeks ago I visited  the Anni Albers exhibition  at Tate Modern.  I first became seriously aware  of her work in Whitechapel  Gallery exhibition ' adventures of the black square'  and then at 'Making, Unmaking' at Camden Arts Centre.   It  was a joy to see   a gallery space devoted to  textiles as art  ( and  for this to be recognized in  reviews of the exhibition  here  and here)   

What  struck me most was  how much the texture  added depth to abstract  work,  seeing the details and the variety of threads and 'stitches'   used in her 'pictorial weaving'  and  interestingly how fading of dyes over time made subtle changes.  She was such an innovator.  

 The larger installations , exploring the relationships between textiles and architecture  and the commission ' 6 prayers'  with their 'scriptural effect'  showed another dimension of her work

  Interesting use of metallic  threads - the silver threads in 'Haiku' (below)  reflecting back light in my  phone camera snap  ( you wouldn't be aware  of it in the  photos online)   

 I enjoyed her sketches and the fascinating  range of samples  and source material   for her  book ' On Weaving'   from student exercises using straw  and string  to fragments of  ancient woven pieces from cultures around the world

 In the final room  were samples of the types of yarn  she used and touchable swatches- reminders of how important the sense of touch is in textiles. I wonder how often they have to replace  them , or what they look like now after several weeks of  fondling and handling!?  

This was one of my favourite pieces - ' City' from  1949 ,  overlaid swatches of heavy threads  on a course hessian like background   giving the impression of buildings  In the words of  Nicholas Fox Weber,  the executive director of the Josef and Anni Albers Foundation, “You see neighbourhoods; you hear populations; you sense traffic rushing along.”

White Paintings: Tate Modern 'In the Studio' & Paul Feiler at Redfern Gallery

 Where possible, Fridays are now my 'London Gallery ' days : travelling  after 10 am cost £17.90 with a  Network railcard  in comparison to the  £47.80  travelling at peak time in the morning for EDAM  on Wednesdays! 

So far  I've  been to the Annie Albers at Tate Modern  and Oceania  at the RA  and with ' Black and White'  with Ashley Hanson  still in my mind , I've  been hunting down relevant artworks  while I've been in the area, discovering  a whole section in the 'In The  Studio' display  of  Tate Modern ( above) and  some exciting works  by Paul Feiler in the Redfern Gallery in Cork Street ( below) 

 Entering the prestigious  galleries in Mayfair  no longer scares me as much as it used  to - if you have a genuine interest in the work , I've found the  staff to be helpful and often generous with catalogues and cards etc .  At the Redfern, there was  roadworks going on outside and I think they were glad to see anyone!

 I sketched these 2  pieces : Oval and Blue ( above) and Porthleddon deep Blue 1962 ( below) to get  to grips with their proportions and compositions. Also to try and work out how many layers there were and in what order - I just loved the flashes of yellow, blue and brown  at the edges of shapes. What at first glance might seem to be a slapdash application of white  is actually   very carefully painted.  I was also very aware of the importance of edges ( as with Patrick Heron)

I  liked  the exuberance of the textured brush strokes  in 'coastal Walk 1959' above' summoning up a sense of place  and  his  sketches ( below)

 While  his earlier more organic work is more to my taste,  his later geometric 'portal' works ( above)  are mesmerising when you see them in the flesh, the subtle layers of colour drawing you in

 ( reproductions just can't do them justice)  The  title  'elusive space' for the exhibition  was very  apt. 

  The previous week, in Tate Modern while paying homage to the 'Cage' paintings of Gerhard Richter in section 'In the Studio'  ( I visit them every time I go there),   I revisited the 'Painting in White'  section I'd studied during the 'Ways into abstract painting '  course, particularly the work' holes'  of Shozo Shimamoto ' 

This time it was  the 'White Painting' by Michael Buthe   that grabbed me, reminding me of the work of Simon Callery  . I hadn't  heard of him before but   it looks like his work is well worth exploring further ( article here) 

Michael Buthe

Jack Whitten

Shozo Shimamoto 

Piero Manzoni 

Despite loving colour, I'm finding the exploration  of a neutral palette  very satisfying at the moment. It  allows me to explore texture, layers, marks  and composition and tone without the extra complication of  colour ( although I'm still struggling to  get to grips with charcoal). Time perhaps to look again at those gessoed/ primed pieces of old quilts I've been hoarding??

Drawing Tuesday at Tate Modern: Blavatnik Building, Planes and William Kentridge

 What an exciting Drawing Tuesday  at Tate Modern ( even if not much sketching got done)! Besides exploring and interacting  with various artworks,   had  an excellent view of the flypast to mark 100 years of the RAF   and watched  some of the rehearsals with William Kentridge of the 'Head and the Load' .

I was delayed getting  to the Tate due to problems on the buses so instead of settling down and drawing or visiting the busy exhibitions in the Boiler House  I decided to explore some of the free displays in the Blavatnik Building  starting out with 'Performer and Participant' , including the screening of 'The crystal Quilt' by Suzanne Lacy. What an amazing project  and ahead of its time. 

I was intrigued by how Ana Lupas had 'preserved' fragile straw structures in metal, preserving their form, reminding me of my visit to Romania for work.  

  I couldn't resist taking selfies among the mirrors of Edward  Krasinski's installation

 Mirrors and selfies  also featured in the 'Between Object and Architecture' display, this piece by Yayoi Kusama was very popular , the guard had his work cut out stopping  people going over the line ( it's very fragile) .

I liked how it interacted with other pieces in the room like this pavilion  by Cristina Iglesius

  The work I like best however  was 'Stack' by Tony Cragg.

Meeting the others at 12.30 as usual, instead of heading for lunch and 'show and tell' of our sketches ( that came later)  we went out to the river to find a good position for viewing the flypast . 

I've never seen so many people on the Millennium ( 'wobbly'') Bridge   and every accessible rooftop was filled. 

A couple of helicopters were hovering nearby as markers  and then just before 1pm , cheers  erupted as the first group of Chinooks  flew over. 

The precision  of the positioning was amazing ( I only realised afterwards that I'd managed to capture the '100' formation) 

 And it finished of  course with the 'Red Arrows'  ( the coloured trails just starting as they moved out of sight. ) Just wonderful .

After lunch at Leons, I returned to the 'Stack'  but  after 2 failed  attempts to draw  it accurately, started to list all the components including the different forms of cardboard.  

 My inattention was probably due to my impatience to get back to the rehearsals of the Head and the Load. I'd watched a bit of it earlier with Margaret C.  with nothing much going on - lots of directing by William Kentridge himself on positioning of people  and shifting props around. When I returned in the afternoon it was in full swing with musicians, projections and shadows of people. It sounded and looked amazing: the tickets , unsurprisingly, sold out straight away.

Exhibitions: Picasso at Tate Modern and CityLit Advanced Printmaking

 3 Weeks ago, in the morning before my 'Large Scale Sketchbook' course , I combined a visit to Tate Modern for the Picasso 1932  with seeing the exhibition  of  the City Lit Advanced Printmaking course  'Pressing Time'  at RK Burt Gallery in Southwark.  Walking in between these venues, apart from popping into CAA and  coveting earrings   by Joanna Veevers,   I went via the Jerwood Space , admiring the wonderful dynamic murals ( above).  

 My favourites from the Picasso  were those in room 8: charcoal drawings on canvas  with rubbings, erasures and over drawings.

It was intriguing to see how the same images/sketches  had been developed in different ways: in the beach scenes ( above) and particularly in the series of drawings inspired by Grunewald's 'Isenheim Altarpiece' :  use of different media; fine drawings v looser raw ink sketches; the progression from shaded sculptural forms to simplified line. I'd go back just to look more closely at these. 

 An interesting array of  artists books  in the window at RK Burt enticed you in - you can just about make out the monoprint of a kayak   by Patricia Gaudron suspended from the ceiling. I'd seen one laid out in the corridor at City Lit  so was intrigued to see how she's fitted one in a box! 

Melody  Clark 

Patti Taylor 

Michelle Dow 

Extended drawing for artists and makers

I was keen to see the exhibition the following week from the year-long 'EDAM' course  as I was considering applying  for  it but unfortunately the show  finished on the Thursday.  Nevertheless , with sharp  intake of breathe I submitted my application ,was accepted and have now enrolled !  I realise I can't do much else  next year  but  it seemed like the logical next step from the doing shorter courses. A bit daunted  but excited.