I have always struggled with Summer Trousers. Whenever I buy a pair, they tend to be too loose, too light or too tight; too crinkly or too creasy. They end up lurking at the back of my wardrobe - rejected, forgotten, unloved. Nonetheless, with the return of warm weather, I resolved to have another go, this time visiting the place where I buy my suits, the traditional outfitters Cordings of…
I recently enjoyed an exhibition of art deco posters commissioned by London Transport in the 1920s and ‘30s. ( London Transport Museum, London, until May 2027) Art deco, the movement characterised by clean lines, clear geometry and bold colours, flourished between the First and Second World Wars throughout Europe and the US. (It was given the art deco label retrospectively, in 1966.) The style…
Barbara Hepworth (1903-1975), Eidos, 1947, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. Photo: Predrag Cancar / NGV. Image courtesy National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne I enjoyed a small exhibition of the work of sculptor Barbara Hepworth at the Courtauld Gallery, London. (‘ Hepworth in Colour ’ runs until 6 September.) 'My works are an imitation of my own past and present.' Barbara Hepworth Born…
Women in the office of a duvet manufacturing firm use quilts to keep themselves warm while they workPhotograph: Evening Standard/Getty As a child growing up in the early 1970s, I enjoyed the bold fashions and vibrant music; the flamboyant footie and fabulous TV. But I was also aware that the United Kingdom had been laid low. The news was filled with pay disputes and poor inflation figures; with…
V&A Storehouse V&A East Storehouse is the open-access depository for the Victoria & Albert Museum’s collection of art, design, fashion and performance. With a total floorspace of 16,000 square meters (over 30 basketball courts) and spanning four levels, it is based in Hackney Wick, London, on a site originally used as the media centre for the 2012 Olympic Games. It is free to enter. Walking up the…
Rosa Salazar and Dorothea Myer-Bennett in The Old Vic production of Glengarry Glen Ross. I enjoyed a recent production of David Mamet’s ‘Glengarry Glen Ross.’ (The Old Vic, London, until 18 July) Levene: I need the leads. I need them now. Or I’m gone, and you’re going to miss me, John, I swear to you. Written in the faltering, fragmented metre of everyday diction (Mamet dedicated the work to…
Giaele e Sisara (ca.1620) - Artemisia Gentileschi (Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest) Two elderly ladies had stopped to have a chat by the frozen food section at Islington Sainsbury’s. ‘Oh, I’m so sorry, Barbara. That’s awful. But you know, you shouldn’t worry about it.’ Barbara took her friend by the arm, and made her point forcefully. ‘I’m not worried about it, Sheila. I’m just pissed off!’ There…
Francisco de Zurbarán - Saint Serapion. 1628. Oil on canvas, 120.7 × 104.1 cm Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, CT I recently visited a splendid exhibition of the work of Francisco de Zurbarán. ( The National Gallery, London until 23 Augus t) With dramatic lighting, vivid storytelling and an eye for sumptuous fabrics, this 17th century Spanish Master articulated the mysteries of his…
I recently enjoyed a production of Oscar Wilde’s 1895 play ‘An Ideal Husband.’ ( Bristol Old Vic , until 20 June) Lord Goring: I usually say what I really think. A great mistake nowadays. It makes one so liable to be understood. As one would expect with Wilde, the work is rich with the fizz and froth of aristocratic society; with witty conversations about buttonholes, bonnets and marriage…
Tamara de Lempicka (1894-1980), Portrait of Mrs. Rufus Bush I’m not fashionable, but I’m interested in fashion. I like to read about skinny jeans, white jeans, barrel leg and baggy jeans; about rich neutrals, microbuns, bixies and man brooches. I like to consider bold pops, polka dots and pointelle fabric; French tuck collars, scelts and tomato red. I like to discover that they’re channelling…
Hurvin Anderson - Grace Jones (2020): an air of fading memories (Image credit: Hurvin Anderson / The Thomas Dane Gallery / Richard Ivey) I very much enjoyed an exhibition of the work of Hurvin Anderson. (Tate Britain, London until 23 August) ‘In order to observe, for me at least, I have to sit slightly outside of things. Perhaps this is my natural position.’ Hurvin Anderson Anderson was born in…
Konrad Magi - Norwegian Landscape I recently enjoyed a trip down to Dulwich to see an exhibition of the work of Estonian artist Konrad Magi. ( Dulwich Picture Gallery until 12 July) Born in 1878 in rural southern Estonia, Magi spent his early adulthood working as a carver in a furniture factory. Argumentative, with left wing and anarchist sympathies, he suffered from poor mental health. Developing…
Leonard Daniels (1909–1998) - A British Restaurant at Winchester © Southampton City Art Gallery The voicemail that morning was brisk and businesslike: ‘We’re looking forward to seeing you for lunch today. Please call to confirm the reservation. And be aware that we need the table back at 2-30.’ I called to confirm. ‘That’s great,’ came the reply from the polite young man. ’We need the table back…
A little while ago, I visited the Photographers’ Gallery to see a display celebrating 100 years of the photobooth. (The exhibition is now over, I’m afraid. But you can review the splendid vintage collection of Raynal Pellicer in his book ‘ Photobooth .’) In the decades following the birth of photography in 1839, various designs for self-operating portrait machines were patented. There was an…
Michaelina Wautier - Self Portrait I recently enjoyed an exhibition of the work of seventeenth century painter Michaelina Wautier (The Royal Academy, London until 21 June). Poorly documented, and, for nearly three centuries, largely forgotten, her achievements are finally being recognised. Wautier was born around 1614 in the city of Mons in the Spanish Netherlands (present-day Belgium). With no…
Manet - Un bar aux Folies Bergère There’s quite a choice of local pubs available to me. I have a particular soft spot for the Old Red Lion, a big, slightly tatty, Islington boozer with a theatre upstairs. I like the friendly, easy-going staff, the mix of old drinkers and young thespians, the etched glass and intricate plasterwork. And I like its storied history: Thomas Paine wrote ‘The Rights of…
Euan Uglow - Detail “Root Five Nude” I recently enjoyed an exhibition of the art of Euan Uglow. ( MK Gallery , Milton Keynes until 31 May) ‘I’m trying to find out why a subject does look so marvellous, and trying to make that sensation manifest on a flat surface.’ Euan Uglow Born in London in 1932, the son of an accountant, Uglow grew up in Tulse Hill and studied at the Camberwell School of Art.…
Shalimov: Of course I’m disappointing. I’m a human. I very much enjoyed a production of Maxim Gorky’s 1904 play ‘Summerfolk’ at the National Theatre, London . (A new version by Nina and Moses Raine. Until 29 April.) Nikolai: Sonya and Zimin think that the purpose of life is solving various social, moral and other problems, and I’m telling them that life is the art of looking at life. We spend a…
Grant Wood (1891–1942) - American Gothic. 1930. Oil on beaverboard ‘Great to see you. How was your journey down?’ ‘Well, we set off early. We took the M25 route to the M1, which was fine, and then we slipped onto the A1 at Hendon. All was good, but we made the mistake of going through Highgate instead of taking the Archway Road. It was chock-a-block, as there’s quite a lot of work going on. Upper…
Lucian Freud - Girl in Bed. Photo: © National Portrait Gallery, London. Lent by a private collection I recently enjoyed an exhibition of the art of Lucian Freud, which focused particularly on his drawings. ( The National Portrait Gallery , London until 4 May) Freud is renowned for his raw and intensely observed portraits and nude studies. This show, including works in pencil, pen and ink, charcoal…