Category Archives: REVIEWS

Dale Grimshaw’s Pride & Prejudice new show at WellHung gallery

Dale Grimshaw street art on Chalk Farm London | Art-Pie
Click to enlarge

Dale Grimshaw‘s Pride & Prejudice new show at WellHung gallery was one of these shows you do not want to miss.

As soon as we got the email about it, an entry in the calendar was penciled to attend the Private View.

We had already been to some of Dale Grimshaw’s shows as well as seen a few murals throughout London so we could not wait to see what this new works will be all about.

As you step in the gallery, they are all looking at you, even stare at you. “They” are the indigenous people, mostly from Papua New Guinea, Dale Grimshaw, quite recently, has become involved with the political struggle to free West Papua from Indonesian occupation which he thinks aren’t covered enough in the medias.

More recently, Dale has become involved with the political struggle to free West Papua from Indonesian occupation. This bitter and hard fought struggle is rarely reported in the West and through his work, Dale has been supporting Benny Wenda, the campaigns leader and long term champion Peter Tatchell, in raising awareness in the UK.

[] WellHung galllery

 

 

Dale Grimshaw Pride & Prejudice show at WellHung gallery | Art-Pie
Click to enlarge

Dale Grimshaw Pride & Prejudice show at WellHung gallery | Art-Pie

The activist aspect of the new set of artworks obviously means a bunch of political messages and symbolic can be observed throughout but what we really also appreciate – beyond the apparent technical painting skills-  it is the juxtaposition of two cultures, the  Western society – we are convinced that it is Shoreditch you can see in the background of the piece just above) and the Papua New Guimes where the indigenous depicted in Dale Grimshaw’s set of works.

Dale Grimshaw Pride & Prejudice show at WellHung gallery | Art-Pie

It was a delight to see again Dale Grimshaw’s mastery in the flesh. We are glad to see him engaged him for a cause and can definitely tell that by doing so, his style has become less dark than his last show – “Moreish” at Signal gallery we attended. What you will also find out by reading our review of that show, is that the technic does not seem to have evolved as much.

A must see-show. Runs until the 13/05/2017.

Gordon Cheung’s at Edel Assanti gallery

This is it. It is lunch and I am craving, not food, but a good art show to go and check out, preferably a short distance from the office.

I quickly gathered my thoughts and here I am on my way to Zari gallery on Newman street (London) or this is where I thought I was going, should I rather say.

I stand there now and as I look up, I realise that I am in front of a gallery called Edel Assanti (the galleries are next to each other but I had never realised there were two separate ones until that day).

As I step in the gallery, I cannot help but noticing the simplicity and sobriety of the venue, which is not a bad thing at all, since it enables the viewer to focus only on what matters – the artistic output from the current show.

A quick nodding to the gallery assistant and here I am, almost trotting towards the back of the gallery to look at ‘Great Wall Of Sand‘.

Gordon Cheung Unknowns Knows at Edel Assanti gallery | Art-Pie
Great Wall Of Sand (Click to enlarge)

This very large piece drew my attention right away, because all large pieces usually do, but also because I could not make out what I was looking at from far.

I still can’t.

Now, what really needs your attention is the relief in this piece, which you cannot figure out at first but come closer and closer and you’ll see that actual sand (see below) is included in Gordon Cheung’s work.

Gordon Cheung Unknowns Knows at Edel Assanti gallery | Art-Pie

Samples of what looks like newspapers also help to make up some of the background of this artwork.

A beautiful and dreamy piece.

Gordon Cheung Unknowns Knows at Edel Assanti gallery | Art-Pie

Alongside the large pieces (of what looks like sceneries – more pics below), 2 other different types of works are on display –

The first one is using plain pigment paste (and later painted on) and stuck sand on canvas again (see previous post) and depicts flowers in a vase like I have never seen it before. Although, the aesthetics of the piece did not wow me, I can appreciate the various technics and the ‘refreshing’ take on such a subject.

Gordon Cheung Unknowns Knows at Edel Assanti gallery | Art-Pie
Gordon Cheung Unknowns Knows at Edel Assanti gallery | Art-Pie

The second type of work is radically different with the rest and is a series of what may look like collages. It also reminds me of some times where you watch TVs and the signal gets weak – you know what I mean I am sure.

I must have been distracted by the other type of artworks in this show, since as I was going through the photographs I took, I felt urge to go back and have another look at those.

Gordon Cheung Unknowns Knows at Edel Assanti gallery | Art-Pie

Last time we saw Gordon Cheung’s works was 7 years ago and we are glad to see that the artist is still pushing the boundaries as much as in terms of the colour palette he used than disrupting the usual and common perception of a painting being flat

More – http://edelassanti.com/artists/33-gordon-cheung/exhibitions/

Gary Stranger & Pref at Stolen Space gallery

We swung by Stolen Space gallery today to check out their new show – Gary Stranger X Perf,

Gary Stranger and Pref are two graffiti artists from the UK. The former excels, we think, in typography work and his clean lines style was a delight to see.

Click on pictures below to enlarge them

Gary Stranger at Stolen Space | Art-Pie

Our positive opinion of the artist was even more consolidated when we learned that all his works is done free-hand – these are serious skills.

Gary Stranger at Stolen Space | Art-Pie

More pics from Gary Stranger
Gary Stranger at Stolen Space | Art-Pie Gary Stranger at Stolen Space | Art-PieGary Stranger at Stolen Space | Art-Pie

However, Pref’s work, multi-layered lettering style which he uses to portray popular phrases and expressions, did not excite us as much. We actually found his style somewhat confused and quickly went back for a second viewing of Gary Stranger’s works.

Perf at Stolen Space | Art-Pie

“Gary Stranger X Perf” runs until the 30th October 2016.

London Art Fair – artists we enjoyed, Matteo Massagrande

We strolled through the London Art Fair for the fourth consecutive year and as always stumbled upon remarkable artworks from ever so talented artists.

In this series, we will tell you why we liked a particular piece from these artists as well as posting more works. We hope you will also enjoy it as we did.

Feel free to comment too at the end of this article. Let’s get started….

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Matteo Massagrande

'Salice' by Matteo Massagrande | Art-PieWe stumbled upon the piece called “Salice” – mixed media on board, 80 x 120cm and instantly liked the smoky and hazy atmosphere of this piece achieved in using panels. It made us want to go and explore the scene that was presented in front of our eyes.

About the artist

Matteo Massagrande was born in Padua, Italy in 1959. Massagrande is an accomplished painter and a talented engraver. He has exhibited in over one hundred exhibitions internationally in the past 30 years.

Other works from this artist

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By Matteo Massagrande | Art-Pie By Matteo Massagrande | Art-Pie 8

London Art Fair – artists we enjoyed, Paul Wright

We strolled through the London Art Fair for the fourth consecutive year and as always stumbled upon remarkable artworks from ever so talented artists.

In this series, we will tell you why we liked a particular piece from these artists as well as posting more works. We hope you will also enjoy it as we did.

Feel free to comment too at the end of this article. Let’s get started….
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Paul Wright

Paul Wright | Wild Fire | Oil on linen | 43'' x 39'' | Art-Pie
Click to enlarge

We stumbled upon the piece called “Wild Fire” – oil on linen, 43” x 39′, and once again admired the technique and palette of colours used. We always look forward to pass the Thompson’s booth art the London Art fair to find out about Paul Wright’s works.

We know how hard it portraiture is in general which makes us appreciate even more this artist’s work. His portraits are always impeccably proportioned and transpire always strong emotions boosted by the often vibrant choice of colours.

About the artist

After his beginnings as an artist working in Illustration, Paul Wright has spent the last decade developing a language of painting through which he seeks to capture a vitality beyond the establishment of a mere ‘likeness’ to the subject. As an artist, Paul Wright appreciates the importance of the individual being recognisable, the subjects are glimpsed in the painting rather than exposed, their inner selves hinted at but ultimately inscrutable.

Though Paul Wright often works on a large, potentially imposing scale, his paintings remain approachable through fluency of brush mark and a rich palette. In Paul Wright`s paintings, the spaces the subjects inhabit are often indeterminate, providing an atmosphere that allows for ambiguity of psychological state. Paul Wright`s subjects retain their integrity and yet through the artist`s painting method a sense of intimacy is evoked.

Other works from this artist

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Paul Wright via Thompson's gallery | Art-Pie Paul Wright via Thompson's gallery | Art-Pie

Paul Wright via Thompson's gallery | Art-Pie Paul Wright via Thompson's gallery | Art-Pie