REVIEW ART
:— Brute
strength
lloman Polanski defines eroticism as being stroked with a feather, while pornography is using the whole chicken. louise Crawford’s feather is a very soft one indeed. She accentuates the human form in life and death by combining hard-edged photographs from the daily press with her own gently-lit nudes.
The newspaper photographs have been treated roughly - torn, scrawled over and generally mistreated. However, this personalisation is important, otherwise they would remain autonomous images, taking for granted the public airing of private grief. Her own work explores the same subject: private moments presented for public attention. But where the press photos are harsh, even brutal in their depiction of the body, her own pictures of privacy are serene and tasteful.
‘The people pictured by newspapers are clothed,’ she says. ‘Their clothes are shrouded by religious or political ideologies. I wanted to bring the body back to a humanitarian level. I hope it throws up questions about the representations that we gain our cultural awareness from. And i hope it won’t be looked upon as a woman using men’s parts for her own ends.’
This could be shaky or well-trodden ground: think oi the Benetton advertising campaigns and Adrian Piper’s work, or the truly sensual nature of Edward Weston’s peppers. But what saves the exhibition is simply the open-minded approach to the subject. The impression gained is undiluted by other mental interferences. While a knowledge of classicism is obvious and signalled in the compositions of photojournalism - implying the dramas of classical art are still carried out daily by ordinary people - the work remains accessible because it is a piece of pure visual thought. That flash of recognition has passed between subject and viewer and been recorded for us lucky devils
in the process. (flick Dewar)
Claiming Territory is at Street level,
Glasgow until 24 Sept.
Exhibitions are listed by category, then alphabetically by city and venue. Please send details to our offices at least ten days before publication. Art listings compiled by Kathleen Morgan.
PRE-ZOTH CENTURY
Glasgow
I BURRELL COLLECTION Pollokshaws Road. 649 7l51. Mon—Sat l0am—5pm; Sun I lam—5pm. Cafe. [1)].
Edwardian tycoon William Burrell's collection of furniture including paintings. ceramics and glass is housed in an elegant. purpose-built gallery. Recorded descriptions and thermoforms are available for the benefit of visually impaired visitors.
flew Perspectives: The Italian Renaissance Until 25 Sept. A fresh look at Italy‘s 15th century cultural explosion featuring paintings. glassware. ceramics. armour. illustrated books. textiles and musical instruments.
Modern Art From The Collection New permanent display. David Hockney. Bridget Riley. Alan Davie. Jasper Johns. Bruce McLean and Eduardo Paolozzi are featured in an exhibition of pop art and work inspired by the heady 60s.
I CYRIL GERBER FINE ART 148 West Regent Street. 221 3095. Mon—Sat 9.30am—5.30pm.
Works In Stock A selection from the gallery‘s collection. including work by Eardley. Cowie. McTaggart and Redpath.
Edinburgh
I ROURNE FINE ART 4 Dundas Street. 557 4050. Mon—Fri 10am—6pm; Sat
l0am— 1 pm.
Works From Stock Paintings by Anne Redpath. William Strang. Robert
. Henderson Blythe and John Quintin
Pringle from the gallery‘s collection.
l l l i
I CITY ART CENTRE 2 Market Street. 529
354i. Mon—Sat l0am—6pm; Still l—5pm until 25 Sept. Cafe.
The Colourist Legacy Until 2l Sept. Taken from the centre's permanent fine art collection. this exhibition dips into the use of colour by l9th and 20th century Scottish painters. from the original
I Colourists to the Glasgow Boys. It 9 includes work by Adrian Wiszntewski.
I NUNTERIAN ART GALLERY University of
Glasgow. 82 Hillhead Street. 339 8855 ext 543 l. Mon—Fri 9.30am—5pm; Sat 9.30am—5pm.
Whistler: Harmonies And Nocturnes Until 17 Oct (closed 23—26 Sept). Portraits. nude studies. streetscapes and seascapes in pastels. watercolours and prints - from the largest single collection ofJames McNeill Whistler’s work.
Edinburgh
I CITY ART CENTRE Market Street. 225 2424. Mon—Sat 10am—6pm; Sun lpm—5pm until 25 Sept. Cafe. Michelangelo: An Invitation To The Case Buonarroti Until 21 Sept. From the former Michelangelo family home in Horence come fifteen drawings by the Renaissance master. including sketches for The Sacrifice ()fISUUt‘ and The last Judgnmn. This is the first Michelangelo exhibition to be staged in Scotland. Go see the great man's illustrated shopping list.
Joan Eardley and John Maxwell.
I OEMARCO EUROPEAN ART FOUNDATION Old St Mary‘s School. 3 York Lane. 557 0707. Mon—Sat 10.30am—7pm; Still
I 1.30am—5pm.
Joseph Beuys In Scotland Until 22 Aug. Eight years after the German artist's death. the dialogue he established between his homeland and Scotland is celebrated
I with work by 38 artists influenced by him.
: I NATIONAL GALLERY OF SCOTLAND The
: Mound. 556 892i. Mon—Sat 10am—5pm;
: Sun 2—5pm.
Home of a fine collection of works. from
the Renaissance to Post-Impressionism. ' including Velazquez. El Greco.
~ Rembrandt. Gainsborough. Degas. Van i Gogh and Scottish Colourists.
Robert Louis Stevenson - Jekyll 0r liyde?
Until 28 Sept. Marking the centenary of the death of one of Scotland‘s best-loved writers. this exhibition of Stevenson's personal belongings. manuscripts. photographs and paintings examines the conflicts within his life and his changing world.
I SCOTTISH NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY Queen Street. 556 892 l. Mon-Sat 10am—5pm; Sun 2—5pm. [D]. Cafe. Scotland‘s bonniest and beastliest monarchs. politicians. writers anti artists. The recent borne-coming of a l748 portrait of Bonnie Prince Charlie by the leading French portrait painter Maurice- Quentin de La Tour is an added attraction. Visions Of The Ottoman Empire Until 6 Nov. Admission £3 (£l.50). Since the Ottoman Turks took Constantinople in 1453. their empire has fascinated the west. This exhibition focuses on the l9th century preoccupation with the era. from paintings inspired by Byron’s poems to Delacroix‘s oil sketch for the Death Of .S‘ardana/mlus. Exhibition accompanied by an illustrated book.
Glasgow
I ART GALLERY & MUSEUM, KELVINGROVE 357 3929. Mon—Sat lOam—5pm; Sun 1 lam—5pm. Cafe. [D]. Voluntary guides are available free of charge to conduct parties or individuals round the main galleries. Ask at the enquiry desk.
Monet to Matisse Until 23 Oct. Admission £4 (£2). Cezanne. Van Gogh. Rousseau. Gauguin and Picasso also feature in this orgy of landscape artists
HIT LIST
Catch the best Art this fortnight.
I Visions of the Ottoman Empire Sumptuous. seductive show featuring paintings by luminaries such as Delacroix and Turner depicting the Orient as seen by hungry Western eyes. National Portrait Gallery. Edinburgh. I Clare Barclay First solo show by this talented young artist whose work was last seen in a group show at the City Art Centre in Edinburgh. Transmission Gallery, Glasgow.
I Portrait of My Mother Work by 50 women photographers including Mary Helen Mark and Mari Mahr, have all contributed portraits with text. French Institute, Edinburgh.
I Whistler: llannonles and lioctumes Tranquil. atmospheric watercolours, prints and pastels. Httnierian Art Gallery, Glasgow.
I Temple of the Senses Art pizza, performance with pressing flesh and sound and smell installations.
Intermedia in Virginia Street, Glasgow.
involved in the early years of the modern movement in France. revealing the crucial influence of one generation of artists on another. This is a one-off exhibition. not to be missed.
I SCOTTISH NATIONAL GALLERY OF MODERN ART Belford Road. 556 8921. Mon—Sat 10am-5pm; Sun 2—5pm. [D]. Cafe. The gallery‘sjustly renowned cafe is open Mon—Sat l0am—5pm; Sun 2—5pm.
Well Of Souls from Fragments, an exhibition of work by Fraser Mansel launching the new- look Out Of The Blue art space in Edinburgh. Control of the gallery has shifted
into the hands of exhibiting artists and volunteer workers,
increasing contact between artists and the public.
The List 9 -22 September I994 55