SHOWnews: Your Weekly Arts Bulletin

EXHIBITION

Vogue: Inventing the Runway at LightRoom

Pulling on Vogue's extensive archive to create a cinematic experience that explores the history of the fashion runway show while bringing together the industry’s leading voices from the past, present, and future, Vogue: Inventing the Runway honours the catwalk while also revolutionising how we experience exhibitions. What is a fashion show and why do they have so much power to cause a furore? Who are they for and why should we care? Although your average fashion folk would be able to answer such pervading questions with ease, this exhibition targets the public, introducing fashion's rich and eclectic history to the masses so people, no matter what industry they're from (or age they are) can be transported through locations and eras. For more information, click here.

Vogue: Inventing the Runway at LightRoom will be on view to the public until 26 April, 2025.

EXHIBITION

As She Is, curated by Rejina Pyo at Soho Revue

Fashion designer Rejina Pyo has proven she's a woman of many talents as she adds the credit of 'curator' to her CV thanks to her debut exhibition at Soho Revue As She Is, which includes artworks by Cece Philips, Rachel Cusk and Chantal Joffe, amongst others. Delving into the personal and universal narratives that shape women’s lives, As She Is traverses a myriad of themes, extending to love, loss, motherhood, work, guilt, and self-acceptance, all of which are communicated via the medium of painting, sculpture and mixed-media practices. Sincerely, as heartfelt as it is thought-provoking, the exhibition invites viewers to engage with the intricate tapestry of women's experiences.

As She Is curated by Rejina Pyo runs until 2 November at Soho Revue Gallery.

EXHIBITION

Ndayé Kouagou at Gathering

Who is Ndayé Kouagou? According to the artist himself, he creates work that could be 'quite interesting', in the same vein, it's also 'not that interesting or maybe not interesting at all', (also artist statements). Traversing a multitude of mediums including performance, film, textiles, sculpture and installation, Kouagou's work, if certain of one thing and one thing only, takes delight in the semiotics of text; the way we use language and ultimately, how we use it. Particularly interested in the digital landscape we are all beholden to (TikTok, Instagram and the like), as well as the myriad of affirmations and phrases that litter such platforms, Kouagou's work shines brightest in the artist’s own refusal of commonalities we all share or thoughts we inhibit. Take his most recent exhibition, Sorry, but your beloved mom is not always right! at Westfälischer Kunstverein, for example; a show that takes root in a phrase we all know and use but subverts it to reflect the exact opposite, something equally relatable, even if we don’t want to admit it. Looking for another example? You’ll have to wait until his recently announced upcoming exhibition at Soho's Gathering for that, (reportedly set to be his boldest exploration of language to date). Luckily for you, the opening is at the end of next month. See you there?

Ndayé Kouagou‘s exhibition at Gathering will be open to the public from 29 November until 18 January.

BOOK

Mat Maitland: Collages for Magazines

We all know that surrealism has long been seen as the ultimate inspiration for many artists - the contemporary as well as the classical - and Mat Maitland is no exception.

Widely recognised for his role as a creative director, under which he’s worked with a plethora of household names including Prince, Lana Del Rey, Elton John, and numerous others, Maitland has now turned his attention to compiling his artistic achievements in a beautifully illustrated book titled Collages for Magazines, celebrating 15 years of image making by bringing together a curation of original collages created for Vogue, King Kong Magazine, Document and others. While his work may mimic the elegance of a Hannah Höch, the subversiveness of a John Stezaker or even the wittiness most apparent in a Tristan Tzara, Maitland’s creativity knows no bounds, straddling multiple worlds all the while forging his own.

To immerse yourself in the colourful and joyous world of Mat Maitland, you can pre-order Collages for Magazines here.

FILM

A is for Ant by Jack Davison

Presenting a surrealist journey via a children's alphabet book, Jack Davison's latest project A is for Ant - in collaboration with esteemed set designer Shona Heath - is a short film documenting the characteristics of each letter from the alphabet, each of which are represented by an animal and performed by a cast. 'Since I’ve become a parent, I have always wanted to work on a project that spoke to my children; a piece of work that they could respond to and have as a window into my world', Davison said in a statement to press. 'A is for Ant is an attempt to celebrate these concepts. The hope is it can be experienced by people from all walks of life, including those that aren’t seeking to see it.'

Combining performance, illustration and film performed in unexpected public places, the project has been made possible thanks to The Ant Bus - an interactive theatrical presentation of the project intending to bridge art and film while bringing it to unusual spaces, challenging people’s ideals of where they expect to experience art and it's role in society at large.

The Ant Bus will be coming to a place near you next week. Stay tuned for more details coming soon.