SHOWnews: Your Weekly Arts Bulletin
EXHIBITION
John Giorno: a labour of LOVE at Triennale Milano, Milan
Attending a life-changing party might seem like something from the fictional world of early Gaga or the latest Netflix series, but it happened. Sixty years ago, in 1962, John Giornio’s life as a stockbroker came to a halt when he found himself at Andy Warhol’s first New York Pop Art exhibition. Nothing was the same again.
What ensued was a famed relationship, resulting in Giornio transforming from broker into an iconic American artist, poet and activist. In celebration of Giorno’s rich life, the Triennale Milano is hosting a retrospective entitled A Labour of Love. Through the modernist walls of The Triennale, visitors are invited to experience a life of parallels, from Wall Street to Warhol's Factory. Which would you prefer?
John Giorno: a labour of LOVE is open to the public until April 13.
EXHIBITION
Azzedine Alaïa & Thierry Mugler: Two Decades of Artistic Affinities, 1980 - 1990 at Fondation Azzedine Alaïa, Paris
In the cutthroat industry that is fashion, it’s uncommon for competing houses to share genuine friendship. Yes, designers may collaborate, but lifelong support is rare. Azzedine Alaïa and Thierry Mugler are an exception. Despite both designers now eternally at peace, their fashion marriage isn't waning any time soon - not when you have four decades of friendship to consider. Which is why nothing makes more sense than the Fondation Azzedine Alaïa in Paris choosing to honour this special bond with a a tribute exhibition that tracks each designer's life work from 1980 to 1990.
Whoever you prefer, now it's time to put favourites aside in favour of embracing two of fashion's most sublime talents.
Azzedine Alaïa, Thierry Mugler 1980-1990 - Two Decades of Artistic Affinities is open to the public until Sunday Jun 29.
EXHIBITION
Edvard Munch Portraits at National Portrait Gallery, London
Expressionism is having a moment. Following the National Gallery’s Van Gogh exhibition, this week National Portrait Gallery launched their Edvard Munch Portraits exhibition which couldn't be more fitting for those fed up with the winter blues. Does your workload have you feeling like The Scream? What about those ghastly winter viruses that have had you By The Death Bed? Whatever’s going on, some solace is surely to be found in the hallowed halls of Munch.
Curated by The Wallace Collection’s Alison Smith, the exhibition examines Munch’s closest relationships. Swerving the obvious option to present the artist as an isolated agonist, Smith uses portraiture to focus on Munch as a social being (he was a Sagittarius after all). A four-part journey guides guests through Munch’s immediate family, his interactions with Bohemian radicals, his patrons, and finally those who nursed him through his nervous collapse.
Edvard Munch Portraits at National Portrait Gallery is open to the public until 15 June.
EXHIBITION
David Altmejd, The Serpent, at White Cube New York
Art offers a glimpse into society's wider subconsciousness, right? Sure. But if that's the case with all artists, we may have to probe deeper into the work of David Altmejd whose subconscious mind (apparently) is full of Jungian snakes, swans and rabbits. Like a scene from Jan Švankmajer’s Alice in Wonderland, White Cube, New York has become home to an array of phantasmagoric shapeshifters. Step into the first floor of the gallery, and you’ll be met with The Serpent - a towering snake composed of human heads. It’s very modern, to say the least. Interpreting each figure as a manifestation of his Self, Altmejd invites visitors into dreamlike depths within the perverse jungle of New York. Animals become symbols for control and surrender, and humans are subject to uncanny aberrations. No this isn't George Orwell's Animal Farm, this is David Altmejd's mind working overtime.
POETRY AND PERFORMANCE
In the spirit of Sadie Coles' The Shop project - which supports emerging artists and galleries, essentially acting as a platform for a new vanguard of curatorial talent - Sadie Coles HQ have now turned their attention to poetry and performance and, since the beginning of this year, have been asking those at the heart of London's creative scene to take over and curate a special night of readings.
Next up to take to the stage (and the mic) is Real Review's Jack Self who, along with a cohort of others, (the artist Alvaro Barrington included) will be responding to Real Review's strapline 'What It Means To Live Today'. Honest, freeing and distinctly pure - there's nothing like a good poetry night to welcome in the feeing of existentialism.
The next edition of Gargle by Real Review will be held at Sadie Coles HQ on Tuesday 18 March, 18:30 GMT.