| UK show paints flattering picture of Britain |
LONDON Contemporary artists have big business and social unrest in their sights in a politically charged exhibition that presents a far from flattering picture of Britain, and London in particular, in the run up to the Summer Olympics.
“The London Open”, which opens at the Whitechapel Gallery on Wednesday, comes as the city gears up for the sporting showcase and just weeks after spectacular Diamond Jubilee celebrations marked the queen’s 60th year on the throne. A far darker image of the country and its capital emerges from the show, which features 35 artists chosen by a panel from more than 1,800 applicants.
“One of the big things that emerged was that there was a real engagement with social, political and economic subject matter,” said gallery curator Kirsty Ogg.
“We’re living through a time of extreme global financial and political crisis,” she added at a preview to the exhibition. “The artists are not necessarily directly referring to these issues, but there is an oblique reference.”
A corner of the main gallery space is devoted to French-born Arnaud Desjardin’s “The Everyday Press”, featuring a printer, economic review publications and copies of a pamphlet called ‘Business as Usual’. Visitors are invited to buy copies at a pound a time, allowing gallery attendants to continue to produce more pamphlets without the artist incurring a loss. Inside the pamphlet, the pages are marked with phrases, including “Greed”, “Manipulation”, “Exploitation”, “More-Greed-More” and “Cheap Tricks”.
If that work reflects widespread public anger in recession-hit Britain over bank bailouts and financial market bonuses, last year’s riots in London and beyond are evoked in two other pieces.
Nicholas Cobb’s “Untitled” features 6 photographs from the larger ‘The Car Park’ series which predate the social unrest of 2011. Nonetheless, his meticulous reconstruction of street scenes made with models that are destro-yed once they have been photo-graphed are reminiscent of media images of looting and clashes with police.
Reuters
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