Tate Modern: Artist and Society

One exhibition in Tate Modern Art Gallery in London is the theme Artist and Society: Can Art Change the World? It is concerned with the ways artists engage with social and historical ideas and how art provides a mirror to contemporary society.

The artists in the exhibition express their views of society by raising awareness of political or social issues, sometimes reflecting change and sometimes arguing for change.

For example, the section on Civil War, shows protest art of the 20th century, notably the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), born in Spain and living in Paris, depicted the Spanish Civil War in his work Weeping Woman (1937) – shown above.

In another section Karel Appel (1921-2006) from the Netherlands shows artistic freedom in his work Hip, Hip, Hoorah ! (1949) in an effort to reinvigorate post-war art culture. This piece combines human and bird features as ‘people of the night’ (the dark background). His inspiration for the bright colours and child-like imagery came from children’s drawings.

Tate Modern includes French artist Claude Monet (1940-1926) and his Water-Lilies after 1916 from his garden in Normandy. In 1916, in the middle of World War I, Monet donated a series of waterlily paintings to the government.

Antony Gormley’s (1950-) figure Untitled [for Francis] (1986) is moulded from his own body and encased in lead. Gormley sees his sculpture as a tool to link ‘inner and outer worlds’ in our society.

Artists include Pablo Picasso, Dame Barbara Hepworth, Iwao Yamawaki, Salvador Dali, Rachel Whiteread, David Alfaro Siqueiros, Richard Hamilton, Andrea Bowers, Theaster Gates, Teresa Margolles, Andre Fougeron, Marwan Rechmaoui, Karel Appel, Claud Monet, Kazimir Malevich, Naum Gabo, Agnes Martin, Antony Gormley, Gerhard Richter, Mark Rothko, Lorna Simpson, Harun Farocki, Joseph Beuys, Gulsun Karamustafa, Jane Alexander, and Bernd and Hilla Becher.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

Comments

2016 update on Rike Park, Tbilisi: from construction to busy park

From a flat patch of uninteresting dirt, Rike Park in Tbilisi, Georgia, has transformed in four years (from 2014-2016) into a busy park full of trees, flower beds, sculptures, fountains, and events. Rike (Rikhe) Park is on the left bank of the Mt’k’vari River (the Kura River) near the Old City of Tbilisi. The Peace Bridge links the right bank to Rike Park. Rike Park is below the hillside Presidential Palace and, via cable car, it is the starting point for the ride to Sololaki Ridge (with the Narikala Fortress and the Mother of Georgia statue). The glass box-shaped cable car terminus was opened on 23 June 2012, and since then the park has continually developed into a ‘people’s park’ where people can walk around, eat at the nearby restaurants, sit next to the statue of American president Ronald Reagan, climb the steps to Avlabari district, and access the sights of Meidan Square, the Peace Bridge, the Metekhi Church, the Old City, the waterfall, the sulphur baths, and t...

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...

Hop on hop off bus tourism comes to Tbilisi, Georgia

City Sightseeing buses have arrived in Tbilisi. The iconic red double-decker buses, a feature of many cities around the world since the company was established in Seville, Spain in 1999, is now in six continents and almost 100 cities. The company established its Tbilisi business in November 2013, with its operations commencing in February 2014. The 90-minute tour stops at 11 major locations in Tbilisi (with 2 to 5 minute waiting times at each location): the Old City (where it commences), Freedom Square, Rose Revolution Square, Marjanishvili Square, the Dry Bridge, Konka, Avlabari, Metekhi, Akhundov Museum, the Sulfur Baths, and European Square. Passengers can hop off at any stop and see the sights, hopping back onto the next bus at any time. Alternatively, passengers can remain on the bus for the whole tour and take photographs when the bus stops at each location. There are one day (24-hour) passes (for 35 lari – about $20) and 48-hour passes for 55 lari, with family d...

FEAST OR FAMINE

Search This Blog