Tabish Khan the @LondonArtCritic picks his Top 5 Art Exhibitions to see in London in January. Each one comes with a concise review to help you decide whether it’s for you. If you’re looking for more shows, check out last week’s top 5 where two remain open to visit.
El-Anatsui: Timespace @ October Gallery
While there’s a lot of deserved attention on his Tate Modern turbine hall installation, this exhibition showcases El-Anatsui’s his smaller bottle top works – though still towering over us, his earlier prints and a wooden sculpture in the courtyard so that we can see the full range of his practice. Until 13 January.
Vilte Fuller: Corporate Horrors @ Brooke Benington
Close ups of hands and faces, and of keyboard keys in the dull grey associated with a standard corporate office – with an actual keyboard and work shirt embedded into some of the works. This show particularly resonated with me given my own corporate background – it’s critical but it also captures the dull banality of corporate life. Until 20 January.
Sadness is But a Wall Between Two Gardens @ Daniel Benjamin Gallery
All five artists in this show are brought together through our shared humanity and take it in different directions. Erna Mist presents a surreal mythical scene that mixes figures with fantastical architecture and Maria Andrievskaya’s striking monochromatic paintings fixes us with her intense stare. Rosanna Dean meshes up Eastern spiritualism and Western art history to include references to both within her paintings. Until 16 January.
An eXhibition of SMALL things with BIG ideas @ White Conduit Projects
This is a fantastic collection of small scale works that includes painting and sculpture in a varied and busy display across two floors curated by fellow FAD writer Paul Carey Kent. It’s filled with a mixture of artists I know and those that are new to me. Until 27 January.
Women’s work is never done @ Richard Saltoun
This densely hung exhibition brings together over a dozen post-war female artists, both those represented by the gallery and those who aren’t. Highlights include Veronica Ann Janssens installation that can be walked upon and the colourful suspended textile pieces by Erin Manning. Until 20 January.
El-Anatsui photo: © Jonathan Greet. Daniel Benjamin image: copyright Maria Andrievskaya. All images copyright respective artists and galleries.
