Tabish Khan the @LondonArtCritic picks his Top 5 Art Exhibitions to see in London in late 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 three remain open to visit.
Liorah Tchiprout: Two Eyes Wide Open at the Edge of Dawn @ Marlborough
Creating her own puppets and capturing them in paintings and print, they almost look human in their expressions and each work allows us to build our own narratives for them given their far away gazes. Drawing from her Jewish heritage and channelling her own emotions into her works these are captivating figurative works. Until 28 January.
Rob and Nick Carter: 25 years @ 5A Bathurst Street
This husband and wife duo have been working together for 25 years, and across their gallery and nearby studio they have a selection of their works from recent pieces to the first piece they made together. I love their excellent use of digital technology to bring still life paintings to life, as insects inspect flowers and a reclining woman’s stomach rises up and down with her breath. Until 31 January.
Mauro C Martinez: Practice makes Purrfect @ Unit London
Familiar professional tennis players serve, smash and volley cats in this playful exhibition of paintings that poke fun at the more cut-throat side of competitive sport where it feels like many athletes will do whatever it takes to win. Until 3 February.
Mario Testino: Going Wild @ Hamiltons
Testino takes his renowned eye for fashion shots and applies it to animals so that big cats and birds look like they’ve been posed and staged. These composite images almost feel like they could be painted or computer generated. Until 3 February.
Ajarb Bernard Ategwa: Nyang Nyang @ Jack Bell Gallery
These large scale portraits made with striking colours combine historic poses with a very contemporary palette. It’s the texture and colours of the faces and exposed skin that really caught my eye as it anonymises each sitter and feels like there’s a galaxy inside each person. Until 26 January.
All images copyright artist and gallery. Liorah Tchiprout photo: Eva Herzog. Art Exhibitions to see in London in late January
