Sphinx Fine Art (12-24 October 2015)
This was an interesting exhibition held at an Old Masters gallery not far from Notting Hill Gate. Works were displayed on 3 floors and comprised a mixture of ‘Young Masters’ artwork displayed next to traditional Old Masters.
They were placed next to images that had inspired the new creations.
When viewing the exhibition I was instantly struck by the quality of drawing and painting of these ‘Young Masters’. Admittedly these are exceptional young talents who were invited to exhibit. It was necessary to demonstrate and respond to an Old Master’s image and generate an innovative response. I think that all the artists in this exhibition have done this and extraordinarily well.
I have selected a handful of the works on display to highlight:
Bartholomew Beal:
Hyacinth Girl (Study I and II)
Batholemew Beal is without doubt an artist to watch. The images are exact and quality of brushstrokes really very refined. Also, the compositions have a modern and fresh feel about them.
Christian Voigt:
Morgan Library III
The image is the interior of a library. When viewed for the first time it is awe-inspiring! A large composition using light jet print. The detail is breathtaking. A really beautiful image!
Isabelle Van Zeiji
Supermodel III
This image was on the lower floor gallery. It is a large image of a beautiful young woman looking out of the composition. Van Zeiji uses dark colours and the pose of the sitter reminds me of Vermeer’s ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ as she gazes out. The dark colours are contrasted with the brilliant white of the ruff. Also, a really stunning and beautiful image!
Ghislaine Howard
After Caravaggio
Howard’s style is full of colour as she takes on the monumental challenge of being inspired by Caravaggio. The feature that is most striking is that while Caravaggio was the master of ‘chiaroscuro,’ Howard would appear to be that of the brilliance use of colour: how it is applied also creates affect that heightens the drama of the composition: in flashes, spontaneous and full of energy and atmosphere!
Elisabeth Caren
Madame Bouvary No. 1
A photograph. Perhaps as the time when Madame Bouvary looks to the sky and breaths a sigh of relief and reflects. Again a beautiful image.
Rosie Emerson
Polaris
The image appears to resemble an icon: the gold and the shape of the outline above the figure. Also, the style and costume (to me) hints at something Russian or possibly Slavic: the headdress, costume and accessories. The contrast in the blue and white add to the appeal of this image.
Conclusions:
There will be additions made to this exhibition in November. I will add more information in another blog article informing of other ‘Young Masters’ works included.
The work is undoubtedly outstanding but I think that the feature that makes this exhibition interesting is the emphasis on Old Masters being a source of inspiration: technique and drawing and painting skills. The Young Masters competition actively seeks to promote these skills and I do believe this should be applauded.