Darkfield’s new in-person show Eulogy, showing from the 6-17th October in an old shipping container next to the National Theatre on South Bank, is part of the Immersive Art and XR programme at BFI London Film Festival 2021.

The 30-minute-long audio play transports the audience into a labyrinthine hotel where each individual plays a different character and hence, listens to a slightly different story. Taken through rooms and corridors, into car parks, canteens, and swimming pools, the audience sits inside the completely dark container with their eyes closed and headphones on listening to the charming voices of the pre-recorded actors using binaural sound and speech recognition technology.

Eulogy is a dream-like imaginative experience that makes you feel excited and confused. It highlights the differences between an embodied human experience and the one that only exists in our imagination. For people with great ability to let go and imagine stories in their heads, this is an amazing experience. For ones like me who struggle to keep their mind focused, this is a good exercise to completely immerse yourself in a play.

Reviewed by Giulia Ciccolella – Giulia is interning with Abundant Art during the month of October and supports the organisation writing reviews and helping with marketing and PR. Giulia is German-Italian and graduated with a BA in Media & Communications with first-class honours from Goldsmiths, University of London. She has been living in the UK for over three years and is excited to explore London’s art scene further while learning more about the work of Abundant Art.

Highly praised by critics and the Film Academy alike, the psychological drama and musical Annette – with Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard as protagonists – has won many awards, for example, the Cannes Best Director Award for Leos Carax’ work.

 Annette, which is the title of the film as well as the name of the (puppet) child of failed comedian Henry McHenry and renowned opera singer Ann Desfranoux talks about the relationship of the two adults and how it crumbles once baby Annette is born. It follows Henry from being a much-loved comedian to becoming unpopular and hated by his fans while the career of his wife Ann seems to excel.

Intimate scenes, magnificent costumes, and impressive sets transport the viewer into a fairy-tale world. Moreover, the rather dark plotlines of murder, exploitation and manipulation remind me of Gebrüder Grimm’s ‘Märchen’ and add almost a psychological thriller effect.

The music created by American pop and rock duo ‘Spark’ enhances the story with simple, repetitive lyrics and adds weight to the story while Marion Cotillard’s voice will certainly give you goosebumps. Overall, I was mesmerised by the screenplay, the beautifully crafted set and costumes and the voices and performances of the actors were absolutely stunning too.

If you would like to see a musical that is familiar but different at the same time, I would highly recommend watching Annette. It left me feeling confused about the world, bringing up a lot of different emotions and putting me into a dream-like state.

Reviewed by Giulia Ciccolella – Giulia is interning with Abundant Art during the month of October and supports the organisation writing reviews and helping with marketing and PR. Giulia is German-Italian and graduated with a BA in Media & Communications with first-class honours from Goldsmiths, University of London. She has been living in the UK for over three years and is excited to explore London’s art scene further while learning more about the work of Abundant Art.

“We were young, rich, and beautiful, and the tide – we thought – was turning in our favour. We were going to change everything, of course, but mostly we were going to change the rules.” – Marianne Faithfull 

Fashion can be used as a statement and in the 1960s and 70s the generation of the so-called Beautiful People – the radical designers, artists, aristocrats, and musicians – expressed their individuality and political views through different textiles, fabrics, colours, and cuts.

The lifestyle of the hippie culture consisted of high-waisted bootleg trousers; colourful patterns on dresses and shirts; big round sunglasses covering people’s faces and music festivals with crowds celebrating artists from the Beatles to Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones.

Iconic London boutiques such as Hung On You, Granny Takes A Trip and Apple Tailoring inspired a young generation to get creative and incorporate the socio-political climate of the time, which more than anything, was about changing the rules.  Hence, the designs are worn by artists and rock stars expressing their gender and sexuality. This laid a whole new ground for fashion, and many ordinary people incorporated the flashy, over-the-top looks into their wardrobes too.

To get an in-depth understanding of London’s 1960s counterculture, I would highly recommend visiting the Beautiful People exhibition at the Fashion & Textile Museum in London, running until March 2022. With over one hundred original ensembles as well as video snippets, magazine excerpts, and photographs, the exhibition explores one of the most dramatic periods of British design history and serves as a testimony of the fashion of the free-spirited and rebels who dared to oppose the established societal rules and norms.

Beautiful People: The Boutique in 1960s Counterculture
1 October 2021 – 13 March 2022

Tickets available at https://www.ftmlondon.org/ftm-exhibitions/beautiful-people-the-boutique-in-1960s-counterculture/

Photograph was taken for The Observer, December 1967. Copyright Patrick Ward

Reviewed by Giulia Ciccolella – Giulia is interning with Abundant Art during the month of October and supports the organisation writing reviews and helping with marketing and PR. Giulia is German-Italian and graduated with a BA in Media & Communications with first-class honours from Goldsmiths, University of London, and has been living in the UK for over three years. She is excited to explore London’s art scene further and to learn more about the work of Abundant Art.

If there is one film I would urge you to watch then it would definitely be Pier Kids which was released in cinemas in the UK on October 8th. 

A thoughtfully crafted and honest masterpiece by queer, black director Elegance Bratton, Pier Kids was shot over the duration of five years (2011-2016). Focusing on the societal injustices queer, homeless and black folks in America face, the documentary highlights the communities’ suffering from police brutality, financial precariousness, and urban gentrification, while also beautifully displaying how the Pier Kids have created themselves a community and home at Manhattan’s Chelsea Piers. 

Getting an intimate glimpse through the lens of Bratton into the daily lives of three members of the community, Crystal LaBeija, Casper, and Desean, the shots make you feel like you are actually there, becoming a part of the space and daily lives of the community in New York.

Intimate and honest, this portrait puts into perspective topics such as sex work, the death of a loved one, and the struggles of being accepted as a trans person by your family and friends. And, with scenes that are devastating to watch, this brutal, but also beautiful film shows that there is so much warmth in all the sadness and struggle, making the viewer reflect on the true meaning of belonging and love. 

Tickets for Pier Kids are available here: https://www.ica.art/films/pier-kids. 

Reviewed by Giulia Ciccolella – Giulia is interning with Abundant Art during the month of October and supports the organisation writing reviews and helping with marketing and PR. Giulia is German-Italian and graduated with a BA in Media & Communications with first-class honours from Goldsmiths, University of London, and has been living in the UK for over three years. She is excited to explore London’s art scene further and to learn more about the work of Abundant Art.

This fall, the National Theatre is hosting the revival of Larry Kramer’s famous gay-activist play ‘The Normal heart’. Written as a pure cry of rage in 1985 during the AIDS crisis, the play embodies the fear, anger, and uncertainty of the gay communities of New York that saw themselves targeted by a terrifying unknown virus, whilst being ignored by the media and the general public. This politically charged story of how writer and activist Ned Weeks (Ben Daniels) tries to raise awareness on the mysterious virus transforms into a heart-wrecking personal drama when his lover, Felix Turner (Dino Fetscher), catches the illness.

The story is punctuated by an intense sense of urgency, as the constant reminders of Doctor Emma Brookner (Liz Carr) keep us updated on the number of deaths throughout the timeline of the play, giving an almost apocalyptical aspect to the situation. Ned’s exasperated outbursts also add to the imperativeness of his cause, and the play is punctuated by his long and passionate tirades. The furious hot-headedness of the protagonist can be perceived as an annoying trait that doesn’t profit the plot or bring much debate to the table, as any attempt at a two-sided conversation with any other character is impossible. The personal drama that Ned goes through as well as the intimacy that he shares with his boyfriend resonated far better with the audience than most of the yelling, and in many instances, in the silence following the end of a scene, one could hear many echoes of muffled sobs throughout the room.

The long-awaited revival of the play could not have come at a better time, as the theme of the fear of an unknown virus touches some unpleasant familiar cords. Although being extremely loyal to the original script, the modern adaptation contains some changes from the original. It makes the interesting choice of not dimming the lights once a scene is over so that we get to see the actors break character and run around once their scene is done, as well as setting the date and location of each scene by making the actors announce them out loud before they start saying their lines. This modern version is also an admirable example of good representation as it possesses a very diverse cast, such as actual queer and disabled actors, who sadly are still underrepresented today when it comes to performative arts.

The play starts with the characters lighting a small flame that will burn throughout the whole play, echoing W.H. Auden’s poem “September 1, 1939” about World War II, where it is claimed that one must “show an affirming flame” during a disaster. The whole play is animated by this spirit of fighting, of seeking justice, of yelling at every corner until we are heard. It doesn’t dwell on self-pity, it doesn’t ask for our sorrow. It wants to fight.

Humour, drama, and politics will move you to the tears in a play that is, without a doubt, a must-watch. Not only does it cast a light on a part of history that is often overlooked, but it also is a story full of humanity and love that will bring together audiences of any background. To once again quote W.H. Auden, “We must either love each other, or we must die”.

The tickets are available until November 6.
https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/shows/the-normal-heart.

Reviewed by Céline Galletti- Celine is a volunteer writer for Abundant Art. Originally from France and Italy, she follows her passion for writing and art by studying Comparative Literature at UCL, London. As an international student living in London, she is determined to fully experience and understand the city’s vibrant arts scene, and be a part of its creative storm.

This year Tate Modern museum has borrowed parts of the artist Rodin’s workshop from the musée d’Orsay for the exclusive exposition “The making of Rodin”. The exhibition offers us a peek of the backstage of the making of some of Rodin’s most famous masterpieces such as The Thinker, Balzac, The Burghers of Calais, and many more. More than just exploring Rodin as an artist, we are invited to discover Rodin the artisan by wandering through his experimentations of clay and plaster as if we were walking through his studio in Paris.

The particularity of Rodin’s method of work comes from his formation as a studio assistant in decorative art, which taught him the serial production of single models and the reworking of each copy. The artist methodically dissects his work by putting his models through fragmentation, repetition, enlargement, multiplication, enlargement, and assembling in a frenetical and creative process. The relationship between artist and spectators is shifted: instead of looking at motionless pieces of art, we get to admire their evolution from model to model and retrace the steps they went through to become the finished masterpieces we know today.

The sculptures are remarkable, as always when it comes to Rodin: the tense muscles of The Thinker, the ghost-like faces of The Burghers of Calais and the angelic figure of The Age of Bronze will leave anyone in a state of pure admirative contemplation. The imperfections of the statues reflect the ruptures and complexities of the human body and refuse the idealised beauty of classical sculpture that Rodin seems to adopt for his usual works. The exposition also delves into the relationship between Rodin and Classicism, as the artist was a keen admirer of Classical culture and an avid collector of ancient artefacts, although some of his improvisations in the studio where he assembled different contrasting pieces in one sculpture don’t go without reminding some aspects of Cubism or Surrealism.

You will also get to admire the fluidity and the movement of some of Rodin’s drawings and sketches, which could be considered artworks of their own.

Moreover, the exposition contains some biographical elements as it retraces the life of the artist as well as the pivotal figures and relationships of his career. You will come across his wife, Rose Beuret, who helped him in his studio and stayed by his side for their whole lives despite the many infidelities of the sculptor; his assistant and lover Camille Claudel, the enigmatic female sculptor victim of her time; and some of his favourite models, such as the aristocrat Helen Von Nostitz and the Japanese actress Ohta Hisa. The relationship between artists and their female models is a controversial topic in art, to which the exposition takes time to allude. If you are interested in digging a little deeper, scan codes are available all along the exhibition where you can listen to the take of current artists on modern themes related to the exposition, such as the role of women in art and the disrupting ways of working artists today.

I would recommend this exposition to anyone interested in sculpture, as the exhibition will give you a precious insight into the process of creation and the mind of an artist, or in this case, a genius.

Get your tickets now at https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/exhibition/ey-exhibition-rodin.

Reviewed by Céline Galletti- Celine is a volunteer writer for Abundant Art. Originally from France and Italy, she follows her passion for writing and art by studying Comparative Literature at UCL, London. As an international student living in London, she is determined to fully experience and understand the city’s vibrant arts scene, and be a part of its creative storm.

If you find yourself visiting the expositions of the lovely Whitechapel Gallery, you will find an article written in 1936 by the Journal “The Phantom” affirming that Surrealism gave audiences of this time a mixed feeling of “bewilderment, amusement, and animosity”. I find no better way to describe the works that are temporarily exposed at the small exposition “Phantoms of Surrealism”.

These “Phantoms of Surrealism” are the hidden female figures of the movement that operated the machinery of Surrealism from behind the scenes, without however receiving as much recognition for their contribution to art as other famous counterparts of the movements. They were the secretaries, the event organisers, the activists but also the artists of the movement, who dared to challenge general views and express their socialist opinions in the troubled political times of the 1930s. Grace Pailthorpe, Stella Snead, Diana Brinton, Sheila Legge, the “phantoms” of this exposition, will no longer be ghosts as they are given a name, a face, and have become full-fleshed human beings in art history. 

The exposition skillfully marries art and politics by bringing together the art pieces of overlooked artists with the pieces of media of the time that expressed their opinions on the controversial performances of the artists. When giving a closer look at the papers, one notices that they seem to humour the bizarre eccentricities of Surrealists, pointing a finger at how young their audience was, calling their performances a “nightmare” and questioning if their work was even art at all. Performers in diving suits and women publicly covering their heads in flowers did not seem to be at the taste of the general public of the time. 

A selection of papers and pictures will bring you back to the 1936 art exhibition in Burlington gardens that regrouped world-famous Surrealist names such as Paul Eluard and Salvador Dali. The Spanish artist amused the audience by delivering the opening speech in a diving suit, to show that the exhibition dove deep into the human mind, and subsequently staying stuck in it when he tried to take it off. 

In the same theme of performative art, Whitechapel Gallery offers an interactive workshop by the renowned artist and activist Yoko Ono. Since her installation was first presented in 1966, she has established herself as a central figure in Conceptual art by working in music, film, writing, and visual art, whilst always fighting for world peace and non-violence. This mix of experimentation in art and activism for peace are the central ideas around which revolves the workshop. 

In the workshop, two white tables are covered in fragments of broken pottery. On the wall, Yoko has written her instructions: “Mend carefully. Think of mending the world at the same time.”. The spectator will be presented glue, tape, and rope, and will be asked to display their mended work on a shelf on the wall. The message of the experience is very interpretative, as all conceptual and performative art is, but the central idea one gets is that the artist calls us to work, with carefulness and creativity, to repair the world from the wounds that have been inflicted by violence. One can only do so by being delicate and gentle, and even then, the repaired piece will never be the same as it was before. Interestingly, none of the repaired pots on the shelves resembles an actual pot, as most people prefer making a personal little sculpture, varying from a flower to a small basket, rather than just giving back the pots their original form. A nice little example of human creativity. 

Yoko Ono’s art and fame are definitely a positive note, a happy ending to the story of the forgotten female figures of Surrealism: feminist history has come a long way, and women have been able to establish themselves in art. The gallery reminds us that the history of women in art is haunted by the ghosts of those who fought so that, one day, women would finally be given a voice to express their creativity and to shout their message to the world.

Whitechapel Gallery hosts this and many more exhibitions, which you can check out for free at https://www.whitechapelgallery.org. 

Reviewed by Céline Galletti- Celine is a volunteer writer for Abundant Art. Originally from France and Italy, she follows her passion for writing and art by studying Comparative Literature at UCL, London. As an international student living in London, she is determined to fully experience and understand the city’s vibrant arts scene, and be a part of its creative storm.

This September, the Barbican Centre hosts the celebratory works of Isamu Noguchi, the renowned Japanese American artist who boldly thrust sculpture art into the public sphere. We admire the diversity of his work and his life whilst grappling with the fundamental question; what position should sculpt art take in public life, and what can art tell us about our humanity? The Barbican Centre was extremely accommodating, hauling a plethora of Noguchi’s work across two floors, and arranging the works chronologically and by genre (no easy feat considering the variety of Noguchi’s work). “Kaleidoscopic” is the word that comes to mind when understanding Noguchi’s work, and the Barbican Centre offers an open clockwise setup of twelve displays for observers to appreciate such diversity.

Born in 1904, raised in Japan, and being of dual heritage (a Japanese mother but an American father) Noguchi’s sculpture uniquely tackles cultural duality. The relations between America and Japan in the mid-late 20^th century were both tumultuous and tragic, contrastingly Noguchi’s work is not tribalistic but expansive, reflecting the time he had spent traveling around the world searching for a place of belonging. Judging by his multi-thematic sculptures on space (both cosmic and abstract), biology, and nature, Noguchi asserts that his “place of belonging” is everywhere. Noguchi refuses to be pinned down by politics or creed but embraces life itself. Pertinent examples include Miss Expanding Universe (1932), Mitosis, (1962) and Skin and Bones (1950), all of which are wildly different compositions of a similar theme: our interlocking humanity and our potential to expand into the universe.

Early on, Noguchi was educated at the Leonardo da Vinci Art School in New York and launched his career making portrait heads (bronze masks and busts are scattered throughout the exhibition). A brief stint at Paris on a fellowship saw him transition to abstract carving. Between 1928-1931: Beijing, Tokyo, Moscow, and London were some of the destinations that Noguchi ventured to during his quest for self-discovery. Knowing oneself was incredibly poignant for Noguchi, being a Nisei (American of Japanese heritage) meant coming to terms with two wildly different cultures and Noguchi settled on looking at the world in a new way: through his legs.

“When an artist stops being a child, he stops being an artist” – Isamu Noguchi

One of Noguchi’s most famous works forces us to shed all paradigms when envisaging the world around us. Boy Looking through Legs (1933), is a self-portrait of a child gazing at the world upside down. It seemed 1933 was a watershed moment for Noguchi as his bold insertion of sculpting art into the public sphere began. A series of playground-inspired artwork frolic with the idea of space as a volume, this work went largely unrealised but shows Noguchi’s earlier attempts to boldly “break out of the categories of sculpture”.

Upon entering these art displays, I often found myself contorting my neck or squatting more often than accustomed to. Much of Noguchi’s work is very Japanese, that is low to the ground, but intensely American and with a focus on the industrial and the astronomical (see Sculpture to be Seen from Mars, 1947). I later found that he often took inspiration from Japanese gardens in observatories, specifically the grounding effects rocks have on us as humans.

Ultimately, this is an exhibition of one man’s life and his eternal search for belonging. Suffice to say, the work of Isamu Noguchi is not entirely inward-looking or pacifistic. His views on war and the tragedies of Hiroshima are worth admiring, and the Barbican Centre goes all out on Noguchi’s innovative luminescent displays which – depending on where you look – create a new picture every time round.

For more information, please visit the Barbican website here: https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2021/event/noguchi

Reviewed by Mohammed Abdillahi – Mohammed is a volunteer writer for Abundant Art. Currently completing a History Master’s at QMUL, his passion for global history allows him to appreciate art as valuable remnants of the past.

The Place hosted A Festival of Korean Dance, a physically extreme world-premiere double-bill show, Equilibrium, and Zero, by the acclaimed South Korean Company SIGA.

The credo of the company: to follow an ideal of collectivity, and to use dance as a tool to communicate and connect with the lives of the people around us. It is with this philosophy in mind that they craft their choreography, shaped by the ideas of every single member of the team of dancers and choreographers. A patchwork of ideas that gives birth to an innovative and collective project.

The three keywords of the company are “Speed”, “Basic” and “Body”, which are visible, and the vibes are felt loud and clear throughout.  They aim for a certain “basic” simplicity, with plain black costumes, an empty stage, and a small group of dancers. This leads to closeness between the dancers and their spectator exploring the concept of collectivity. Nonetheless, the show is strong and spectacular, as the ideas of “speed” and “body” result in fast, tenacious, and physically demanding performances. At the end of the performance the dancers were flaming fireballs-their bodies pushed to their human limits through the choreographies.

One cannot go without mentioning the music (Bluechan) and light (Yujin HONG) which essentially enhanced a minimalist scene. The expert use of light and surreal rhythmic music transported the audience to an infinite and otherworldly non-space without corners, where the only thing the eye perceives are the dancers on stage.

The first choreography, Equilibrium, is a duet between dancers Hyuk KWON and Jaeyoung LEE, who is also the choreographer, exploring the ideas of balance and chaos. The dance is an alternation of still moments without music or lighting, where the dancers perform slower, almost insecure movements, and seem to discover their own and the other’s body. These moments are interrupted by explosions of music and light, and the choreography becomes a fast-paced duet where the dancers complete each other’s movements and perform almost as one unique entity. During the post-show Q&A (yes, if you stick around after the show, you can participate in a translated and BSL interpreted interview) – Jaeyoung LEE explained that the dance revolved around the idea of chaos, which is, for obvious reasons, quite difficult to choreograph. Improvised sections lent a non-induced, naturally chaotic feel to their movements.

The second choreography, Zero, is a six-dancer piece with an interesting and original concept: the dancers jump and swing their arms on stage to the constant rhythm of music, as if they were running. They repeat this same move over and over with their back to the audience and the effect is simply captivating, enhanced by the magical play of light design.  Choreographer Hyuk KWON, who also performed in Equilibrium, affirmed that he wanted to explore physicality and human limits, and kept the dancers facing away from the audience. His idea is to concentrate on their bodies and their physical effort rather than their facial expressions.

The young talents of SIGA have way to go performing internationally, conquering the scenes and hearts of London and a global audience. Their message of collectivity and unity is a hopeful promise that needs to be shared today more than ever.

Reviewed by Céline Galletti- Celine is a volunteer writer for Abundant Art. Originally from France and Italy, she follows her passion for writing and art by studying Comparative Literature at UCL, London.

As an international student living in London, she is determined to fully experience and understand the city’s vibrant arts scene, and be a part of its creative storm.