Sharjah Art Foundation (SAF) continues an extensive programme of music, performances, and film screenings as part of Sharjah Biennial 11 (SB11), Re:emerge – Towards a New Cultural Cartography, which opened 13 March and will continue through 13 May. For SB11, Curator Yuko Hasegawa proposes a new cultural cartography that reconsiders the relationships between the Arab world, Asia, the Far East, through North Africa to Latin America.
Opening Evening 8, Manchester
AWOL Studios in Manchester host their eighth Open Evening on 17 May from 4pm until 9pm. With 81 studios and workshops, AWOL Studios at Hope Mill is home to over 120 artistic and creative individuals practising a diverse range of disciplines including fine art, jewellery, fashion, photography, sculpture, animation, film making and crafts.
Poppositions Art Fair, Brussels
Launching its second edition, Poppositions returns to Brussels with another unconventional venue, twice as many participants and a jury to elect the best propositions from the selected artists. Running during Art Brussels, 18 – 21 April, the event continues to challenge the concept of an art fair by inviting pop-up galleries to fill a classified building with site-specific pieces. An international list of galleries are involved including, 200 x 75, Abilene, Actionfields, Not Yet, Les Commissaires, Outlandish, Greylight Projects and Rossi Contemporary.
Rudolf Stingler at Palazzo Grassi, Venice
The programming of Palazzo Grassi – François Pinault Foundation follows the principle of an alternation between thematic group exhibitions devoted to the works of the Pinault Collection and solo exhibitions by major contemporary artists. As part of the solo exhibitions, Rudolf Stingler has unveiled his first exhibition encompassing the entire space at Palazzo Grassi on 7 April. Conceived by the artist with the valuable and meticulous collaboration of Elena Geuna, the exhibition Rudolf Stingel presents over thirty paintings from international collections, including those of the artist and of François Pinault, forming a corpus that itself becomes a masterly work.
Winners Announced For The Designs Of The Year 2013
The Design Museum has announced the seven category winners for the annual Designs of the Year Awards. The awards celebrate the best of international design from the last 12 months. The overall winner for the Design of The Year 2013 will be announced on Wednesday 16 April.
Martin Boyce: Eyes, A Study at David Roberts Art Foundation
Martin Boyce’s Eyes (2012) is the fourth work in the David Roberts Art Foundation’s (DRAF) study series; a selection of case studies intended to provide a fuller understanding of works from the DRAF collection. The work in question is at the far end of a long room, and takes the form of a large-scale wall-panel. At a distance its surface appears to be a dull, mottled, grey concrete. A blue pyramidal object juts from its centre, and is surrounded by a cluster of dark, angular symbols. Moving closer to the work, the concrete texture is revealed as wooden boards, arranged flush in a diagonal pattern; like a parquet-floor that has been raised up onto the wall. The surface of the wood has been roughly stripped, leaving it dreary and undefined.
Rebecca Ward, Ronchini Gallery, London
The New York based artist Rebecca Ward comes to the Ronchini Gallery, London, for her first major solo exhibition. Running 12 April until 18 May, the showcase represents Ward’s broad practice and includes brand new installations and paintings, exploring colour and space. Relating to Arte Povera the artist rarely uses a brush when painting, instead she prefers to use traditional and found materials. Combining an eclectic range of media including bleach, acrylic, spray paint, gouache and fabric dye, she begins an investigation into the relationship between the painted surface and its base.
Mario Nanni: luce all’opera, Varese
Until 2 June, audiences are able to take a look at Mario Nanni’s Luce all’ Opera (light at work), at the Villa Panza collection in Varese. Considered as a master of light and dark, the presentation compares and contrasts Nanni’s significant works with the permanent collection at Villa Panza, introducing a dialogue between classic pieces and the innovative use of light.
New Order: British Art Today at Saatchi Gallery, London
Towards the end of this month, the Saatchi Gallery will launch a new programme of exhibitions which will continue the Gallery’s 25-year-long support of emerging artists and its drive to make contemporary art as widely available as possible to a British and international audience. An entire floor of the Gallery will be devoted to exhibiting artists in the early stages of their careers. Throughout the year the exhibitions will reflect the Gallery’s unique ability to respond quickly to some of the most exciting work being made by artists working in the UK.
PULSE New York
Marking its eight edition, PULSE New York returns to present 60 national and international galleries, exhibiting a mix of emerging and established artists. Covering a variety of media, photography, painting, sculpture, performance, installation and video art, the fair celebrates artistic practice and a range of talent from 9 May until 12 May.
C’est Wouf ! by M/M (Paris) at Air de Paris
Air de Paris unveils their new exhibition C’est Wouf ! by M/M (Paris) on 12 April. Art as practised by M/M(Paris) is a cumulative affair, spreading from medium to medium in a process of endless expansion. M/M’s concern is signs: their absolute plasticity and their persistence. Making play with scale and context, the work of this duo founded by Michael Amzalag and Mathias Augustyniak in 1992 is fuelled by transpositions of media and form that trigger corresponding effects of meaning. Thus M/M (Paris) exhibitions function equally as updates of their archive and as a pause allowing signs already produced to assume new forms and continue their trajectory.
Aesthetica April/May Out Now
Aesthetica Issue 52 is now out in the shops. Inside this issue, we start with Amalia Pica’s latest exhibition, which opens in April at MCA Chicago and is the artist’s first major solo museum show in the USA, including 15 of her most significant works. We also look at the Julio Le Parc retrospective on now at the Palais de Tokyo, Paris, presenting a vast survey of the artist’s work from the 1950s to the present day. European Chronicles opens this May as part of Diffusion in Cardiff, which is Wales’ first international photography festival. NYC 1993: Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star is the latest exhibition to open at the New Museum in New York City, capturing a specific moment at the intersection of art, pop culture and politics.