Galleries - August 2010

Dress and taking its inspiration from research at Haworth's Brontë Museum, the 39 glass panels mounted on a steel frame make for an intensely haunting image. TO BE MISSED The saddest of news came in recently, the sudden and tragic death of Karl Barrie, whose Gallery Kaleidoscope –founded over 30 years ago in one of the less fashionable of London's artistic quarters, Kilburn High Street – was home to a wonderfully rich and idiosyncratic collection of artists, some like John Duffin kick- starting their careers with him. A vivid, enthusiastic gallery man, I remember interviewing him for a profile in this magazine 3 years ago with huge affection. Karl's partner Don plans to keep the gallery going, albeit on a more limited scale, for at least a couple of days a week. We also record, somewhat belatedly, the death in the Spring of another long estab- lished London dealer, Victor Arwas, whose Clifford Street gall- ery was hugely influential in pro- moting the 60s and 70s fashions for Arts Nouveau and Deco. That too will continue to operate principally online –see p9. more unlikely figures in that story, Michael and Christine West. A charismatic general of the post- war era (his playing of pop music notoriously loud, hence the soub- riquet), Mike West ended his career in Washington advising JFK through the Cuban missile crisis. He also had the good sense to marry a most stylish woman who also had an acute eye for contemporary art, which she coll- ected from the 1940s onwards with his enthusiastic support. Be- tween them, too, they became key figures in the early fundraising for the Centre. Now, 32 years after his death their collection, including the loan of a Lowry (later sold to build a stylish modern house), has been catalogued by critic Peter Davies and put on show in the Lottery Funded building. A rich display too, from Bridget Riley, Peter Sedgley and Merlyn Evans to Frank Auerbach, Roy Lichten- stein and John Bratby, by way of L.S. Lowry and Felix Kelly. No prisoners being taken there then – hop on the ferry now . . . CHARLOTTE'S DRESS Winner of the Galleries student prize in the RWA's prints ex- hibition last August, Lisa Sheppy is showing one of her startlingly beautiful works, using fused-glass with precious metal leaf and en- amel printmaking techniques, in a very different venue, having just been selected for the prestigious British Glass Biennale 2010 at Stourbridge. Entitled Charlotte's ANTENNAE 7. GALLERIES AUGUST 10 SUMMER SONGLINES High summer in London is always a good time to see Australian Aboriginal Art, Rebecca Hossack' s 'Songlines' season now entering its 22nd year. The first (to 7 August) in its series of shows is dedicated to work from the small, secluded Elcho Island (off the remote north coast) and includes Morning Star Poles by Gali Yalkarriwuy Gurruwiwi, ceremonial emblems (decorated with playful vivacity with feathers, ochre pigments and bark spun to look like rope) held by dancing men, abstracted paintings by Peter Datjing of vibrant intricacy and serenity and groupings of succ- inct, wistful painted wood carvings – Jermiah Bonson’s Wirrah Bun Bun Spirit Men . This is followed, on 9 August, by a retrospective of key paintings from Central and Western Desert communities: Balgo Hills, Utopia, Yuendumu and Warmun and from 16 August is joined by work from the won- derfully diverse painting commun- ities in Arnhem Land. Philip Vann THE SWINGING GENERAL The story of the founding in 1975 and then, in 1997, rebuilding of the Quay Arts Centre in hand- some but dilapidated Victorian warehouses in the old docks at Newport, IOW, is one of those heartening stories of a group of determined individuals triumphing over bureaucracy. This is usefully recapitulated in the catalogue to an excellent new show there cele- brating one (well, really two) of the Gali Yalkarriwuy Gurruwiwi ‘Morning Star Pole’, ochre with fixative on wood with feathers and brushstring at Rebecca Hossack Gallery