Royal Academy’s homage to Léon Spilliaert, Ostend artist fascinated by the North Sea By James Brewer Looking out to the North Sea from his home in Ostend was endlessly fascinating…
Royal Academy
Picasso and Paper exhibition unfolds its allure at the Royal Academy in London
Picasso and Paper exhibition unfolds its allure at the Royal Academy in London By James Brewer Pablo Picasso is famed for his blue, rose and African periods and his multi-decade…
Royal Academy hails Eco-Visionaries: Confronting a planet in a state of emergency
Royal Academy hails Eco-Visionaries: Confronting a planet in a state of emergency By James Brewer A world at the point of no return. Climate shocks devastating landscapes and populations, noxious…
Royal Academy unveils outstanding show The Renaissance Nude
Royal Academy unveils outstanding show The Renaissance Nude by James Brewer Consider this cool, clear image of feminine beauty – lightly sketched and off-centre. Drawn in 1517 or 1518 in…
Royal Academy’s new show: Bill Viola/Michelangelo: Life, Death, Rebirth
Royal Academy’s new show: Bill Viola/Michelangelo: Life, Death, Rebirth By James Brewer In what might strike some people as an odd pairing, the Royal Academy of Arts has put together…
Klimt/Schiele: Royal Academy shows drawings from the Albertina Museum, Vienna
Klimt/Schiele: Royal Academy shows drawings from the Albertina Museum, Vienna By James Brewer Even in sketched outline they are seductive: three turn-of-the-century drawings of the Gorgons, who in versions of…
Oceania: Royal Academy voyages through 500 years of Pacific culture
Oceania: Royal Academy voyages through 500 years of Pacific culture By James Brewer In 1768, Lieutenant (later Captain) James Cook left Plymouth on HMS Endeavour on the first of three voyages to…
Dalí/Duchamp: Royal Academy reveals a deep dialogue
Dalí/Duchamp: Royal Academy reveals a deep dialogue By James Brewer In the April 1959 edition of ArtNews magazine, Salvador Dalí listed 13 reasons why a single title by Duchamp is…
Something Resembling Truth
Royal Academy raises the flag on Jasper Johns show: ‘Something Resembling Truth’ By James Brewer Two slices of plain bread; a flashlight torch; an archery target board; the US flag.…
Charles I heads Royal Academy’s programme for 2018
Charles I heads Royal Academy’s programme for 2018 Long before he lost his head to victorious Parliamentary forces, Charles I of England, Scotland and Ireland lost his head to masterpieces…
Matisse in the Studio. Royal Academy, London
Matisse in the Studio. Royal Academy, London By James Brewer Taking ship for North Africa in 1906 marked a turning point in the development of Henri Matisse, one of the…
Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2017: surveying a sea of talent
Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2017: surveying a sea of talent By James Brewer One of the curators speaks of being confronted “by an almost overwhelming sea of works.” Truly the…
‘Intrigue: James Ensor by Luc Tuymans’ opens at Royal Academy By James Brewer Master of caricature and satire, James Ensor is the subject of the new exhibition at London’s Royal…
Royal Academy set to storm barricades…
Royal Academy set to storm barricades with new exhibition Revolution: Russian Art 1917-1932 By James Brewer Relations between the UK and Russia are thriving – on the artistic level, in…
Royal Academy to roll out Abstract Expressionism exhibition in September 2016
Royal Academy to roll out Abstract Expressionism exhibition in September 2016 By James Brewer After World War II, the US was quick to make use of the enormous economic and…
Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2015 features 1, 200 artworks amid an ‘explosion of colour’
Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2015 features 1, 200 artworks amid an ‘explosion of colour’ By James Brewer The Royal Academy’s Summer Exhibition for 2015 bursts on the scene as a disjointed…
Rubens and his Legacy: Royal Academy’s new show celebrates the propagandist supreme, By James Brewer Peter Paul Rubens was one of the greatest European propagandists of all time, and his…
Royal Academy is set to host a big show by Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei
Royal Academy is set to host a big show by Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei, By James Brewer Provocative contemporary artist Ai Weiwei has been deprived of his passport…
Wood blockbuster at the Royal Academy…
Wood blockbuster at the Royal Academy: Renaissance Impressions exhibition showcases 16th century chiaroscuro woodcuts, By James Brewer As European imperial powers were entering the 16th century, building on the triumphs of the…
Sensing Spaces: Architecture Reimagined.
Sensing Spaces: Architecture Reimagined. New show transforms the stately ambience of the Royal Academy, By James Brewer Lao Zi, the ancient Chinese philosopher, said: “What is important is what is…
Satire and sensitivity: Royal Academy brilliantly honours Honoré Daumier in its latest show
Satire and sensitivity: Royal Academy brilliantly honours Honoré Daumier in its latest show, By James Brewer One of the world’s greatest satirists by dint of his outrageous caricatures, drawings and even…
Bottle-tops, bravura and a touch of bawdiness: Royal Academy’s 2013 Summer Exhibition offers a seasonal synthesis
Bottle-tops, bravura and a touch of bawdiness: Royal Academy’s 2013 Summer Exhibition offers a seasonal synthesis, By James Brewer A sense of humour peeps through the cascade of works chosen…
On top of the world: great art from Down Under is transported to Royal Academy for forthcoming Australia exhibition
On top of the world: great art from Down Under is transported to Royal Academy for forthcoming Australia exhibition, By James Brewer Informed and led by landscape – that is…