British Art Show
Encyclopedia
The British Art Show is a major survey exhibition
organised every five years to showcase contemporary British Art
. The current exhibition in the series, referred to as BAS6, is touring a number of major cities within England in 2005 and 2006. Each time it is organised, the show tours to three UK
cities. It has become so large that it usually requires a number of venues to accommodate it. As a snap shot of Contemporary British Art the exhibition has some equivalence to the biennial exhibitions of the Whitney Museum of American Art
.
The exhibition is normally selected by three people who are appointed for their knowledge of contemporary art, Previously these had been artists and critics but more recently they have been selected from curators.
The 1990 show caused controversy as it did not include any Scottish
artists although the exhibition was opening in Glasgow
as part of their European Capital of Culture
programme.
The 1995 show, curated by Richard Cork
, Rose Finn-Kelcey and Thomas Lawson, was highly regarded as it spotlighted the emergence of the Young British Artists
.
The 2000 show is thought to have been less successful, as the selectors, Pippa Coles and Matthew Higgs
, were curators who sought to promote their own artists, resulting in an unwieldy group of 40.
The 2005 BAS, curated by Andrea Schlieker and Alex Farquharson, BAS included a large number of artists born outside the UK. As the exhibition opened at the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art
in Gateshead
there was some comment that there were few artists represented from the North East of England, and many were not originally from the UK.
British Art Show 7: In the Days of the Comet
http://www.britishartshow.co.uk
The British Art Show is widely recognised as the most ambitious and influential exhibition of contemporary British art. Organised by Hayward Touring, it takes place every five years and tours to four different cities across the UK. Now in its seventh incarnation the British Art Show opens in Nottingham
, and toured for the first time in 20 years to the Hayward Gallery
at Southbank Centre, followed by venues in Glasgow
and Plymouth
. It is curated by Lisa Le Feuvre and Tom Morton
.
The 39 selected artists were selected on the grounds of their significant contribution to contemporary art
in the last five years. All artworks included have been produced since 2005 and encompass sculpture
, painting
, installation
, drawing, photography
, film, video and performance, with many artists creating new works especially for the exhibition. British Art Show 7 marks a change in direction from previous years, moving away from the model of a survey show to an exhibition with a marked curatorial focus.
"The British Art Show has always been at the forefront of innovation, and this incarnation is no exception." Ralph Rugoff, Director of the Hayward Gallery
.
Subtitled In the Days of the Comet
, British Art Show 7 employs the motif of the comet to explore and draw together a set of concerns that thread their way through the practices of the selected artists. Here the comet alludes to the measuring of time, to historical recurrence, and to parallel worlds. Comets are also commonly understood as harbingers of change, and fittingly the exhibition will evolve as it moves from city to city, revealing new works at different venues, creating a unique exhibition in each host city.
"We are interested in the recurrent nature of the comet as a symbol of how each version of the present collides with the past and the future, and the work of the artists in British Art Show 7, in many different ways, contest assumptions of how ‘the now’ might be understood." Lisa Le Feuvre and Tom Morton
, Curators of British Art Show 7.
Art exhibition
Art exhibitions are traditionally the space in which art objects meet an audience. The exhibit is universally understood to be for some temporary period unless, as is rarely true, it is stated to be a "permanent exhibition". In American English, they may be called "exhibit", "exposition" or...
organised every five years to showcase contemporary British Art
Contemporary art
Contemporary art can be defined variously as art produced at this present point in time or art produced since World War II. The definition of the word contemporary would support the first view, but museums of contemporary art commonly define their collections as consisting of art produced...
. The current exhibition in the series, referred to as BAS6, is touring a number of major cities within England in 2005 and 2006. Each time it is organised, the show tours to three UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
cities. It has become so large that it usually requires a number of venues to accommodate it. As a snap shot of Contemporary British Art the exhibition has some equivalence to the biennial exhibitions of the Whitney Museum of American Art
Whitney Museum of American Art
The Whitney Museum of American Art, often referred to simply as "the Whitney", is an art museum with a focus on 20th- and 21st-century American art. Located at 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street in New York City, the Whitney's permanent collection contains more than 18,000 works in a wide variety of...
.
The exhibition is normally selected by three people who are appointed for their knowledge of contemporary art, Previously these had been artists and critics but more recently they have been selected from curators.
The 1990 show caused controversy as it did not include any Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
artists although the exhibition was opening in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
as part of their European Capital of Culture
European Capital of Culture
The European Capital of Culture is a city designated by theEuropean Union for a period of one calendar year during which it organises a series of cultural events with a strong European dimension....
programme.
The 1995 show, curated by Richard Cork
Richard Cork
Dr Richard Cork is a British art historian, editor, critic, broadcaster and exhibition curator. He has been an art critic for the Evening Standard, The Listener, The Times and the New Statesman. Cork was also editor for Studio International. He is a past Turner Prize judge.-Life and work:Richard...
, Rose Finn-Kelcey and Thomas Lawson, was highly regarded as it spotlighted the emergence of the Young British Artists
Young British Artists
Young British Artists or YBAs is the name given to a loose group of visual artists who first began to exhibit together in London, in 1988...
.
The 2000 show is thought to have been less successful, as the selectors, Pippa Coles and Matthew Higgs
Matthew Higgs
Matthew Higgs is a British artist, curator, writer and publisher. His contribution to UK contemporary art has included the creation of Imprint 93, a series of artists’ editions featuring the work of artists such as Martin Creed and Jeremy Deller...
, were curators who sought to promote their own artists, resulting in an unwieldy group of 40.
The 2005 BAS, curated by Andrea Schlieker and Alex Farquharson, BAS included a large number of artists born outside the UK. As the exhibition opened at the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art
BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art
The Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art is an international centre for contemporary art located on the south bank of the River Tyne alongside the Gateshead Millennium Bridge in Gateshead, North East England, United Kingdom...
in Gateshead
Gateshead
Gateshead is a town in Tyne and Wear, England and is the main settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. Historically a part of County Durham, it lies on the southern bank of the River Tyne opposite Newcastle upon Tyne and together they form the urban core of Tyneside...
there was some comment that there were few artists represented from the North East of England, and many were not originally from the UK.
British Art Show 7: In the Days of the Comet
http://www.britishartshow.co.uk
The British Art Show is widely recognised as the most ambitious and influential exhibition of contemporary British art. Organised by Hayward Touring, it takes place every five years and tours to four different cities across the UK. Now in its seventh incarnation the British Art Show opens in Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, and toured for the first time in 20 years to the Hayward Gallery
Hayward Gallery
The Hayward Gallery is an art gallery within the Southbank Centre, part of an area of major arts venues on the South Bank of the River Thames, in central London, England. It is sited adjacent to the other Southbank Centre buildings and also the Royal National Theatre and British Film Institute...
at Southbank Centre, followed by venues in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
and Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
. It is curated by Lisa Le Feuvre and Tom Morton
Tom Morton
Tom Morton is a Scottish writer, broadcaster, and musician. He lives and works mainly in the Shetland Islands.Morton currently presents a BBC Radio Scotland show, broadcast each weekday afternoon...
.
The 39 selected artists were selected on the grounds of their significant contribution to contemporary art
Contemporary art
Contemporary art can be defined variously as art produced at this present point in time or art produced since World War II. The definition of the word contemporary would support the first view, but museums of contemporary art commonly define their collections as consisting of art produced...
in the last five years. All artworks included have been produced since 2005 and encompass sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
, painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
, installation
Installation art
Installation art describes an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that are often site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. Generally, the term is applied to interior spaces, whereas exterior interventions are often called Land art; however, the boundaries between...
, drawing, photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
, film, video and performance, with many artists creating new works especially for the exhibition. British Art Show 7 marks a change in direction from previous years, moving away from the model of a survey show to an exhibition with a marked curatorial focus.
"The British Art Show has always been at the forefront of innovation, and this incarnation is no exception." Ralph Rugoff, Director of the Hayward Gallery
Hayward Gallery
The Hayward Gallery is an art gallery within the Southbank Centre, part of an area of major arts venues on the South Bank of the River Thames, in central London, England. It is sited adjacent to the other Southbank Centre buildings and also the Royal National Theatre and British Film Institute...
.
Subtitled In the Days of the Comet
Comet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...
, British Art Show 7 employs the motif of the comet to explore and draw together a set of concerns that thread their way through the practices of the selected artists. Here the comet alludes to the measuring of time, to historical recurrence, and to parallel worlds. Comets are also commonly understood as harbingers of change, and fittingly the exhibition will evolve as it moves from city to city, revealing new works at different venues, creating a unique exhibition in each host city.
"We are interested in the recurrent nature of the comet as a symbol of how each version of the present collides with the past and the future, and the work of the artists in British Art Show 7, in many different ways, contest assumptions of how ‘the now’ might be understood." Lisa Le Feuvre and Tom Morton
Tom Morton
Tom Morton is a Scottish writer, broadcaster, and musician. He lives and works mainly in the Shetland Islands.Morton currently presents a BBC Radio Scotland show, broadcast each weekday afternoon...
, Curators of British Art Show 7.
External links
- British Art Show official website www.britishartshow.co.uk
- British Art Show at Hayward Gallery, Southbank Centre
- 'British Art Show 7: In the Days of the Comet' Plymouth website www.plymouthbas7.org - the exhibition will be on display in Plymouth, Devon from 17 September to 4 December 2011
- Google listing of news coverage for British Art Show 6 (2005).
- The listing provides useful coverage of the latest BAS for readers and those who wish to expand this article.
- Google listing of news coverage for British Art Show 6 (2005).
- 'British Art Show 7: In the Days of the Comet' Plymouth website www.plymouthbas7.org - the exhibition will be on display in Plymouth, Devon from 17 September to 4 December 2011
- British Art Show at Hayward Gallery, Southbank Centre