5 Shows Not To Miss in October 2023
October…London gets ready for Frieze mayhem extravaganza. 'Frieze Week' is traditionally the moment when London hosts the international art world’s most compelling, must-visit mix of fairs, shows, auctions, dinners, parties, and the list goes on. Meanwhile, galleries also dress up to join the party. For this month, I'll be focusing on the UK-London art scene.
1.
ALBANO HERNANDEZ
PI ARTWORKS
London
‘’Pi Artworks London Presents Albano Hernández's Debut Solo Exhibition: "Chop! Chop! Chop!"
Chop Chop Chop, the highly-anticipated debut solo exhibition of Albano Hernández, marks the artists first foray into the gallery scene following his graduation from the Royal College of Art in 2022.
The exhibition promises an engaging exploration of perception, value, and productivity, themes that have become the hallmark of Albano's burgeoning artistic practice.
The Spanish artist, raised in Avila, a city where meat consumption and industry are deeply entrenched in culture and economy deeply influencing his work, Hernandez has diligently developed what he refers to as his 'meta-painting' process - a unique approach to painting itself, raising thought-provoking questions about commodification, consumption, and the intricate politics woven into the fabric of art production.
His artistic practice is inspired by the aesthetics of meat as a commodity, particularly the processes of dissection, packaging, distribution, and the exposure of animal bodies labelled as 'meat.' He also explores the realm of processed and synthetic meat. In a striking artistic twist, Albano employs an industrial meat-slicer to fragment his own brushstrokes, sometimes vacuum-packing his paintings to emulate the appearance of supermarket meat packaging.
5 – 28 October 2023
PV: Thursday 5th October 6 - 8pm
Pi Artworks
55 Eastcastle St
London W1W 8EG
2.
TIM ETCHELS
Continue without Accepting
VITRINE, Fitzrovia
The first time I came across Tim Etchels work was his Neon Installation at the Onassis Stegi Foundation. ‘All we have is words, All we have is worlds’ - and from then he has been one my favourites, and I am beyond excited to see his new body of work at Vitrine Gallery.
"Continue without Accepting" unveils a fresh collection of neon artworks, evoking sensations of doubt and precariousness through a series of concise texts. In this new body of work Etchells’ neon writings conjure enigmatic uncertainties, hint at disquieting sensations and evoke a sense of the unfamiliar and unstable circumstances. An unyielding determination to persist despite the absence of acceptance.
According to the gallery, a perplexing narrative scenario is present alongside the works in ‘most of them are ghosts, the rest are premonitions’. This eerie sentence not only fosters unease and tension but also delves into the otherworldly concept of ghosts as a frequent occurrence, further adding to the intrigue of the exhibit.
PS: Alongside the exhibition a book launch event will mark the arrival of ‘Let’s Pretend None of This Ever Happened’ (Spector, 2023) a new 240 page monograph investigating Etchells’ long standing sculptural practice with neon, LED and other media in public and gallery space.
6 Oct 2023 – 9 Dec 2023
PV: 5 Oct 2023, 18:00 - 20:00
VITRINE
38 Riding House Street
London W1W 7ES
3.
IRIS TOULIATOU
Outfits
PEER London
"Outfits" is a new commission as well as the inaugural solo exhibition at a UK institution by Athens-based artist Iris Touliatou generously supported by The Ampersand Foundation, and Foundation Foundation.
Touliatou’s practice involves conceptual exploration, seamlessly blending the realms of politics, the environment, and emotions. Employing a diverse range of mediums and through thoughtful integration of sculpture, photography, sound, scent, and text, her work frequently incorporates found objects to construct open-ended narratives and communal encounters.
‘Outfits’ delves into the intricate layers, memories, and vestiges that shape domestic life, exhibition curation, institutional contexts, artefacts, statutes, and public spaces by utilising sculpture and a series of organisational and architectural adjustments and interventions.
As per the gallery’s press release and as part of the commissioning process, a series of talks, events and workshops has been programmed in collaboration with Touliatou and run throughout her exhibition. Touliatou’s exhibition is part of Peer’s programme for 2023, which includes new commissions and exhibitions with artists Tanoa Sasraku, Jacob V Joyce and Rudy Lowe, as well as a survey exhibition that explores cultural, artistic, and experimental cooperative initiatives that took place in Hackney between 1971 and 1986.
7 October - 16 December 2023
Opening: 6 October 2023, 6pm - 8pm
PEER
97-99 Hoxton St,
London N1 6QL
4.
SOFTCORE/HARDCORE
D Contemporary
Marc Aurele Debut, Florence Sweeney, Frida Wannerberger, Alexei Izmailov, Igor Dobrowolski.
I don't want to indulge in self praise but…opening at the heart of Frieze-days D Contemporary in Mayfair continues its collaboration with yours truly ARTCOLLECTORNEWS and puts on a group show, showcasing London's best emerging artists and young graduates curated by our magazine’s Founder and Director Jonathan Fakinos.
Softcore / Hardcore approaches the idea aesthetically, thematically and conceptually, simultaneously highlighting by blurring the line between the two. Featuring artworks that draw you in a soothing, erotic and sensual way, contrasting with others that abruptly confront you with your own rough and raw animal instincts.
The show reflects on attributes of artistic formalism and the sensualities that arise when forms follow ‘function’. Examining interest in the haptic as an object of inquiry. Generating a critical insight into emergent tactile economies and approaches surface as a specific set of material negotiations between bodies and sensibilities.
11 October- 7th November
PV: Wednesday 11 October 6-8 pm
D Contemporary
23 Grafton Street
W1S 4EY
5.
Trevor Yeung
Soft ground
GASWORKS
"Soft Ground," the first Solo exhibition of the Hong Kong based artist Trevor Yeung, delving into the multifaceted social dynamics and interspecies connections found within London's gay cruising areas the artist presents potent metaphors for comprehending the intricate web of social relations through the realms of botanic ecology, horticulture, photography, and installation.
Within meticulously crafted installations, Yeung subtly engages with systems of control and power structures, often harnessing the symbolism of plants to decode notions of intimacy and personal experience.
Employing light and scent as integral components in his sculptural endeavours, Yeung orchestrates a transformative gallery experience. His work explores the ever-shifting interplay between night and day, public and private realms, the act of concealment, and the urge to be seen.
Yeung's exhibition is made possible through the support and partnership of Gasworks, London, Para Site, Hong Kong, Aranya Art Center, Qinhuangdao, and the generous backing of the Henry Moore Foundation and Blindspot Gallery.
28 SEP – 17 DEC 23
Preview: Wednesday 27 September, 6:30-8:30pm
Gasworks
155 Vauxhall Street
London SE11 5RH
As the autumn leaves fall, London's art scene is set ablaze by the much-anticipated Frieze London 2024, a fair poised to leave an indelible mark on the art world.