Tuesday, October 15, 2013

The best art exhibitions on now

This major exhibition of one of the world's best-known modernists features paintings, drawings and watercolours spanning three decades from the 1910s. Read The Telegraph's Paul Klee: Making Visible review.

SHUNGA: SEX AND PLEASURE IN JAPANESE ART (British Museum, London WC1; until January 5)

Drawing our attention to the immaculate craftmanship and romanticism of the style, rather than merely its pornographic associations, this exhibition shows the influence of shunga, which reaches beyond modern Japanese art to the works of European artists including Picasso and Rodin. Read The Telegraph's Shunga: Sex and Pleasure in Japanese Art review.

AUSTRALIA (Royal Academy, London W1; until December 8)

Organised in collaboration with the National Gallery of Australia, and featuring more than 200 works of art dating back to 1800, this is the exhibition equivalent of a grand and informative televsion documentary series: detailed, comprehensive, omniscient and, in places, beautiful. Read The Telegraph's Australia review.

PEARLS (V&A, London SW7; until January 19)

In one respect, this exhibition delivers just what we would expect of any major exhibition of gems and jewels – a king's ransom of pearl-encrusted diadems, necklaces, bracelets and rings created by famous jewellers such as Cartier, Lalique and Tiffany. But it isn't really about bling, its focus is on the intrinsic beauty of a miraculous natural phenomenon, the pearl itself. Read The Telegraph's Pearls review.

MASTERPIECES: ART AND EAST ANGLIA (Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, Norwich; until February 24)

Featuring some 280 objects produced in – and/or inspired by – East Anglia over the millenia, this show raises all sorts of interesting questions. Read The Telegraph's Masterpieces: Art and East Anglia review.

ADRIAN VILLAR ROJAS: TODAY WE REBOOT THE PLANET (Serpentine Sackler Gallery, London W2; until November 10)

The Argentinian-born artist has created large-scale sculptural works, predominantly made in clay and brick, at once so visually arresting and conceptually complex that it more than stands up to Zaha Hadid's architectural redesign of the Serpentine Gallery. Read The Telegraph's Adrian Villar Rojas: Today We Reboot The Planet review.

FACING THE MODERN: THE PORTRAIT IN VIENNA 1900 (The National Gallery, London WC2; until January 12 2014)

This inquisitive exhibition looks at the innovations in portraiture in the multi-faith, multicultural melting pot that was Vienna in the early 20th century. The influence of Freud is considered in a show that features Schiele, Klimt, Kokoschka and many interesting, lesser-known artists. Read The Telegraph's Facing the Modern: The Portrait in Vienna 1900 review.

FRANCIS BACON/HENRY MOORE (Ashmolean Museum, Oxford; until January 19 2014)

Britain's two major figures of 20th-century art have never been shown together before, and seeing the pair's work side by side, one is struck by their shared fascination with the human form and condition. Read The Telegraph's Francis Bacon/Henry Moore review.

BOB DYLAN: FACE VALUE (National Portrait Gallery, WC2; until January 5)

This exhibition may not quite live up to the magnitude of the idea of Bob Dylan at the National Portrait Gallery, but nor does it render it ridiculous – even the crustiest, most old school habitué of the gallery will be more than a little interested. Read The Telegraph's Bob Dylan: Face Value review.

ANA MENDIETA: TRACES (Hayward Gallery, London SE1; until December 15)

The first British retrospective of Mendieta's work confirms that her earthbound performances of the Seventies have the strangest, densest, and most compelling psychological complexity. Read The Telegaph's Ana Mendieta: Traces review.

ELIZABETH I & HER PEOPLE (National Portrait Gallery, London WC2; until January 5 2014)

This exhibition tells the tale of Elizabethan England through portraits of the queen, her courtiers and subjects. Sadly, the glories of the age weren't matched by its art. Read The Telegraph's Elizabeth I & Her People review.

ART UNDER ATTACK (Tate Britain, London SW1; until January 5 2014)

The story of the dissolution of the monasteries has been told often enough; and even if it proved possible to update the story, looking at photographs of works of art that no longer exist rarely makes for a satisfying experience. Read The Telegraph's Art Under Attack review.

Source : http://telegraph.feedsportal.com/c/32726/f/568414/s/327dc08b/sc/38/l/0L0Stelegraph0O0Cculture0Cart0C10A37720A40CThe0Ebest0Eart0Eexhibitions0Eon0Enow0Bhtml/story01.htm