World Without End - Hans de Wit
News posted on 30 December 2009
Ahab (2009)
Pastel and pencil on paper
150 x 280cm
Jan 9th - Feb 6th 2010
Private view Friday Jan 8th 6pm-9pm
Looking at the work of Dutch artist Hans de Wit (1952) is a dizzying, exhilarating experience. These drawings hit you in a number of ways at once - organic and inorganic forms colliding, morphing, deteriorating, pushing, pulsing, falling and twisting; the scale is often huge, and then there’s the rush of howling sound. As we move closer to enjoy these visions that somehow recall the epic gestures of John Martin (1789), we begin to recognise elements; the dark and threatening hull of a submarine, a bushbaby...a gonad?... getting lost in the distance from edge to edge of the paper and the depth of the artist’s imagination.
De Wit moved his practice from painting to drawing some years back in a bid for figurative clarity and depth that was hard to capture in oil. Since then he has steadily built a major body of work that has been exhibited and collected widely in his home country. Exhibiting superlative technical facility combined with the most extraordinary visual ingenuity results in works that allow us, in these times, a rare sense of wonder and draw us into a ‘labyrinth of endlessly significant complexity’ (The Doors of Perception - Aldous Huxley, 1954).
Isis gallery is very pleased to host this, Hans de Wit’s first exhibition in the UK.
The Veil - New work by Martin Erik Andersen and Paul Reid
News posted on 4 November 2009
Isis Gallery is pleased to announce the opening of a new space and a new exhibition – The Veil - an exhibition of new work by Paul Reid and Martin Erik Andersen. The exhibition opens on November 20th 2009 from 6-9pm and will be on public view from November 21st to December 19th 2009.
For his first exhibition with Isis, Scottish artist Paul Reid (1975) will show a body of new paintings which are a continuation of his exploration of myth and classicist technique with graphite, ink and oil paint.
Also exhibiting with Isis for the first time, Danish artist Martin Erik Andersen (1964) will exhibit two recent works which expand his well-established language and process of accretion – yarn, metal, electrical elements, paper...
The Veil refers to the veil of consciousness which needs to be drawn back to see the true Meaning of Things beyond conception. The apparent differences between Reid and Andersen are stark. Reid’s works are a fascinating exploration of nominally obselete sacred narrative and technique. In the vernacular of contemporary art, Reid’s objectives in this timely display of painterly skill may remain a mystery to the viewer.
In contrast, the materiality of Andersen’s work resonates within our own time – spatial, artful and poetic. Yet, of course there are narratives to be discovered in Andersen’s works also - there are multiple moments to be encountered which create layered and polyvalent spaces for meaning. They point beyond language and to a space that exists beyond formal register of the works themselves.
In exhibiting Reid’s and Andersen’s work together The Veil performs an act of alchemical conjunction. On the surface the radical visual dissimilarity between each artist’s work makes them appear strange and uneasy bedfellows. However, The Veil focuses on the antinomies and incongruities that lie behind and unite these two seemingly diverse artistic practices. It offers an opportunity to see and understand how artistic meaning is generated and approached. It is precisely this question that is revealed when the veil of forms and material things is pulled back.
Isis Editions presents The Great God Pan (2009) by Paul Reid
News posted on 4 November 2009Isis Editions is very pleased to announce the publication of Paul Reid's first editioned work, printed and produced in association with London Print Studio.
The Great God Pan (2009) is signed and numbered by the artist in an edition of 25 and is hand printed on 385mm x 280mm 300 gsm Somerset paper with a plate size of 240mm x 170mm.
» For more information and to purchase, visit Isis Editions.
Docetica!
News posted on 1 November 2009Those within striking distance of Rome may be interested to visit David Tibet's exhibition 'Docetica!' at MOTELSALIERI until 28th November. This exhibition features work from the Invocation Of Hallucinatory Mountain cycle of work, previously seen at Isis London.
"I paint apocalypse cartoons and call prayers to God. I use coloured pastel and white ink on black paper. I have depicted how I see and love and fear the world around me and the world to come for me. I have pictured the back of the stars tremble and fall. I have written all the night and its names. I have turned cats into comets. I have stood at the Hallucinatory Mountain, full of trouble and colours, and seen the Kingdom of Heaven roaring like a lamb." God is Love, David Tibet, Hastings, September 17, 2009.
David's work has also recently entered the collection of the wonderful new Museum of Everything in London.
Installation image of 'Doctica!' David Tibet at MOTELSALIERI, Rome
Hans de Wit joins Isis Gallery
News posted on 28 September 2009We are extremely pleased to announce that the renowned Dutch artist Hans de Wit will be joining Isis Gallery. He is a master draughtsman with a most singular vision whose works are held in the collections of major European institutions and private collections. We shall be hosting de Wit's first exhibition in the UK in 2010.
Pencil Poem #1 (2009)
Pastel and pencil on paper
45 x 100cm
Labyrinth of Skin
News posted on 3 August 2009The British poet Andrew Staniland has written an extraordinary response to a work by Paul Reid entitled A Minotaur (2009).
Please follow the link here.
Gone To Earth exhibition extension / Paul Reid joins Isis Gallery
News posted on 16 June 2009The current group exhibition Gone To Earth will be extended for a further two weeks until Saturday June 27th. This exhibition features work by Sarah Lucas, Derek Jarman and Samuel Palmer amongst others.
Installation image
work by Sarah Lucas (sculpture on left)
and Derek Hyatt (paintings on wall)
We are also extremely pleased to announce that the Scottish painter Paul Reid will be exhibiting with Isis Gallery in London. Dates to be announced.
"Since he burst on to the British art scene three years ago, shaking up received notions of what contemporary art was about, Paul Reid has been gathering a loyal audience with his unique take on the apparently redundant tradition of neo-classical painting. Yet he has also made as many people wish he would go away. His art is unlike anything else you will see on the contemporary scene."
Iain Gale Scotland on Sunday, 30th January 2005
Reid's extraordinary works are so out of kilter with the current herd of post-Kippenberger Philip Guston vs Terry Richardson Dumas/Tuymans copyists that his crafted explorations of myth, drama, composition and process seem positively anarchic.
Theseus and the Minotaur (Version 1) 2006
Oil on canvas
71.1 x 81.3cm
» For more information on Paul Reid click here.
Isis Gallery presents: Gone to Earth
News posted on 24 April 2009an idiosyncratic survey of artistic responses to 'land', 'landscape' and 'the landscape'.
2nd May - 13th June 2009
Adam Chodzko Derek Jarman Fabrice Cazenave Sarah Lucas Samuel Palmer Alan Kane
Jamie Reid Derek Hyatt Eric Geddes
He moved out now into the middle of the road and surveyed the landscape. As he did so, two very distinct and contradictory odours assailed his nostrils. There were no houses across the way, nothing but a foul-smelling ditch, the receptacle of sewage from an adjoining pig-yard: and beyond that an enormously high hedge, on the top of which, where no child could reach, grew clumps of honeysuckle and sprays of wild roses.
Wolf Solent (1929)
John Cowper Powys
If the Romantic movement developed through disillusion after the bloody horror of revolution, it follows that this rush to the Liberty of Eden was a very British, post-Enlightenment sanctuary search for those wealthy enough to perhaps have seen the Great terror firsthand or to have the time and energy to read and discuss the issues of the day. For those less fortunate, this rural idyll was harsh and brutal, cold, depressing, desperate, impoverished and isolating...
6 Eyes
News posted on 8 April 2009We are very pleased to announce the opening of 6 Eyes at Galerie du Jour Agnes B. This exhibition has been organised in collaboration with Isis Gallery and includes works by Antony, Peter Hujar, Alice O'Malley, Kiki Smith, Barbara Cummard, James Elaine and William Basinski.
Details as below.
Jamie Reid - Onwards and Upwards (Universal Majesty Verity Love Infinite)
News posted on 10 March 2009March 24th - April 25th 2009
For four weeks Isis Gallery will be the home of the Jamie Reid archive for the purpose of research, documentation and exploration as a major new monograph on this most iconic of artists is prepared.
Untitled (To Summon From Unkown Depths/Flying Blue Imp) (1970)
Ink and Gouache on paper,117mm x 132mm
Those interested to see the archive should call the gallery on 020 7636 7222 to arrange a suitable time as usual opening hours will not be observed during this period. Please also note that this will not be a static exhibition but rather an evolving, revolving installation.
When The Earth Had Many Moons (1985)
Unique screenprint, 270mm x 350mm
Isis Gallery presents: Antony - The Creek
News posted on 23 December 2008January 17th - February 28th 2009
Mountains and the Sea (2007)
48" x 71" C Print
(primary materials -newsprint, ink)
Isis Gallery is extremely proud to present The Creek - the first exhibition in the UK of artworks by the renowned singer Antony.
Antony's artworks open up dream landscapes: often fragmentary in appearance, these images map his dreams and liminal states; polymorphic realms give way to indicated spirits; pen marks and scratches conjure archetypes and invite conscious and unconscious visions to emerge.
The primary elements go through many stages - drawn on, burned, soaked in the rain, thrown away and reclaimed, drawn on again, stained or dried over a fire. These are then arranged and photographed. The intimacy of this unique gallery space then heightens the focus and clarity of these private spells. Recalling the notebooks of William S. Burroughs and Antonin Artaud, Antony's works describe the arc of a dream atlas in which each diverse aspect is unified through the desire for healing.
For his work in this exhibition, Antony has collaborated with performance artist Johanna Constantine, model Dr. Julia Yasuda Ph.D, photographer Don Felix Cervantes, and artistic advisor Joie Iacono.
For press enquiries please contact John Marchant - john@isisgallery.org
Isis Editions presents Some Gnostic Cartoons by David Tibet
News posted on 26 November 2008Isis Editions is delighted to announce the publication of Some Gnostic Cartoons, the catalogue for David Tibet's exhibition - Invocation of Hallucinatory Mountain (Some Gnostic Cartoons).
• Bound in maroon cloth with copper blocking to front cover and spine
• Printed endpapers with black/white painting by David Tibet
• 84 pages long
• 32 colour plates printed on gloss art paper
• Introduction by David Tibet
In addition, Michel Faber, author of The Crimson Petal and the White amongst many other books, and Tod Wodicka, author of All Shall be well, and All Shall be Well, and All Manner of Things Shall be Well have respectively written a Foreword and Afterword to the volume.
» For more information and to purchase, visit Isis Editions
David Tibet - INVOCATION OF HALLUCINATORY MOUNTAlN (Some Gnostic Cartoons)
News posted on 19 November 2008
Birth Canal Blue, 2007
Pastel on paper, 297x210mm
Recent works on paper inspired by Apocryphal, Gnostic and Hallucinatory scriptures.
Private view: Friday 28th November 2008 6pm-8pm
29th November - 10th Jan 2009
11am-6pm Tuesday to Saturday
For INVOCATION OF HALLUCINATORY MOUNTAlN (Some Gnostic Cartoons), David Tibet will install a beguiling cycle of recent works on paper that have sprung from his intense study of scriptural and apocryphal Gnostic and Christian texts in the Coptic language as well as from his joyous exploration of the Canon of Apocalyptic Cartoons.
David Tibet's visionary drawings are those of the artist as scribe illuminating the contours and spaces of our shared spirit worlds. Tibet's work is profoundly magical in intention and it portrays and describes the dimensions of hallucinatory bodies and their worlds, where writing and image are both fluid and entwined. His drawings are child-like, playful and comical, as he continues his colouring in of the universes. In these spaces the hierarchy of human, animal and spirit forms is dissolved: masks dream of planets and grin at moons.
The imaginative world that Tibet gives form to is one in which writing and speech are divine, full of promises and threats. This investigation of word and form is rooted in his studies of the Coptic language, as well as in readings of ecstatic canonical and non-canonical Christian texts. However, these ideas are filtered through a uniquely English sensibility that places him in the tradition of such diverse figures as Enid Blyton, Aleister Crowley and Louis Wain. His idiosyncratic and passionate work shines an inmost light on the pleasures and horrors of the divine comedy that we all inhabit.
» More about INVOCATION OF HALLUCINATORY MOUNTAlN (Some Gnostic Cartoons)
Simon Fisher Turner: "In A Pure Land" limited 12" vinyl edition
News posted on 15 October 2008In celebration and response to the popular group show In A Pure Land at Isis Gallery (Nayland Blake, Martin Griffiths and Alyson Shotz) we are thrilled to announce the release on Isis Editions of musical counterpoints to the works of the three artists by world renowned composer and musician Simon Fisher Turner.
Simon Fisher Turner is probably best known for his collaborative work with Derek Jarman on the films Caravaggio, Edward II, The Garden and Blue. A more extensive biography can be found here.
These three pieces are released as a limited edition clear vinyl text-free 12" on Isis Editions. Edition size: 333 copies. Cost £10 plus p&p. Please follow the link below for sound clips and to order. The 12" will be exclusively available from Isis Editions and Touch.
Additionally, due to popular response to In A Pure Land, this exhibition will now be extended to November 8th.
» Purchase the limited 12" edition at Isis Editions
» Purchase the limited 12" edition via the Touch Shop
In A Pure Land - an exhibition of new sculpture
News posted on 2 September 2008In A Pure Land: group sculpture show featuring works by Nayland Blake, Martin Griffiths and Alyson Shotz.
Alyson Shotz - Luminous Harmonic, 2008 (detail)
Private view: 6-8pm, 12th September 2008
13th September - 25th September 2008
In a time of communal unease, bad news, moral panic and government-induced fear, an invaluable role of the Arts is to uplift the spirit.
“It is simply a weakness of thinking in which one indulges when one assumes the existence of rigid, eternal atoms. What we find when our thinking deals with reality is that all material is perpetually dissolved right through into nothingness. People only speak of material constancy because as material perishes new material incessantly arises.Where material perishes in the human being, becomes appearance and then new material arises, that is where the possibility of freedom is situated and that is where the possibility of love is situated. Freedom and love belong together.”
Rudolph Steiner, 19th December 1920
In A Pure Land Isis Gallery, London installation 2008
Jamie Reid and Comme des Garçons
News posted on 21 July 2008Isis is extremely pleased to announce the launch of the Jamie Reid/Rei Kawakubo collaboration for Comme des Garçons.
The Autumn/Winter 08 menswear collection is entitled Time For Magic after Jamie Reid’s eponymous work from 1995, and features images and text-based works from 1972 to the present. This collection was previewed in Paris in January and has just been launched worldwide.
As a special project Comme des Garçons commissioned Jamie to create a special work for their flagship store in London – Dover Street Market.
This work features a multiplicity of images from Jamie’s archive plus revisited works from the Time For Magic collection; pasted, over-pasted, torn and repositioned in a manner that is beautiful, arresting and startling to encounter in the pristine environs of Mayfair.
This collaboration has been project-managed by Isis Gallery.
Click here for further images of the collection, the Dover Street Market window installation and a video of the January 2008 catwalk show.
Time For Magic indeed!
ps. Ruth Marten’s work can also be seen at IT group’s exhibition of Comme des Garçons imagery in the 798 district of Beijing. Visit www.hypebeast.com for more information.
» Jamie Reid and Comme des Garçons: images and video
Isis Editions presents Community of Elsewheres by Alice O'Malley
News posted on 17 July 2008On the occasion of Alice O'Malley's beautiful first exhibition in London, Isis Editions presents 'Community of Elsewheres' (48 page, 18 plate, hardback) in a signed, limited edition of 500. Also available, 'Christopher (floor)', NYC 2000, 10" x 8" silver gelatine print, titled, signed and numbered by the artist in an edition of 40. Visit the Isis Editions section to purchase online.
Alice O'Malley
News posted on 6 June 2008"...startling, exciting, and memorable. This could be the start of something big."
Vince Aletti, New Yorker
Isis Gallery is proud to announce the opening of Alice O'Malley's Community of Elsewheres, running from June 14th to July 26th 2008.
"O'Malley's formal studio portraits of artists, performers, and friends depict untraditional people, whose defiant presence counterbalances the increasing obsolescence of such individuals currently being witnessed in New York City today. The Lower East Side has long been a place in which art and the avant-garde function as integral parts of urban life. O'Malley's portraits provide an intimate look at the people who give it this character."
Lia Gangitano, Participant Inc, NYC
This is Alice's first exhibition outside the US.
Isis Editions will also be publishing 'Community of Elsewheres' (48pp, hardback) in a signed, limited edition of 500 on the occasion of this exhibition.
» More about Community of Elsewheres
Ruth Marten
News posted on 28 March 2008Isis Gallery is extremely proud to announce the opening of Histoire Un-Naturelle by Ruth Marten on the 26th April 2008. For her latest body of work Marten's embellished recombinants of 17th and 18th century engravings seamlessly weave radical alterations, subtle visual humour and ecstatic fantasy into delirious social landscapes.
Isis Editions will also be publishing 'Histoire Un-Naturelle' on the occasion of this exhibition, featuring plates hand coloured by the artist.
» More about Histoire Un-Naturelle
