Gavin Turk: Who What When Where How & Why at Newport Street Gallery

We can highly recommend the latest exhibition at Newport Street Gallery, Who What When Where How & Why by Gavin Turk. Gavin is the Beautiful South of the (no longer) Young British Artists – not as well known as Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin, but when you go this exhibition you’ll realise how many of his hits you know.

Here are some snapshots. First up, classic Newport Street Gallery stuff:

Gavin Turk Sid Vicious room at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

Gavin Turk demolition block at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

We had a genuine “is it art?” moment when we saw one of these bronze rubbish bags outside the lift on the second floor. As in “is it part of the exhibition or has someone just left out a rubbish bag?”.

Gavin Turk rubbish at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

Gavin Turk sculptures inc. Pop at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

Gavin Turk tramp at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

Identity Crisis:

Gavin Turk Identity Crisis - Hello Magazine at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

This is genuinely arresting, precisely because it wouldn’t be as arresting as it should be if you saw it on the street:

Gavin Turk sleeping bag at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

Finally, Newport Street Gallery’s largest space is an amusing setting for Gavin’s greatest hit, his blue plaque titled Cave:

Gavin Turk Cave plaque at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

It’s free entry as always as Newport Street, and it’s open until March 19th (closed Mondays).

Jeff Koons Now at Newport Street Gallery

One of the writers of this blog is a philistine who can’t abide modern artists explaining their art but enjoys shiny, colourful, huge, spectacular objects with a novel and amusing concept behind them. Jeff Koons fan? Yep, absolutely, so we were thrilled to hear the second show at Damien Hirst’s Newport Street Gallery would be Jeff Koons Now.

The huge, light Newport Street Gallery space provides the perfect setting for Balloon Monkey (Blue):

Balloon Monkey (Blue) from above - Jeff Koons at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff@gmail.com

Balloon Monkey (Blue) - Jeff Koons at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff@gmail.com

Likewise this giant Play-Doh has Newport Street Gallery written all over it. This is made of aluminium, while Balloon Monkey (Blue) is made of stainless steel:

Play-Doh - Jeff Koons Now at Newport Street Gallery - kenningtonrunoff@gmail.com

The only x-rated pieces are in the final room downstairs, but they’re so x-rated we believe they would be illegal if they were on a popular local blog rather than in an art gallery, so here’s a silver train instead:

Jim Beam JB Turner engine - Jeff Koons - kenningtonrunoff.com

Entry is free and the gallery was buzzing but not excessively full during our weekend visit.

Naturally the gallery shop stocks some Koons expensive tat art:

Jeff Koons inflatable dogs in the Newport Street Gallery shop - kenningtonrunoff.com Jeff Koons plates in the Newport Street Gallery shop - kenningtonrunoff@gmail.com

Welcome to Kennington Jeff –  we haven’t been this excited since the two Kevins, Pietersen and Spacey, came to town.

Sidsel Meineche Hansen: SECOND SEX WAR at Gasworks

We rather like visiting Gasworks since their refurb. It’s a lovely building, open on the weekend which suits us, and we’re generally the only visitors.

The current exhibition won’t be to everyone’s taste, and is definitely not suitable for children. SECOND SEX WAR is a solo exhibition by London-based artist Sidsel Meineche Hansen, which “explores the commodity status of 3D bodies in X-rated digital image production, while also reflecting on the artist’s working conditions and relationships”.

The exhibition provides a chance to try an Occulus virtual reality headset, showing a CGI animation called DICKGIRL 3D, or you can watch it on a flat screen TV hung from a “DIY BDSM” structure:

DICKGIRL 3D at Gasworks - kenningtonrunoff.com

There’s also a CGI animation called No Right Way 2 Cum, a feminist ‘cum shot’ video, which features EVA v3.0, a stock 3D model made for computer games and adult entertainment. This was made in response to the British Board of Film Classification’s recent ban on female ejaculation in UK-produced pornography. We don’t want an X certificate on this blog, so here’s a huge clay relief instead, called Cultural Capital Cooperative Object:

Cultural Capital Cooperative Object at Gasworks - kenningtonrunoff.com

We think these laser cut drawing are called iSlave (non-dualistic) and Wannabe Dickgirl:

iSlave (non-dualistic) and Wannabe Dickgirl - kenningtonrunoff.com

During our visit there was something going on in another room at Gasworks marked “participatory” or some such, but we were too scared to enter.

SECOND SEX WAR was commissioned by Gasworks in partnership with Trondheim’s kunstmuseum, which seems appropriate. It runs until May 29th at Gasworks, 155 Vauxhall Street, London SE11 5RH.

Opening times: Wed–Sun 12–6pm or by appointment.

Foam Talent – Shaping the Future of Contemporary Photography – exhibition at Beaconsfield

Foam Talent is the best exhibition we’ve seen at Beaconsfield and on our visit, it was also the busiest we’ve seen the gallery. It’s possible some of those in attendance came looking for Newport Street Gallery and found it closed (they’re currently ‘all mouths on nozzle’ to set up their Jeff Koons exhibition), but they seemed to be enjoying Beaconsfield all the same.

Detail from photo by Tom Callemin

Detail from photo by Belgium’s Tom Callemin

Foam Fotografiemuseum is Amsterdam’s leading photography museum. Every year they do a talent call, receiving entries from all around the world, and this exhibition comprises over 100 photos from their 21 favourite entrants, all aged under 35.

detail of photo by Danila Tkachenko

detail of photo by Russia’s Danila Tkachenko

This is a photo of some bubblegum, believe it or not:

detail from photo by Marton Perlaki

detail from photo by Hungary’s Marton Perlaki

The only Brit in the 21 is Dominic Hawgood, whose photos were inspired by healings and exorcisms in African churches in London (quite likely on or just off the Old Kent Road):

from Under The Influence by Dominic Hawgood

from Under The Influence by Dominic Hawgood

from Under The Influence by Dominic Hawgood

from Under The Influence by Dominic Hawgood

Foam Talent runs until May 22nd 2016, Wednesday–Sunday 11am–5pm, at Beaconsfield, 22 Newport Street, Vauxhall, London, SE11 6AY. Be sure to sample some delicious cake from Ragged Canteen while you’re there.

Apologies to any photographer who didn’t want an iPhone photo of their work online – get in touch if you’d like it taken down.

Bar 48 wine bar and Eritrean restaurant

A wine bar seems quite a weird concept in 2015, let alone a wine bar that’s also an art gallery and music venue, serving Eritrean “tapas”, next door to what is probably London’s best Eritrean restaurant, Adulis.

Bar 48 exterior - kenningtonrunoff.com

We thought Bar 48 must be a new opening from Adulis but it turns out it’s neither linked to Adulis nor new – it has been going for years and has been in its present incarnation for around two years – we just hadn’t noticed it till recently. It’s also rather dark so excuse the photography.

Bar 48 interior - kenningtonrunoff.com

Someone on TripAdvisor says “You know how people say that Londoners are unfriendly bastards who never make conversation? Well not here! I don’t know how they do it, but its the kind of place where strangers were striking up conversations with one another all night.” Indeed this was our experience – both the barman and the table next door struck up conversation with us.

And there’s a lot to talk about. They have the kind of events programme that is bound to see Jeremy Corbyn visit sooner or later (unless he heads to i’klectik instead). Plus a grand piano:

Bar 48 grand piano - kenningtonrunoff.com

The owner Fiyori Belay has Eritrean roots and runs the kitchen, while the (bar)man behind the art gallery concept is Joshua Vaughan, who also teaches at City & Guilds. When we visited the art had rather a Dystopian, William Gibson-ish feel.

sculpture at Bar 48 - kenningtonrunoff.com

should have chained the wheels to the bike

art at Bar 48 - kenningtonrunoff.com

If you’re only interested in the food, you should probably go to Adulis instead, which offers pretty much the same dishes (meat and vegetable platters served on injera), at least as well prepared, and many others besides. Bar 48’s wine list is also quite short for a wine bar, but reasonably priced. They do serve an Ethiopian lager, St George Beer (he’s the patron saint of Ethiopia as well as England), which seems more exotic than the Kenyan one they have next door, as well as Brixton beers (should have gone for Kernel, or failing that, Kennington’s own Orbit).

St George Beer at Bar 48 - kenningtonrunoff.com

But really, you should go for the welcoming atmosphere, and because you will never have been anywhere quite like it. Tonight could be the night – they’re open and have a duo playing covers and originals, then, as far as we can ascertain from their reservations tool, they’re not open again till February 1st.

Address: 48 Brixton Road, London SW9 6BT

Gasworks gallery

2015 was a big year for Gasworks gallery – they reopened to the public in September after purchasing the freehold on their Vauxhall Street site (next door to the actual gasworks, hence the name), and getting it redeveloped by architects HAT Projects.

Gasworks gallery exterior - kenningtonrunoff.com

The new look gallery is lovely and now fully accessible, and we loved 50% of the current exhibition by Guatemalan artist Naufus Ramírez-Figueroa.

The first room is called Babylonian Fantasy and features four sculptures like this:

Babylonian Fantasy by Naufus Ramirez-Figueroa at Gasworks - kenningtonrunoff.com

We liked these pieces less once we read that they were inspired by David Icke, but we loved the second and final room, an instillation called God’s Reptilian Finger. Here’s a photo of said finger and other objects, although you really need to be in the room to experience it properly:

God's Reptilian Finger by Naufus Ramirez-Figueroa at Gasworks - kenningtonrunoff.com

Like Newport Street Gallery, Gasworks purports to be in Vauxhall but they are yards from the Oval Cricket Ground and we’d say they’re in South Kennington (AKA Oval). They have been around since 1994 running the gallery and offering studio space to artists, amongst other non-profit making activities.

They reopen on Wednesday after a Christmas break, and they’re open Wednesdays to Sundays midday to 6pm whenever there’s an exhibition on. Yes, this means they’re open Saturdays and Sundays, unlike some of Kennington’s galleries, so there’s no excuse not to get along before this exhibition closes on February 7th.

Address: 155 Vauxhall Street, London SE11 5RH.

Brocket Gallery

Brocket Gallery, a contemporary art gallery formerly located above The Three Stags, is now open in its new permanent location in the basement beneath The Boule-In on Windmill Row (see our Boule-In piece for more about how it came to be there).

Brocket’s first show in the new location is ‘Selected Artists’, featuring highlights from their roster. Both the founders – exhibition maker and art dealer Lizzie Glendinning and artist Jack Bullen – studied at Kennington’s own City & Guilds, as did many of the artists they represent.

This is the space:

Brocket Gallery interior - kenningtonrunoff.com

They have made nice use of the skylight under the pavement. This piece is called Cavity by Samuele Sinibaldi and costs £860 (skylight not included):

Samuele Sinibaldi, Cavity. Brocket Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

This is an untitled piece, made of jesmonite, by Roshna Qorbanee, for £1350 which is as expensive as anything in the show (the cheapest item is £295):

Roshna Qorbanee, Untitled, Brocket Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

This is Precipice No. 1 by Alex N Stewart, and could be the prettiest and most expensive piece of OSB board you’ll ever buy at £1350:

Alex N Stewart, Precipice No. 1, Brocket Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

And finally, another piece by Samuele Sinibaldi – A Childish Game, or as we like to call it, Pot With Handlebars, £1200:

Samuele Sinibaldi, Cavity, Brocket Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

There were also some etchings and watercolours that didn’t photograph so well. We enjoyed the exhibition and really like the space, plus it’s more accessible than some of Kennington’s other art galleries, so we’ll be regular visitors.

Sean Dower at Beaconsfield

If you’re heading down to The Ragged Canteen at Beaconsfield Gallery for lunch or brunch, the current exhibition under the gallery’s railway arch is worth a look too – visual artist and musician Sean Dower has a bunch of musical instruments apparently playing themselves, in a rather spooky fashion:

Sean Dower at Beaconsfield Gallery - kenningtonrunoff.com

It’s open to the public Wednesday–Saturday, 11am–5pm, and runs until February 28th. As for The Ragged Canteen, they serve drinks and cakes whenever the gallery’s open, plus lunch Wednesday, Thursday and Friday lunchtimes, and all-day brunch on Saturdays.

more images from Everything is about to happen

This time they are all safe for work.

more books - Greengrassi, Corvi-Mora - Kenningtonrunoff.com

An illicit cookbook (mushrooms are banned in Kennington remember):

Mushroom - Greengrassi, Corvi-Mora - Kenningtonrunoff.com

An Atlas of the New Testament:

The Atlas of the New Testament - Greengrassi, Corvi-Mora - Kenningtonrunoff.com

FT III:

fantasy books - Greengrassi, Corvi-Mora - Kenningtonrunoff.com

Road and Rail Links Between Manchester and Sheffield:

Road and Rail Links between Manchester and Sheffield - Greengrassi, Corvi-Mora - Kenningtonrunoff.com

Preston Bus Station:

Preston Bus Station - Greengrassi, Corvi-Mora - Kenningtonrunoff.com

Selwyn’s Law of Employment (but is it art?)

Selwyn's Laws of Employment - Greengrassi, Corvi-Mora - Kenningtonrunoff.com

Ex-library book and 1 Day Diary:

Ex-library book and 1 Day Diary - Greengrassi, Corvi-Mora - Kenningtonrunoff.com

Everything is about to happen is “an ongoing archive of artists’ books selected by Gregorio Magnani” showing at the Greengrassi/Corvi-Mora gallery until April 26th.