Our top picks of exhibitions together with cultural spaces and places, both online and in the real world.

All, Art, Auctions, Exhibitions, Travel & Hospitality, Initiatives

Viewing Picasso by Terry d’Alfonso

The Wick Culture - PICASSO unedited 178,Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

Above PICASSO unedited 178,Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

The Wick Culture - PICASSO unedited 141,Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

Above PICASSO unedited 141,Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

The Wick Culture - PICASSO unedited 125, Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

Above PICASSO unedited 125, Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

The Wick Culture - PICASSO unedited 6, Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

Above PICASSO unedited 6, Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

Above PICASSO unedited 178,Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

Above PICASSO unedited 141,Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

Above PICASSO unedited 125, Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

Above PICASSO unedited 6, Brigitta Scholz Mastroianni Nux Photography

Picasso by Terry d’Alfonso
The Playground Theatre, London

25 January — 4 February 2023
theplaygroundtheatre.london/events/picasso/

‘Love is the greatest refreshment in life,’ said Picasso, the undisputed genius painter who bled his women for his art. Among them was his first wife Olga, a Ukrainian-Russian ballet dancer at the Ballets Russes whom he abandoned for the young Marie-Thérèse Walter.

But before long Walter too was cast aside for the fiery Dora Maar, a gifted artist, poet and photographer who intellectually challenged Picasso. But perhaps too much as, yes, you’ve guessed it, she too was replaced by a new leading lady: Fançoise Gilot. And on it went.

Should he be judged or forgiven? Terry d’Alfonso’s critically acclaimed play leaves you to decide.

Co-adapted for solo performance and directed by Guy Masterson, this Playground Theatre performance promises to be an ‘explosive, deeply passionate voyage of self-revelation’. With multi-award winner Peter Tate in the title role, we couldn’t be more excited.

But hurry! It’s only running for just over a week and tickets are selling fast. See you there.

Viewing Conscious Unconscious

The Wick Culture - Katarina Caserman
Metremaognyobena, 2022, oil on linen
165 x 120 cm, 65 x 47 ¼ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Katarina Caserman Metremaognyobena, 2022, oil on linen 165 x 120 cm, 65 x 47 ¼ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

The Wick Culture - Héloïse Chassepot
The goodness of the heart n°5, 2022
oil on stitched canvas
160 x 105 cm, 63 x 41 ⅜ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Héloïse Chassepot The goodness of the heart n°5, 2022 oil on stitched canvas 160 x 105 cm, 63 x 41 ⅜ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

The Wick Culture - Katarina Caserman
Sousarano, 2022
oil on linen,
55 x 25 cm, 21 ⅝ x 9 ⅞ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Katarina Caserman Sousarano, 2022 oil on linen, 55 x 25 cm, 21 ⅝ x 9 ⅞ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

The Wick Culture - Zoe McGuire
Red Extension, 2022
oil on canvas
152.4 x 121.9 cm, 60 x 48 in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Zoe McGuire Red Extension, 2022 oil on canvas 152.4 x 121.9 cm, 60 x 48 in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

The Wick Culture - Alexis Soul-Gray
What excited them most was the clown, 2022
oil, bleach, spray paint and ink on linen
160 x 200 cm, 63 x 78 ¾ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Alexis Soul-Gray What excited them most was the clown, 2022 oil, bleach, spray paint and ink on linen 160 x 200 cm, 63 x 78 ¾ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Katarina Caserman Metremaognyobena, 2022, oil on linen 165 x 120 cm, 65 x 47 ¼ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Héloïse Chassepot The goodness of the heart n°5, 2022 oil on stitched canvas 160 x 105 cm, 63 x 41 ⅜ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Katarina Caserman Sousarano, 2022 oil on linen, 55 x 25 cm, 21 ⅝ x 9 ⅞ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Zoe McGuire Red Extension, 2022 oil on canvas 152.4 x 121.9 cm, 60 x 48 in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Above Alexis Soul-Gray What excited them most was the clown, 2022 oil, bleach, spray paint and ink on linen 160 x 200 cm, 63 x 78 ¾ in, courtesy of the artist and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London.

Conscious Unconscious
Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London

12 January — 4 February 2023
www.houldsworth.co.uk

Landing at Pippy Houldsworth Gallery this month is Conscious Unconscious, a brilliant new show exploring desire in all its many forms, from fantasy and memory to eroticism and sexuality, notably the repression or suggestion thereof. Uniting these psychological compositions, whether highly abstracted or hinging on figuration, is an exploration of organic matter.

You’ll encounter new paintings by Katarina Caserman, Héloïse Chassepot, Saskia Colwell, Li Hei Di, Zoe McGuire and Alexis Soul-Gray. Immerse yourself in the fantastical world of Zoe McGuire before diving headfirst into the sinewy contours of Caserman’s heady compositions. Equally striking are Chassepot’s psychedelic paintings featuring abstracted hearts, a symbol conceptually inseparable with emojis and social media, and used to indicate a ‘like’ but without any emotional commitment.

This bold brilliant show is sure to enliven even the darkest of British winter afternoons. Add to your diary now.

Viewing Dalai Lama

The Wick Culture - His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, The Art of Hope © CIRCA 2023. Photography - Clover Green Studio, courtesy CIRCA 2023 @clovergreenstudio

Above His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, The Art of Hope © CIRCA 2023. Photography – Clover Green Studio, courtesy CIRCA 2023 @clovergreenstudio

Dalai Lama
CIRCA

11 — 31 January 2023 at 20.23
circa.art/artist/dalai-lama/

Tune into CIRCA at 20.23 local time until 31 January to see a new three-minute animation, The Art of Hope, created by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in collaboration with The Cultural Institute of Radical Contemporary Arts (CIRCA) in London. The message of hope will also be broadcast across a global network of screens in London, Los Angeles, Berlin and Melbourne.

In this commission — a response to CIRCA’s 2023 manifesto Hope: The Art of Reading What is Not Yet Written — the 87-year-old spiritual leader calls on the world to consider hope and the oneness of humanity:

‘We must continually consider the oneness of humanity, remembering that we all want to be happy. Along the way we may be faced with problems, but we must not lose hope. We must keep up our determination without being impatient to achieve quick results.’

A limited-edition screen print, The Art of Hope, by His Holiness the Dalai Lama will be available to purchase on the CIRCA website for £150 until 31 December 2023. Proceeds will go towards the Tibet Hope Centre and #CIRCAECONOMY, a circular model that supports the CIRCA free public art programme and creates life-changing opportunities for the wider creative community.