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Viewing Caroline Walker: Birth Reflections

The Wick Culture - Caroline Walker: Birth Reflections at Fitzrovia Chapel

Above Caroline Walker: Birth Reflections at Fitzrovia Chapel

18 February – 4 March 2022
Fitzrovia Chapel, London
https://www.fitzroviachapel.org/caroline-walker-birth-reflections/

Flooding Instagram feeds this week is the new Caroline Walker pop-up exhibition at the Fitzrovia Chapel in London. Supported by Stephen Friedman Gallery, it includes new paintings depicting midwives, doctors, cleaners and mothers at the maternity wing of University College Hospital (UCLH), where Walker recently completed an artist residency.

Although Walker has long painted aspects of unseen and overlooked female labour, it wasn’t until she found out that she was pregnant and began attending appointments at the hospital that she developed a particular interest in the mother and baby unit as a potential subject matter.

‘Trips to the maternity wing for scans, blood tests, antenatal classes and then the birth itself were both a new experience emotionally for me, but also visually,’ she explains. ‘I decided that the maternity wing would make the ideal subject for my work, bringing together my personal relationship to this hospital with an ongoing interest in depicting women’s working lives through painting.’

Walker was also inspired by Frederick Cayley Robinson’s ‘The Acts of Mercy’, a series of four allegorical paintings exploring the positive forces of the human spirit in the face of destruction. The works, which originally hung in the foyer of the Middlesex hospital, now form part of the nearby Wellcome Collection.

Complementing the exhibition is a display of ink drawings and oil sketches at UCLH from Caroline’s time at the hospital. Make sure to explore the public programme of events too.

Viewing Dave Benett: Great Shot, Kid

The Wick Culture - Kate Moss captured by Dave Benett, 2002

Above Kate Moss captured by Dave Benett, 2002

The Wick Culture - Jack Nicholson and Danny DeVito in 1993, captured by Dave Benett

Above Jack Nicholson and Danny DeVito in 1993, captured by Dave Benett

Above Kate Moss captured by Dave Benett, 2002

Above Jack Nicholson and Danny DeVito in 1993, captured by Dave Benett

17 February — 8 March 2022
JD Malat Gallery
https://jdmalat.com/exhibitions/dave-benett-great-shot-kid/

Ask Naomi Campbell, Madonna or Tracey Emin who their favourite photographer is and they’ll likely say Dave Benett. The Rolling Stones demand him in their dressing room and Kate Moss won’t do a photo call without him. ‘I’m always happy to see Dave’s face at a party or event,’ she once said. ‘I know I’m in safe hands. He’s the best.’

A photographer for over 40 years, Benett began his career as a news reporter before turning his lens to the celebrity circuit in the early 1980s. Since then, he has snapped some of the most iconic images in showbiz history, from Liz Hurley in that Versace dress to Liza Minelli and Princess Diana on a night out together. Rumour has it that he even asked the Queen to move out the way to get a better shot. ‘I was trusted because I took a good picture,’ he has said. ‘You should never forget why you’re there.’

To mark 40 years in the industry, JD Malat Gallery presents Benett’s first solo exhibition. Curated by Benett together with author and editor Dylan Jones, it features a selection of his most famous photographs, as well as images never seen before. Expect oodles of glamour, sex and rock’n’roll. As you’ll soon see, Benett really has seen it all!

Viewing Be Yourself; Everyone Else Is Already Taken

The Wick Culture - Imagery from Daniel Lismore's book 'Be Yourself, Everyone Else is Already Taken.' Photo credit - Colin Douglas Gray, courtesy of SCAD

Above Imagery from Daniel Lismore’s book ‘Be Yourself, Everyone Else is Already Taken.’ Photo credit – Colin Douglas Gray, courtesy of SCAD

18 February — 26 June 2022
Herbert Art Gallery & Museum, Coventry
https://www.theherbert.org/whats_on/1621/be_yourself_everyone_else_is_already_taken

Artist Daniel Lismore describes himself as a ‘living sculpture’. Raised in Coventry, he is perhaps best known for his elaborate and extravagant ensembles, made using everything from haute couture items and vintage fabrics to charity shop finds, accessories, trinkets and baubles. In 2016, Vogue named him ‘England’s most eccentric dresser’.

Landing at the Herbert Museum this month is the UK premiere of Be Yourself; Everyone Else Is Already Taken, featuring 50 life-size figurative sculptures bedecked with items from Lismore’s personal collection of nearly 7000 unique pieces. Each sculpture is modelled on the artist and features a cast of his face. ‘It’s an army of me,’ Lismore has said of the striking display, which takes inspiration from the ancient Chinese Terracotta Army. ‘For me, when you put on your clothes, it’s like you are going out to war in the world.’

Be Yourself; Everyone Else Is Already Taken — a phrase often attributed to Oscar Wilde — explores the links between dress, identity and authenticity, while unpicking the social, historical and cultural themes central to Lismore’s work. It also spotlights the importance of sustainable fashion, a cause close to the artist’s heart. The bonus? It’s free. Never has there been a better time to visit the UK’s City of Culture. Hop to it.