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Galleries and museums are wisely avoiding opening any major shows during the Olympic fortnight, for the fear they might sink without a trace in a nation gripped by sporting fever. But the next two weeks could still be a busy one for any London art lover keen to see some interesting exhibitions before their doors close. Here’s our pick of the essential shows to catch:
Sara BarkerA debut solo show in the city for this young Glaswegian sculptor, whose elegant, rectilinear works in metal, to borrow a phrase from Paul Klee, ‘take a line for a walk’ in three dimensions.
David ClaerboutThe first show in a London public gallery for Belgian artist David Claerbout, who has gained acclaim in Europe for video installations that combine still and moving images to disconcerting effect.
Elizabeth Price: The Tent
Bloomberg SPACE (until 11 August)
Elizabeth Price was nominated for the Turner Prize in May. If you haven’t yet seen her imagistic films that draw on sources as diverse as science fiction and gothic literature, visit this screening of her 2012 work The Tent.
Sarah Sze and Grayson Perry: The Vanity of Small Differences ArtTwo great shows at this North London gallery are about to come to an end: a presentation of tapestries by Grayson Perry RA on the subject of how taste (see his opinion piece in RA Magazine to get a flavour of his thinking) and beguiling large-scale installations comprised of everyday objects and materials by New York artist Sarah Sze.
Bauhaus: Art as LifeHighly recommended is the Barbican’s expansive survey of the Bauhaus art school, a utopian institution that attempted to unify art and design, first in an Expressionist mode and latterly in the cool Constructivist works for which it became famous.
British Design 1948-2012: Innovation in the Modern AgeAfter the paean to Britishness by the surely soon-to-be-knighted Danny Boyle, indulge your love for the country’s style with this overview of late-twentieth and early-21st century design, with over 300 objects from patriotic 1950s posters to 1970s Anarchy in the UK t-shirts.
Migrations: Journeys into British ArtAlthough receiving less press attention than the recent ‘Picasso and Modern British Art’ exhibition at the Tate (which is now on view in Edinburgh), this show about immigration into Britain since the sixteenth-century – and how art represented it and was affected by it – is definitely worth a visit before it finishes.
'Troubling Space: The Summer Sessions', Curated by Helga Just Christoffersen and Natasha Llorens - Zabludowicz Collection Curatorial OpenThe Zabludowicz Collection, on view in an atmospheric converted church in Kentish Town, tackles the wide and discussion-ripe issue of space in its summer open-submission group show, covering such themes as architectural space, digital space and how the body moves in space.
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