Arts & Culture writer – Eddie Saint-Jean The pandemic sent shockwaves throughout the art world, disrupting market behaviour and shaking up the creative routines of both established names and new talent. Although innovative digital offerings such as NFTs increased in popularity and value, the wider cultural and creative landscape dipped significantly and research shows the…
Jennifer Akinsuyi – From Gallerist To Visual Artist
British-Nigerian gallerist Jennifer Akinsuyi ran her JonaQuestArts Gallery from a much sought after location in Greenwich, London in the heart of its tourist centre, with eager footfall only a maritime museum away. However, she decided to close operations a few months before Covid hit these shores and the pandemic accelerated her move from gallerist to…
INTERVIEW – West End Gallerist Tony Cole
Tony Cole left a secure, well paid job in public sector management to switch to his first love art and take his first steps into business. Coles Art Gallery is in an ideal location between Leicester Square and Tottenham Court Road stations, with a constant flow of customers drawn to West End visitor attractions. We…
EXHIBITION – Fourth Plinth Shortlist
Arts and culture writer Eddie Saint-Jean visits the National Gallery to check out the current sculpture on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square and the work of the six shortlisted artists. From afar, the current sculpture The End, by artist Heather Phillipson, looks like a giant ice cream cone but wander a little closer and…
Basquiat’s Versus Medici and the Black Renaissance
Eddie Saint-Jean, arts and culture Why did Jean-Michel Basquiat give his painting that title Versus Medici and how is it connected with the current Black Renaissance? Well, here’s some background. The Medici Family: A wealthy family of fifteenth century Florentine merchants who were patrons of artists such as Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo and powered…
EXHIBITION – Denise Wyllie’s ‘Absolutely Cuthbert’ selected for RWA Annual Open
The Royal West of England Academy‘s Annual Open is in its 168th year but every year is a special celebration of undiscovered talent and established artists. Artist Denise Wyllie‘s screen print Cuthbert is amongst the 600 selected works, which include photography, printmaking, sculpture, drawing, painting, installation and mixed media. It’s been a memorable spring 2021…
EXHIBITION – Vertigo: The Black Gaze
Vertigo, a 1958 movie by Alfred Hitchcock is considered a classic but did you know it’s the first movie to be considered art? Artist and filmmaker Eddie Saint-Jean has now taken the next step in turning this movie into art. He went to an East End rooftop car park to recreate and rework the Vertigo…
EXHIBITION – Othello De Souza-Hartley: Cataloguing Emotions
This solo show by Othello De Souza-Hartley is notable amongst the Covid 19 era London exhibitions because of the body and architecture connection, poignant at a time when there is global focus on the relationship between the self and surrounding constructs. However, De Souza’s work brings together concepts he had developed well before the coronavirus…
