As the nights draw in closer, we’re busy planning our autumn calendar of events to make the most of the shorter days. Amongst the array of autumn craft events and festive get togethers, there’s a cultural feast on offer across the UK and beyond to get your teeth into this season. Here’s a pick of our favourites…
Philip Guston
The Tate, London
5 October 2023 – 25 February 2024
A year late in it’s opening amid fierce debate and anxiety over the representation of certain subjects in his work, the Tate’s upcoming Philip Guston exhibition is a must see so the viewer can make up their own mind. This is the first major retrospective of the Canadian Abstract Artist in the UK for over 20 years.
“Born in Canada to a Jewish immigrant family, he grew up in the US and eventually became one of the most celebrated abstract painters of the 1950s and 1960s, alongside Mark Rothko and his childhood friend Jackson Pollock. For over 50 years, artist Philip Guston restlessly made paintings and drawings that captured the anxious and turbulent world he was witnessing.” - tate.org
Find out more here.
London Literature Festival
The Southbank Centre, London
18-29 October 2023
The London Literature Festival will offer a host of spectacular creativity, celebrating both the written and spoken word. This years event hosts a wide range of famous faces and voices including the likes of George the Poet, Sir Patrick Stewart, Kerry Washington and children’s book author Jacqueline Wilson.
Find out more here.
Renoir in Guernsey, 1883
Guernsey Museums & Galleries, Candie Gardens, St Peter Port, Guernsey 30 September – 15 December 2023
In 1883 Renoir visited Guernsey and whilst he was there, he painted what he saw. Now it’s your turn to see what he painted while also exploring the island that inspired such works 140 years later.
“The only Renoir exhibition in the world in 2023, it will celebrate the 120th anniversary of Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s stay in Guernsey and the inspiration that he found on the island, and will be stage in partnership with Guernsey Museums and the Musee des Impressionism’s Giverny, including a host of major international loans.”
Find out more here.
Made in LA
1 October - 31 December 2023
The Hammer Museum, Loas Angeles, USA
Upping their game each time with every series of biennial exhibitions, The Hammer Museum once again shines its spotlight on the most exciting emerging and under appreciated L.A artists.
“Titled “Acts of Living,” this year’s show focuses on how art is inseperable from everyday life and includes a mix of new commissions and historical works from 39 up-and-coming and prolific artists, including Marcel Alcalá, Sula Bermúdez-Silverman and Jibz Cameron, among others.”
Find out more here.
American Museum of Natural History
New York, USA
Not so much an exhibition or event, but if you haven’t visited the American Museum of Natural History lately, then you need to go simply to see the new Gilder Center wing. “The Gilder Center includes a butterfly vivarium, an insectarium and a 360-degree immersive experience. After nearly a decade of planning, designing and building, the massive new wing at the American Museum of Natural History will soon welcome visitors. The architecturally stunning, 230,000-square-foot Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education and Innovation.” Find out more here.
Tronies
The Antwerp Fine Arts Museum
20 October 2023 – 1 January 2024
For anyone with a penchant for portraiture, this face study focused exhibition in Antwerp is one that is not to be missed… “A Tronie is a study of a face. Artists often used them as a sort of library when it came to painting crowd scenes. With inspiration from your collection of tronies each face in the crowd could look different but lifelike. Sometimes the same head pops up in as many as ten finished masterpieces. Tronies used by Rubens, Dürer, Bruegel, Van Dyck and Hals to name a few will be on show.” Find out more here.
Azzedine Alaïa, couturier collectionneur
Palais Galliera, Paris, France
27 September 2023 to 21 January 2024
You would be forgiven for thinking that this was a showcase of the incredible designs of renowned fashion designer Azzedine Alaïa, but no. Alaïa was also a secretive yet serious collector, and this exhibition is dedicated to showcasing his treasures from his 20,000 piece collection. Expect to see around 100 pieces from the likes of Jeanne Lanvin, Cristóbal Balenciaga, Gabrielle Chanel, Madeleine Vionnet, Christian Dior, Jean Paul Gaultier, Alexander McQueen, Thierry Mugler this autumn at the Palais Galliera as part of a brand new exhibition.
Find out more here.