Stephen Friedman Gallery at the London House of Modernity

 

 

I had walked past 14 Cavendish Square and it's twin counterpart on numerous occasions when living in Westminster. Number 14 is one of four mansions in the square built by Sir George Foster Tufnell in 1770. It is a Grade II listed building in the Palladian style with a magnificent façade clad in Portland stone boasting a grand order of Corinthian pilasters beneath a matching pediment facing directly onto the square. I was always struck by Jacob Epstein's large, 1950s Madonna and Child statue installed on a bridge linking the two buildings. It looms out at you, appearing to "levitate" above the mews entrance. Epstein's sculpture is created from three tons of the lead of the roof of number 14 when the property sustained bomb damage in World War II. I recently took the opportunity to visit and explore the interior of number 14 with this current joint venture by Stephen Friedman Gallery and The London House of Modernity. The collaboration brings together the world of contemporary art and classic midcentury Nordic design in this impressive Georgian mansion. Mid-century furniture, design and textiles has been the stimulus for elements of my newer work (here, and here), so I was determined to experience these industrial design classics first-hand. Despite the graceful proportions of the large rooms, the interior of the building is now a mere shadow of its grand, former self, denuded of the majority of its original features, and now in a state of near dereliction. The building is most definately in estate agents parlance "a fixer-upper". The bare bones of the property in this state of disrepair however provides a stark contrast and ideal backdrop in which to view the modern art and design currently installed. It felt like a real privilege to be afforded this rare chance to walk through these rooms, to try to envision in my minds eye the lives lived of those occupants who had previously inhabited this building. The births, marriages and deaths encapsulated within the fabric of this space. The disparities of wealth between the well-to-do owners against those who served them, the differences in lives lived above and below stairs. I wondered about the activities and occasions these walls bore witness to, formal entertaining, perhaps balls and dances, as well as the more mundane, but necessary chores which form a part of everyday life. Yinka Shonibare's figures installed here helped with these musings, as they stand on the sidelines sporting period costume, attendant, waiting quietly in the corners of the rooms. Number 14 sadly, is currently being touted for development as offices. Exhibitions in empty, near-derelict important buildings are always exciting, providing a chance to finally gain entry to classic architecure usually inaccessible to the public. Previous examples of similar ventures were experienced on visits to  a Burberry fashion installation at the Old Sessions House, Clerkenwell, here, and Lisbon's Design Museum housed in the stripped innards of an old bank, here. In all cases the basic, austere, interiors of the buildings proved to be as fascinating as the art, design and fashion temporarily displayed inside them. 

 

 

 Jacob Epstein - Madonna and Child, 1950-52

 

 

 Arne Jacobsen - Egg Chair for Fritz Hansen, 1958

 

   

Jim Hodges - Untitled (Landscape V), 2000-2001

 

Josef Frank - Flora cabinet on stand for Svenskt Tenn, 1937

 

Marina Adams - Three Witches of the Night, 2020, Stardust, 2020 paintings

Björn Trägårdh - Easy chairs model 151 for Svenskt Tenn, 1930s, Bruno Mathsson - System shelving #42, 1952, 

 

 

Yinka Shonibare CBE - Wounded Amazon (after Sosikles), 2019

 

Yinka Shonibare CBE - Wounded Amazon (after Sosikles), 2019, (detail)

 

Börge Mogensen - Sleigh chair and footstool, 1953

 

Luiz Zerbini

Yinka Shonibare CBE

 

Hans Wegner - Chairs for Johannes Hansen, 1960s

 

Ilona Keserü -June Variation series, 1976

 

 

Finn Juhl - Chieftan armchair for Niels Vodder, 1949, TH Valentiner - Floor Lamp for Poul Dinesen, 1960s

 

 

Artwork - Ilona Keserü - Saturated Accord, 1976, Börge Mogensen - Library table for Erhard Rasmussen,1954, Lisa Johansson-Pape - Table Lamps for Orno, 1940s

Börge Mogensen - Library table for Erhard Rasmussen,1954, Lisa Johansson-Pape - Table Lamps for Orno, 1940s

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kendell Geers - Age of Iron CV, 2012

 

Wayne Gonzales - Woman in the Garden, 2016 

 

Andreas Eriksson - Content is a Glimpse #36, 2014

 

 

 Ole Wanscher - Colonial sofa and armchairs, PJ 149 for P. Jeppeson, 1949/60s

Mamma Andersson - The Weakening Eye of Day, 2017

 

 

Ole Wanscher - Colonial armchair, PJ 149 for P. Jeppeson, 1949

 

 

Surviving original cornicing

 

Ole Christensen - Rain, ceramic sculpture, 1950s

Mamma Andersson prints, Josef Frank - Sideboard for Svenskt Tenn, 1950s

 

Finn Juhl - Sofa for Niels Vodder, 1943

 

Ged Quinn - Eleven Breaks of Blind, 2017
 

The view onto Cavendish Square from the first floor

 

 

Uno Ullberg - Dining set for Hangö Ångsåg & Ångsnickeri AB, 1905

 

Yinka Shonibare CBE - Un Ballo In Maschera (Courtiers II), 2004

 

Uno Ullberg - Cabinet for Hangö Ångsåg & Ångsnickeri AB, 1905, Chair in the style of Jean Royère, French, 1940s, Axel Enoch Boman - Table Lamp for Orrefors, 1915

 

Ged Quinn - Today is Our Meatless Day, 2013

 

Yinka Shonibare CBE - Un Ballo In Maschera (Courtiers II), 2004

 

Ged Quinn - Your Most Urgent Prayer, 2012

 

Mirror artwork -Jim Hodges - Untitled (Split), 1997, Uno Ullberg - Cabinet for Hangö Ångsåg & Ångsnickeri AB, 1905, Chairs in the style of Jean Royère, French, 1940s

 

Yinka Shonibare CBE - Un Ballo In Maschera (Courtiers II), 2004

 

 

 

 

Yinka Shonibare CBE - Tapestry series

 

More original cornicing

 

Second Floor Skylight

 

Alvar Aalto - Shelf for Hedemora, 1933

 

Juan Araujo - Azul Series paintings, 2003

 

Alvar Aalto  - Small Paimio armchair, Artek, 1930s

 

Yinka Shonibare CBE - Un Ballo In Maschera (Gustav III and Anckarstrom), 2004

 

Jonathan Baldock - love the skin you're in, 2020

 

Jonathan Baldock - love the skin you're in, 2020 (detail)

 

Tonico Lemos Auad - Red Figure, 2019 and The World is Black as Ink, 2019

 

Jonathan Baldock - Mask Series

 

Jonathan Baldock - Mask V, 2018

 

Jonathan Baldock - Mask LI, 2018

 

Ilmari Tapiovaara - Ceiling Lamp, 1955

 

Hans Olsen - Modular TV bench model 161 for Bramin, 1957

 

Per B Sundberg - Fabula vases for Orrefors, 2003

 

Ivar Callmander - Armchair, 1920s

 

Paavo Tynell - Table Lamp Model H5-8 for Idman, 1950s

 

Rivane Neuenschwander - O nome do medo (recorte): Morar na rua / The Name of Fear (cut out): Live on the Street, 2017

The attic window and the view through it onto Cavendish Square

 

The bare bones of the attic space

 

 

Peter Hvidt and Orla Mölgaard Nielsen - six armchairs for Söborg, 1960s

 

 

Poul Kjaerholm - Daybed PK80 for E. Kold Christensen, 1957

 

Eva and Nils Koppel Armchair for Slagelse Mobelverk, 1950s and Mogens Lassens Egyptian Table for Rud Rasmussen, 1935

 

Anonymous long case clock, 1950s

 

Bruno Mathsson - Bench for Karl Mathsson, 1960s, and Stig Lindberg vase, 1965

 

 

 

 

 

Stephen Friedman Gallery at the House of Modernity

until 28th May

14 Cavendish Square

London

W1

 

Threadbare: Jonathan Baldock Huguette Caland Jeffrey Gibson Tau Lewis

 

Jonathan Baldock - Eating Feelings (a conversation), 2020 (detail)

 

 

Another strong exhibition at Stephen Friedman in which textiles and processes traditionally considered craft are elevated to the status of art. The four artists in Threadbare explore issues such as gender, identity, race and sexuality through a range of textile techniques in their own particular styles. Elements of the artwork displayed recalled that of Frances Upritchard's Wetwang Slack seen at the Barbican in 2019 (here).

 

Huguette Caland - Inaash, (dress #7) c. 1970 

 

 

Huguette Caland's kaftans made in the 1970s directly challenge taboos associated with the representation of female sexuality. While living in Beirut in the 1960s, Caland rejected the western-influenced fashions worn by her peers in favour of loose-fitting kaftans inspired by the abaya, a form of traditional Arabic dress. At a time when the emphasis was on being tall and thin, Caland offered a liberating embrace of the female physique for women who did not conform to these societal pressures. In this vein, the dresses on view in ‘Threadbare’ conceal the body, instead drawing attention to abstract embroidery and detailed crochet patterns animated by the wearer’s movement.

 

The Last (dress #6), 1975

Rossinante, 2005-2011

Rossinante Under Cover X (Red, Orange, Black), 2011

 

 

Jonathan Baldock - Eating feelings (a conversation), 2020

 

 

Jonathan Baldock’s recent work uses puppetry, quilt-making and embroidery to reveal the malleable quality of the human body and its connection with the inner psyche. Baldock believes “in the power of making things through the bringing together of head and hand,” contesting the sentimentality associated with craft and the hand-made. ‘Eating feelings (a conversation)’ captures a pair of life-sized marionettes engaged in animated dialogue. Assuming the role of puppet master, Baldock breathes life into inanimate forms by using casts of his own body and arduous physical processes such as hand-embroidery. 

 

 

All bodies are good bodies, 2021

 

I'm often silent when I'm screaming inside, 2019

 

 

Jeffrey Gibson - 'Hushi', 2021

 

 

Drawing on his Choctaw-Cherokee heritage, JeffreyGibson’s work engages Native American materials and process in relation to popular culture.His work in ‘Threadbare’ combines intricate indigenous artisanal handcraft–applied in wearable garments, beadwork and patterned quilts–with narratives of contemporary resistance in protest slogans and song lyrics in a “blend of confrontation and pageantry”. Gibson harnesses the power of such materials and techniques to activate overlooked histories, while also embracing the presence of marginalised identities in today's society.

 

 

POWER!, 2018

 

Speak To Me So That I Can Understand, 2018

 

 MY HEART BEATS FOR THE ONE I LOVE, 2021 

 

 

Tau Lewis - Harmony, 2021

 

 

Tau Lewis sews and builds complex sculptures and quilts that engage with personal trauma. Found materials such as leather are used to respond to the legacy of the Black diaspora. Lewis's recent textile works - described by the artist as "celestial bodies" - act as spiritual conduits between the past, present and future. The transformative quality of Lewis' work speaks to her interest in outsider artist from the Black South. She explains that "objects (which) come from the post-slavery era are made largely out debris, refuge  and garbage. I consider them fossils containing the emotional generational DNA of the entire community. I believe that by studying certain art objects and tendencies toward new thinking in the black community, you can learn a lot about mobility, pictorial memory, trauma, and how to recover."

 

 

The Leg of the Hen, 2020

 

Sword of War, 2020

 

Dumah, 2021

 

Threadbare: Jonathan Baldock Huguette Caland Jeffrey Gibson Tau Lewis

until 15th May

Stephen Friedman Gallery

25-28 Old Burlington Street 

London

W1