Renée Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy

26/07/2024

THE POWER OF ART #123 NEDA DANA-HAERI & TAJALLI KESHAVARZ ‘DISTANT LAND, STOLEN GLANCE’ !!

Your glance
a nocturnal flight.
I close my eye
and night is here.

Tajalli Keshavarz

Today's selected work on paper is inspired by Keshavarz’s poem from the publication, ’Distant Land, Stolen Glance’ . Reflecting on the title, the international migration crisis comes instantly to mind, where separation, dislocation, and loss are an ongoing, sad occurrence.

However, Keshavarz’s poem also expresses in a few words the melancholic yearning for a much-loved person, imagining to be reunited. Dana-Hari captures the writer’s mood in her ink watercolour drawing. A few black strokes glide like a feather with ease on the white paper, the red marks emphasise the feeling of longing.


Image:
Neda Dana-Haeri, Tajalli Keshavarz,
Distance Land Stolen Glance, ink and watercolour drawing on paper, H230 mm x W150 mm.

Courtesy and ©Neda Dana-Haeri, Tajalli Keshavarz and Renee Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, 2024.

24/07/2024

Morning All

TODAYS SPECIAL ‘TRUMPSTEAK’ !!

19/07/2024

THE JOY OF WHAT WE DO #59 'CONDITIONS OF LOANS' !!

Museums and public galleries often engage in borrowing artworks, antiquities or other collectibles from other institutions, collectors, artists, and makers. Curators and registrars are familiar with the loan agreement and its terms and conditions. Often loans between national and international museums are reciprocal, were lending between smaller museum can attract a loan fee for each borrowed item. In addition, conservation, framing, packing, transport and courier costs must be covered by the borrower.

Over the years we all have come across some intolerable demands by lenders, ranging from 1st class air tickets for the borrower and his/her spouse, five star or higher luxury hotel accommodation, extended stays and so on. The borrower, keen to secure the desired objects for the exhibition display, must break the news to the lender diplomatically and explain that these kinds of conditions cannot be met and provide solid reasons.

Recently, I have been dealing with the return of sixteen antiquities from a four months exhibition. As I took over from the outgoing loans manager, I asked for the loan agreement. It made me gasp for air whilst reading the document. The following requests were made, agreed and signed: a one-off payment or loan fee of USD 100,000; 20% commission from ticket and catalogue sales during the exhibition and a paid stay for two security guards throughout the entire duration of the exhibition. Each guard receiving a daily per diem of USD 300. Ironically, I noticed that both guards who were supposed to watch the objects during opening hours turned up briefly and then disappeared, they were only present during the deinstallation. It is questionable why the terms and conditions were not fairer and better negotiated, in this instance, they were the most expensive loans I have ever come across.

Image:
AI generated, 2024

14/07/2024

05/07/2024

THE POWER OF ART #122 AYA HAIDAR ‘A MOTHER’S SACRAFICE FROM THE SOLESS SERIES’ !!

Aya Haidar’s Soleless series is the result of an intense four-months artist in residence programme with Deveron Projects. During this period, she focused on the resettlement of just arrived Syrian refugees in the UK. The cycle is a powerful testimony to the stories of separation, loss, and the harsh daily migrant realities. These narratives are intricately embroidered onto the undersides of worn shoes.

Haidar used discarded footwear collected from migrant communities. They are marked by wear and tear, covered with accumulated dirt and bear the remnants of past wearers. The disintegration of the shoes becomes a poignant symbol of the arduous journeys and the challenges of forced displacement. In particular, her evocative and intricate textile work ‘A Mother's Sacrifice’, that communicates the silent voices of mothers who agave up so much for their children. These sad stories are often unseen and unheard. Haidar’s stitched shoes pay tribute to the enduring spirit of motherhood, of love and care. She reflects on her multicultural background, her personal experiences as a mother, and the wider context of migration.

Image:
Courtesy and ©Aya Haidar, A Mother's Sacrifice from The Soleless Series, 2019. Embroidery on shoe soles, H510 mm x W465 mm x D80 mm.

Courtesy and ©Aya Haidar, and Renée Pfister Art and Gallery Consultancy, 2024. All rights reserved.

01/07/2024

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE TRESURE HOUSE FAIR - LAST DAY TOMORROW !!

1. An Inaw, Ainu wooden spirit stick
2. Ivon Hitchens
3. Georgina Warne
4. Lucie Rie
5. William Scott
6. Picasso
7. Anthony Caro
8. Kenneth Nolan
9. Howard Hodgkin

24/06/2024

WE HAVE EXCITING NEWS !!

Torus Torus Studios are in the top 100 public art projects for this years CODA awards! Currently they are in 4th place and would love your support. Alex and Colin are immensely proud of this project for the Science Museum and your vote for would mean a huge amount. It was a great pleasure to work with Torus Torus Studio on this project.

https://lnkd.in/erUuDJmG

&sonengineersltd

24/06/2024

WE HAVE EXCITING NEWS !!

Torus Torus Studios are in the top 100 public art projects for this years CODA awards! Currently they are in 4th place and would love your support. Alex and Colin are immensely proud of this project for the Science Museum and your vote for would mean a huge amount. It was a great pleasure to work with Torus Torus Studio on this project.

https://lnkd.in/erUuDJmG

&sonengineersltd

21/06/2024

THE POWER OF ART #121 CHRIS TILLE ‘ESSENZ’ !!

In his latest project "Essenz", Chris Tille embarks on a philosophical journey inspired by the ideas of the philosopher Henri Bergson, known for his theory of the ‘élan vital’ - the vital impulse or life force. Bergson is regarded as a profound, creative, analytical thinker who focused on the evolution and development of the world. His view suggested that a hypothetical force which is neither physical nor chemical causes the evolution and development of organisms – leading to the creation of different forms of life – such as plants and animals, and the humans.

For this project, Tille records the magnitude of energy flows at specific locations around the world. The accumulated data serves as a starting point and with the help of an analytics software programme he explores, calculates and processes these currents, in an attempt to portray the driving forces of nature, the world and the universe - Bergson's "élan vital" -.

ESSENZ // Limited Edition - 6 + 2 AP / Fine Art Print on Hahnemühle Paper.

Image:
Chris Tille, Noise_Field-89_5_800, Fine Art Print on Hahnemühle Paper, H700 mm x W1200 mm.

Courtesy and ©Chris Tille and Renée Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, 2024.

07/06/2024

THE POWER OF ART #120 NICOLA ANTHONY 'I WILL RISE' !!

Borrowing its title from a line in the poem 'Still I rise' by Maya Angelou, this artwork muses on human resilience in the face of hardship. In the creation of her work Anthony dives deep into literature, cultural and historic events to distil the essence that will eventually be portrayed through her art. For 'I will rise', her research focused on literature, thinkers, and words that have guided society over the generation, or have been synonymous with turning points in the pursuit of liberty and equality. Inspired by their words and in recognition of the role of artists and dreamers in shaping the world, the artist has penned her own sculptural poem.

This artwork explores the power of resilience and affirmation within the infinite cycle of life. The words reference times of conflict and struggle so we are reminded that there is often a need to find strength, to find a better way forward, to rise. It is this balance of confronting the darkness of life but bringing out hopefulness that has informed Anthony’s artistic practice throughout her career.

In the full installation of 7 rings the artist imagined a spine or ladder rising out of the dust, inspired by the powerful lines from Maya Angelou:

Learning behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise.

Excerpt of Still I Rise, Maya Angelou.

Images:
Courtesy and ©Nicola Anthony, I Will Rise, 2023, 7 ring sculptures.

Courtesy and ©Nicola Anthony, Maya Angelou, and Renée Pfister, 2024. All rights reserved.

31/05/2024

THE JOY OF WHAT WE DO #57 ‘WORKING OUTDOORS' !!

Working outdoors on sculpture or land art installations presents artists, curators, conservators, art handling technicians, security, site and projects managers with a different set of challenges.

At the outset locations or sites must be approved and permissions must be granted by relevant authorities. Furthermore, foundations, display structures and supports, access to power, technical equipment and H&S requirements for machinery and staff must be in place.

Weather conditions can have a huge impact on progressing the installation. Rain, hail and high winds can bring the project to a halt, beside paperwork being blown away. Uneven ground and rock during an installation at the beach can cause accidents, and bright sunlight can make it impossible to take sharp documentation photos along with viewing laptop screens. Constantly moving from one area to another due to lack of a site office becomes part of the daily routine. Sometimes there are no facilities such as cafes and toilets and there are always spectators attempting to enter the site and asking questions.

Image:
Installation Shezad Dawood, Factum Arte, Manar Light Project Abu Dhabi.
©Shezad Dawood, and Renée Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, 2024.

24/05/2024

THE POWER OF ART #119 STATHIS DIMITRIADIS 'TARMAK' !!

Stathis Dimitriadis attributes his inspiration and curiosity for artmaking to the daily stimuli of the urban environment. Everyday images of building constructions, advertisements, flows of people and objects feed into his ceramic pieces. He compares this approach with a dive into a treasure box - continuously observing, selecting, creating and connecting - to unveil new meanings as well as preparing the ground for future epiphanies.

Dimitriadis latest vessel is ‘Tarmak’, a hybrid of an elegantly glazed ceramic water jar and a basketball. It instantly brings in mind Jeff Koons’ Equilibrium series, where he aimed to achieve balance in works that feature basketballs floating inside water tanks.

Dimitriadis borrowed the title of his work from a basketball brand since he often uses words and text from the materials he applies, especially if they are already used and carry their own history. He made use of a worn-out basketball, played with by his son, emphasising Koons comment: “white middle-class kids have been using art the same way other ethnic groups have been using basketball for social mobility”. In this instance, Dimitriadis examines the brand name 'Tarmak' as a homophone of tarmac since basketball is usually a street game. He found the relationship between tarmac as a hard surface, the rubber as a soft exterior and the fragile ceramic remarkably interesting – a vessel in perfect balance -. His alchemical process reveals different core elements in unison, speaking to our contemporary notion of sublime.

We are pleased to announce that Stathis Dimitriadis’ Tarmak ceramic can be seen at the exhibition ‘The Art of Transformation: Ephemera Elevated’ at 45 Park Lane, London W1K 1PN, from today 24 May to 18 August 2024.

Image:
Courtesy and ©Stathis Dimitriadis, Tarmak, 2023, ceramic with basketball rubber,
H280 mm x W230 mm x D230 mm.

Courtesy and ©Stathis Dimitriadis and Renee Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, 2024

19/05/2024

PHOTO LONDON 2024 !!

I managed to catch the last day of Photo London, where I saw this striking photo of the American actor Willem Dafoe, photographed by Rahi Rezvani, in 2012. The portrait had a commanding presence.

14/05/2024

14/05/2024

GUSHING PORTRAITS - ARTIST IN FOCUS - WARREN KING - MAY 2024

Warren King, our May Artist in Focus - watch our video and view his captivating personages or subscribe to our newsletter.
bit.ly/SignUpRP

Courtesy and ©Warren King and Renée Pfister (text), Eric Matyas ‘Nighttime Escape_v001’ (music) with the assistance of Gözde Altun, 2024. All rights reserved. Renée Pfister

11/05/2024

A FABULOUS EXHIBITION AT THE BARBICAN LONDON !!
Unravel: The Power and Politics of Textiles in Art.

The exhibition presents intimate handcrafted pieces and large-scale sculptural pieces, communicating multilayered stories about lived experiences, invoking the deeply rooted issues embedded in fibre and thread.

03/05/2024

THE POWER OF ART #118 FRANCES AVIVA BLANE 'CLOSED’

Frances Aviva Blane latest paintings are centred around the dark side of life and leave viewers in suspense. Often they deal with our deeply buried emotions, vulnerabilities, nightmares, and touch on forbidden and unexplained events. According to critic Anna McNay, even Blane’s father used to say he was afraid to sleep in a room with her paintings.

The word ‘Catharsis’, from the ancient Greek language means purification and cleansing. A term introduced by the Aristotle, a philosopher and polymath, whose literary concerns covered a wide range of subjects. He described ‘Catharsis’ as a process of releasing negative emotion linked to the positive social function of tragedy. Today, this reference is also applied in psychology, where individuals are encouraged to express their undesirable thoughts and feelings, which are common to us all.

Blane’s edgy paintings affect our senses in unexpected ways and offer a journey to the hidden secrets of our souls.

Frances Aviva Blane’s exhibition ‘Disturb’ at Shippon Gallery will open on 8 May 2024 with a PV on 5 May and closes 15 June 2024.

Image:
Courtesy and ©Frances Aviva Blane, Closed, 2024, oil on linen 45 mm x 45 mm.

Text:
Courtesy and ©Frances Aviva Blane, Shippon Gallery and Renée Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, 2024. All rights reserved.

26/04/2024

THE POWER OF ART #117 NEON ‘GLADE’ 11

NEON's artistic practice focuses on the elevation of everyday spaces. Their latest commission ‘Glade’ is a site-specific permanent installation at the East Lothian Community Hospital.

Kinetic and calm, ‘Glade‘ gently moves in the atrium’s air flow, its disc components spin slowly, like leaves in the wind. The Lothian landscape is the stimulus for Mark and Viliina of NEON, where they studied forests, hillsides, and beaches. Their vision involved translating and transforming the beneficial qualities deriving from the local nature into an artwork that inspires to support patients and staff in a demanding hospital environment. The overall aim, of course, is to reduce stress levels and anxiety.

‘Glade’ is designed to subtly move when the air flows through the space, allowing the disc component to undulate at its own pace. The repetition and subtle changes in light, form and movement create the conditions that allow the viewer to ‘lose themselves’ in the artwork.

Image: NEON, Glade, 2023, acrylic and metal, H5.1 m x W4.2 m x D 5 m.

Courtesy and ©NEON of Mark Nixon and Viliina Koivisto, NHS Lothian Charity and Renée Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, 2024.

22/04/2024

54th EARTH DAY 2024 !!

Today we will celebrate the 54th Earth Day, the beautiful home of the human and countless other species.
We must cherish and respect our home. Here are some photos from my travels on this amazing planet.

19/04/2024

THE JOY OF WHAT WE DO #56 ‘OBSERVATION’ !!

On the way to Karfunkel Fee’s castle, I often walk through her woods, where I made this interesting observation, which can be seen in these photos.

When I passed this wooden trunk, I was instantly reminded of the work 'Spazio di Luce' by the Italian artist Giuseppe Penone, a leading figure of the Arte Povera movement. The term was coined by the Italian critic Germano Celant, who sadly passed in 2020, after contracting Covid-19. Arte Povera does not mean poor art; the focus of this movement are materials and works processes.

Over the past five decades, Penone dedicated himself to the organic world. Growing up in the northwest region of Piedmont, where the forests provided him with endless inspiration. He continuously pursued his preoccupation with the woodlands. His tree sculptures reveal the interplay of art and nature in the physicality of marble, bronze, wood, and clay.

Image:
Walk through Karfunkelfee’s forest and installation view Guiseppe Penone.
©Guiseppe Penone, Gagosian Gallery and Renée Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, 2024.

10/04/2024

SPRING HIGHLIGHTS - APRIL 2024 !!

See what we have been up to since our last Consultancy Highlights in January.

Subscribe to our newsletter bit.ly/SignUpRP

Courtesy and ©Alexandra Carr, Colin Rennie of Torus Torus Studio, Science Museum London; Manar Project, Abu Dhabi; Department of Culture and Tourism; Shezad Dawood, Factum Arte; Osman Yousefzada, Felicity Avenell, Isabel Davis, Wolfson Gallery, Pete Jones and Above Ground Studio (photography); Pinkie Maclure and Renée Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, with the assistance of Gözde Altun, 2024. Music we used: Bensound.com/royalty-free-musicLicense code: NFKULYWXPPVB01EH. All rights reserved.

See what we have been up to since our last Consultancy Highlights in January. Subscribe to our newsletter. bit.ly/SignUpRP To read more subscribe to our newsletter: bit.ly/SignUpRP Courtesy…

05/04/2024

THE POWER OF ART #116 TORUS TORUS STUDIO ‘ONLY BREATH’ !!

'Only Breath' a poem by the Afghan poet Rumi born in 1207, was the inspiration for a site-specific installation in the new Energy Revolution Gallery at the Science Museum, London. Conceived and developed by Torus Torus Studio.

At the core of Only Breath lies a fusion of art and science, incorporating principles of biomimicry and renewable energy technology. The sculpture's tessellating structure, derived from the voronoi algorithm and phyllotaxis spiral, mirrors the efficiency of organic forms, highlighting the importance of nature-inspired sustainable energy production.

From its symbolic spiral motif to its innovative use of two-way mirrors, recycled, recyclable, and reclaimed materials, sourced locally to minimise environmental impact, the sculpture embodies the principles of holistic thinking advocated for in the Energy Revolution Gallery.

Standing as a call to action for global environmental stewardship, Only Breath reminds visitors of the delicate balance we must maintain in our pursuit of a greener, more sustainable future.
We celebrated the opening of the new gallery and the inauguration of its centre piece. The project took 18 months from conception to delivery. It has been a pleasure and honour supporting and advising Torus Torus Studio during the working process of this commission.

Courtesy and ©Alexandra Carr, Colin Rennie of Torus Torus Studio, Science Museum London, and Renée Pfister, 2024. All rights reserved.

29/03/2024

THE POWER OF ART #115 NEDA DANA-HAERI 'FROM EARTH TO SKY' !!

The weather may not be on our side, but the Bank Holiday weekend has arrived. Happy Easter, and Ramadan Mubarak with a watercolour by Neda Dana-Haeri.

In the joint publication with Tajalli Keshavarz, Unbound Expressions, she writes “Each image is a mirror of another. Rain and fire, wind and ice, sky and earth, they speak with the skin and dormant memories, creating liquid bubbles which pour a form of free expression in the breeze. In its unbound expression, earth is wind, and with every pulse, its unsteady spirit melts in the sun, spreading its essence to the longing planet….” Painting in watercolour, acrylic and oil, on a variety of raw materials, Dana-Haeri creates abstractions and layered surfaces, which recall the natural elements and reference both visual and litrefrom her homeland.

Neda Dana-Haeri was born in Iran and moved to England in 1977, where she studied Psychology and Fine Arts in London. She currently works and resides in London. Both a painter and printmaker, Dani-Haeri, encapsulates her Iranian cultural background throughout her work. Persian poetry and Sufi philosophy are central themes in her painting conveyed through vibrant expressions of colour and light.

Image: Neda Dana-Haeri, From Earth to Sky III, 2023, ink and watercolour on Khadi indigo paper, H360 mm x W260 mm.

Courtesy and © Neda Dana Haeri and Renée Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, 2024.

27/03/2024

RICHARD SERRA !!

Richard Serra one of the most significant sculptors of the 20th century passed away yesterday.

I have always been in awe by his sculptural monuments. Here is an image of the series Torqued Ellipses, 1996-98, in the museum’s gallery. I took it a few years ago when I visited the Guggenheim Bilbao.

RIP

23/03/2024

WHEN FORMS COME ALIVE !!

When Forms Come Alive is an exhibition celebrating sculptures and installations by twenty-one artists, emphasising the conventional experiences of movement, flux organic growth. This is achieved by utilising a variety of materials and concepts acknowledging the power of physicality, skills, and processes, away from the realm of the digital.