It’s been a manic week where I’ve barely been at home with blockbuster exhibitions like Van Gogh at The National Gallery opening (review to come soon) and London Design Festival kicks off - as much as being at tons of exhibitions is lovely, it causes the conundrum of when I’m going to write them up. As a trustee of both organisations, I also went to the opening of the City & Guilds London Art School MA exhibition and popped in to see how this year’s Discerning Eye judging was going.
This week I have:
A top 5 of museum and gallery exhibitions to see this month
Thanks as always for keeping tabs on me, and have a great week ahead. I will be travelling from 19-29 September on holiday in Vancouver so the newsletter will take a break during that time.
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Tab’s World
My latest articles and events for your reading pleasure.
I’m mixing galleries and museums in this week’s top 5 - including bronze bonsai trees and machine-made paintings (pictured above). The Top 5 will take a two-week break until I return from Canada.
Plus, catch up on editions of my new bonus newsletter for paid subscribers, including:
My August / September Diary of a London Art Critic
My late August Diary of a London Art Critic
Click below to see all the subscription options, and a big thank you to everybody who’s supporting the newsletter already - couldn’t do it without you!
I’m a member of the Critics’ Circle and I’ve rounded up all the articles and more from members of the visual arts and architecture section for August.
Tab’s Weeks Ahead
Highlighting my top events for the weeks ahead. Let me know if you'd like to join me!
As I’ll be taking a break in Vancouver, please do let me know of any art-y highlights if you’ve been before. I have the Vancouver Art Gallery and The Museum of Anthropology on my list - let me know if there are others I should check out.
The Wider Arts
Here are my top picks of culture that may be enjoyed from the comfort of your home. Paid subscribers have access to my full back catalogue of recommendations.
ART DOCUMENTARY: In Frontline Folklore, artist Ben Edge travels the country recording the many folk traditions and processions that happen annually from several in London to much further afield. It’s a fascinating insight into the eccentricities and communities on this island. On Vimeo.
ROM-COM (FILM): Rye Lane is an enjoyable watch as two young people reeling from break-ups connect in and around Peckham. It’s snappy, has great energy and has you rooting for the lead pair. On Disney+
COMEDY / CRIME (SERIES): Outlaws is back for a third season as a group of Bristolians on community service from a wide demographic get involved in a criminal conspiracy, complete with an incompetent supervising officer. I’ve enjoyed all three short seasons on iPlayer.
Articles I’m Reading
Interesting stories that I recommend, largely from beyond the art world. If you fancy reading offline at another time, I recommend the app Pocket.
This is a selection of articles I found thought-provoking in one way or another; opinions expressed in the articles don’t necessarily reflect my views or those of Londonist. Paid subscribers have access to my full back catalogue of recommendations.
TREATING ILLNESSES: The Guardian is unlocking the truth about diabetes: ‘The science has been pretty awful’ (12 minutes) and Knowable is understanding the sudden rise of type 2 diabetes in children (12 minutes). Wired looks at The Race for the Next Ozempic (7 minutes) and worrying USA Today looks into the rise of fake Ozempic (9 minutes). Vox asks why are so many young people getting cancer? (11 minutes), and similarly, Kate Middleton’s cancer diagnosis is part of a frightening global trend (4 minutes). Self sets out 3 Types of Skin Cancer That Should Be on Everyone's Radar (3 minutes) and Pioneer Works looks at the US addiction to Adderall (19 minutes).
ISRAEL & PALESTINE: Sadly the horrific bombing of Palestine is ongoing and here are some articles on that topic - understandably there will be sensitive content in these reads. In ‘The Road to 1948’ Israeli and Palestinian historians look back on the roots of the conflict (11 minutes). The New Yorker provides a critical take on The Price of Netanyahu’s Ambition (52 minutes) and the Guardian reports on Spying, hacking and intimidation: Israel’s nine-year ‘war’ on the ICC exposed (28 minutes). An American Jew gives a first-hand account of how the American Jewish consensus has collapsed (19 minutes), a former IDF soldier writes he was deeply disturbed by his recent visit to Israel for Guardian (34 minutes), Vox asks How Israel’s war went wrong (19 minutes) and Jewish Currents reports on the rise of October 7th tourism. The New Yorker provides the graphic details of A Paediatrician’s Two Weeks Inside a Hospital in Gaza (14 minutes), Atavists tells the personal tale of A Teenager Lost Her Legs in Gaza. To Walk Again, She Had to Travel 6,000 Miles (35 minutes) and New York Times writes about a young man who was Raised in the West Bank, Shot in Vermont (17 minutes). Foreign Policy takes us to Meet the Para-Cyclists Riding for Gaza (10 minutes) and finally, AP asks How watermelon imagery, a symbol of solidarity with Palestinians, spread around the planet (6 minutes).
BIRDS: The dodo was faster and smarter than you think according to Popular Science (4 minute read), BBC asks why do people persecute city pigeons? (11 minutes) and a British zoo has a new plan to rehabilitate its potty-mouthed parrots says CNN. Switching to birds of prey MEL takes us Inside the Outrageously Prestigious World of Falcon Influencers (19 minutes), Punch says The Vineyard Guarding Falcon Does Not Suffer Fools (9 minutes), and in invasive species news Hakai writes about The Owls Who Came From Away (16 minutes). The Guardian reports on how birdwatching’s biggest record threw its online community into chaos (11 minutes) and in The Eider Keepers, Biographic writes about the people who protect these ducks (16 minutes). In a beautifully written article, one man talks about mental health and birds in ‘My Harmony with the Heron’ (14 minutes via Atmos).