Monday was a bank holiday here and my boyfriend and I decided to spend some of viewing the Fabiola exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery. I first read about the exhibit at Stuck in a Book the month before and as it is finishing on September 20th, I didn't want to miss the opportunity of seeing it. It was helped by the fact that it was free! I now live in such an exciting city for culture, rich and vibrant with things to see, but often I forget that there is so much to do cheaply.
The installation is by the artist Francis Alÿs who has collected over 300 copies of the lost painting of Saint Fabiola. The original portrait of Fabiola in profile was painted by Jean-Jacques Henner in 1885 and since its loss has been replicated by artists worldwide. Alÿs has collected these versions of the original, all in different sizes, forms, and mediums, from flea markets, antique shops, and private collections for over a period of fifteen years and is now presenting them in one travelling display.
The concept intrigued me and the exhibit is striking, especially with the predominantly black and red paintings against the strong teal colour on the walls. The display itself is held in a small space -in two connecting rooms- but there are so many replicas to view en masse, some framed or on canvas, in oil or tapestry, one even in beads and seeds and other jewelled ones and tiles in a glass cabinet. I was amazed by the versatility of the presentation and the diversity of the art. I truly appreciated how one image can be shown in so many unique and effective media and methods; the range and diversity in replicating the one image and the capability of distinguishing one from the other as an individual piece of art, is breathtaking.
Saint Fabiola was the patron saint of, amongst other things, victims of abuse, and is considered the protector of abused women. I found this fascinating as the iconography of a young saint in a crimson veil strongly reminded me of the Vintage
cover of The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I don't have my copy here to check the cover-art but I wonder if it is coincidental that the subjugated handmaid, Offred, strikingly resembles Saint Fabiola, the protector of victimised women.
I urge you to see the Fabiola exhibition if you can as it is a stunning collection with a wonderful cohesion to it.
We happened to accidentally go to The National Gallery instead of The National Portrait Gallery (they are around the corner from one another) but happily saw Van Gogh's Sunflowers in the former (along with Monet and Vermeer and Da Vinci and Picasso...) before then going to see Fabiola. It was an enlightening day of Art.
The concept intrigued me and the exhibit is striking, especially with the predominantly black and red paintings against the strong teal colour on the walls. The display itself is held in a small space -in two connecting rooms- but there are so many replicas to view en masse, some framed or on canvas, in oil or tapestry, one even in beads and seeds and other jewelled ones and tiles in a glass cabinet. I was amazed by the versatility of the presentation and the diversity of the art. I truly appreciated how one image can be shown in so many unique and effective media and methods; the range and diversity in replicating the one image and the capability of distinguishing one from the other as an individual piece of art, is breathtaking.
Saint Fabiola was the patron saint of, amongst other things, victims of abuse, and is considered the protector of abused women. I found this fascinating as the iconography of a young saint in a crimson veil strongly reminded me of the Vintage
cover of The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I don't have my copy here to check the cover-art but I wonder if it is coincidental that the subjugated handmaid, Offred, strikingly resembles Saint Fabiola, the protector of victimised women.
I urge you to see the Fabiola exhibition if you can as it is a stunning collection with a wonderful cohesion to it.
We happened to accidentally go to The National Gallery instead of The National Portrait Gallery (they are around the corner from one another) but happily saw Van Gogh's Sunflowers in the former (along with Monet and Vermeer and Da Vinci and Picasso...) before then going to see Fabiola. It was an enlightening day of Art.
