Art

After fighting cancer, Tracey Emin returns to the art world with raw, emotional works – CNN

Published

4 years ago

December 12, 2020

Written by Nick Glass, CNN

Tracey Emin is utterly fearless. Just months after undergoing extensive surgery to treat an aggressive bladder cancer, the famed British artist, who has been remarkably candid about the entire ordeal, has two new shows in London. And in line with her highly personal — and often controversial — art practice, her dual exhibition with Expressionist painter Edvard Munch is one of naked bodies, gestural brushstrokes and raw emotions.

Emin has been mad about Munch for 40 years. She and her artistic hero were born a century apart — he in 1863, she in 1963 — but their works appear together in “The Loneliness of the Soul,” at London’s Royal Academy of Arts.

Tracey Emin returns to art after cancer treatment

Featuring 19 oils and watercolors by him and some 25 works by her — a mix of paintings, neon and sculpture — both bodies of work explore profound grief and loss. Emin was responsible for selecting which Munch works to display alongside her own, and she chooses many of his canvases featuring women to accompany her own autobiographical works.

At the same time, Emin’s second new show, at London’s White Cube gallery, includes a short Super-8 film from 1998 in tribute to the Expressionist painter, titled “Homage to Edvard Munch and All My Dead Children.” In it, Emin crouches naked on a pier by the sea and lets out a prolonged and nerve-jangling scream. Of course, Munch’s most famous work is “The Scream” — he painted a total of four versions between 1893 and 1910. One sold at auction in 2012 for almost $120 million. Emin regards Munch as “absolutely timeless,” she said when I interviewed her, dealing with “love, passion, jealousy, fear and death — everything all of us have to live through.”

“It was like something out of a really bad black-humored film.”

Emin has had a lot to live through these past few months. Over the summer, the brutal diagnosis she received was all too familiar — squamous-cell bladder cancer was the same type that killed her mother in 2016.

The artist was alone in her studio when the doctor phoned her with the result. “I laughed. I laughed. I was shocked,” she said of her initial reaction. “There was a good chance I wasn’t going to make it. It was all reliant on the surgery. I had a fantastic surgeon luckily enough,” she said.

Edvard Munch’s “The Scream” is the Norwegian artist’s most famous motif. Credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images North America/Getty Images

Emin underwent a six-and-a-half-hour operation in July. She has never been reticent about personal details: the team of 12 surgeons removed her bladder, urethra, uterus, fallopian tubes, ovaries, part of her colon and part of her vagina. But the crucial news was that the cancer hadn’t spread to her lymph nodes. Her ordeal and her willingness to talk about it propelled her onto the front page of newspapers while cancer charities have praised her for talking so frankly about it all.

“I have had a lot of horrible things happen to me in my life and they have put me in good stead for this moment,” she said. “I have my sense of humor. I have my will to live and survive.” She says without hesitation that she’s not afraid of death, and then she cheerfully tells an anecdote about her new colostomy bag.

Emin’s work has always been deeply personal and spans paintings, sculpture, neon and video. Credit: David Parry

Initially, she had fiercely resisted the idea. She asked her surgeon if there was another option. “And he goes, ‘Yeah,”’ she recalled. “And I went, ‘What is it? I’ll do that.’ And he said: ‘It’s death!’ And I went: ”I’ll take the bag!'” She laughed. “I couldn’t believe it. It was like something out of a really bad black-humored film.” For the foreseeable future, Tracey will have scans every few months.

Emin has always been a divisive figure, her art and persona prompting strong reactions. She feels that back in the 1990s, the critics were both unfair and sexist. “I was just considered to be a loud-mouthed screaming girl, a woman with big tits and no brain,” she told writer and curator Kenny Schachter in a video interview last month. But over time, her career has gone from strength to strength. Her best-known piece, “My Bed” from 1998 — an installation of a box-framed bed with rumpled, stained sheets, discarded condoms, empty vodka bottles and cigarette packs — sold at auction in 2014 for $3.77 million.

“(I have a) really hard time when my shows open because people aren’t always that kind to me,” she said. She’s hoping that given “the cancer thing,” that this time, they won’t “pick on me so much.”

A whirlwind of emotion

Emin’s openness about her life has always been reflected in her artwork. In “The Loneliness of the Soul,” what is obviously shared between her and Munch is their common intensity and the confessional nature of their art.

Munch’s paintings like “Consolation,” and “Weeping Women” show the figures of women bent over with emotion in small, intimate compositions.

Her paintings are bigger than his — some 9 feet by 6 feet — and her acrylic palate much sparer in red, pink, blue and black. She paints herself, nude, legs spread wide, sometimes bleeding. Lovers grapple during sex. Collectively, there is a sense of love and loss and abandonment.

In Emin’s “My Bed” (1998), empty alcohol bottles, cigarettes, stained sheets and worn underwear are scattered on and around the bed. According to Emin the bed was in the same state as it had been in her own bedroom while she was battling with depression. Credit: Courtesy of the Saatchi Gallery, London

And as with Munch, her titles are important, like with “I never Asked to Fall in Love – You made me Feel like This” from 2018. The painting is made in splashes, flurries and drips of red and pink. In “The Last of My Kind,” from 2019, a naked female figure faces the viewer, face blurred, hemmed in by a scrawl of words. Part of it reads: “I think I am trapped until I die. I am getting old now but not as old as my broken f*cked up vagina…I am the Last of my Kind.”

There is unquestionably a sense of exorcism in Emin’s art. When she’s painting, “the emotion that comes out of me is like a whirlwind, like a tornado,'” she described to Schachter.

“I am The Last of my Kind,” (2019) and “You Came,” (2018) at the Royal Academy of Arts, London. Credit: David Parry

I asked her to describe her process. “If you were in my studio and I was about to paint, you’d probably see me procrastinating for about two or three hours, fall asleep, muck around, everything but painting,” she said. “But then you’d see me get up and throw myself at the canvas and just within two seconds, like shock you. I just do a big drawing. I’d throw lots of paint at it. I’d attack it like a sort of banshee, definitely out of control. I love it. It’s like having the best sex in the world.”

Next summer, an expanded version of the Emin/Munch show will open at the new Munch Museum in Oslo. It will include “My Bed,” her Super-8 homage to Munch and a huge new bronze sculpture, “The Mother” of a naked female figure, cradling “an absent form,” according to White Cube.

Emin is still convalescing and impatient for her energy to return, but is “really looking forward to going crazy with a paint brush” soon, she said. Munch died in Nazi-occupied Norway in 1944 at 80 years old. Emin says that she plans to live just as long, if not longer.

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Art

Calvin Lucyshyn: Vancouver Island Art Dealer Faces Fraud Charges After Police Seize Millions in Artwork

Published

3 days ago

September 13, 2024

Harry Miller

In a case that has sent shockwaves through the Vancouver Island art community, a local art dealer has been charged with one count of fraud over $5,000. Calvin Lucyshyn, the former operator of the now-closed Winchester Galleries in Oak Bay, faces the charge after police seized hundreds of artworks, valued in the tens of millions of dollars, from various storage sites in the Greater Victoria area.

Alleged Fraud Scheme

Police allege that Lucyshyn had been taking valuable art from members of the public under the guise of appraising or consigning the pieces for sale, only to cut off all communication with the owners. This investigation began in April 2022, when police received a complaint from an individual who had provided four paintings to Lucyshyn, including three works by renowned British Columbia artist Emily Carr, and had not received any updates on their sale.

Further investigation by the Saanich Police Department revealed that this was not an isolated incident. Detectives found other alleged victims who had similar experiences with Winchester Galleries, leading police to execute search warrants at three separate storage locations across Greater Victoria.

Massive Seizure of Artworks

In what has become one of the largest art fraud investigations in recent Canadian history, authorities seized approximately 1,100 pieces of art, including more than 600 pieces from a storage site in Saanich, over 300 in Langford, and more than 100 in Oak Bay. Some of the more valuable pieces, according to police, were estimated to be worth $85,000 each.

Lucyshyn was arrested on April 21, 2022, but was later released from custody. In May 2024, a fraud charge was formally laid against him.

Artwork Returned, but Some Remain Unclaimed

In a statement released on Monday, the Saanich Police Department confirmed that 1,050 of the seized artworks have been returned to their rightful owners. However, several pieces remain unclaimed, and police continue their efforts to track down the owners of these works.

Court Proceedings Ongoing

The criminal charge against Lucyshyn has not yet been tested in court, and he has publicly stated his intention to defend himself against any pending allegations. His next court appearance is scheduled for September 10, 2024.

Impact on the Local Art Community

The news of Lucyshyn’s alleged fraud has deeply affected Vancouver Island’s art community, particularly collectors, galleries, and artists who may have been impacted by the gallery’s operations. With high-value pieces from artists like Emily Carr involved, the case underscores the vulnerabilities that can exist in art transactions.

For many art collectors, the investigation has raised concerns about the potential for fraud in the art world, particularly when it comes to dealing with private galleries and dealers. The seizure of such a vast collection of artworks has also led to questions about the management and oversight of valuable art pieces, as well as the importance of transparency and trust in the industry.

As the case continues to unfold in court, it will likely serve as a cautionary tale for collectors and galleries alike, highlighting the need for due diligence in the sale and appraisal of high-value artworks.

While much of the seized artwork has been returned, the full scale of the alleged fraud is still being unraveled. Lucyshyn’s upcoming court appearances will be closely watched, not only by the legal community but also by the wider art world, as it navigates the fallout from one of Canada’s most significant art fraud cases in recent memory.

Art collectors and individuals who believe they may have been affected by this case are encouraged to contact the Saanich Police Department to inquire about any unclaimed pieces. Additionally, the case serves as a reminder for anyone involved in high-value art transactions to work with reputable dealers and to keep thorough documentation of all transactions.

As with any investment, whether in art or other ventures, it is crucial to be cautious and informed. Art fraud can devastate personal collections and finances, but by taking steps to verify authenticity, provenance, and the reputation of dealers, collectors can help safeguard their valuable pieces.

Art

Ukrainian sells art in Essex while stuck in a warzone – BBC.com

Published

2 weeks ago

September 2, 2024

Harry Miller

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Ukrainian sells art in Essex while stuck in a warzone BBC.com

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Art

Somerset House Fire: Courtauld Gallery Reopens, Rest of Landmark Closed

Published

4 weeks ago

August 18, 2024

Harry Miller

The Courtauld Gallery at Somerset House has reopened its doors to the public after a fire swept through the historic building in central London. While the gallery has resumed operations, the rest of the iconic site remains closed “until further notice.”

On Saturday, approximately 125 firefighters were called to the scene to battle the blaze, which sent smoke billowing across the city. Fortunately, the fire occurred in a part of the building not housing valuable artworks, and no injuries were reported. Authorities are still investigating the cause of the fire.

Despite the disruption, art lovers queued outside the gallery before it reopened at 10:00 BST on Sunday. One visitor expressed his relief, saying, “I was sad to see the fire, but I’m relieved the art is safe.”

The Clark family, visiting London from Washington state, USA, had a unique perspective on the incident. While sightseeing on the London Eye, they watched as firefighters tackled the flames. Paul Clark, accompanied by his wife Jiorgia and their four children, shared their concern for the safety of the artwork inside Somerset House. “It was sad to see,” Mr. Clark told the BBC. As a fan of Vincent Van Gogh, he was particularly relieved to learn that the painter’s famous Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear had not been affected by the fire.

Blaze in the West Wing

The fire broke out around midday on Saturday in the west wing of Somerset House, a section of the building primarily used for offices and storage. Jonathan Reekie, director of Somerset House Trust, assured the public that “no valuable artefacts or artworks” were located in that part of the building. By Sunday, fire engines were still stationed outside as investigations into the fire’s origin continued.

About Somerset House

Located on the Strand in central London, Somerset House is a prominent arts venue with a rich history dating back to the Georgian era. Built on the site of a former Tudor palace, the complex is known for its iconic courtyard and is home to the Courtauld Gallery. The gallery houses a prestigious collection from the Samuel Courtauld Trust, showcasing masterpieces from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. Among the notable works are pieces by impressionist legends such as Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne, and Vincent Van Gogh.

Somerset House regularly hosts cultural exhibitions and public events, including its popular winter ice skating sessions in the courtyard. However, for now, the venue remains partially closed as authorities ensure the safety of the site following the fire.

Art lovers and the Somerset House community can take solace in knowing that the invaluable collection remains unharmed, and the Courtauld Gallery continues to welcome visitors, offering a reprieve amid the disruption.

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