Art

Pauline Boty’s Sex-Positive Pop Art Is Having a Moment

Published

9 months ago

January 3, 2024

Portrait of Pauline Boty by Lewis Morley, 1962. Courtesy of Lewis Morley and Gazelli Art House.

As a beautiful blonde woman, whose looks frequently distracted from her talent and intelligence, British Pop artist Pauline Boty felt a natural affinity with Marilyn Monroe. Boty painted her on a number of occasions, but while Andy Warhol and other male Pop artists tended to focus on Monroe as a passive sex symbol, Boty’s portrayals are more empathetic. In Colour Her Gone (1962), for instance, painted shortly after Monroe’s tragic death by suicide, Boty surrounds her heroine with roses, two grey abstract panels on either side. Only four years later, Boty herself would be dead at only 28 years old. Diagnosed with cancer while pregnant, she refused the treatment which may have saved her in order to save her child.

After her death, Boty fell into obscurity, although thankfully her sister-in-law Bridget Boty saved her paintings. It wasn’t until the 1990s, thanks to the work of art historians such as Sue Tate and David Alan Mellor, that the art world slowly began to appreciate her significance.

Pauline Boty, Colour Her Gone, 1962. Courtesy of Gazelli Art House.

Now, over two decades later, Boty finally seems poised to claim her rightful place in the canon. Last year she broke her auction record when With Love to Jean-Paul Belmondo (1962), her lustful portrayal of the French New Wave actor, sold for £1.2 million ($1.5 million) at Sotheby’s. In October, a new biography, Pauline Boty: British Pop Art’s Sole Sister, was published by journalist Marc Kristal, and a documentary, Boty: The Life and Times of a Forgotten Artist, is currently in production. The film will preview next February at Gazelli Art House in London, which is currently holding a Boty retrospective, “Pauline Boty: A Portrait.” Collectors, disappointed to discover that it was not a selling show, have joined a lengthy waiting list.

Nonetheless, the show is a comprehensive retrospective that allows visitors to see Boty’s portraits of film stars such as Belmondo and Monroe alongside her more political works, early collages, and stained-glass pieces. “What we have tried to do with this show is to portray an all-encompassing portrait of Pauline Boty,” Mila Askarova, director of Gazelli Art House and curator of the show, told Artsy via email. “We tried to incorporate the hard work that has been done to date of building on her legacy, and to champion this alongside the recent and ongoing projects that only feed into the importance of Boty as an artist and as a seminal figure representative of the times.”

Pauline Boty, With Love to Jean-Paul Belmondo, 1962. Courtesy of Gazelli Art House.

Boty’s star shined bright in her all-too-short career. She exhibited with all the leading figures of British Pop, including its godfather Peter Blake, and had a well-received solo show in London in 1963. She can be seen dancing joyfully with Blake in Ken Russell’s 1962 documentary Pop Goes the Easel and has a cheeky cameo opposite Michael Caine in the classic 1966 movie Alfie. Challenging societal stereotypes, she fearlessly embraced female sexuality, both in life and work, and brought a uniquely feminist perspective to British Pop art, which was virtually an all-boys club at the time.

“In a male-dominated movement, making work from a female perspective was truly radical,” Sue Tate, author of Pauline Boty: Pop Artist and Woman, said in an interview with Artsy. Boty’s feminism is perhaps most overt in It’s a Man’s World I (1964) and II (1964–65). The first painting is a collage painting of male figures from Elvis to Einstein, juxtaposed with images of fighter planes and the Kennedy assassination, while the second contains painted female nudes of the type that would appear in men’s magazines. The message, criticized by the work: Men can be sexually attractive and powerful while women are only allowed to be sex objects.

Pauline Boty, Monica Vitti with Heart, 1963. Courtesy of Gazelli Art House.

Not that Boty allowed this to affect her. “Boty spoke unusually openly about sex and explicitly linked women’s sexual repression to their social and political oppression,” said Tate. Being the very opposite of repressed, Boty discussed with her then-boyfriend how a female orgasm might be depicted visually. Describing hers as a series of orange balloons streaming out with a popping sound, she encoded this reference in the painting Red Manoeuvre (1962). Elsewhere, in 5-4-3-2-1 (1963), she celebrated the pleasure of dancing to pop music and the sexual anticipation it brought. A judiciously cropped banner on the right reads: “Oh For A FU…,” the phrase left cheekily unfinished.

But her feminism and sex-positive attitude was not the only thing that made Boty unique. “She was also very well-read and intellectual, mixing high and low culture in an innovative way that was unusual in Pop,” said Tate. “Avant-garde writers like Proust and Rimbaud feature in her work, alongside Elvis, Marilyn, and the Beatles.” While much Pop art reveled uncritically in mass culture, Tate noted that Boty brought a political critique to her work. Cuba Si (1963) salutes the Cuban revolution, while Count Down to Violence (1964) documents male violence across historical and geographical frames.

However, Boty’s refusal to conform to societal norms affected both her contemporary and posthumous reputation. “She didn’t fit into the prevailing stereotype of what a ‘woman artist’ should be—that is, someone unrelievedly serious and personally modest,” journalist Marc Kristal said in an interview with Artsy. As a result, he said, she was “portrayed in the press as more of a good-time dolly bird than a committed and original art-maker.”

Pauline Boty, Cuba Si, 1963. Courtesy of Gazelli Art House

Kristal noted that others weren’t always sure what to make of her: “Boty didn’t stick to one thing—she was an actress, activist, and social commentator—which, as her contemporary Derek Boshier observed, left many observers baffled,” he said.

“Boty was a very diverse artist, incorporating collage, lithography, stained glass, painting, and film: Each time, regardless of medium, she would bring in new elements—be it references to pop culture imagery or Victoriana,” said Gazelli Art House’s Askarova. “I think that willingness and ability to experiment, yet still retain a distinctive style, separated her into a league of her own.”

Cath Pound

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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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