Fantastic Paper exhibition study visit at the Saatchi Gallery

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This study visit, on Friday 27 September, starting at 11am, represents almost the last chance to see two of the most interesting exhibitions of contemporary art in London this year. ‘Paper’ comprises the work of 40 artists from a dozen countries and includes three-dimensional sculptures, collages and digital prints as well as delicate watercolours and expressionist extravaganzas. The most exuberant is a large carnival-style sculpture by the Brazilian artist, Marcelo Jacome while perhaps the most restrained is a series of pencil drawings by Klaus Mossetig, which faithfully reproduce the tiny scuffs on the surface of a projector lens which the artist observes when he tweaks the lens to focus on itself. Many of the works seem like diaries. Among them are Dawn Clements’ Untitled and Jessica Jackson’s Couch both inspired by the artists’ experiences watching television. In a similar vein is Paul Westcombe’s use of London Transport tickets and paper coffee cups to record his boredom while working as a parking attendant. This being the Saatchi Gallery, there are plenty of conceptual pieces. Among the most successful are Annie Kevans’ seemingly innocent portraits of young children, which on closer inspection turn out to be images of some of the world’s most notorious dictators from Adolf Hitler to Mao Zedong. There are also wonderful paper flower arrangements by Jodie Carey made out of copies of the Daily Mail and equally elegiac images of trees coaxed from McDonald’s hamburger bags, which the artist, Yuken Terua, has incorporated as frames and peep-shows for the work.

The same wit and stylishness can be found in ‘New Order: British Art Today’, which is on the floors above. This is not so much a survey show as a slightly blurry snapshot of 17 young British artists. Among them is the self-styled ‘Dominic From Luton’ who portrayed his namesake during the Olympics as an outstretched arm holding a Reebok trainer. An equally cynical take on British identity can be found in Richard Billingham’s deconstruction of an eighteenth century caricature of the Prince Regent. A more traditional use of materials can be found in the sculptures of Sara Barker and James Capper whose pieces have recently been seen in other groups shows in subsidised galleries in Britain.
You will be accompanied on this visit by OCA tutor and exhibition guide Gerald Deslandes. For a place please email enquiries@oca-uk.com as soon as you can.