Search results for ""Author Simon Martin""

The artist Mark Hearld finds his inspiration in the flora and fauna of the British countryside: a blue-eyed jay perched on an oak branch; two hares enjoying the spoils of an allotment; a mute swan standing at the frozen water's edge; and a sleek red fox prowling the fields. Hearld admires such twentieth-century artists as Edward Bawden, John Piper, Eric Ravilious and Enid Marx, and, like them, he chooses to work in a range of media - paint, print, collage, textiles and ceramics. Work Book is the first collection of Hearld's beguiling art. The works are grouped into nature-related themes introduced by Hearld, who narrates the story behind some of his creations and discusses his influences. He explains his particular love of collage, which he favours for its graphic quality and potential for strong composition. Art historian Simon Martin contributes an essay on Hearld's place in the English popular-art tradition, and also meets Hearld in his museum-like home to explore the artist's passion for collecting objects, his working methods and his startling ability to view the wonders of the natural world as if through a child's eyes.

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The Italian love affair with sport is passionate, voracious, all-consuming. It provides a backdrop and a narrative to almost every aspect of daily life in Italy and the distinctively pink-coloured newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport is devoured by almost half a million readers every day. Narrating the history of modern Italy through its national passion for sport, Sport Italia provides a completely new portrayal of one of Europe's most alluring, yet contradictory countries, tracing the highs and lows of Italy's sporting history from its Liberal pioneers through Mussolini and the 1960 Rome Olympics to the Berlusconi era. By interweaving essential themes of Italian history, its politics, society and economy with a history of the passion for sport in the country, Simon Martin tells the story of modern Italy in a fresh and colourful way, illustrating how and why sport is so strongly embedded in both politics and society, and how it is inseparable from the concept of Italian national identity. Showing sport's capacity to both unite and deeply divide, this book reveals a novel and previously unexplored element of the history of a society and its state, which will be an essential read for sports fans, historians and students alike.

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Contemporary British artist Kaye Donachie (b.1970) is best known for her figurative, dream-like portraits of women. Her portraits are not direct representations of her subjects but are “abstract narratives”, informed by art and literature by twentieth century women. Often these women have been historically marginalized and include radical writers, activists, poets, and artists. Donachie describes their biographies as “sparse, but that affords a space in which to interpret narratives in my painting and representation.” This monograph will bring together a selection of the artist's muted, figurative paintings, exploring the complexities of the muse and female agency in art and literature. It includes an introduction by Simon Martin based on interviews with the artist exploring her engagement with modern art and literature, together with short texts by the artist herself. Exhibition Schedule: Pallant House Gallery, Chichester (April 22–October 8, 2023)

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Edward Burra (1905-76) was an English painter who is best known for his paintings of the seedy underworld of urban life. Yet, as this fascinating new monograph on his work reveals, his interests were much broader, incorporating landscape and still-life paintings, stage designs, book illustration and watercolours. Somewhat neglected by histories of modern art because his singular vision was often at odd with the mainstream art world, his work is now due for a re-appraisal.This important book represents the first full-scale monograph on Edward Burra and reproduces 100 key paintings alongside drawings and a range of fascinating contextual material. It positions Burra as a major figure in the history of 20th-century art, placing his work alongside that of the German Expressionists and other important contemporaries and influences. Long awaited, this book will be widely welcomed by all those with an interest in the art of this fascinating maverick and documenter of modern life.

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A celebration of the life and work of the artist John Craxton, a rebellious figure in British art history Spanning a rich variety of works from the 1940s to the 2000s, this book celebrates the life and work of the British artist John Craxton (1922–2009). It charts the development of Craxton’s work from the poetic, melancholy images created in wartime Britain to the vibrant paintings and drawings produced in his adopted homeland of Greece. The book revisits the artist’s early life and looks at the influence of British Romantic art and the landscape of England and Wales on his work, while also exploring themes around LGBTQ+ identity, his relationship to significant modern British and international artists, and the historical context of mid-century Britain and Greece. Featuring short essays and texts from contributors including Sir David Attenborough, Ian Collins, Simon Martin, Miriam O'Connor Perks, David Mellor, Edmund White, Hilary Spurling, and Tacita Dean—covering subjects across Craxton’s career, including book illustration, landscape, ballet design, ceramics, and tapestry—this lively account showcases the diverse artistic output of this key figure in British art history. Exhibition Schedule: Pallant House Gallery, Chichester (October 28, 2023–April 21, 2024)

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An intimate look at Ben Nicholson's everyday inspirations Throughout his career, Ben Nicholson (1894–1982) transformed everyday homewares into extraordinary experiments in abstract art. Nicholson’s studio was filled with objects that inspired him. From patterned mocha-ware jugs and cut glass goblets to spanners, hammers and chisels, these ordinary personal possessions were a source of almost endless inspiration to the artist. This book brings together for the first time Nicholson’s paintings, reliefs, prints and drawings alongside his rarely seen personal possessions and studio tools. It traces how the artist’s style developed, from his early traditional tabletop still lifes to his later abstract works. Still life was at the heart of Nicholson’s artistic practice. Through these humble items, he began to experiment with form and color. His early works in particular owed inspiration to his father, the painter William Nicholson. The book traces the artistic and personal influences on Nicholson’s evolutionary still life style from the 1920s to the 1970s. It explores his time with Winifred Nicholson and Barbara Hepworth, as well as his encounters with other Modernist greats, Pablo Picasso and Piet Mondrian. Distributed for Pallant House Gallery

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The natural world as seen through the eyes of British artists including Eric Ravilious, Clare Leighton, and John Piper Since its publication in 1789, Gilbert White’s Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne has inspired generations of artists, writers and naturalists. From Thomas Bewick to Eric Ravilious and Clare Leighton, many artists’ depictions of animals, birds and wildlife have illustrated White’s celebrated book, together providing a microcosm of natural history illustration from the eighteenth century until today. In Drawn to Nature, Simon Martin has gathered joyful and beautiful images of the extraordinary array of wildlife described by White, providing an insight into the continuing appeal and relevance of the Natural History. This fascinating account takes us from some of the earliest published depictions of birds and animals, to pioneering nature photography, the revival of wood-engraving in the 1920s and 30s, and responses to White’s message about the natural world by contemporary illustrators such as Angie Lewin and Emily Sutton. The book also includes an introduction to the life of Gilbert White by Sir David Attenborough, an essay by Virginia Woolf, poems by modern and contemporary poets, and a jacket design by Mark Hearld. Distributed for Pallant House Gallery

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