Hilma af Klint: Painting the Unseen at The Serpentine Gallery

This weekend we visited an extraordinary exhibition at The Serpentine Gallery of a Swedish artist Hilma af Klint. While this exhibition has attracted a huge amount of press, prior to this show she was virtually unknown in the UK.

Being a woman, producing pioneering and unconventional artwork such as this, is probably the greatest reason for af Klint's exception from history. She began her career by painting landscapes and portraits and gained some recognition at that time. It was her protestant upbringing and studies of Theosophy however that was the pivotal inspiration for her abstract works - this was also the first religious group in Europe to accept women in senior positions which must have empowered af Klint herself. Between 1906-07 she created her most revolutionary paintings which derived from automatic drawings she produced during seances - some encompass swirling abstract patterns, others follow geometric structured diagrams.

She painted the work below in 1907, years before Kandinsky or Mondrian or Malevich had ventured into abstraction. Looking into her colourful swirls, bold splatters and geometric shapes painted in the early 1900s it is undeniable that af Klint is a true pioneer of abstraction. 

Hilma af Klint was certainly a complex and creative character, drawing on spiritual experiences and unconscious thoughts. This is an unmissable exhibition and an important step in making sure that she gains recognition - open until May 15th 2016.

Scottish Art at Sotheby's

This month Sotheby’s launched a dedicated Scottish art sale. ‘Highlights of Scottish Art’ features eighty works by Scottish artists from the 19th and 20th centuries, including photography.

The work of renowned Scottish colourist Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell is headlining the auction. His works for sale included this piece ‘The Cheval Glass’ from his much loved Reflections series. We love this series particularly as each work shows a subject in an elegant and stylish interior. Each subject stands before a mirror and their reflection completes the portrait.

This work, also by Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell is beautifully vibrant. It depicts Florian’s Cafe in Venice and was strongly influenced by French impressionist painters like Cezanne. Cadell’s loose brushstrokes and free handling of paint give this painting a wonderful sense of energy. A work like this could perfectly enliven an interior and look dashing in a room with a neutral colour scheme.

There were also some charming works for sale by Samuel John Peploe who experimented with manipulating colour and form. He loved using strong colours and even used gesso to prime his canvas so that his colours were as vibrant as he could get them. 

William Russell Flint is particularly known for his watercolours, so this work really stood out for us. He trained as a lithographer and was a prolific book illustrator. We loved the blue, green and grey tones of this watercolour, it would lovely in a classic interior of a similar colour scheme. This work has a romantic and wistful atmosphere that is beautify elegant, a sense of stillness pervades. A work with a subtle atmosphere and tone like this can perfectly blend into an interior, bringing a splash of colour and elegance without detracting from interior design and existing architectural details.