Today I watched the Tony Godfrey Talk on the DLE ‘Painting in the age of Installation Art’. Godfrey is the author of Conceptual Painting and Painting Today and has contributed to Art in America and the Burlington Magazine. Formerly Programme Director of the MA in Contemporary Art at Sotheby’s Institute in London, he is a curator based in Manila. In this talk Godfrey highlighted the importance of the experience of painting as opposed to thinking of it as an exhibit in a gallery space. He used the work of six painters, each of very different styles to illustrate how work is viewed and how the environment and installation is important to how we receive a painting. Initially he used the examples of religious artworks and fresco’s which in their intended space (a place of worship) are read and experienced very differently to the clinical space which many are preserved today, behind glass for the purpose of conservation and various logistical reasons. It was interesting to hear him remark about the flatness of many Contemporary painters work and the value in the visible painterly layers and marks which tell us about the materiality and making story of a painting.

I was inspired by many of the work of the featured artists. Zhang Enli in terms of installing painting as a three dimensional installation with sculpture and interactive elements to the whole experience within the space. Other works by Christopher Le Brun, Geraldine Javier were good examples of painters who exhibit well and Marlene Dumas who exhibited at Reading Jail, a really interesting group exhibition of work responding to the space itself.

I was particularly drawn to the work of Nigel Cooke and delving further found his website to be a great insight into his practice. His work fascinatingly ambiguous aesthetically as it seems to have so many possible readings and hidden details in each work using movement and colour in very skilled way. On the website there is an insightful video where Cooke talks through the decision making process of a painting:

http://nigelcooke.net/video/538/

Cooke, N., 2020. Nigel Cooke. [online] Nigelcooke.net. Available at: <http://nigelcooke.net/> [Accessed 23 November 2020].