Unspeakable Things and Cityscape
November 6th, 2009
Art Sleuth made it to two excellent openings last night. The first being Control.Alt.Shift’s Unmasked Corruption. Original artwork for Political comic strips have been amassed from all corners of the globe, trailing events such as the Iranian Election, Barak Obahma’s election and the Iraq War.
Some comics tackle dark and little reported human rights scandals; Unspeakable Things by Paul O’Connell gives an account of the African ‘blood diamond’ (and tin, and oil and more) crisis. Black Holes by Dave McKean (with text from an anonymous writer) provides a shocking insight into an alleged scandal involving the suppression of HIV sufferers and vanishing funds for treatment by the Chinese government. Another shocking story is that of the ‘Skin Hunters’ in Poland from 1999 to 2002, a group of paramedics who delayed ambulances and killed off patients in a scam which gave them a cut of the funeral parlour fees of the victims, drawn by Janek Koza.
Some are more humorous, like the portrayal of Margaret Thatcher and her husband draw by Hunt Emerson in 1987. Excerpts from Alan Moore’s new magazine ‘Dodgem Logic’ are ingenious combining drawings and witty, off the wall story boards. A book of the cartoons and artwork from the exhibition is well worth the £5 fee.
The exhibition will be held at Lazarides Gallery, 8 Greek Street, Soho, London, W1D 4DG and runs from 6th - 28th November (Tuesday – Friday 11am -7pm and Saturday 12pm – 5pm).
And on to the Truman Breweries to see Cityscape, the group show comprising some big names in Street and Graphic Art both in New York and London. Well worth a visit if you’re popping down brick lane, it includes a large and varied selection of works and artists including pieces by Obey, Restitution Press, Unknown, Seripop, Swoon, Philip Lumbang and up and coming Ashes 57. The dubstep mash-up after party was banging too. Good one Lava Collective!
Cityscape, Lava Collective, Dray Walk Gallery, Truman Breweries. (5th to the 15th of November 2009).
