Author: Victoria Langen

“I want to nail down reality so that it can be returned into the nervous system more violently”. – Francis Bacon

Francis Bacon (1907-1992) was a British painter who became well known for his raw, unsettling paintings of the human form. Bacon’s early years were anything but joyful. Growing up in a turbulent family with an abusive father, Bacon suffered tremendously. This suffering was only made worse when Bacon came out as homosexual and when his father caught him trying on his mums clothes and kicked him out of the house. Perhaps being presented with such violent behaviour from an early age is what influenced Bacon’s disturbing images. After being left behind by his family, Bacon moved to London in the late 1920’s were he worked as an interior design and furniture designer.

This exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts focused on Bacon’s interest in animals and the way animals and humans can relate physically. Influenced by his various trips and seeing animals in the wild, Bacon was inspired by wild animals and their movement. Through this Bacon believed he could understand human kind’s nature more truthfully. Moreover his influences also came from photographs. More specifically, he was inspired by the images of Eadweard Muybridge in which he captured movement through a series of photographs.

The main theme in Bacon’s paintings is the human figure morphing with the animal figure in order to show how interchangeable one species becomes with another. This morphing creates grotesquely distorted figures which perhaps reflect the way Bacon saw humanity post World War 2. Furthermore, Bacon also explored the themes of biomorphism, crucifixion and pain. The pain in his paintings is often seen through screaming figures which became one of Bacon’s most well known motifs.

Francis Bacon also used colour in a significant way. The vibrant colours of the backgrounds often conrast with the darker figures making them stand out. Bacon’s large scale paitings inhabit the grand spaces of the Royal Academy. This creates a very powerful dynamic, in which Bacon is celebrated as a sort of Grand Master. The very classical, peaceful feel of the RA also contrasts with the raw paintings of Bacon which allows the art to stand out

Figues in claustrophobic spaces

The exhibition was curated to sucessfully display Bacon’s paitings of humans and animals and the relationship between the two.

On February 22nd, I went to visit the Lisson gallery in order to explore Tatsuo Miyajima’s work.

The Lisson Gallery was designed by Tony Fretton Architects and is compromised of two buildings, one created in 1986 and the other in 1992. Architecturally, the Lisson Gallery was well designed for it’s purpose. Having big open rooms and large windows allows space for successful exhibitions. By stripping the original buildings from all architectural elements and creating a simple yet contemporary look, the Lisson Gallery is a space many artists have enjoyed using.

Tatsuo Miyajima is a Japanese artist who focuses on creating sculptures and installation art. He focuses on using contemporary, anti-art materials in order to reflect his spiritual beliefs and explore Buddhist philosophy. A key element of Miyajima’s work is technology. Through the use of digital light- emitted diode (LED) counters. Each light depicts a different number, ranging from 1-9 and flashes continuously in cycles. The number represent life and death and ‘0’ represents the end which doesn’t appear in his work. This idea was inspired by the Buddhist belief of eternity and that ‘time connects everything’.

Figure : Painting of Change, Tatsuo Miyajima, Lisson Gallery

The installation ‘Art in You’ at the Lisson Gallery was compromised of three works- ‘Painting of Change’, ‘Keep Changing (Mondrian)’ and ‘Unstable Times’. All three bodies of work were creating between 2020-2021 and are being displayed for the first time. Miyajima work is made out of LED technology installed on fabric and LED installations on panels. The same numbers (1-9) are depicted through lighting, suggesting the cycle of life.

The first room (see figure 1) is occupied by the series ‘Painting of Change’. These works are achieved through using wood that has been shaped into a single number and painting in colours through oil. Next to the number there is a dice ( see figure 2) which the owner/viewer should roll and then change the number into the number displayed on the dice. This is achieved by using panels which can move around. The dice symbolises chance and how life is constantly changing but everything, every atom and cell is connected. This again goes back to Buddhism who believe that everything is ever changing yet linked.

Figure 2: Dice

The second room (see figure 3), ‘Unstable Time’, we see Miyajima’s famous LED lightings mounted on fabric, a composition we have never seen prior. Here again the same numbers are displayed, each on their own piece of fabric. By using nylon fabric, Miyajima plays with a much lighter yet complicated medium. This is because the weightlessness of the fabric makes it easy to move with the slightest wind. The movement again suggests the uncertainty and the constant flux of time.

Figure 3: Unstable Time, Tatsuo Miyajima, Lisson Gallery

The last room (see figure 4) exhibits ‘Keep Changing (Mondrian)’ in which Miyajima uses his traditional LED on panel style. Here once again the artist plays with the number 1-9, rejecting zero. When asked why zero never appears in his works, Tatsuo Miyajima states “zero is a western concept. There is no physical zero”. The artist replaces zero with a short void where all the lights turn off, this represents the space between life and death. After this the cycle restarts suggesting reincarnation. In these works, Miyajima uses the colours green, yellow, red white and blue which symbolise Earth’s ‘Five Elements’. The series ‘Keep Changing (Mondrian)’ is also a reflection of Piet Modrian’s ‘Victory Boogie Woogie’.

Figure 4: Keep Changing (Mondrian), Tatsuo Miyajima, Lisson Gallery

Miyajima’s ideas can be depicted in interior design through ‘Wabi Sabi’ (see figure 5 as an example), which means ‘rustic simplicity’ in Japanese. This concept has been around since the 15th century and it’s basis are found on three principles: nothings lasts forever, nothing is fully complete and nothing is perfect. These principles have similarities with the ideas Miyajimi conveys in his works.

‘Wabi Sabi’ focuses on minimalistic and authentic design which appreciates the flaws of objects and materials. By accepting imperfections such as the cracks in wood, weathered materials etc we are invited to find beauty in impermanence. This idea of embracing faults, derives from the Chinese Zen Buddhist philosophy, ‘Three Marks of Existence’. The colour palette of the ‘Wabi Sabi’ style is muted, focusing on earthy tones, linking us back to the harmony of nature.

To continue on the topic of how Miyajima’s work can be translated into interior design, LED lighting is a very important factor. Since the development of LED, lighting has become much more experimental. over the last couple of years, we have seen the way in which art and light can merge together through the creation of sculpturesque lamps. LED lighting has many benefits, not only do they have a long lifespan but they are also environmentally friendly. This is because the internal structure of LED lighting does not use mercury, unlike many other lighting technologies. Furthermore, they allow greater freedom as lights can be controlled to be dimmed or be at a high brightness. Although the actual LED lights are expensive, over the long run they are economical. This is because they waste less energy and therefore need less energy to function.

In this blog post, I will be exploring two artworks from the Tate Britain and investigate the way domestic space is portrayed. The first piece of art is a paiting by David Hockney called ‘A Bigger Splash’ achieved in 1967. The second artwork I will be discussing is ‘Couple Kissing, Whitechapel, London’ by Bandele ‘Tex’ Ajetunmobi, a photograph taken during the 1960s.

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‘ A Bigger Splash’ is an acrylic on canvas paiting which depicts a splash in a Californian swimming pool. This paiting is part of a trilogy of ‘splash’ paintings and is the biggest one out of the three. It was achieved whilst Hockney was teaching at the University of California at Berkeley. Hockney was inspired by the many swimming pools in Los Angeles and how most people owned one. Furthermore, it is also believed that Hockney got influenced by a book that was dedicated to the building of swimming pools.

The foreground is dominated by the swimming pool with divined board which adds depth to the somewhat flat paiting. In the background, there is a typical Californian building. This is Californian style is clearly seen due to the rectangular shape of the building swell as being a single storey house with two large sliding windows. Infront of the house, there is a single chair and besides the house there are two extremely long palm trees which again confirm the location.

To continue, the colours that Hockney employed in this paiting are very bright and they are used in a very flat way. This is perhaps due to the lack of detail and shading creating a very unrealistic image. There is also a contrast in colours. The yellow diving board stands out against the light blue swimming pool. This is repeated with the blue sky and the flesh coloured building.

Hockney has stated “When you photograph a splash, you’re freezing a moment and it becomes something else. I realise that a splash could never be seen this way in real life, it happens too quickly. And I was amused by this, so I painted it in a very, very slow way.” (Quoted in Kinley, [p.5].)

In this blog post, I will be analysing two artworks from the Tate Britain collection which I believe can and have an influence on future design.

I will be looking at two paintings by British surrealist artist Paul Nash, who was also one of the most influential landscape artists of the twentieth century. I have chosen these paintings as I believe that their artistic qualities can be employed and used as an inspiration for interior design practices.

The two artworks I will be discussing:

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1- Equivalent of the Megaliths, Paul Nash.

The first painting is Paul Nash’s ‘Equivalent of the Megaliths’, 1935. The title of the piece already suggests what the viewer will be looking at, ‘Megaliths’ are huge standing stones. A historical example of this would be the stones of Stonehenge. However, here the artist was influenced by the stones at Avebury in the Wiltshire downs.

Figure 1: Paul Nash, Equivalent of the Megaliths, 1935, oil on canvas, 457 x 660 mm, Tate Britain.

The space is inhabited by large objects in the foreground including two large columns which capture our eyes. The scene is set in a landscape, mountains make up the background. furthermore, in the background one can also see the Sillbury hill, a prehistoric location in Avebury. The muted colour palette creates a dream like scenery, a typical surrealist aesthetic quality. This is reinforced through the mellow light which creates a sort of blurred vision.

Paul Nash’s painting depicts modern thinking. This is successfully demonstrated through the contrast of old and new, bringing Britain’s “most advanced cultural objects with its most ancient” as stated at the Tate Britain. The geometric forms have similarities to sculptures in contemporary art but also represent prehistoric standing stones. By replacing the prehistoric stones with modern geometric shapes, Nash successfully combines the new and old. This juxtaposition of historic and modern is something we as designers can be influenced by when creating interiors.

Figure 2: The dining room at Monkton House, Elizabeth Whiting & Associates, photograph by Alamy Stock Photo.

Monkton House located in Chilgrove, West Sussex is a perfect example of a British 20th century house that embodies this surrealist idea of the vintage and modern. This home belonged to Edward James who contributed to the surrealist art movement through his patronage. In addition, Edward James also who helped Salvador Dali achieve the success and career that he has. In return, Dali helped Edward James design his house.

A room that successfully demonstrates the ideas discussed above, is the sitting room at Monkton House (see figure 2). I find that this room especially looks like it just came out of a surrealist painting. This is because of the colour palette and the different textures and shapes. Here, one can see how the owner played with different styles and times. The juxtaposition of furniture and art ranging from 1930s, the Regency and Victorian period creates an interesting and busy interior. The modern lip sofas were created by Dali and contrast with the Victorian sofa style padded walls. The floor is covered with a green carpet which at the time would have been very daring and unconventional.

Over the years, mixing antique and modern has become increasingly popular. I believe that this is successfully done when the contrast is done right as it makes a room more interesting. However, over doing it might create aesthetic clashes and imbalance in a room. Something that one can consider when doing choosing furniture from different centuries is to find a common denominator. This could be the wood type, the colour, the geometry or any other aspects of materiality.

2- Totes Meer, Paul Nash.

The second painting I will be analysing is Paul Nash’s ‘Totes Meer’ (Dead Sea), 1940-1. ‘Totes Meer’ is an oil on canvas was achieved during the first half of the Second World War and depicts the traumas and damage of the war. More specifically, it was inspired by the broken aircraft dump in Cowley, Oxfordshire. In the painting, the wrecked aircrafts are camouflaged with the sea, where one can see bits of planes and projecting wings which also create the waves. The angular shape of the planes creates an unsettling effect, reflecting the war period. Furthermore, the blue tinged palette creating a ghostly and almost grave yard of airplanes.

Figure 3: Paul Nash, Totes Meer, 1940-1, oil on canvas, 1020 x 1524 mm, Tate Britain.

In this painting, Paul Nash uses angular and jagged shapes in order to create an unsettling effect. The geometric shapes across the composition not only help convey the atmosphere but also create movement. In interior design one can apply this technique in numerous ways. Paul Nash conveyed these ideas in interior design through the bathroom (see figure 4) he created for Austrian Ballet dancer Tilly Losch in 1932. Through the different shaped and textured rectangles on the walls, the artist creates dynamism as there is a play with light. Furthermore, the blue tinted atmosphere of the room reminded me of ‘Totes Meer’.

Figure 4: Bathroom designed by Paul Nash for Austrian ballet dancer Tilly Losch, 1932 re-created in 1978, photograph by Julian Feary.

Although this bathroom is Art Deco, it shows how surrealism influenced other movements throughout art history. This bathroom is one of those bathrooms that has become one of the most important interiors of the 20th century. This is due to the floor to ceiling covered in glass walls and the usual lighting. The different glass pieces on the walls are a combination of mirror and cathedral glass. The cathedral glass helped create movement due to its rain like, dimpled texture. At the time, stream free mirror didn’t exist and therefore condensation did occur. When designing a room with a lot of glass like this one, steam free mirror should be considered.

Overall, Surrealism has influenced interior design and architecture in many ways. This is especially through the paintings dream like scenery the of many different objects which occupy the space.

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Marissa Merz, Untitled (Little Shoe), 1968, nylon and paraffin, 60 x 195 x 135 mm, Tate

This small scale sculpture was achieved in 1969. The artist, Marissa Merz, was interested in exploring the boundaries between everyday life and art. Here, she used unconventional materials which is a typical idea of modern artists who want to reject the past and create new. By using knit nylon, Merz creates geometric form which she then covers in paraffin. This allows for a secure structure which is important for the purpose of the piece. The shoe like sculpture is not only meant for display but also to be worn creating an extension of the human body.

This work of art is part of the Art Povera movement meaning poor art in Italian. The Italian artists that were part of this movement believed in reflecting the pre-industrial age through their work of art. By using non-conventiral materials, artists challenged and reject previous ideas of art and what art should be. This modern thinking was typical of the time. Another key idea is that artists used materials that were seen as cheap making art seem more accessible and placing more value on the fact that the idea itself is art rather than what it represents. This was especially achieved by using every day items as an art form but rejecting their original function.

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Doris Salcedo, Untitled, 1987, steel cot, steel shelving, rubber, 10 plastic dolls and pig intestine, Tate

This work by Doris Salcedo was achieved in 1987. The structure consists of the following materials: steel cot, steel shelving, rubber, 10 plastic dolls and pig intestine. The frame of the structure is an old hospital bed which has been painted in chipped white enamel. The hospital bed has been bonded together with a black steel shelving unit. The surface of the piece was achieved by treating it with acid and the steel amateurs are covered in wax. Furthermore, one can see ten tiny plastic dolls which are attached using pig intestine to the structure’s joints.

The dolls in the piece have a symbolic piece. Doris Salcedo has stated that, “[she] took those dolls and threw them in very hot casting wax so that they become swollen and begin to melt. At that point [she] gave them different shapes”. The dolls symbolise the darkness of human life, more specifically the many lives that were also to the drug trade industry in Columbia.

The artist who is originally from Columbia was highly influenced by her country’s drug crisis. She uses thrown away hospital furniture to convey and meditate on the cycle of life and that death is inevitable.

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Susumu Koshimizu, From Surface to Surface, 1971 remade 1986, wood, 3000 x 8100 x 100 mm, Tate

The last work from the Tate Britain I will be discussing is Susumu Koshimizu ‘From Surface to Surface’ achieved in 1971 but remade in 1986. These sculptures experiment with wood’s materiality by carving and cutting each wood piece differently. The different shapes were achieving from sawing by hand and are a response against the use of technology and photoshop that was recognised with mid-1960s Japanese art.

During the time of the creation of this piece, Koshimizu was part of the Mono Ha movement meaning School of Things. This movement emerged in Tokyo and was focused on creating art which explored materials and their properties. This was done in order to reject Japan’s industrialisation as they saw it as damaging to human kind.

Although I enjoyed looking at these three art works, I found it hard to relate them to my own work. This is perhaps because of the materiality. However, Doris Salcedo’s work did lead me to question how one can recycle furniture pieces. Over the last couple of years, it has been extremely fashionable to mix antique with the contemporary. Re-using old furnitures pieces in a new, modern setting is not only adds charm and history to the space but is also sustainable. As an emerging designer, sustainability is something I need to think about. Wooden furniture is especially damaging art increases deforestation. This could be hindered by re-using old wooden pieces or even taking apart old furniture and using the wood to create something new. These are great environmentally friendly ideas that will help contribute to the protection of our forests, our Earth’s lungs.