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Nigel Ip

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Printmaking sessions (feat. @dearstary ) and equipment @woolwichcontemporaryprintfair. #printmaking #woolwichcontemporaryprintfair #artfair #art #drypoint #drypointetching #screenprinting

More from @woolwichcontemporaryprintfair. #printmaking #artfair #woolwichcontemporaryprintfair #contemporaryart

Earlier this week, I visited @woolwichcontemporaryprintfair, a fairly small fair dedicated to contemporary art. This was probably the most relaxing fair I'd ever been to, featuring a few of the usual exhibitors and loads of exciting artists I'd never heard of. The live printmaking sessions were a joy to partake; I made my first drypoint! A range of techniques and prices too. Can recommend! #woolwichcontemporaryprintfair #printmaking #artfair #art #woolwicharsenal

Some of William Blake's books. @tate #tatebritain #tate #williamblake #visionaryart #bookdesign

William Blake, under Michelangelo's influence. #WilliamBlake #tate #tatebritain @tate #michelangelo #michelangelobuonarroti #visionaryart #oldmasters

I need to do the #WilliamBlake show @tate in two visits because the amount of material is just astonishing! I know very little about Blake beyond the fact that he made lots of illustrated books. What this glorious exhibition ultimately shows is the global, commercial appeal of his books and visionary illustrations, with loans from the Library of Congress and unexpectedly the Louvre. Present-day 'visionary art' usually refers to a category of art that lies outside of 'mainstream art'. They often feature ideas which contemplate the condition of man, personal interpretations of religion and mythology, and even delve into the supernatural. Their symbolism is often obscure, personal, and problematically inaccessible. Blake is exactly that kind of person and his lack of success with the Royal Academy and his early career is understandable in this light. His similarity with them is a high regard for the Old Masters; Michelangelesque forms dictate much of his output. But even then, he finds inspiration from Northern art, a departure from the Academy's classical tastes. But his commercial ventures in reproductive engraving brought him patrons eventually, and this occupation gave him the stimulus to invent his relief etching technique (a game-changer for book-publishing) and his own kind of monotype. And these work brilliantly in his favour. His publications are reminiscent of children's books with stylised text embedded among vibrant colourful illustrations. But Blake didn't necessarily want to be known as a printmaker and publisher of modestly-sized books; he craved for creating much bigger things. Taking inspiration from Old Master frescoes, he wanted his illustrations produced at up to 30 metres high! He wanted the impact and volume that visionary art requires. This didn't happen. Blake is a great example of the dilemmas that visionary artists face all the time, at least in a civilised society. He is lucky to have such commercial success but the timing of his innovations was a huge factor in this. It would be quite some time until another visionary artist is accepted into the canon of mainstream art history, I think. #tatebritain #tate #visionaryart

This photograph of a lady by Alvin Langdon Coburn from about 1905 reminds me of Jane Morris but I'm unsure if it could be her at all. Found in the new photography centre @vamuseum. The painting is 'The Blue Silk Dress' (1868) by DG Rossetti @kelmscottmanor, a place I'm yet to visit! #alvinlangdoncoburn #photography #19thcenturyphotography #vamuseum #victoriaandalbertmuseum @janmarsh25

Checking out some of the stereoscopic photographs of the 1855 Crystal Palace exhibition at Sydenham Hill, taken by Henry Negretti and Joseph Zambra, the official photographers of the display. Part of the @vamuseum acquisition in 2017 of the former @royalphotographicsociety collection. #photography #stereographs #stereoscopicphotographs #crystalpalaceexhibition #henrynegretti #josephzambra

I adore the work of Julia Margaret Cameron with a passion! When everyone else was still obsessing over photography's mimetic abilities, Julia went against all criticism to explore its pictorial possibilities. Her 'soft focus' images have sustained my interest for years, teasing our desire for minute details and irritation when pictures are not 'in focus'. She stops the lens at precisely the right moment when her sitters appear ethereal, as if we've just awoken from a dream...or into one. #juliamargaretcameron #19thcenturyphotography #photography #npglondon @nationalportraitgallery

Recent Posts

Leonardo da Vinci: A Life in Drawing – The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace
Connect Art Fair 2019
Top 5 London Art Exhibitions 2018: A Personal Selection
Top 5 London Art Exhibitions 2017: A Personal Selection
The Queen’s House and the $400 million Leonardo da Vinci

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