The tag ‘feminist art’ is not one that generally appeals to me. But that’s not to say that I don’t seek out art by women. Generally, I tend to be disheartened by Tate exhibitions on the subject these days, as I find them too mired in angsty polemic. However, for those who prefer a healthy dose of wit with their feminist art, Richard Saltoun Gallery, a tidy space in the heart of Mayfair, is the place to go. Homing in on works by female artists from the 1960s, with a bent towards conceptual and performance pieces, the shows and curation at Richard Saltoun glint with contemporary relevance. The current exhibition, ‘Penny Slinger: Exorcism: Inside Out’, is one of them. Now in its final couple of weeks, there’s still time to see it.
Penny Slinger, Operation Theater (1970-1977)
‘Collage means for me, bringing pieces of reality into a new reality, shaking up the mundane world and allowing access to the inner world of fantasies and dreams,’ says the LA-based English artist of her chosen medium. Indeed, there’s a subversive humour in Penny Slinger’s work, and the fact that it tended to ruffle establishment feathers when she was first producing her collections in the mid-1970s (one of her books was burned by customs officials) only heightens it.
Penny Slinger, Loaves and Fishes (c.1970)
Penny Slinger, Beauty is the Beast (1977)
The Richard Saltoun Gallery exhibition marks the reissue of Slinger's book, An Exorcism: A Photo Romance, an extended version of a previous edition first published in 1977. Now, nearly 50 yearsvlater, this installation seriously heightens the series’ performative roots with its immersive staging.
Wrapping the entire gallery space in images from the original An Exorcism series, it pays homage to Slinger’s 2019 collaboration with Dior's Maria Grazia Chiuri, when the house creative director invited the artist to transform the interior of Dior's fabled 30 Avenue Montaigne HQ into a surrealist fantasy landscape. It served as the backdrop for the autumn-winter 2019-2020 couture show.
Today, Penny Slinger reaffirms the message she sought to portray when the An Exorcism pieces were first shown: 'We have many works that follow “the hero's journey”, she opines. ‘But how many that track that of the heroine? This journey of the embodied soul is not sexist; we all, male and female alike, need to discover who we are. It is like a detective story, in which we, both protagonists and victims, must follow the clues and unravel the plot.' Don't miss it.
‘Penny Slinger: Exorcism: Inside Out’ is at the Richard Saltoun Gallery, London, until 7 September 2024
Penny Slinger's An Exorcism: A Photo Romance is available from Amazon, £49.65
Penny Slinger, Man Eating Bird (1970-1977)
Penny Slinger, Entrance (1977)
-
Time, beauty, history – all are written into trees in Karimoku Research Center's debut Tokyo exhibitionThe layered world of forests – and their evolving relationship with humans – is excavated and reimagined in 'The Age of Wood', a Tokyo exhibition at Karimoku Research Center
-
Tour Xi'an's remarkable new 'human-centred' shopping district with designer Thomas HeatherwickXi'an district by Heatherwick Studio, a 115,000 sq m retail development in the Chinese city, opens this winter. Thomas Heatherwick talks us through its making and ambition
-
Vans’ West End store turns skatepark, with a 200 sq m travertine rampPart store, part community hub, Vans West End in London ramps up its skateboarding credentials with a design by Andrea Caputo Studio
-
From bleeding bodies to phantom paintings, inside the distorted world of artist George RouyFrequently drawing comparisons with Francis Bacon, painter George Rouy is gaining peer points for his use of classic techniques to distort the human form
-
‘I'm endlessly fascinated by the nude’: Somaya Critchlow’s intimate and confident drawings are on show in London‘Triple Threat’ at Maximillian William gallery in London is British artist Somaya Critchlow’s first show dedicated solely to drawing
-
Looking forward to Tate Modern’s 25th anniversary partyFrom 9-12 May 2025, Tate Modern, one of London’s most adored art museums, will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a lively weekend of festivities
-
Out of office: what the Wallpaper* editors have been doing this weekA week in the world of Wallpaper*. Here's how our editors have been entertaining themselves in the run up to Christmas
-
Love, melancholy and domesticity: Anna Calleja is a painter to watchAnna Calleja explores everyday themes in her exhibition, ‘One Fine Day in the Middle of the Night’, at Sim Smith, London
-
Ndayé Kouagou speaks the language of the chaotic social media influencer in LondonNdayé Kouagou celebrates meandering incoherence with an exhibition, ‘A Message for Everybody’, at Gathering in London
-
Out of office: what the Wallpaper* editors have been doing this weekA snowy Swiss Alpine sleepover, a design book fest in Milan, and a night with Steve Coogan in London – our editors' out-of-hours adventures this week
-
Discover psychedelic landscapes and mind-bending art at London’s Tate Modern'Electric Dreams' at the Tate encompasses the period from the 1950s to the beginning of the internet era
