Henry Moor retro at the Tate
Filed under: Exhibitions — Alan @ 5:23 am
Henry Moor seems to be a large problem in the art world as it is hard to recognize him as a true artist given his sci-fi creations can be a bit out of this world, and yet, he did live as a cultural hero and even a national mascot during the sixties, although by the time he died in 1986 he was already living well past his glory days.
Now although it is 50 years later, Tate Britain is hoping that this is the time to bring his name back to the forefront with a new retrospective opening tomorrow that shows an edgier side of Moore.
Instead of showing an organic, archetypal type of art, what viewers will see is a political artist that is more surreal, the basis of which was formed by Moore as he lived through both World Wars and as a founding member of the CND.
A Tate Britain curator commented that Moore managed to create a troubling form of art that shows the bare essence of life and the modern experience. While this phrase may sound intriguing, the real question is if Tate Britain is able to take Moore’s work and create the emotion that they hope it conveys.
For instance, Moore’s piece the Atom Piece, is simply a half-mushroom cloud and half-skull which is clearly about the nuclear threat, but yet it is just a lump on a canvas making it quite hard to actually view it as a masterpiece.
Most people know Richard Attenborough as an entrepreneur, director, and actor, but it turns out he was also a collector, who over the years collected many pieces of British 20th century art.