Art

Riviera art and a mysterious Dutchman

One of the great attractions of the Riviera is the quality and exhibition of its art. Not that many great painters were actually born there but many were drawn by its light, lifestyle and opulence to resettle: Miro, Picasso, Matisse, Chagall all moved here. One of the most interesting stories is [...]

March 30, 2018 // 0 Comments

TEFAF Maasricht

The great and the the good of the art world have beeb gathering in the pretty Dutch town of Maastricht, once the battleground for the ancient Tory Brexiteers – for TEFAF, an art convention of dealers. One of the talking points will be the indictment of Jonathan Green of the Green art [...]

March 20, 2018 // 0 Comments

Around the sale rooms

Looking at the catalogue of forthcoming auctions of modern British art at Christie’s I was struck how artists can rise and fall in appeal and value. Johnny Minton in the 50s was regarded the equal of his friend Francis Bacon. I saw and liked his work exhibited last year at that excellent [...]

March 6, 2018 // 0 Comments

The Royal Collection, Picasso ceramics and building a collection

Yesterday I went to the Royal Academy to view the collection of Charles 1. He may have been a hapless monarch but as a collector of art he had no English royal equal. Titian, Mantegna, Holbein, Durer, Rubens and Van Dyck he had pictures by them all. The collection was broken up and sold but the [...]

February 21, 2018 // 0 Comments

The dark arts

Two aspects of art that intrigue me, and both are linked, are forgery and the contemporary art market. Recently a museum exhibition in Ghent of Russian modern art was questioned by experts for its authenticity. The Russian modern art market is notoriously prone to forgers. Another is the painter [...]

January 23, 2018 // 0 Comments

I am an art critic therefore I am

I sometimes pose the question to myself and other critics “Why are we doing this?” and “To whom are we doing it for?” The answer, if we are honest, is this is our way of making our living but this does not apply to every case. Charles Saatchi is not short of a bob or two [...]

November 30, 2017 // 0 Comments

Sevilla-lisation

I had a free day in Sevilla before a French friend Valerie was due to join me. I still had to see the interior of the cathedral but chose instead to do what I enjoy most namely to wander around the city going wherever I choose. I set off in the direction of the bull ring. I have mixed views on [...]

October 4, 2017 // 0 Comments

A Life of Picasso (1881-1905)/John Richardson

John Richardson was the partner of Picasso collector Douglas Cooper and knew Picasso well. He is therefore well qualified to be Picasso’s biographer and has written 3 detailed volumes of his life. I recently read the first. I have to admit immediately that I am not a great reader of [...]

July 28, 2017 // 0 Comments

John Minton/ Pallant Gallery

John Minton had an interesting life, tragically ended when he was 39, but in my view was a painter of the second rank. He never really seems to find a consistent leitmotiv: in this exhibition there are portraits, landscapes of Cornwall, colourful pictures of the Caribbean and representations of [...]

July 22, 2017 // 0 Comments

Fake or Fortune

I am delighted that Fake or Fortune the investigative arts programme presented by Fiona Bruce and Philip Mould is back this summer. Yesterday I watched a repeat of a programme I missed featuring three L.S. Lowry paintings. One had a stock number and label of dealer Lefevre and was readily traceable [...]

July 17, 2017 // 0 Comments

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The Mediterrenean diet

April 26, 2018 // 0 Comments

No disrespect to Daffers and her ilk that spend significant amount of their waking hours in restaurants but often you cannot beat a simple meal at home. Yesterday after a [...]
A la Colthard/ Colombe d’Or

April 25, 2018 // 0 Comments

I make no apologies for reviewing again this restaurant which I visited with a friend yesterday. What makes it so special? Firstly, it is the setting in St Paul de Vence, a [...]
Where we are all going

April 25, 2018 // 0 Comments

Yesterday I witnessed on television an item about the official unveiling of a statue in Parliament Square of – no doubt a great lady – the Suffragette Millie Fawcett who [...]
Golfing weekend

April 24, 2018 // 0 Comments

I am indebted to Maudie Watson, ladies captain at Andover Golf Club, who drew my attention to my omission of Tyrell Hatton in my list of European Ryder Cup contenders. [...]
Those were the days

April 24, 2018 // 0 Comments

Now here’s a mainstream sporting article we on the Rust can all relate to – see here for Richard William’s piece on two of sport’s broadcasting greats [...]