In Belmacz’s small gallery space Stanisław Wejman’s painted cigarette packs are stacked against stark white walls, their colours enhanced by the bright lighting. Every single one of them – and there are many – is painted first in a single colour and then decorated with curious shapes, mostly round and in shades that don’t necessarily…

Though it may not seem much more than a black square on a white background, Malevich’s Black Quadrilateral signifies a game-changing step towards pure abstraction in the art of the early twentieth century. ‘Adventures of the Black Square’ explores the legacy of Malevich’s experiments with an abundance of works that range from traditional fine art…

The idea of home or homeland, in the last 25 years,  has figured heavily in interpretations of Cold War-era and ‘post-Socialist’ art. The reasons for this lie in several things: the steering of that conversation by emigrés, the developed world’s pornographic fascination with the ruin left by a failed utopia, and US pop culture’s love…

The exhibition Favourite City at the Bulgarian Cultural Institute  is one of the final events in this year’s London Festival of Bulgarian Culture, and the first London Exhibition of contemporary Bulgarian poster and graphic design.  Curated by Anna Simeonoff,  co-founder of the online Sophia-based graphic arts platform PlakatKombinat and a designer specialising in posters, book covers and…

When István Szabó’s film Sunshine was released in 1999, it introduced a new audience to some of the finer points of Hungary’s history, as well as reminding us of some of its forgotten heroes. The protagonist, played by Ralph Fiennes, was based substantially on the life of Attila Petschauer, one of the world’s greatest Olympic…

The Romanian Imaginarium – a magical title! And indeed, when entering the room on the first floor of the Romanian Cultural Centre, I’m confronted with shadow-creatures, flowery skulls and birds that ride on faceless humans. Even though the exhibition space is not purpose-built, the period-style chandelier and stucco decoration on the ceiling add to the…

Small as the Courtauld Gallery may be, it’s host to an array of significant artworks. Its latest exhibition “Egon Schiele – the Radical Nude” is no exception, and that this is the first UK show devoted to Schiele in over twenty years makes it even more special. The exhibition is on the top floor of…