Truth is often stranger than fiction, isn't it? Head to the newly opened venue of Charleston in Lewes for Dorothy Hepworth and Patricia Preece: An Untold Story , an exhibition that relates a piece of art history that, you have to say, would make a good film. And here are the two principal characters: Dorothy, on the left, a talented graduate of the Slade School of Fine Art , and her fellow student, friend, lover, partner and collaborator Patricia, perhaps not quite so talented, but both passionate about art. The photograph seems to tell you a lot. Dorothy looks a little bit awkward and ill at ease, slightly frumpy, androgynous even. Patricia appears confident, glamorous, exuberant, perhaps a little.... possessive? But maybe we're getting ahead of ourselves. We need to establish the plot.... The rather retiring Hepworth and the outgoing, gregarious Preece became inseparable as students, and they planned to set up a studio together after graduation. In 1922, Preece took exam
There's an impressive range of new art shows starting in both London and Paris in March. So before cross-Channel traffic grinds to a juddering halt.... The rediscovery of Greek and Roman art in the 15th and 16th centuries saw artists north and south of the Alps put the human body at the forefront of their painting and sculpture. That's the theme of The Renaissance Nude from March 3 to June 2 at the Royal Academy in London. Titian, Raphael, Michelangelo, Leonardo, Bronzino, Dürer and Cranach are among those represented in an exhibition of around 90 works. Over at Tate Britain, the largest assembly of Vincent van Gogh's paintings in the UK for nearly a decade -- 45 of them -- is the big selling point of Van Gogh and Britain . The show explores how he was inspired by British art and culture -- Constable, Millais and Dickens -- and in turn inspired British artists like Francis Bacon and David Bomberg. March 27 to August 11, with standard tickets costing £22, reflecting