There are some familiar names and familiar paintings in Art Then! British Painting, Sculpture and Drawing, 1910-1960 at Southampton City Art Gallery, but it's the unfamiliar that makes it especially worth the trip to a venue you might not normally consider for an exhibition. This show provides an excellent overview of art trends in this country in the first half of the 20th century. And it's free! Southampton has a very good collection, but we often get the feeling that a lot of interesting works are in store behind closed doors. Pleasant surprises await when they finally see the light of the day, in this case in combination with a selection from the extensive Ingram Collection of modern British art. In all, there are more than 100 works by over 100 artists, demonstrating how the British reacted to the latest developments in art on the Continent. So let's start with a couple of hidden gems from the Southampton treasure trove, first of all a Landscape that really stoppe...
Everybody loves a bargain when they're out shopping, don't they? Here's a tip: Get over to Normandy this summer for a great-value exhibition at the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Caen. And it's all about shopping: Merchandise as Spectacle: Art and Retailing 1860-1914 . Because even if you're not a fan of trailing round the shops, this is a fascinating slice of art and social history packed with paintings, posters and film. And they're practically giving it away! As cities took on a new shape in the 19th century, department stores were one of the modern wonders of the urban scene; along with railway stations they were the cathedrals of the Victorian age. And like cathedrals and railway stations, they were a motif that drew the modern artist. This is one of the great Parisian stores, Le Bon Marché, as seen by the Swiss-born Félix Vallotton . Obsequious mustachioed salesmen show off their fabrics to the choosy female customers. There's hardly room to squeeze your...