Grant Foster at Lychee One, Hackney, East London, Feb 2019

Grant Foster at Lychee One, Hackney, East London, Feb 2019 – Now Lychee One really is a new gallery (or at least the new home for the gallery, Lychee One relocated to E8 late last year), a gallery that hides in plain sight, sandwiched on a back street between London Fields railway station and Hackney’s Mare Street in that warren of new builds where once there were warehouses, where once Play happened. And who is Grant Foster? A great big window that you can spy down a lane when you’re walking back from the railway station, they’re not big on publicity at Lychee One, we’ve accidentally caught a couple of shows at the relatively new space now, this time it was the bright lights of the gallery in the late afternoon February twilight that caught our attention, last time it was that unmistakable noise of an opening night. Information about the artist, the show or indeed anything is at a minimum, indeed the gallery is empty when we walk in, door unlocked, bright lights on, not a human in sight. I’m not being funny here but art really doesn’t help itself at times.

Grant Foster at Lychee One, Hackney, East London, Feb 2019

I’m Not Being Funny is the name of the show, the paintings are big, bold, bright, demanding, exciting, the welcome mat at the door is apparently part of it all, the show looks inviting from the top of the lane, it looks exciting, it looks just as exciting once you get to the Door and walk in to the very (very) bright white cube of a gallery. Big bold paintings dominating the space, a sculpture or two, some scribbled biro text as some kind of print that might offer a clue or two, don’t really need clues though, an empty room full of big paintings, lots of colour, a touch of collage, a slice or two of attitude, some kind of youth serum and a slight subversion of something or other that isn’t quite that straight forward, kind of exciting to find an art show in a back street when you weren’t really looking for one, rather like this one, wonder where everyone was? Wonder who Grant Foster is? (sw)

Lychee One is at Unit 1, The Gransden, 39-45 Gransden Avenue, London E8 3QA Gallery opening hours: Wednesday– Saturday, 12 – 6pm and by appointment. Next up Freya Douglas-Morris, The Sun Long Night 15th March – 27th April 2019. PV: 14th March 6:00 – 8:30pm

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