Five art things, five more art things happening somewhere around right now, or coming up any moment now, five art shows to check out in the coming days, an (almost) weekly round up of recommended art events. Five shows, exhibitions or things we rather think might be worth checking out. Mostly London things for that is where we currently operate and explore, and like we said last time, these five recommendations come with no claims that they are “the best five” or the “Top Five”, we’re not one of those annoying art websites that ignore most things whilst claiming to be covering everything and proclaiming this or that to be the “top seven things” or the “best things this weekend”, no, this is simply a regular list of five or so art things coming up soon that we think you might find as interesting as we do.

Five art things happening now and coming up in the next few days in no particular order, and still not a hint of a selfie of any of us hanging out at the damn show next to a piece of art either, just five art things happening around about now

1: Hurriers: Poor on the Roll at Five Years – opening night 9th December and then until 18th December – a show co-curated by Anne Robinson and Frances Hatherley, featuring new work by Anne Robinson, Charlotte Squire, Lou Barnell, Ana Benlloch, Kathleen Mullaniff, and Shaheeda Sinckler.”

Hurriers: Poor on the Roll – inter generational conversations about class, sexuality and working bodies, emerging from the collaborative processes of working on The Hurrier during 2021.  The Hurrier expanded film work uses experimental sound, film, performance and imaginative time travel to expand unseen historical moments in the lives of the undocumented.  At Five Years, the piece will be shown as a video installation with sound accompanied by works by all artists involved in the project. Artists will be working with Muttonfist Press to produce ‘broadsides’ alongside the exhibition and also collaborating with The Feminist Library.

The dates: 10th-18th December, 2021, gallery open 12-6pm, Wednesday – Sunday, Private View: Thursday 9th December, 6.00-8.30pm. Gallery discussion, films and performance, evening Saturday 18th December. Feminist Library discussion event on art and class, 11th December 2-5pm. Art workshop on class, labour, sexuality – afternoon of 12th Dec. Time tbc.  The Feminist Library will have a display of archive materials at the gallery during show.

Five Years is at Unit 2B1, 9-15 Elthorne Road, Entrance on Boothby Road, London, N19 4AJ (nearest tube Bethnal Green, nearest overground Cambridge Heath)

2: Reflections: Part 1: Female Figures by Women Artists at Workplace until  9 January 2022 – Workplace is pleased to present Reflections a series of exhibitions looking at the female experience as portrayed by women identifying artists through different media. The first iteration, focussing on painting, will bring together five artists whose works begin with the female body and develop into singular explorations of the subject matter.

Using self-portraiture, film stills, studio sittings and photography as the basis for the works, Shannon Bono, Louise Giovanelli, Katinka Lampe, Danielle Mckinney and Ellie Pratt create complex depictions of women that reflect a shared contemporary experience.

Shannon Bono explores the internal as well as the external body. Nude self-portraits in the foreground are combined with patterns of notable fabrics from Africa, biological structures and chemical processes in living organisms. Bono’s paintings embody an afrofemcentrist consciousness, sharing muted narratives and projecting black women’s lived experiences.

In this exhibition Louise Giovanelli uses images of women from film and television to create parallels between the historical depiction of the Madonna and the contemporary iconography of celebrities. Choosing to paint images of female figures cropped out of their context to accentuate their formal qualities, she interrogates past and present modes of representation.

The solitary female protagonists of Danielle Mckinney’s works are immersed in various leisurely pursuits and moments of deep reflection and through them the artist engages with themes of spirituality and self. With a background in photography, Mckinney paints with an acute awareness of the female gaze, employing deeply colorful hues and nuanced details with cinematic effect.

Ellie Pratt’s works draw upon the psychological tension of women fulfilling a directed role in fashion photography. In Pratt’s work the objectification of women is heightened by exposing the dynamics of the male gaze as perpetuated through the published image.

Katinka Lampe directs friends and acquaintances, placing them in constructed scenarios and postures to interrogate the relation between the painter and its model. Understanding how bodies are politicized and become an arena for identities, Lampe purposefully put herself in a problematic role to continually ask questions of herself and her position as part of her practice.

Workplace is at  Reliance Wharf, 2-10 Hertford Road, London N1 5ET.  Exhibition opening hours: Sat – Sun, 11am – 5pm. The show is also part of the Mayfair Gallery Hop this Friday evening

3: Polski Sklep – zine launch at Limbo – 14th Dec 2021 –  “Polski Sklep- a photo-zine by Milena and Weronika Szymanek” launch event with audio-visual installation. A zine seems to be a totally different thing to what a zine was when we first launched Organ out the back of an old army ambulance outside a Hawkwind gig and then stood outside a million gigs, galleries and shows selling them by hand. I kind of like the sound of this launch

“Join us for the launch of “Polski Sklep – a photo-zine”; celebrating Polish culture and diaspora through a visual documentation of Polish shops. With a video and sound installation of Polish media, as well as trippy satirical sculptures and paintings”.  Made by twin audio-visual artists Milena and Weronika Szymanek. With the musical stylings of Leisure FM (their experimental music project).  The zine was made possible with the help of PageMaters Publication Fund.  Two colour riso print from film on Context Natural 115gsm paper. 48 pages with illustrations. 145x204mm. 1 hour sonic set of Polish folk, sound art, hip hop, news and commercial broadcasts. 6 hour video loop of Polish news, commercials and old cartoons. Various sculptures and paintings.  Zine available to buy for £10 on the night.  Free entry. BYOB. Some Polish beers and snacks provided.   Limbo is at Unit 5, 7-17 Latona Rd, London, SE15 6RX

4: Jutta Koether – Femme Colonne at Lévy Gorvy – The Gallery say they are “pleased to announce itheir second exhibition with Jutta Koether. On view at 22 Old Bond Street and 40 Albemarle Street, Jutta Koether: Femme Colonne features seven new, large-scale paintings. Since the 1980s, Koether has utilized appropriation to situate herself within an eclectic artistic genealogy that references idioms from French baroque painting to Symbolism, Post-Impressionism, and Surrealism. In a recurring repertoire of pixelated or “bruised” grids, vibrant red paint, and unfurling ribbons and curtains, Koether layers her own figuration with art historical motifs, recasting these symbols to provoke generative new meanings. This recursion of representational devices invites each viewer to engage deeply with Koether’s canvases, exploring the many valences of signification each opens up—individually and in juxtaposition with other works, across the landscape of art history”. Read more

The exhbition is open now at Lévy Gorvy and runs until January 15th. The show is also part of the Mayfair Gallery Hop this Friday evening

5: Angela Bulloch – Rainbow Unicorn Rhombus at Simon Lee Gallery – Until January 15th – Exploring the relationship between real and virtual space, the artist’s fascination with dimensionality is reflected in a new series of stack sculptures made from corian and stainless steel, a wall painting and a digital video that mirrors the exhibition, read more.

Simon Lee Gallery is at 12 Berkeley Street,  London, W1J 8DT.  Monday – Friday, 9:30am – 6pm/Saturday, 10am – 6pm. The show is also part of the Mayfair Gallery Hop this Friday evening

And you still do have time to catch both Sadie Lee and Franko B over here in Hackney – ORGAN THING: Franko B, Sadie Lee, two essential art shows at Hackney’s New Art Projects…

New Art Projects is at 6d Sheep Lane, Hackney, London, E8 4QS.  Just by Broadway Market, not far from the Regents Canal and a stone’s throw from Beck Road. Both shows are on until 22nd December 2021. l –