“Last day to see Rachel Coyne: War on Women. A powerful, affecting show that’s stopped passers-by all week. Coyne’s paintings, drawn from Rubens and the Baroque, confront the treatment and representation of women in war – both historical and ongoing – transforming beauty and gesture into protest and witness”.
Blink and you miss them, these small shows on the side of the boat don’t last long, most of the time Canalboat Contemporary exhibitions are a week long, if you didn’t already catch this one then you’re already too late. There’s been some strong shows in that box on the side of the narrow boat this year, quite a few of them, for what any of this is worth, documented on these pages (who knows why?). It took until the last day to go catch this one, the days are so short now, I saw little point in trying to see in in the gloom and the darkness and the the probably crowd of the opening night and hey, I was busy, the weather was bad, wrong kind of leaves on the towpath, I was painting, by 5pm the light has gone, damn, I’ll go tomorrow (although that box on the side of the boat is very well lit, it probably is better to go see it in the dark during these coming Winter months than it is to o see in the gloom of what passes for daylight) and well, hey, I got there in the end, I did make a point of it and now some rushed words as I work here in the studio.
So after two weeks of the Miniature Masters group show, Rachel Coyne was in the box last week with her, yes, rather powerful series of works on paper, a series called War on Women, “but what a way to return to our solo programme – Rachel’s work is urgent, intimate, and politically charged, these works ask us to look closely and not look away”. The side of the boat isn’t a space where you can make a lot of noise as an artist, it isn’t for a big statement, it is more of an enticement, a place for an artist to tease a passing audience; hey, come have a look then come find me and see some more. Rachel Coyne’s work here in the Sunday afternoon gloom does make you want to see more, to know more, these are pieces that provoke once you do stop and properly look. Her work isn’t instant, it might not stop most of the coffee cup holding canal strollers, these aren’t brash hey-look-at-me pieces but if you do, if you do get down to their level on the towpath then there’s a handful of pieces that suggest a lot lot more. Pieces that yes, do draw from Rubens while confronting the treatment of women in war – both historical and ongoing, a set of pieces that provoke, that record, report, pieces that are hard to resist for more than just the obvious reason. Rachel Coyne (b.1988) is an Irish artist living in London, her work is rooted in feminism and social justice, her work here is powerful, small pieces that feel big, that leave you needing to see more of what she might have to offer. Here’s another #43SecondFilm…
And well, I was hoping to catch the latest show at Underbelly, it should have been open down by the canal, jsut over from the boat, alas, even though the latest for-one-weekend-only show in that garage that doubles as a gloriously messy art studio and now and again as very DIY gallery of sorts has been trumpeted all social media, flyers in my inbox, please come messages. Alas, early afternoon on the Sunday and there’s no sign of life, something that does seem to be happening rather a lot with galleries and art spaces these days, I guess there could be a perfectly reasonable reason but hey, it is happening so often, you make an effort to go to a show that that curators are shouting about all over the web and they can’t be bothered to be open in real life. Is it all just about the Instagram profile these days? This has happened so many times this year. It happened during Frieze’s East London day, it happened several times with that gallery over at…. Oh never mind, if they can’t be bothered then really they can’t moan when no one shows up when they are actually open. Enough of that, off to the next thing, off down the canal to the Art Pavilion but you would think that with an art gallery comes responsibility, a commitment, it is tough running an art space, I speak from (lots of) experience – been there, done that, it can be thankless, it can be soul-sucking but if you are going to ask people to come at least be open when you said you would be open, don’t mess people around, show commitment, keep your side of the bargain. More about that rather fine Art Pavilion show in a moment… (sw)
Canal Boat Contemporary, last time I checked, could be found on the towpath by Broadway Market, Hackney, London E8 right now. The boat’s Instagram feed will keep in touch with the constant movement, canal rules mean a more is required every couple of weeks – Canal Boat Contemporary
Rachel Coyne – Instagram / website
Coming up next: Laurie Cole – About the Wreck. Opening Weds 12th November, 6–8pm – “Cornish artist Laurie Cole (b.1994) explores watery worlds and the deep ties between women and nature. Her work moves between the unruly and the contained, between wildness and the structures that seek to shape or restrain it. Using collage, found materials, rust, salt, and paint, Cole treats painting as an act of trespass and reclamation – breaking down boundaries to build a new sense of place”.
More recent coverage of the boat…
As always, do please click on an image to see the whole thing or to run the slide show…
THE ORGAN 
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