Jake Wood-Evans ‘Relic’ Baroque eroticism & mysticism @hampshireculturaltrust

Sometimes it’s a relief to explore away from the dominating metropolitan and particularly London-centric carousel of dramatic show-biz exhibitions featuring the big well-known artists. The monuments of the art world. The familiar furniture of our cultural every-day life.

Such relief can often be found in our rich treasury of regional galleries and museums.

In the last week I’ve visited Messums and Salisbury Museum in Wiltshire and Winchester’s Discovery Centre.

A contemporary response to Baroque eroticism and mysticism.

Winchester’s Discovery Centre is showing Jake Wood-Evans’ works in an exhibition called ‘Relic’. Abstraction from the questionable taste of Rubens’ nude physicality and Poussin’s mythological themes.

Baroque eroticism & mysticism

Art-Tales is a magazine blog site following the journeys and reflections through the art world of artist, sketcher, art historian and critic Al Beckett.

Merely to amuse, inform and entertain, Art-Tales is aimed at people who simply wish to dip a toe into the art world, share an insight, smile at a joke and maybe even be informed a little.

Al regularly visits the major galleries in the UK and whenever possible, mainland Europe and the USA. He keeps up to date by subscribing to many periodicals, viewing documentaries and the news in general.

Al paints and sculpts himself and frequently sketches in-situ. He has written a book ‘The Primacy of Your Eye’ designed to give people some insights to enhance their experiences in galleries. Fully illustrated with 400 sketches and drawings of major art works and their artists, the book takes the reader on a journey through topics to perhaps consider enriching the viewing experience.

To many, the art world is daunting, to others it holds little interest. A gentle submersion at a depth to suit the individual can produce rich and rewarding results.

That’s the purpose of Art-Tales.