Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 8 : Pressclippings, 1977-1981

with ALAN WARREN The finest art callectian ever Hen in thl1 ,tote 11 an shaw at the Queensland Art Gallery (MIM Building, Ann Street). So hots oll to Baron Thyssen-Bomemlsza, The Courlts:•Mall, Channel 7 and all lt.s other sponsors. But back In 1937 James McConald, a state gallery 1 director at the time, went on record a.s saying: "l don't think we should have modern art In the galle1·y •.. It ls not liked by the art galleries of AU8tralla," The exhibition wlll do tomethlng to squelch s11ch stupid opinions, If they still exist. The Ylsual arts grow richer with time - time I· fers increasing opportunity for comparisons nnd Judgment, as does this superb show. 'J'.he exhlblUon's scope wns successfully defined IJ,• one appreciative 1•lewer when he said: "Il 15 like tak• Ing a world l-rlp for $2." How else could you see such a 1•lsua1 feast, ma • terpleccs r~om both sides of the Atlantic, without travelllng? Actually the exhaust.lve catalogue plus the tech• nologlcnl aids ,you can listen to well prepared ex– planations or various works! makes anything the Tele11raph art writer might say superfluous, But let me note a few personal disappointments. There's no example from Henri Matisse and the small Bonnurd ls an lnslgnlflt ant work, 11lvlng no ln– dlcntlon of his use of color. Having sold thut, allow me to get down to Ille nltl,y-grltty. I am an old ruddy duddy with n great Interest in whut nrtlsts created nt the turn or the century. Just let me draw attention to some exhibit.a which enthralled me. . Stnrtlng with lm))ressionlsm, born officially In 1874, ns n result or II Claude Monet painting exhibited at the Solon des Refuses, there's a delightful Pl.s– snrro. He cn))tures the effect of rnln In "Rue Saint• Honore" (1897) , And you s\,ould not o,·erlook Vnn Ooah's "Steve– dores at Aries" , 1888), yet he only sold one paintln11 In his llfellme, Com1mre then "!1111mnn" from the Amerlcnn Maurice Prendergast 11910) or go back to Wasslly Knndlnsky's Ludwlgsklrche In Munich tl008). Maurice Vlnrninck wll h his ·'Olll'e Trees" (1905) together with Andre Drrnin's "Old Wuterloo Bridse" t1005) Sltllld OIIL 111110118 1hc FltUl'CS (Wild bcn.sts). Both dlspluy n lMlc for s))ontnneous expression ond II stlnlng use of color, The cublsls arc well rc))rcsentcd by Bmque·s ·•womnn wit h n Mu1Hlolln" 0010) nncl Juan Oris' "Smull loble in front or n Window·• (1021). Coming lo mmc recent times there nrc worlh· whllc works h)' Oorky, rte Koon lng de Slnel, Marini nncl Freud, If you know someone out or !own who ls Inter• cstcd 111 lhc rlsunl nrls 111nke sure they tukc lhc unique oppo,·lnnlLy of viewing America nnrt Euro))c, a. Century or Modern Musters, before l\lnrch JO. To put It blnn1ly, no one wlt.11 any pretence to culLure should 111155 ~cc111g this lmporlunt exhibit Ion.