At the Pontone Gallery, there is a show of paintings and drawings by Davina Jackson... It consists of works illustrating both biblical themes – the Judgement of Solomon, for example – or classical Greek myths – the Fall of Icarus. Humans are rendered in broadly simplified forms, familiar in a general way from the earlier years of Modernism in art. In particular, one catches glimpses of Italian modernists – Marini, Sironi and Carra, who never entirely lost their grip on the classical tradition.
The note, essentially, is one of regret for what is being lost. One sees here a regret for the way in which artistic certainties are dissolving. Many of the pictures and drawings (though not all) are quite small. A mixed media on paper entitled The Minotaur’s Last Day is monumental in its diminuative size, measuring just 7.5 by 5.5 inches... here, one finds a lament in elegant images for things that are fading away.
Read Edward Lucie-Smith's full review here.
