Tate Etc. - Spring 2017
Tate Etc. is a quarterly magazine published by the Tate Gallery. It’s a national magazine featuring articles and adverts for exhibitions and opportunities from across the country. However, there is a heavy focus on London throughout the magazine both in the adverts and articles. I found a lot of the content within the magazine revolves around the various Tate galleries so the magazine can work as a kind of companion to exhibitions currently on while also offering extra information about the wider contemporary art world.
This issue’s cover feature explores David Hockney and his current show at the Tate Britain. The article is very interesting and covers a lot of his work from across his career. Another feature that directly relates to an exhibition currently showing at a Tate Gallery is a series of photos from the Wolfgang Tillmans show at Tate Modern. This is quite an interesting way of presenting an article as it does not have any words explaining what the art is all about or analysing it. Tate Etc. is clearly aimed at an audience with a degree of artistic knowledge already. This kind of article allows them to come to their own conclusions and perhaps leaves them wanting more and going to the exhibition.
Flash Art - March/April 2017
Flash Art is a leading international art publication featuring content from across the world including Hong Kong, New York, Berlin and London. The magazine is very advert heavy with galleries from all around the world publicising their latest exhibitions and projects. Flash art seems ideal as a platform for the best cutting edge contemporary art around at the moment.
The articles are not limited to just the fine arts. There is a long feature covering London based fashion designer Grace Wales Bonner. This covers the conceptual side of another artistic genre in a similar way that a publication of this type would cover a fine art piece. Thought the issue there is quite a big focus on contemporary art forms such as performance, video and contemporary conceptual pieces of art. These art forms seem to dominate more traditional practices such as painting throughout the magazine.
Modern Painters - March/April 2017
Focusing mainly on contemporary art in North America, Modern Painters also references the wider art world. The magazine is published every two months to keep up with the fast paced art world. In this issue the editor’s notes do not shy away from political opinion, condemning Trump but assuring that within Modern Painters you may find something “intriguing, complex and even inspiring”.
One of the main features in the magazine is an interview with american artist David Salle questioned his contemporary Dana Schutz. This is a very interesting feature as it offers a glimpse into the way two different artists think about their own and each others work. It also offers insight into the difference between the two times they have made work in and their differing influences. Unlike Flash Art this has a much heavier focus on art practices such as painting and drawing.
Art Review - April 2017
Art Review is an international art publication which seems to, in this issue’s features, focus on western art in North America and Europe. The magazine has a strong focus on gallery shows in particular. It also makes comments on the politics of art, including a reference to the controversy surrounding Dana Schutz’s painting Open Casket at the Whitney Biennial. This article is takes quite an interesting look at how an artist’s work and it’s effect is effected their identity.
As it’s name suggests, Art Review spends a lot of time looking at current exhibitions through the form of reviews. These reviews are generally quite short and are all together towards the back of the magazine. They mostly cover no more than a page and are accompanied by just one image. The shows reviewed in this issue include Wolfgang Tillmans at Tate Modern; Sean Snyder at Galerie Neu, Berlin and various exhibitions across Europe and the USA.
