Tate Modern October 2022 - March 2023
Visited...
October 6th
October 13th
October 20th
October 27th
November 3rd
November 15th
November 21st
December 28th
January 10th
January 19th
Courtauld Galleries January 26th
February 2nd
February 16th
February 22nd
National Gallery March 1st
March 7th
Further details to be added... in summary!
Madame Cézanne à la jupe rayée c 1877.
October 6th 2022
Cézanne at Tate Modern... First visit today and it was very busy. I will go back again!
Nature morte aux aubergines 1893–94
October 13th 2022
Back at Tate Modern to re-visit the Cézanne exhibition. I found that the 'quarry' painting is much more intense in the original than in any of the reproductions that I have seen.
October 20th 2022
Tate Modern Cézanne exhibition was momentarily not busy soon after opening time, 10:00am this morning. I snapped a detail of 'La Montagne Sainte-Victoire vue de Bibémus' and a couple of installation shots which show the grey walls...
Back at Tate Modern to re-visit the Cézanne exhibition. I found that the 'quarry' painting is much more intense in the original than in any of the reproductions that I have seen.
October 20th 2022
Tate Modern Cézanne exhibition was momentarily not busy soon after opening time, 10:00am this morning. I snapped a detail of 'La Montagne Sainte-Victoire vue de Bibémus' and a couple of installation shots which show the grey walls...
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire vue de Bibémus c.1897
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire vue de Bibémus c.1897
October 27th 2022
Back to Tate Modern again today to re-visit the Cézanne exhibition... Arrived just before 10:00am so had to wait in quite a long line for a few minutes. Once again the exhibit filled quickly in the initial rooms but there was plenty of space further into the exhibition. I was intent on looking again at some of the paintings rather than looking at everything. I particularly like one of the late Mont Sainte-Victoire paintings but until today I really hadn't noticed the frames...
Back to Tate Modern again today to re-visit the Cézanne exhibition... Arrived just before 10:00am so had to wait in quite a long line for a few minutes. Once again the exhibit filled quickly in the initial rooms but there was plenty of space further into the exhibition. I was intent on looking again at some of the paintings rather than looking at everything. I particularly like one of the late Mont Sainte-Victoire paintings but until today I really hadn't noticed the frames...
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire vue des Lauves 1904–06
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire vue des Lauves 1902–06
November 3rd 2022
Back to Tate Modern again this morning as the rain conveniently meant that I was not on the bicycle for the 'daily' circuit. Quite uplifting really to recognise Cézanne's shear enjoyment of the medium in the later paintings after earlier 'struggles'... Curious to see the little landscape (Les Marronniers et le bassin du Jas de Bouffan) from the Tate collection that was a pointer to me way back in the 1970's. Much less impact in the presence of the later paintings... I arrived at opening time today, 10:00am, took the lift not the escalators, so was almost first into the exhibition!
Back to Tate Modern again this morning as the rain conveniently meant that I was not on the bicycle for the 'daily' circuit. Quite uplifting really to recognise Cézanne's shear enjoyment of the medium in the later paintings after earlier 'struggles'... Curious to see the little landscape (Les Marronniers et le bassin du Jas de Bouffan) from the Tate collection that was a pointer to me way back in the 1970's. Much less impact in the presence of the later paintings... I arrived at opening time today, 10:00am, took the lift not the escalators, so was almost first into the exhibition!
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire 1904–06
Nature morte au vase pique-fleurs c.1905
The top light flares the upper part of this painting against the very dark wall as re-confirmed on my visit on 15th November.
November 15th 2022
Back again this morning as once again the rain meant that I was not on the bicycle for the 'daily' circuit. Captured the portrait painting at the beginning of the exhibition and also the little landscape (Les Marronniers et le bassin du Jas de Bouffan) from the Tate collection. I arrived just after opening time today, 10:05am, took the lift again and found that the exhibition was a bit quieter than it had been previously.
Back again this morning as once again the rain meant that I was not on the bicycle for the 'daily' circuit. Captured the portrait painting at the beginning of the exhibition and also the little landscape (Les Marronniers et le bassin du Jas de Bouffan) from the Tate collection. I arrived just after opening time today, 10:05am, took the lift again and found that the exhibition was a bit quieter than it had been previously.
Portrait de l'artiste au fond rose c.1875
Les Marronniers et le bassin du Jas de Bouffan 1868-70 (possibly later)
Rideau, cruchon et compotier 1893-94
I am really curious about the framing issue. This painting really 'sings' but when the over active carved and gilded frame is in the field of vision the painting's values are suppressed.
November 21st 2022
Back again this morning but today's visit was short because a problem with power supply had left all but one of the exhibition galleries illuminated with florescent lights in addition to the 'normal' lighting.
Back again this morning but today's visit was short because a problem with power supply had left all but one of the exhibition galleries illuminated with florescent lights in addition to the 'normal' lighting.
A quick check with a spectroscope showed an uneven spectrum with a couple of very high level inconsistencies, a blue and a yellow green compared to a view in the gallery without the florescents. An invigilator said that it should be fixed soon!
December 28th 2022
Finally got back today, a whole month after the disappointing visit immediately after a power failure incident.
Looking close-up today and wondering about the Josef Albers link that I would like to 'propose'.
The colour values illustrated in the close-up images demonstrate the presence of the supporting surface and the relative transparency and opacity of the paint application.
Reading 'A Critical Account of Some of Josef Albers' Concepts of Colour' by Alan Lee in Leonardo, Vol.14,No.2, pp.99-105, 1981...
The RGB elements that make up the coloured elements on this computer screen are single discrete elements so one has to wonder how the criticism of Albers' attempt to articulate his understanding has any merit?
Seems to me that getting a handle on the perceptual processes is a good way to begin to understand what makes for resonance and engagement in a 'work of art'...
The shadow of the iPhone engages with the values in the close-up image.
January 10th 2023
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire vue des Lauves 1902-06
Still drawn to this painting but wondering if the one green value is too dominant. The foreground darker passages are interesting!
I am reminded again that one room of paintings in the Bonnard exhibition at Tate Modern a few years ago were shown without frames. The paintings positively shimmered by comparison to those where the 'painterly' edges were hidden under the framing edge.
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire vue des Lauves 1902-06
Still drawn to this painting but wondering if the one green value is too dominant. The foreground darker passages are interesting!
I am reminded again that one room of paintings in the Bonnard exhibition at Tate Modern a few years ago were shown without frames. The paintings positively shimmered by comparison to those where the 'painterly' edges were hidden under the framing edge.
Montagne Sainte-Victoire c1890
The slightly earlier painting has delicately articulated transitions through various green values that can be appreciated best without the distractive 'noise' of the frame.
The stark shadows across this and most other paintings in the exhibition mean that we are simply not seeing the whole painting. A curious situation really!
January 19th 2023
A detail from 'Nature morte au vase pique-fleurs c.1905' shows the flaring on the impasto quite low in the composition.
The 'camera' (iPhone) software has misrepresented the colours to a significant degree. A comprehensive colour chart in the field of view of the camera is the only way to resolve this, at least in part. The colour gamut of the digital capture is much better than the gamut of film transparency as I had to demonstrate once with a total failure to represent an Albers painting.
On that occasion the solution offered was to colour the transparency using diluted inks!
A detail from 'Nature morte au vase pique-fleurs c.1905' shows the flaring on the impasto quite low in the composition.
The 'camera' (iPhone) software has misrepresented the colours to a significant degree. A comprehensive colour chart in the field of view of the camera is the only way to resolve this, at least in part. The colour gamut of the digital capture is much better than the gamut of film transparency as I had to demonstrate once with a total failure to represent an Albers painting.
On that occasion the solution offered was to colour the transparency using diluted inks!
The exhibition ends early in March so I will probably visit a couple more times. The overall survey of the Artist's work is undoubtedly comprehensive but my real interest is in a fairly small percentage of the works.
The presentational issues are an irritation and I will have to seek out the 'missing' painting from the Courtauld Institute collection!
The tide was high at c11:00am as I was leaving.
Framed building by Sir Christopher Wren
January 26th 2023, A visit to The Courtauld Institute Galleries
The painting that was shown in Chicago was my initial point of interest but the other paintings in the collection would all be worthy of a place in the current Tate Modern exhibition.
The painting that was shown in Chicago was my initial point of interest but the other paintings in the collection would all be worthy of a place in the current Tate Modern exhibition.
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire au grand pin, c.1887
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire au grand pin, c.1887
Without frame but with shadow.
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire au grand pin, c.1887
Detail.
The Courtauld Institute Galleries, continued...
The lighting is less harsh so the shadows at the tops of the paintings are not totally obscuring the painting.
The low reflection glass does reflect the gallery lights.
The lighting is less harsh so the shadows at the tops of the paintings are not totally obscuring the painting.
The low reflection glass does reflect the gallery lights.
Le Lac d'Annecy, 1896
Le Lac d'Annecy, 1896
Without frame but with shadow.
Le Lac d'Annecy, 1896
Detail.
The Courtauld Institute Galleries, continued...
Les grands arbres au Jas de Bouffan, 1885–8
Les grands arbres au Jas de Bouffan, 1885–8
Without frame but with shadow.
The image on the Les grands arbres au Jas de Bouffan, 1885–87 on the online catalogue raisonné is oversaturated, colourwise.
I have adjusted it partially here for comparison.
The Courtauld Institute Galleries, continued...
It is a stunning collection of Cézanne paintings to have on view in London!
It is a stunning collection of Cézanne paintings to have on view in London!
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire au grand pin, c.1887
Le Lac d'Annecy, 1896
La Route tournante (Mennecy), c.1904
L'Homme à la pipe, 1891–96
Les Joueurs de cartes, 1891–96
La Montagne Sainte-Victoire au grand pin, c.1887
Le Lac d'Annecy, 1896
Pot de primevères et fruits, 1888–90
Les grands arbres au Jas de Bouffan, 1885–8
L'Homme à la pipe, 1891–96
Les Joueurs de cartes, 1891–96
February 2nd 2023... Back at Tate Modern
I did look at some of the less immediately interesting paintings in this comprehensive exhibition of the Artist's works today. I sense the struggle occasionally with a monochromatic palette and somewhat heavy handed application of the paint. Also, the slight lack of discipline when using invented figures as opposed to the studied landscape even if the latter is adjusted after the event.
I did look at some of the less immediately interesting paintings in this comprehensive exhibition of the Artist's works today. I sense the struggle occasionally with a monochromatic palette and somewhat heavy handed application of the paint. Also, the slight lack of discipline when using invented figures as opposed to the studied landscape even if the latter is adjusted after the event.
While still struggling with the interference of the framing I did take the opportunity to compare the digital image that I had captured to the original painting, Montagne Sainte-Victoire c1890
In this instance the colours were surprisingly close in chromatic value even if slightly over intense in the digital capture.
In this instance the colours were surprisingly close in chromatic value even if slightly over intense in the digital capture.
The digital capture of La Montagne Sainte-Victoire vue de Bibémus c.1897 was less successful and tended to oversaturation.
February 16th 2023... Back at Tate Modern, I arrived at the river side of the building as St. Pauls was stiking 10 o'clock.
It is half term so quite a crowd...
Inside the Cézanne exhibition there was plenty of space.
As I was leaving there was a long line at the entrance to the Cézanne exhibition.
March 1st 2023, Visiting National Gallery after a quick visit to Tate Modern...
The lighting in the Tate Britain Gallery is severely compromised, maybe 60% of the spectrum is missing.
National Gallery, Van Gogh paintings under partial daylight and compromised lighting.
Paul Cézanne
La Route en Provence 1890–92
Oil on canvas
25 5/8 x 31 7/8 in. (65 x 81 cm)
La Route en Provence, context at National Gallery, image showing daylight illumination!
Tate Modern, for a final visit 7th March 2023.
I was concerned that it would be very busy so was intent on arriving at 10:00am. Despite issues with local traffic in Hackney I arrived on the riverside at Tate Modern just as St. Pauls was striking 10:00am!
I was concerned that it would be very busy so was intent on arriving at 10:00am. Despite issues with local traffic in Hackney I arrived on the riverside at Tate Modern just as St. Pauls was striking 10:00am!
There was a bit of congestion in the first galleries, as ever, but the subsequent spaces were largely empty even by the time I left.
I am very happy to have made the time to get to this exhibition as a matter of routine. I will give some thought to a summary of my visits but it was very good to find that London has some of the very best Cézanne paintings on show at the Courtauld Institute Galleries.
Notes on Cézanne... The later works utilise brush strokes where the boundary of the mark is clearly articulated by means of the hue and tone of the paint and sometimes the physical presence of the paint. At the other end of this construct there are passages where the edges of different hues and tonalities are effectively lost to view. The careful adjustment of hue and tonality generates the effect of transparency and lightness of touch over the surface of the canvas, the grain of which may remain completely in view.
Some of the paintings are quieter, timid almost by comparison to the more strident/dramatic renditions...
Josef Albers also explored the hue and tonality of adjacent colours and sometimes had to resort to a pencilled line to define a boundary… also over a visible ground of the primed hardboard.
Colourful is not the depiction of seven designated colours of a 'rainbow'. Colourful is utilising a full gamut of colours using the available technology which may depict millions of different colour values. Naming them is, of course, not realistic! (The hexadecimal, RGB or other scale notations do however work very well!)
At close quarters a physical surface reflects light of a specific wavelength. An adjacent surface will have a different but equally specific wavelength. If a surface has a specific gradation it could be represented by a series of steps and if these steps meet certain characteristics the surface may appear to have an element of transparency… This could be a tonal gradation or a chromatic one or a combination of both. The perception may also be from dry to wet or matt to shiny! These values may be perceptually enhanced if a physical surface provides a point of reference or focus… At the same time, the perceived values may be influenced by those adjacent. The effect of optical fatigue in the presence of saturated values may have an impact as might the enhancement of adjacent values.
As an aside, a representation of a watercolour by photographic or digital means will not lose the 'sense' or experience of transparency but is obviously not reliant on the physical layering process...
Site Updated May 2026 Felix Mottram