18th October 2010, a study visit to Sheffield Art Galleries

Millennium Gallery, Museum Sheffield

Restless Times: Art in Britain 1914 - 1945

Unfortunately, the museum didn't allow any pictures to be taken so we couldn't acquire any of the featured art works in the gallery, but names were taken down and we researched two of the personal favourites of artists out of the the gallery.

(no photo)

Artist: Roland Penrose

Art Piece: Elephant Bird Collage

One of the pieces that caught my eye was the 'Elephant Bird Collage' as the techniques used in the design was rather modern and different compared to the rest of the pieces in the gallery. He displayed it as a photo montage using what seemed like traditional techniques to create the picture. The colours used were bright and the surrealism gave the art a unique look compared to the majority of the pieces on show.

Artist: Jankel Adler

Art Piece: The Mutilated

This oil painting on canvas captivated me because it's simple but very effective. The kind of textures of the painting used indicates a much more deep / three dimensional definition of the piece. To my opinion, this piece demonstrates that the figure on the left seems like the person is getting rejected and is at more of an elderly age contrasting to the younger figure on the right whom seems more agile. It in someways, shows the selfishness of the times of people in need during the Second World War. The picture's theme of colours show the type of direct meaning of the reality in those year and how things became much more confused and separated from each other being affected and influenced by the devastation of what the outcame became.

The Sheffield Institue of Arts Gallery

Abram Games: Maximum Meaning Minimum Means

Abram Games was one of the most celebrated graphic designers in the 20th century. His work consists of the history of Britain, company logos, posters, stamps, and products. The exhibition brings together all his original art and shows them as an archive.

Abram Games' work is appealing to me because of the simple graphic style he uses to display his hidden agenda behind the art. The pieces bring positive emotions to what the art is really about. The colours he uses stands out and catches the eye from afar, furthermore his art he uses symbolic yet simplistic shapes to show familiar forms in a cartoon style. This gallery appealed more to me because the art was more visually interesting in many ways and the mood of the gallery was more  made up on own opinions rather than ligthing and music in the background to create a specific atmosphere like in the first gallery we visited.