Justine Smith - Money Map of the World 2013

Justine Smith | Money Map of the World 2013 | Inkjet with pearlised screen printing on 330gsm Somerset enhanced paper | Edition of 90 | Signed and editioned by the artist | 150 x 92 cm

Justine Smith has become renowned for the unique artworks she creates using the medium of banknotes. In her hands currency is transformed into colourful and provocative images that question our relationship with money, and explore the power and ideas it can represent. 

Her latest work, Money Map of the World 2013, is the most recent in a series of Money Maps that began nine years ago, with Money Map of the World 2004/5.

This limited edition print was developed from a collage which took the artist 10 months to complete. It was constructed using the current issue bank notes for every official currency in the world, right down to the smallest island state.

Justine has described how using banknotes in her artistic practice feels like ‘working with an elemental force.’ In Money Map of the World 2013 this force has been captured to create a politically charged, and yet strikingly beautiful image of the world we live in today.

RYCA | REFRESH | Robert Fontaine Gallery

East London artist RYCA has described his artistic life as encompassing something of a “schizophrenic divide.” Under his real name of Ryan Callanan, he is renowned for taking classic iconography such as acid smileys and giving them a new context using the skills he developed whilst working as a 3D sign maker. A selection of these were recently displayed by TAG Fine Arts at AAF Battersea. 

The other side of the artist’s output is the work he produces under his alias RYCA, which is currently being shown in a solo exhibition, REFRESH, at the Robert Fontaine Gallery, Miami.

The title of the exhibition has a double meaning. It firstly refers to the way the artist brings together imagery, as he adopts classic pop art images and ‘refreshes’ them with popular culture references. He does this using a street art ‘formula’ he developed under the influence of artists including Shephard Fairey and Banksy.

REFRESH also denotes the F5 button on a computer keyboard, which is used to 'refresh' the screen, something that RYCA has explained comes in handy when bidding on ebay for Star Wars memorabilia (he has described the film series as being a potentially “valid religion.”) 

Together the new works in the show have been described as a series of ‘visual jokes,’ where art historical reference points and popular culture collide, taking the viewer on a journey into RYCA's nostalgic world.

Rob Ryan There Is Only Time | Extended Opening

We have been delighted by the positive feedback received from visitors to Rob Ryan's solo show 'There Is Only Time.'
  
We are therefore pleased to announce that the exhibition has been extended by an extra week, and will now close on Friday 15th November.

For those of you who haven't visited yet, here are a selection of installation shots to give you an idea of what to expect from this beautiful show.

Rob Ryan Book Signing

Rob Ryan | The Invisible Kingdom Book Signing | Sims Reed Gallery

This Saturday, 26th October, Rob Ryan will be signing copies of his new book 'The Invisible Kingdom' between 1-2pm at Sims Reed Gallery.

'The Invisible Kingdom' is the first book in a new trilogy by the artist, and is his first publication since 2011's acclaimed 'A Sky Full of Kindness.' Its publication coincides with the opening of the exhibition 'There Is Only Time' at Sims Reed Gallery, which is held in collaboration with TAG Fine Arts.

Moniker Art Fair: Stanley Donwood Launch

Moniker Art Fair
The Old Truman Brewery, 
91 Brick Lane, London, E1 6QL
18 - 20 October 2013

We are excited to be showcasing the UK launch of Stanley Donwood's series 'Lost Angeles' at the Monikor Art Fair, which opens this week in the The Old Truman Brewery, East London.

This previously unseen series of prints will be displayed alongside work by artists Jamie Lau, Seb Lester, Justine Smith, David Spiller, Stephen Walter, Cai Yuan and Katsutoshi Yuasa.

Katsutoshi Yuasa Residency Video

A documentary about Katsutoshi Yuasa's residency in the printmaking workshop at Kloster Bentlage, Germany throughout July and August 2013.
We will be showing a selection of his work at Moniker Art Fair next month.

The House of Fairy Tales Kickstarter Campaign

The House of Fairy Tales is raising money for some fantastic new projects.
Please support them by making a pledge on their Kickstarter page!


Check out the beautiful House of Fairy Tales Cartographic Portfolio.

Stephen Walter's Hagioscope Frame in action!

The hagioscope frame covering Stephen Walter's original drawing of 'Nova Utopia' (2013) was created by James Shearer for the artist's solo exhibition 'Anthropocene' (3 - 28 July 2013). Here it is in action...

Stephen Walter: Final Weekend

After the brilliant reception we have had for our Stephen Walter show, we would like to share some of the reviewers' thoughts with you.

"This is art of the highest order, for it not only looks terrific on the wall, but it also engages the intellect and sparks curiosity. Indeed, it made us want to take part — to excavate that old sketchpad, and start mapping out our own landscapes. A must-see exhibition."

Matt Brown, Londonist

Rachel Guthrie elaborates on the unique use of a hagioscope for Walter’s Nova Utopia, “which hones in on an area of this elaborately conceived new world and magnifies it.”

Rachel Guthrie, Art of England

“Seamlessly interspersing famous landmarks with secret trivia, Walter’s work overwhelms the senses with a wash of visual and textual information.”

Kathryn Murray-Bruce, Square Mile

Stephen Walter: Anthropocene

Londonewcastle Project Space, 28 Redchurch Street, London E2 7DP
3 - 28 July 2013 | Read the full press release

Stephen Walter's fantastic solo exhibition, 'Anthropocene', is open until 28 July. We're delighted at the response the exhibition has received so far: thank you to everyone who has visited. For those who haven't yet, or can't, here are a few installation shots to give you an idea of the scope of the show.



View more images on our Facebook page.

The Visitors' Guide to Nova Utopia

Nova Utopia is place of dreams! A large leisure island state about 200 miles across, defined by its isolation, its beauty and the immense diversity of its landscapes and resources. As a destination, Nova Utopia sits somewhere between the wonderful, the beautiful, the entertaining, the rich, the sublime and the ridiculous. Despite recent environmental and social concerns, there’s a wonderful array of places to visit, and a tour of the island provides a fascinating insight into this unique and ever-changing country.
[The Visitors' Guide To Nova Utopia]

Stephen Walter's extraordinary map of Nova Utopia revisits Thomas More’s famous fictional island state of Utopia a century after a capitalist revolution has transformed its very essence. Renowned worldwide as a luxury leisure destination, its different regions cater to a wide range of visitors, but risk becoming isolated from each other. The Visitors' Guide to Nova Utopia accompanies the piece and is the best way of getting to know the island...

Stephen Walter: Anthropocene 
3 - 28 July 2013
Londonewcastle Project Space, 28 Redchurch Street, London E2 7DP

Adam Bridgland | TREASURE

The Gallery, Idea Store Whitechapel
321 Whitechapel Rd, London E1 1BU
28 June – 28 July 2013

Adam Bridgland will present an ambitious new project at the Idea Store, Whitechapel, next month. The artist has created two large monochrome murals inspired by twentieth-century postcards of London, which visitors are invited to 'colour in' over the course of two July workshops. The exhibition is curated by Matthew Reeves.

A beautifully bound portfolio of ten A2 screenprints, from which the designs of the two wall paintings are taken, will be available to purchase in a limited edition of forty sets plus five artist’s proofs.

www.tagfinearts.com/adam-bridgland.html

Sail Away: Susan Stockwell at the Tate Modern

Saturday 27 April 2013, 12.00 – 21.00 | Sunday 28 April 2013, 12.00 – 17.00

Susan Stockwell is creating a large-scale, collaborative installation of paper boats in the Turbine Hall this weekend, as part of Tate Modern's Hyperlink Festival. Visitors can create their own boat from tickets, maps and money, and add them to the flotilla. It will be a fantastic event, not to be missed! For more information see the Tate Modern website or contact us.

It's All For You...

Claire Brewster has produced a beautiful new hand cut edition for TAG Fine Arts. 'It's all for you' depicts two birds over London, with the Thames curving east on the bottom of the printed map.

Claire Brewster | It's All For You | 2013 | Hand cut printed map | Edition of 20
London Original Print Fair | 25 - 28 April | Royal Academy of Arts, Piccadilly

The AAF Hong Kong

15 – 17 March | TAG Fine Arts, Stand C06, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, 1 Harbour Road, Hong Kong | Website

Justine Smith | Boom | 2012 | Edition of 90

 
This year, the Affordable Art Fair makes its first trip to Hong Kong. We will be there with a wonderful selection of work, including new pieces by Justine Smith and David Spiller.

India Art Fair

 
The Trophy | Wayne Warren and Jayne Dyer will represent TAG Fine Arts at the India Art Fair with a special collaborative installation 'The Trophy.' The display will highlight mankind's obsession with power. Trophies are coveted items, visual symbols of sporting, military, financial or social success; but in an age of increasing uncertainty about the future, people are beginning to question whether the prizes society has been chasing might ultimately cost far more than once imagined.

India Art Fair | D5, NSIC Exhibition Grounds, Okhla, New Delhi | 1 - 3 February 2013 | Contact us for more information

Left image: Jayne Dyer | The Butterfly Effect (detail) | 2012
Right image: Wayne Warren | Sacrifice | 2012

David Spiller and the London Art Fair

We will be exhibiting three new limited editions by David Spiller at the London Art Fair, which opens this week at the Business Design Centre, Islington.

'Love is the Light' (featuring Goofy), 'If Not For You' (Pinocchio) and 'Let It Be' are the latest in a series of works that bring together cartoon characters and favourite song lyrics, in compositions characterised by their exuberant use of bright colours and expressive lines.

Love is the Light (Goofy) | 2012 | Signed silkscreen, edition of 75

If Not For You (Pinocchio) | 2012 | Signed silkscreen, edition of 75

Let It Be | 2012 | Signed silkscreen, edition of 75

London Art Fair | 16 - 20 January 2013 | Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, London N1 0QH | www.londonartfair.co.uk

150 Years of London Underground

Today is the 150th anniversary of the London Underground! To celebrate, we will be exhibiting Simon Patterson's 'Saptarishi' at the London Art Fair next week.

Commissioned by the London Transport Museum last year, the print is a contemporary update of 'The Great Bear,' his iconic tube map from 1992. The artist has substituted the standard station names with his own, to create new lines of association: the Bakerloo Line is filled with spies; the Victoria Line with Victorians; and the Hammersmith and City Line is devoted entirely to the Murdochs in a nod to his 'Journalists' line from his earlier piece.

Also on display will be Susan Stockwell's 'Underground Map' - a hand-embroidered, limited edition handkerchief depicting the London tube lines. All have been coloured red, drawing a parallel between the city's transport system and an arterial network.

Simon Patterson | Saptarishi | 2012 | Screenprint on enamel | 102 x 127 cm | Signed, dated and editioned on reverse | Special limited edition of 15 | Commissioned by the London Transport Museum

Susan Stockwell | S Stockwell Underground Map | 2012 | Hand-embroidered handkerchief | 40 x 40 cm | Commissioned by the London Transport Museum | Signed certificate of authenticity