Welcome to The Interview Online Blog

Forget gold, silver and think Bronze - the title of the new exhibition at London's Royal Academy of Arts…a landmark show that celebrates the remarkable historical, geographical and stylistic range of this enduring medium. See outstanding works from the earliest times to the present day, spanning 5000 years. It features over 150 of the finest bronzes from Asia, Africa and Europe - many of which have never been seen in the U.K.

Molly Price-Owen is enthralled by it.

You should be prepared to almost faint

at some of the exhibits from 14^th century BCE to the present day. Different sections focus on the Human Figure, Animals, Groups, Objects, Reliefs, Gods, and so on. It's arranged thematically so there's often a dialogue between antiquity and modern works: for instance, an Etruscan votive figure, (2^nd C. BCE) beautiful in its simplicity, seems to have a conversation with Giacometti's 'The Cage' (1950). Other such juxtapositions take place throughout the rooms which make you gasp with wonder and delight.

Huge statues tower above you also, breath-taking in their craftsmanship: the detail on the folds of their robes, their faces, the curls of their hair and beards, which almost seem to blow softly - this is where a viewer sighed with amazement and nearly swooned. For these 3 men are Rustici's monumental ensemble of St John the Baptist preaching to a Levite and a Pharisee (1506-11) that for nearly 500 years was set above the north door of the Florence Baptistry. This is only one of the examples of Renaissance works.

19^th Century to today include exhibits by Rodin, Matisse, Brancusi (whose deft brilliance stops you in your tracks) Picasso, Bourgeois, Moore, Hepworth and many more.

But among the earliest pieces is the 14^th C BCE bronze and gold 'Chariot of the Sun' found in Denmark - a horse and chariot with a big ornate disc, representing the sun, behind it.

Other ancient arts comprise Chinese ritual vessels, Tibetan arts, Indian bronzes, African heads and animals - and the masterpiece of Etruscan art, the 'Chimera of Arezzo' (c. BCE).

Many of these arts are so old you can hardly credit they still exist - yet here they are for us to see and believe and know they enrich our lives. Forget Gold Go Bronze.

by Molly Price-Owen

If you're longing for a cornucopia of pictures adorning the walls and sculptures on the tables and floors then the Royal Academy is the place to be. When artworks higgledy piggledy jostle for position, then beat a path to the Royal Academy of Arts.

The Summer Exhibition, now in its 244^th year, continues the tradition of showcasing work by both emerging and established artists in all media including painting, sculpture, photography, printmaking, architecture and film. Over 11,000 entries were received this year, with more than 1,400 being accepted and now displayed.

It's the world's largest open submission contemporary art show, with submissions from all over the planet.

You either absorb it with relish and delight, or view it with doubt and derision. The array is, frankly, breath-taking.

Chris Wilkinson, RA, (Royal Academician) has designed an engaging structure for the courtyard: "From landscape to Portrait" twists a series of eleven wooden frames through ninety degrees which incorporates innovative seating for visitors.

Inside, this year firstly pays homage to Matisse's "The Red Studio". The chief concern of this gallery is colour, so it's filled with works full of vibrancy and bright brilliant hues to delight the eye. To see pictures by Philip Sutton, Frank Bowling, Bernard Dunstan and the late John Hoyland is uplifting.

Gallery III, the grandest space usually given over to large canvases, this year houses a quantity of smaller paintings, all jockeying for position and your attention. One of the problems, though, is it's so packed with works (over 550) you can't give each of them your full attention. The art to which I was particularly drawn was mostly by RA established members - Maurice Cockrill, Anthony Whishaw, Bernard Dunstan, for example. But there's stuff here like  lines of pegs painted different colours, or nails on a board their heads painted in various colours and many others which give rise to such bafflement one wonders why they were selected for the hang.   That said, other works like "IBM Thinkpad", "Songbirds", "News" and "Shades of Sunset" are worth a second look.

Two rooms are given over to sculpture: the first one shows a dialogue between photographs of buildings and balsawood models - a nourishing view. The second room has a frustrating display of small pieces which demonstrate little merit or originality… a hotch-potch of material… there I met a well-known critic, who's renowned for his candour and has no hesitation in not mincing his words: The show? "Contemptible" he said "I find it all contemptible… this (gallery) is like a jumble show at a village fete". Or a white elephant stall in a bazaar.

So take your pick when you go there, enjoy the work of today's artists; you might pick up a work by an emerging talent, - the majority are for sale - and in years to come perhaps you'll own one of the most sought-after pieces by one of the most revered artists of the future.

The Summer exhibition continues at the Royal Academy in London until 12^th August. Click here for more information

ROYAL ACADEMY OF ARTS EXHIBITON PROGRAMME 2012

By Molly Price-Owen

It's going to be a busy year in 2012. Apart from the Olympics, we have the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and Charles Dickens is 200 years old. And the Royal Academy of Arts is looking forward to a cracking year with exciting new exhibitions on the horizon.

January, the Academy will present the first major exhibition in the U.K. to showcase David Hockney's landscape work; vivid paintings inspired by Yorkshire landscape, many large in scale and created specifically for the exhibition will be shown alongside related drawings, films and ipad drawings. Through a selection of around 200 works spanning fifty years  this display will be placed in the context of Hockney's extended exploration of and fascination with landscape.

In March the Academy will constitute a radical re-evaluation of the life and work of Johan Zoffany… not perhaps the best known of artists in the U.K., although, being born in Frankfurt (1733) he moved to London and adapted to the indigenous art and culture.

The exhibition will feature oil paintings and a selection of drawings, a number of which have been rarely or never exhibited before.

The famous annual Summer exhibition takes place in June - the world's  largest open art show.  It showcases work by both emerging and established artists in all media.

In July, Collectors Sterling and Francine Clark will loan 72 works : 'A TASTE FOR IMPRESSIONISM' . This comprises 72 exhibits, including 35 Renoirs, masterpieces by Manet, Monet, Pisarro, Degas among others.

'BRONZE'

comes in September: 150  global pieces from antiquity to modern day will be shown in a thematic arrangement. It will be totally cross culture ranging from

Asia, Africa and Europe: the medieval period offers rare survivals and the Renaissance too, in works of Donatello, Cellini among others.

Works by Rodin, Picasso, Giacometti, Moore will also be on display.

No such cross-cultural exhibition on this scale has ever been attempted.