The Easel

17th June 2025

Steamy scenes in urban underworlds were Edward Burra’s great subject—now they’re coming to Tate Britain

Blessed with family wealth but cursed with ill-health Burra was an eccentric. When he started painting in the 1920’s, abstract work in oils was all the rage. He was the odd man out, preferring watercolours and painteing the “louche underbelly of city life”. They are satirical, resonating somewhat with George Grosz’s works about Weimar Germany. Says one writer, “one of the most overlooked artists of the 20th century”.

10th June 2025

Cartier: Jeweler of Kings, King of Jewelers

In the pecking order of the decorative arts, the look-at-me jewellery of Cartier is hard to beat. A London show of its pieces, drawn from aristocratic collections and Cartier’s archives, is “astonishing”. It profiles many aesthetic trends and tells cultural stories such as the Indian maharajahs bringing their ancestral jewellery to Cartier for re-setting. Yet it’s hard to resist the view that although exquisite, this is bling, made irresistible by the marriage of celebrity and great wealth.  Images are here.