Studio Voltaire

Join us this Saturday for the third in our ongoing series of talks and tours responding to our current exhibition, ‘Beryl Cook / Tom of Finland’.⁠ ⁠ On 6 July, 3–3.30 pm, writer and editor Luke Turner will explore the art of Tom of Finland and Beryl Cook through the bisexual gaze that roves and wanders one step removed from hetero conventionality and queer liberation. ⁠ ⁠ Turner co-founded the influential music website The Quietus and has contributed to the Guardian, Observer, Sunday Times, The Telegraph, Dazed & Confused, Vice, NME, Q, Mojo, Monocle, Nowness, Somesuch Stories and the BBC among others. His first book, ‘Out of the Woods’, was shortlisted for the Wainwright Prize.⁠ His second, Men At War, explores sexuality, masculinity and our cultural memory of the Second World War.⁠ ⁠ Saturday 6 July 2024 2024, 3–3.30 pm. Booking essential, suggested donation £5.⁠ Learn more and book via the link in our bio. Image courtesy of @tomoffinlandfoundation .⁠ ⁠ #LukeTurner #BerylCook #TomOfFinland #StudioVoltaire ⁠@luke_a_turner

Beryl Cook (b. 1926–d. 2008) was notoriously private, offering few interviews and never attending her private views. However, the artist’s fans mattered highly to her. ⁠ ⁠ Her archive, some of which is displayed as part of the current exhibition, holds a vast quantity of fan mail, including this indignant letter from Winifred Griffiths, Secretary of the Devon County Ladies' Bowling Association, responding the Cook's artwork 'Sabotage', c. 1980, shown on slide 2.⁠ ⁠ The letter reads:⁠ ⁠ 'Madam,⁠ ⁠ On behalf of some 30,000 Ladies who play bowls, we think that your cartoons appertaining to the Ladies who bowl on the famous Plymouth Hoe green, most offensive.⁠ ⁠ May I point out to you, that white shoes are not allowed to be worn on the green. Sir Francis Drake our Patron saint, who put Plymouth on the map would not have been proud of your work re our Ladies, and that is final.'⁠ ⁠ Beryl Cook/ Tom of Finland continues until Sunday 25 August 2024. Open Wednesday–Sunday, 10 am–5 pm. Suggested donation £5. Learn more and plan your visit via the link in our bio.⁠ ⁠ The exhibition is made in partnership with @beryl_cook_official and @tomoffinlandfoundation . Headline Exhibition Supporters: @davidkordanskygallery and The Studio Voltaire Council. Exhibition Supporters: Graham Steele and Ulysses de Santi, with additional support from The Beryl Cook / Tom of Finland Exhibition Circle, @paulmelloncentr , @artfund / Jonathan Ruffer Curatorial Grant and Hallett Independent.⁠ Photography by @tomcarterldn . ⁠ ⁠ #BerylCook #TomOfFinland #StudioVoltaire

'Roland Young' is a new exhibition of drawings and works on paper celebrating the artistic practice of the artist. This is the first-ever institutional exhibition of his work. ⁠ ⁠ Young (b. 1953–d. 2023) was known for creating minimal compositions of intricate figurative drawings, depicted through delicately repeated abstract forms.⁠ ⁠ The exhibition runs until Sunday 25 August 2024. Visit Wednesday–Sunday, 10 am–5 pm. Learn more and plan your visit via the link in our bio.⁠ ⁠ ⁠ Presented in partnership with @ActionSpace . Supported by the Liesma Young Will Trust. Photography by @tomcarterldn .⁠ ⁠ #RolandYoung #ActionSpace #StudioVoltaire

We are delighted to share that our current 'Beryl Cook / Tom of Finland' exhibition has received a record number of visitors to our gallery – our most visited exhibition in our 30-year history.⁠ ⁠ This major exhibition, which brings together the work of these two cultural icons for the very first time, explores the fleshly excesses of British artist Beryl Cook (b. 1926–d. 2008) and master draughtsman Tom of Finland (b. 1920–d. 1991).⁠ ⁠ In pairing their work, including archival materials which have never been seen, this two-person presentation provides a significant refocus and reveal interconnected ideas surrounding gender, sexuality, taste and class.⁠ ⁠ Don't miss out – the exhibition continues until Sunday 25 August 2024. Visit the link in our bio to learn more, and plan your visit.⁠ ⁠ The exhibition is made in partnership with @beryl_cook_official and @tomoffinlandfoundation . Headline Exhibition Supporters: @davidkordanskygallery and The Studio Voltaire Council. Exhibition Supporters: Graham Steele and Ulysses de Santi, with additional support from The Beryl Cook / Tom of Finland Exhibition Circle, @paulmelloncentr , @artfund / Jonathan Ruffer Curatorial Grant and Hallett Independent.⁠ ⁠ ⁠ #BerylCook #TomOfFinland #StudioVoltaire

Visit Studio Voltaire in July. Coming up:⁠ ⁠ → Saturday 6 July 2024, 3–3.30 pm⁠ Writer and editor Luke Turner (@luke_a_turner ) leads a talk looking at the art of Tom of Finland and Beryl Cook through the bisexual gaze. ⁠Booking essential, suggested donation £5.⁠ ⁠ → Wednesday 10–Sunday 14 July 2024⁠ Calling all Beryl Cook and Tom of Finland fans, we’re partnering with K-Ink (@kinkpeckham ) to host a Flash Tattoo Parlour. Dexter Kay, Elle Romain and Vicens Johan have made exclusive flash designs in their own unique styles. Prices start from £120. Email tattoo@studiovoltaire.org to book an appointment.⁠ ⁠ → Saturday 20 July 2024, 3–3.30 pm⁠ Author Nathalie Olah (@nathalieolah ) explores the work of Beryl Cook in relation to the academic interests of pop-culture as a relatively new phenomenon, and the spread of American soft power through its entertainment machine. ⁠Booking essential, suggested donation £5.⁠ ⁠ Visit the link in our bio to learn more about these events.⁠ ⁠ #LukeTurner #InkedKinks #NathalieOlah #TomOfFinland #StudioVoltaire @beryl_cook_official @tomoffinlandfoundation @dexterkay @umbrelle @_vs.johan_ink @houseofvoltaire

TONIGHT 📣 Book now for a screening and in-conversation with artist-in-residence Marina Lisa Komiya.⁠ ⁠ From 7 pm this evening, Thursday 27 June, Komiya will host a screening of their 2023 film, 'Reproductive Garden', followed by a discussion with Curator (Studios & Residencies) Dot Zhihan Jia.⁠ ⁠ This event forms part of the public programme for Komiya’s ongoing research project Reproductive Garden, which interrogates the archetypes of English and Japanese gardens and how they can act as societal models through which different people can coexist.⁠ Supported in partnership with @japanhouseldn ⁠ ⁠ Doors open 6.30 pm. Booking essential, suggested donation £5. Visit our link in bio to learn more and to book.⁠ ⁠ #MarinaLisaKomiya #ReproductiveGarden #StudioVoltaire @monosugoiame @dotjia

Thank you to all who attended our opening preview yesterday afternoon⁠ ⭐️⁠ ⁠ ‘Roland Young’ is now open. Visit Wednesday–Sunday, 10 am–5 pm until Sunday 25 August 2024.⁠ ⁠ Plan your visit and learn more, via the link in our bio.⁠ ⁠ ⁠ Presented in partnership with @ActionSpace . Supported by the Liesma Young Will Trust. Photography by @tomcarterldn .⁠ ⁠ #RolandYoung #ActionSpace #StudioVoltaire

From the Studio Voltaire archives... Bod Mellor's 2007 exhibition 'Vile Affections'.⁠ ⁠ Specially conceived for the exhibition at Studio Voltaire, 'Vile Affections' included a series of portraits of various public figures which referenced religious martyrdom, contemporary news media, historical Western portrait painting and the narratives of Dante's 'Inferno' and Sartre's 'No Exit'.⁠ ⁠ In line with Mellor's wider practice, 'Vile Affections' presented culled photographic portraits from gossip magazines, film stills and the internet which are then misrepresented and violated.⁠ ⁠ Mellor stated that, '...The paintings of this fashioned minority group of camp icons are vulnerable to my own diarist situations… overloaded collusions of identity, bombardment of consumerist products and imagery, psychological trauma, political and financial impotency and so on as a catalogue of felt experiences of the isolation, frustration and anxiety of the urban condition.' ⁠ ⁠ Read more about this 2007 exhibition via the link in our bio. Learn about all previous Studio Voltaire exhibitions by visiting studiovoltaire.org/archive.⁠ ⁠ Bod Mellor (b. 1970, UK) is a British artist living and working in London, who has exhibited internationally since the 1990s.⁠ ⁠ #BodMellor #StudioVoltaire⁠ #VileAffections

Register now for 'Inked Kinks', a pop-up flash tattoo studio hosted by K-Ink, to coincide with Studio Voltaire’s current ‘Beryl Cook / Tom of Finland’ exhibition.⁠ ⁠ Tattoo artists Dexter Kay (@dexterkay ), Elle Romain (@umbrelle ) and Vincens Johan (@_vs.johan_ink ) have made exclusive flash designs for the pop-up, each responding to the work of Beryl and Tom in their own unique style. Kay and Romain have focused on Tom of Finland, whilst Johan brings her colourful style to the work of Beryl Cook.⁠ ⁠ ‘Inked Kinks’ will be open from Wednesday 10 till Sunday 14 July 2024, by appointment only. Tattoo placements will be limited to legs, arms and upper torso. Prices start from £120. ⁠ ⁠ To register your interest please email tattoo@studiovoltaire.org.⁠ Visit studiovoltaire.org/whats-on to learn more.⁠ ⁠ Image: Beryl Cook, Two on a Stool. Image courtesy @beryl_cook_offical . © John Cook 2024.⁠ ⁠ #FlashTattooSale #Tattoo #TomOfFinland #BerylCook #HouseOfVoltaire #StudioVoltaire @tomoffinlandfoundation

DEADLINE APPROACHING 📣 1 week to apply to our Argentinian Artist Residency⁠ ⁠ Apply now to take part in a new residency opportunity for an Argentinian artist who has connections to the UK. The residency will offer important opportunities for self-led artistic and professional development, exchange and experimentation by offering an artist the space, time and resources they need to research and realise ongoing projects or to produce new work.⁠ ⁠ The outcomes of the residency will be made visible through open studios and public programme events, to be determined by the artist and Studio Voltaire’s curatorial team.⁠ ⁠ Applications close 1 week today, at 23.59 pm on Sunday 30 June 2024. Find out more and apply via the link in our bio.⁠ ⁠ Supported by Erica Roberts. Special thanks to Camila Charask, Clara Galperin and Amalia Pica.⁠ ⁠ #OpenCall #ArtsOpportunities

Join us for a screening and in-conversation with Marina Lisa Komiya.⁠ ⁠ After hours on Thursday 27 June 2024, artist-in-residency Marina Lisa Komiya (@monosugoiame ) will host a screening of their 2023 film, 'Reproductive Garden', followed by a discussion with Curator (Studios & Residencies) Dot Zhihan Jia.⁠ ⁠ This event forms part of the public programme for Komiya’s ongoing research project Reproductive Garden, which interrogates the archetypes of English and Japanese gardens and how they can act as societal models through which different people can coexist.⁠ ⁠ Marina Lisa Komiya, Screening and In-Conversation, Thursday 27 June 2024, 7–9 pm. Booking essential, suggested donation £5. Visit our link in bio to learn more and to book.⁠ ⁠ Komiya's residency is supported in partnership with @japanhouseldn ⁠ ⁠ #MarinaLisaKomiya #ReproductiveGarden #StudioVoltaire @dotjia

Andrew Cranston, Pam Evelyn, Judith Hopf, Florian Krewer, Sophia Loeb and Paulina Olowska have very generously donated works for sale at @christiesinc ‘Post-War to Present’ sale on 27 June to benefit Studio Voltaire’s artistic and community programmes.⁠ ⁠ We are very grateful to the artists and their galleries for supporting The Studio Voltaire Future Fund 💙 ⁠ ⁠ Register to bid via the link in our bio, or by emailing XXX@studiovoltaire.org⁠ ⁠ #AndrewCranston⁠ Thought for the Day, 2022⁠ Pigment and gum arabic on hardback book cover⁠ 23.2 x 15.1 cm⁠ Generously donated by the artist, courtesy of Ingleby Gallery, Edinburgh⁠ ⁠ #PamEvelyn⁠ Sprains, 2024⁠ Oil on linen⁠ 80cm x 60 cm⁠ Generously donated by the artist, courtesy of Pace, London.⁠ ⁠ #JudithHopf⁠ Snailshell Mountain, 2023⁠ Unique silkscreen⁠ 70 x 70 cm⁠ Generously donated by the artist ⁠ #FlorianKrewer⁠ Untitled, 2024⁠ Oil on paper⁠ 54 x 38 cm⁠ Generously donated by the artist, courtesy of Michael Werner Gallery, New York / London.⁠ ⁠ #SophiaLoeb⁠ Eu descanso através da sua paz, I rest through your peace, 2024⁠ Oil and pigment on canvas⁠ 50.5 x 60.5 cm⁠ Generously donated by the artist, courtesy of Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London⁠ ⁠ #PaulinaOlowska⁠ Spider Painters, 2020⁠ Gouache, oil, printed transparency film and embroidery on canvas⁠ 160 x 140 cm⁠ Generously donated by the artist, courtesy of Pace, London