The artwork showcases a vibrant blend of colors, with warm hues of orange and yellow dominating the canvas. The central focus is an abstract structure resembling a house or dwelling, featuring angular shapes and patterns. The composition is dynamic, incorporating organic elements that appear to be flowing or emerging from the structure. The artist employs a unique, expressive style, combining abstract and surreal elements to create a captivating and imaginative visual narrative. This work seems to explore themes of home, community, and the interplay between the built and natural environments. ...
Lara Shahnavaz blends figuration and abstraction to engage with themes of emotion, identity, and memory. Her works often feature symbolic figures and evocative imagery, crafting compositions that reflect the complexity of human experience and the shifting nature of perception. Shahnavaz employs a sensitive, nuanced approach to painting, using layered textures, gestural brushwork, and subtle shifts in color to convey psychological and emotional depth. Her work emphasizes the interplay between presence and absence, often capturing fleeting moments of introspection, vulnerability, or transformation. Through her practice, Shahnavaz examines the intersections of personal and collective memory, crafting visual narratives that resonate with broader human experiences. Her art engages viewers in contemplation, inviting reflection on the impermanent, mutable, and richly layered nature of identity and emotional life. ...
The Approach is co-directed by Jake Miller and Emma Robertson. Located in Bethnal Green above The Approach Tavern, for over twenty years it has operated an internationally recognised programme from its East London base. The gallery is known for discovering artists and establishing their careers as well as making inter-generational curated group shows a strong focus. The list of represented artists includes the Estates of important overlooked female artists Heidi Bucher and Maria Pinińska Bereś, as well as seminal British collage artist John Stezaker, together with established and emerging artists including Magali Reus, Peter Davies, Lisa Oppenheim, Sandra Mujinga, Pam Evelyn, Sara Cwynar, Sam Windett and Caitlin Keogh. Over the years the gallery has operated parallel programmes in additional gallery spaces in London’s West End (The Approach W1) and in Shoreditch (The Reliance). The gallery is currently based solely in its original East End location and continues to expand its programme, showcasing its represented artists in the main gallery space, and both represented and non-represented artists in The Annexe, a smaller, more experimental space at the back of the building. ...
