Simon Lewty 1941–2021

Messages From the Past: Master Works From Five Decades

Art First, London
10 October - 22 December 2023

(The gallery will be closed between 22 November and 3 December)

Art First is pleased to present the first tribute exhibition to Simon Lewty since he died in 2021 and it brings to light some of his most affecting, curious and brilliant works. The dream-like imagery, with its flow of calligraphic words and the overall poetic output, is unlike any other artist’s. Following his major debut exhibition at the Serpentine Gallery, in 1985, his practice evolved privately, from home studios in Leamington Spa and through regular exhibitions with Art First in London. Various Art fairs and occasional exhibitions of work abroad, acquisitions and guest appearances in museums throughout the UK, brought him to the attention of others, especially artists, but he did not travel or ‘market’ himself, making only occasional appearances at exhibitions, attending his own openings and gallery dinners, but then rapidly retreating to the calm of his studio. He leaves an extraordinary legacy.

Margaret Hunter

States of Being

Art First, London
7-29 September 2023

Art First is delighted to present a new body of work by Margaret Hunter, fresh from her Berlin studio. This is the first solo exhibition since the previous show in 2013 in our Fitzrovia premises. Perhaps the more reflective note in the recent works originates from the Covid-19 lock down period when Hunter worked quietly on her archive, sifting through and re-visiting ideas that had evolved over decades. Then she travelled to Malaga where an encounter with Picasso’s choice works in the Picasso Museum inspired a new departure.

Moody & Muted

Art First, London
3-25 August 2023

Including:
Teniqua Crawford, Marisol Jacquemot Derode, Jake Harvey, Gillian Lever, Simon Lewty, Helen MaCAlister, Will Maclean, Bridget Madcoald, Kate McCrickard, Simon Morley, Donald Teskey, Partou Zia

The exhibition includes fourteen artists whose work lends itself to the pensive, the poetic and at times the conceptual. Independent, challenging and fascinating, many of the participants have work held in museum and other public collections. Good publications are available, which document their careers to date.

We are delighted to introduce two guest artists; Teniqua Crawford and the ceramicist Marisol Jacquemot Derode. Also included are Simon Lewty and Partou Zia, both no longer alive, but who have exhibited with ART FIRST and alongside their fellow artists in this exhibition for a substantial period. We are working with both of their Estates.

There are paintings, drawings, assemblage work, sculpture, prints and ceramics, with prices ranging from £500—£30,000.

Come and enjoy the dialogue and the special affinities during this reflective month of late summer light, before the busy Autumn season rushes in.

Will Maclean

Points of Departure II

Art First, London
10 May - 22 July 2023

Kate McCrickard: New Romantics
Marisol Jacquemot Derode: Ceramic Counterpoints

Art First, London
8 March - 28 April 2023

Art First is delighted to present this exhibition by Kate McCrickard, with ceramicist Marisol Jacquemot-Derode. Inspired by Parisian life in a post covid world, McCrickard’s urban subjects are vibrant and beautifully observed. New Romantics explores scenes from her local cafés and bars, or on the streets, where Goths and Punks gather curiously on corners, and there are also domestic tableaux featuring family feasts, and imagined scenes based on the artist’s fugitive drawings lifted constantly from real life. In an unusual collaboration, Jacquemot-Derode’s sculptural, gorgeous vessels are made in response to McCrickard’s paintings as Ceramic Counterpoints.