PHILIP HAAS
The Four Seasons
at the Dulwich Picture Gallery


In the pretty, serene heart of Dulwich Village, four curious busts of four giants burst from the ground...BY MILLY DOUGLAS

oinciding with their Andy Warhol exhibition, the Dulwich Picture Gallery have gone out and out American this summer.

Celebrating our brethren across the Atlantic Ocean, the gallery have chosen two celebrated and controversial artists from the U.S.A, the prolific and departed Andy Warhol, and the underrated, and very much alive, Philip Haas.

Best known for his avant-garde filmmaking, Haas has turned his hand to art and sculpture. When famous actors, directors, singers, and models fancy themselves following a slightly different career path, it usually goes horribly wrong. Think J.Lo, or Katy Price.

Haas, however, has triumphed with his fifteen-foot fibreglass structures, which are an ode to the surreal Renaissance painter, Giuseppe Arcimboldo, and included much of the artists original detailing.

Each of the seasons, however, were only painted in profile, so Haas and his team had a lot of scope (and fun, by the looks of things) including their own personal touches.

The sculptures are, admittedly, grotesque. They are also vibrant and playful, and you can certainly recognize Haas’ background in film, with each of them looking fit for a magical film-set.

Winter is primarily made up of what appears to be an old, thick tree trunk. Spring has a face full of delicate flowers, including bluebells for teeth, whilst Autumn has poisonous mushrooms for ears.

Summer’s straw jacket was said to have been cast using real straw to add to the texture – the craftsmanship used here is both amazingly detailed and clearly painstakingly thorough at times.

It goes without saying that these jolly, and rather bizarre, outdoor additions to the gallery will go down wonderfully with

children too. Their relation to renaissance painting brings will no doubt blossom the beginnings of a fruitful (no pun intended) artistic interest for young children.

The playfulness of the outdoor context for the sculptures knocks down the idea that art must always be a silent and solemn affair.


DULWICH PICTURE GALLERY

Tuesdays – Fridays, 10am-5pm
Weekends, 11am-5pm
Tickets £5, £4 Concessions,
Free entry for children