The TMH Edit: five things to do this June
And just like that, it’s June: summer is here and our spirits are high. In this month’s guide on the very best things to do and see, we’ve got a handful of exhibitions spanning art and architecture, alongside a series of wine tasting evenings, so even if the sun doesn’t shine, our diaries sure will.
The spring/summer show at 50 Vyner
The beautiful gallery space 50 Vyner is hosting its spring/summer show, with new exhibits from both M.A.H and Béton Brut. The former, situated on the ground floor, is presenting ‘The Pavilions’, which includes pieces by more than 40 multidisciplinary artists, such as Adriana Jaros, Abid Javed and Dea Domus. Their work has been incorporated into three vibrant sets, which aim to explore the dialogue between art and interior design.
Meanwhile, on the first floor, Béton Brut is debuting a seating series designed in partnership with Benni Allan, using locally sourced sustainable wood. “Our focus has always been on architect-led design, so it felt right that our first contemporary collection would be with an architect,” explains Sophie Pearce, founder of the east London design store. “Benni approached us with the ‘Low Collection’ concept and we loved its sculptural quality. There are nods to the organic and curvilinear, but with an air of restraint and rational geometry.”
50 Vyner is open 10am-5pm Monday-Friday, plus Saturdays from 18 June. The spring/summer show runs until 8 July. Photography Jake Curtis
Henry Moore: Shaping Form at Hauser & Wirth
Henry Moore was in his early twenties when he first laid eyes on Stonehenge. That moonlit encounter had a great impact on the artist, with the Neolithic site becoming a firm fascination of his. It went on to inspire a number of his most important sculptures, as well as a series of lithographs, which are both being surveyed as part of a new exhibition at Hauser & Wirth in Bruton, Somerset. Curated by Hannah Higham of the Henry Moore Foundation, and the artist’s daughter, Mary, this major retrospective sprawls across all five gallery spaces and on to the grounds, as an open-air presentation of the monumental sculptures ‘Locking Piece’ and ‘The Arch’. Until 4 September.
Henry Moore, Stonehenge I, 1973. Reproduced by permission of The Henry Moore Foundation. Photography Michael Phipps
And This Skin of Mine, to Live Again a Second Time at Guts Gallery
Hackney’s Guts Gallery is presenting a new group show titled ‘And This Skin of Mine, to Live Again a Second Time’. The starting point for the show was a poem by James Massiah, commissioned by curator Ellie Pinnick. Ellie asked him to think about the theme of rebirth, inspired by our post-pandemic society. She subsequently shared his text with a roster of London-based and international artists – including Alvaro Barrington, Kemi Onabule and Shadi Al-Atallah, to name a few – and asked them to create new works in response to it. The resulting presentation of paintings and sculptures is as powerful as it is provocative. It opens on 2 June, with an evening performance by James at 7.30pm. Until 23 June.
The Mulwray: Sip School
As we learned on our visit to Evelyn’s Table, the sommelier of this intimate restaurant on the lower-ground floor of The Blue Posts in Soho, Honey Spencer, knows her stuff about wine – and now you can, too. This June, Honey and fellow connoisseur, Sarah Wright, are launching Sip School: a series of wine tastings taking place in The Mulwray, which sits on the top floor of the pub. The first of the two-hour events takes place on Wednesday 8 June and will hone in on natural wine, inviting guests to learn about the best producers, over a glass or four (the number included in the £50 ticket). If that’s not quite your thing, classes on sake, Californian and skin-contact wine follow suit. Head over here for more details. Bottoms up!
James Retief: Tidal Rooms
Architecture buffs will delight in a visit to Gareth Gardner Gallery in Deptford this month. The space, which is dedicated to photography on the built environment, will host an exhibition on James Retief, featuring his images of the monumental manmade structures on the Thames foreshore. On display as part of this year’s London Festival of Architecture (where there’s plenty more for you to do and see), James’s work highlights a hidden and weathered part of the capital that is often overlooked, yet integral to its infrastructure. From 11 to 26 June.
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