Radical Landscapes
From John Constable’s Flatford Mill to anti-nuclear protests at Greenham Common, this exhibition seeks to present a radical view of the British landscape in art. Most of the works are contemporary, ranging from Tacita Dean’s poignant Majesty (2006), a black and white photograph of a leafless and ancient oak tree, to Jeremy Deller’s neon Cerne Abbas (2019). There are, however, several which refer directly to pre-modern works, such as a clip from John Berger’s analysis of Thomas Gainsborough’s Mr and Mrs Andrews in “Ways of Seeing,” and Peter Kennard’s Haywain with Cruise Missiles. It’s an ambitious objective, but some critics have questioned its relentless rejection of what it terms the “conservative” tradition, pointing out, in the words of The Guardian’s Jonathan Jones, that “love of landscape not only has radical and conservative sides but they coexist in the same work”.
John Constable, Flatford Mill (“Scene on a Naviagable River'“) 1816-17, Tate. (Image: Wikimedia)