Eileen Agar: Angel of Anarchy at Leeds Art Gallery

Maja Lorkowska, Exhibitions Editor
Eileen Agar, Angel of Mercy
Images courtesy of Leeds Museums & Galleries, Eileen Agar 'Angel of Anarchy' exhibition 2022, photographs by Julian Lister

Eileen Agar: Angel of Anarchy at Leeds Art Gallery, Leeds 29 January — 7 May 2022 Entrance is free — Visit now

If you haven’t encountered Eileen Agar’s work before, prepare to be amazed – a definitive retrospective of the extraordinary Argentinian-British artist’s work has come to Leeds Art Gallery this year.

The exhibition was developed in partnership with the Whitechapel Art Gallery (London) and the Mjellby Konstmuseum, Halmstad (Sweden). It features over 150 pieces from public and private collections as well as newly discovered archival material.

A true pioneer of the avant-garde, Agar experimented with Cubism, Surrealism and abstraction, while her social circle included Paul Nash, Dora Maar, Pablo Picasso and Ezra Pound. With inspirations as broad as classical art, ancient mythologies, the natural world and sexual pleasure, Agar’s incessant desire to experiment and escape categorisation led to an extraordinary body of work.

Images courtesy of Leeds Museums & Galleries, Eileen Agar ‘Angel of Anarchy’ exhibition 2022, photographs by Julian Lister

 

She created paintings, collages, photographs, sculptures and even ceremonial hats(!). Despite flirting with multiple art movements (“One day I was an artist exploring highly personal combinations of form and content, the next I was calmly informed I was a surrealist!”), her individuality was what Agar is remembered for – a fiery distinctiveness that still gives her work a contemporary freshness today.

Images courtesy of Leeds Museums & Galleries, Eileen Agar ‘Angel of Anarchy’ exhibition 2022, photographs by Julian Lister

 

The titular Angel of Anarchy refers not only to Agar’s rebellious nature but also to a specific piece created between 1936-1940: a 3-dimensional plaster head created from found materials including feathers, silks and beads. You’ll be able to find its sister piece, Angel of Mercy on display in the show – a bust with Cubist-like features with the movement’s signature angularity softened by flowing lines and muted shades. Subverting the male Surrealists’ concept of ‘the female muse’, Agar modelled the busts on her husband, Joseph Bard. Alongside the sculpture you will find colourful walls expertly filled with paintings of all sizes, bursting with energy and experimental in form, as well as vitrines of smaller works on paper.

Images courtesy of Leeds Museums & Galleries, Eileen Agar ‘Angel of Anarchy’ exhibition 2022, photographs by Julian Lister

 

The artist’s 70-year artistic career is boldly displayed in this retrospective – if you’re taking yourself on an art date this month, this show is simply a must-see.

Eileen Agar: Angel of Anarchy at Leeds Art Gallery, Leeds 29 January — 7 May 2022 Entrance is free Visit now

Performances

Date
Time
Session Features
29 January 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
30 January 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
1 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
2 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
3 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
4 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
5 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
6 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
8 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
9 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
10 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
11 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
12 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
13 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
15 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
16 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
17 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
18 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
19 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
20 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
22 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
23 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
24 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
25 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
26 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
27 February 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
1 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
2 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
3 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
4 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
5 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
6 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
8 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
9 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
10 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
11 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
12 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
13 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
15 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
16 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
17 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
18 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
19 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
20 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
22 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
23 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
24 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
25 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
26 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
27 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
29 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
30 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
31 March 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
1 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
2 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
3 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
5 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
6 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
7 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
8 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
9 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
10 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
12 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
13 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
14 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
15 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
16 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
17 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
19 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
20 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
21 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
22 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
23 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
24 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
26 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
27 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
28 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
29 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
30 April 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
1 May 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
3 May 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
4 May 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
5 May 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
6 May 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm
7 May 2022
10:00am — 5:00pm

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

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