Royal Academy of Arts, London
11th June 2007 - 19th August 2007
summary: reputation is inversely proportional to merit as usual, e.g. Hockney's glorified nursery school mural. highlight: mundane things, vivid in oils: 'Star Shine' & 'Star Dust' by Diane Ibbotson; 'Ghost' by Paul Brason.
VELÁZQUEZ
The National Gallery, London
18th October 2006 - 21st January 2007
summary: a quality gathering of works by a great and original artist; good use of National Gallery space, too. highlight: evolution of the artist's technique; character, expression, emotion and texture in later portrait work.
