Major Kandinsky exhibition at Le Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris

Wassily Kandinsky at Le Centre Georges Pompidou until 10 August

This major retrospective of the work of one of the 20th century's key figures, Vassili Kandinsky, was assembled jointly by Centre Pompidou, the Städtische Galerie in Lenbachhaus in Munich and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum of New York, which hold the largest collections of the artist's works.

It brings together around one hundred of Kandinsky's finished paintings, particularly the Impressions and the Improvisations. It offers a unique chance to look through the eyes of the painter born in 1866 in Moscow under the Czar, and who died in 1944 in Neuilly-sur Seine, as a French citizen.

In the interval, he experienced two of the high spots of creation in the 20th century: the Blue Rider (Der Blaue Reiter) in Munich before the First World War and the Bauhaus at Weimar and Dessau in the inter-war period. The completion of the catalogue raisonné of his work, and recent discoveries in Russia give us an overview of his painting which goes beyond the narrow posthumous conception of him as "inventor of abstraction". The Paris exhibit also provides an update on the constant additions to the Kandinsky collection – exceptional watercolours and manuscripts for the "Russian" period 1914-1917, a portfolio from the Bauhaus for his 60th birthday in 1926.

If you're in Paris, don't miss it.

Vogue May 2009: Annie Leibovitz strikes again

These beautiful images by Annie Leibovitz illustrate the American Vogue May 2009. The only mistake is... Justin Timberlake.

The winners of the Hyères festival were announced Sunday evening by Kriss Van Assche, president of the jury mode. This year, the couple Latvia Marite Mastin & Rolands Peterkops won the "Grand Prix du Jury L'Oréal Professionnel".

For 24 years, the Festival International de la Mode et de la Photographie d'Hyères brings together ten designers and ten photographers to celebrate these two medium. Marked by catwalks shows and exhibitions, it is held each year at the Villa Noailles by a prestigious jury. The festival was chaired by Kris Van Asche, partly supported by Zoe Cassavetes, Jefferson Hack and Nan Goldin. Photographer Steven Meisel (collaborated with Lanvin, LV, Madonna etc.) will be honored with a retrospective exhibition from 2 May to 7 June.

To learn more: www.villanoailles-hyeres.com/hyeres24.php

Roni Horn at Tate Modern, London, UK

Roni Horn a.k.a Roni Horn at Tate Modern

Until 25 May 2009

Roni Horn is an American artist who has been making work since the 1970s. Horn worked through the legacy of minimalism yet developed her own concerns with memory and identity, and this is her first major museum show in the UK. Using a variety of materials including rubber, glass and gold, Horn’s work has an immense beauty and sensuality to it.

The exhibition explores ideas that interest the artist about mutability and place. Her round, colourful cast-glass sculptures seem to have a liquid surface to them, and many of her photographs analyse the nature of water. Though based in New York, Horn is engaged with the landscape of Iceland, as a place which is constantly in a process of formation. In You are the Weather 1994–5, a set of 100 close-up photographs show a beautiful woman’s wet face with changing expressions emerging from hot pools around Iceland. She also photographs the landscape and animals, the geysers and lava fields. Horn is interested in the idea of pairing and doubling. Many of her intricately constructed drawings feature paired clusters of cut-up lines. She often uses two identical photographs in a single work, breaking up the images to give the viewer a sense of déjà vu, such as in Dead Owl 1998, a pair of photographs of a stuffed snowy owl.

I really liked the exhibition especially the room with water-related images, although sometimes the space was a bit too large for the artworks. I also regretted that no litterature in the exhibition expressed the fact that she's lesbian. Sexuality is explored through this exhibition but no mention of her attraction to women which could have been interesting if clearly expressed. What do you think ?

To learn more: www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/ronihorn