Framing Modernism: Architecture and Photography in Italy 1926-65
Estorick Collection, until 21 June
Adrian Berg: Panoramic Watercolours
Friends Room, Royal Academy, until 11 June
Architecture exhibitions, as I’ve had occasion to note before, are not always the most visually exciting of events, principally because the experience of a building can only really be conveyed in front of it or inside it. Architectural models can be aesthetically pleasing quasi-sculptures, and plans or elevations can be beautiful drawings in their own right, but they are no substitute for the actual thing. The great stand-by in architectural exhibitions is the photograph, often a cunning shot of an interesting detail blown up to gigantic proportions to give a simulacrum of experiencing the building itself. In the case of the Estorick’s enjoyable new show, architecture and photography have been brought into absolute and uninterrupted conjunction in a display of more than 100 vintage photos from the RIBA library.
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