BELLADONNA

ICA Galleries I and II	ICA, The Mall, London, SW1Y 5AH
	24th January to 12th April 1997
Admission : ICA members free. Day membership : £1.50 (£2.50 Saturday and Sunday) Galleries open daily from 12.00 to 19.30 hrs, with late opening on Friday evenings till 21.00 hrs.

The work of 30 artists is represented in this exhibition. The work on display is very varied, so one may well find something that interests or amuses....

The works to which I particularly responded were the 35 oil and canvas paintings by Jean-Frederic Schnyder : Landschaft I - XXXV (Landscape),1990-1991.

Measuring 21cm x 30cm, these had a Xmas card look. In one there was a winter cottage scene, but in place of a Moon there was a silver swastika. The fact that the image looked so comforting and yet had a sinister twist made it disturbing and thought-provoking. In another, there were two dogs watching Pluto (the Disney cartoon dog) on TV. The dark background of the picture contrasted sharply with the vivid cartoon colours.

A Child is Growing Up Too Fast  by Paul de Reus (1993) also drew my attention. Indeed, it would be difficult to ignore this piece, as in it a motor drives a girl's head around, spinning her overgrown hair like a fan!

Look in on the Belladonna Web Site to find out more. This is the ICA's first-ever website catalogue, and it includes a multimedia tour, commentary and curatorial essay. ICA have promised to develop it throughout the exhibition.

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