Neil Gall

The artist Neil Gall has always had collage, in its broadest sense, at the heart of his artistic practice. The Studio collages are a distinct body of work made from the covers of The Studio, the influential art magazine published in London from 1893 until 1964. They incorporate bold, sometimes clashing colour combinations that, although formal in concern, touch on many of the themes that were part of The Studio's unique sensibility and content. Far from didactic, Gall's collages, combining cut and paste with drawing and painting, expand on the vast repertoire of rich imagery for which the publication was renowned. Themes emerge that suggest an oblique form of social commentary-a look at how Britain viewed itself as a continuing cultural force, despite shifting political and social landscapes. Rather than exercises in nostalgia, Gall's contemporary collage works use techniques, developed by Dada and Surrealism, to nudge editorial didacticism in an open and playful manner.