A Very Happy Chicken

What has Waldemar Januszczak gone and done this time? Nothing, apparently. Yesterday’s Sunday Times Culture supplement extended an olive branch to Tate Britain, not from the beak of a pristine white dove but from the beak of a chicken, as Januszczak reviewed the new folk art exhibition at Millbank.

The Sunday Times Culture. 15/06/14. Pages 18 & 19.

I have seen this exhibition advertised on the tube but I haven’t visited it yet. I know very little about folk art but it did not strike me as an exhibition that Januszczak would find awe-inspiring. Januszczak, during his Curtis witch-hunt in April stated that the ‘Tate Britain’s obvious problem is that it no longer connects with its audience’ and to be honest I am not sure that this exhibition strikes mass appeal; it is a niche genre.

Januszczak, on the other hand, loved it. Dredging the kindest adjectives from the lake of his mind he writes a coherent and uplifting review of an exhibition which ‘takes us on a notably airy journey through the Sherwood Forest of native creativity.’ He notes that ‘times change, and so do aesthetic dynamics’, perhaps suggesting an acceptance of the direction of Tate Britain under Penelope Curtis. This exhibition is ‘lovely’, ‘carefully colour-coded’, ‘inventiveness, a belief in effortless skill’ and ‘Judging by this delightful and beautifully presented tribute, it is, essentially, a happy language driven by important communal understandings.’

Confused by such a heart-wrenching review, it is like reading about a child experiencing its first memorable Christmas. I am pleased that Januszczak has kissed and made up with Tate Britain but I think I need someone to throw a glass of fresh water in my face to really believe it.