Jean Dubuffet Posted on 3rd June 202117th June 2022 by nr NR · WORLDPublished · Online Feature · Jean DubuffetWords · Izzy Bilkus Chaotic yet vibrant visual tumult, mirroring the hectic pace of life in the last quarter of the century Barbican Art gallery presents ‘Jean Dubuffet: Brutal Beauty’, the first major UK exhibition in over 50 years celebrating the career of Art Brut pioneer Jean Dubuffet. The exhibition explores Dubuffet’s rejection of conventional notions of beauty in favour of more subversive forms and presents the artist as a multifaceted innovator of the immediate post-war period, adept at translating his creative vision through a vast range of artistic mediums, creating works out of mud, glass and cement. Walking through the exhibition, visitors can track the course of Dubuffet’s career, as his practice and inspiration evolves and progresses. Abundantly inventive and playful, Dubuffet’s oeuvre includes assemblies of butterfly wings, scrawled illustrations, viscous and visceral painted landscapes and female nudes – monstrous and captivating – that all come together as a chaotic yet vibrant visual tumult, mirroring the hectic pace of life in the last quarter of the century. A defining feature of the exhibition is Dubuffet’s variety of technique and materiality. His work prompts a unique kind of introspection and contemplation, as he captures the sombre essence of the post-war period. Dubuffet’s scenes and caricatures rail against traditional ideas of beauty and capture the beauty of the mundane and something in a gritty and poetic way. The exhibition is on at the Barbican until the 22nd August. For more information visit Barbican About Founded in London in 2016, NR is a bi-annual print publication embracing art, culture, design, fashion and music. Based in Milan since 2021, NR aims at providing in print and online, an archive of features and conversations between creatives within the arts, design, fashion and music spheres. CREATIVE DIRECTORJade Removille TYPEFACESInterHelvetica Neue PUBLISHERNR WORLD DISTRIBUTIONWhiteCirc For any distribution or advertising enquiries, please contact info@nr.world Explore InstagramSoundcloudArchiveNR 16NR 15 StoreContact Stockists Boutique MagsDashwood Books New YorkDover Street Market LondonGood News LondonVillage Books LeedsVillage Books ManchesterIMS, AntwerpIMS, HasseltPapercut StockholmAnouk ViennaOFR Paris10 Corso Como MilanMondadori Milan © NR 2022 All Rights ReservedNR is the property of NR WORLD S.r.l. Made with sustainability in mind, nr.world is cleaner than 70% of web pages testedLegal