25th November 2025
Vorticism was a London-based modernist art movement formed in 1914 by the writer and artist Wyndham Lewis. The movement was partially inspired by Cubism and was introduced to the public by means of the publication of the Vorticist manifesto in Blast magazine and The Rebel Art Centre, set up in opposition to the Post Impressionism of Roger Fry. Familiar forms of representational art were rejected in favour of a geometric style that tended towards a hard-edged abstraction. Lewis though was a difficult and divisive personality, and proved unable to harness the talents of his disparate group of avant-garde artists for long, However, for a few short years, Vorticism, an artistic riposte to Marinetti’s Futurism, burst on the art world like an explosive supernova, leaving a trail of destruction and invention that was to influence the course of early twentieth century art. It was uniquely original and possibly the only truly British Modern Art movement.
Quotes:
“The image is more than an idea. It is a vortex or cluster of fused ideas and is endowed with energy.”
–Ezra Pound
“It is more comfortable for me, in the long run, to be rude than polite.”
–Wyndham Lewis
“I have been called a Rogue Elephant, a Cannibal Shark, and a crocodile. I am none the
worse. I remain a caged, and rather sardonic, lion, in a particularly contemptible and ill-run
zoo.”–Wyndham Lewis
“Contradict yourself. In order to live, you must remain broken up.”
–Wyndham Lewis
“Speaking generally Art endevours to reveal what is true and needs to be free. All things said regarding Art are subject to contradiction.”
–David Bomberg
“Shiva dances, creating the world and destroying it, his large rhythms conjure up vast
aeons of time, and his movements have a relentless magical power of incantation.”
–Jacob Epstein
Talking Art Meetings
The meeting takes the form of an illustrated talk of about fifty minutes or so with time afterwards for questions or discussion. We are concentrating on the Modern period, from the end of the nineteenth century; but any period, movement or particular artist may be focused on, pondered and discussed if a member requests.
In a recent Norwegian scientific paper, looking at of two groups of pensioners, it was discovered that those who looked regularly at artworks, and in particular modern ones with brighter colours, found a marked improvement in their health and general sense of well being. Also, a recent publication by the World Health Organisation cites research ‘proving’ that engaging in an art activity, as a practitioner or student, may actually extend your life. So there it is: ART IS GOOD FOR YOU.
Whether you are an experienced gallery goer or sporadic sightseer and would like to know a little more about art, about why a painting or sculpture is considered an important cultural icon, or wish to expand your present knowledge and look a little deeper into the background, the techniques and the lives of the artists, Talking Art is the space for the adventure. Come and join in the conversation or just listen and enjoy.
If you find Nigel Spivey’s subtitle – how humans made art and art made us human – to his Television Series (2005) How Art Made the World puzzling, and a challenge to your ideas, then the monthly meetings are for you.
Contact Robert Sedgley on talking.art@u3ajavea.com