The George Condo 'Mental States' exhibition at the Hayward Gallery is the American artist's first major retrospective, featuring 80 works split into three sections: Portraiture, Mania and Melancholia and Abstract-Figuration.
Condo's art is rooted in the traditional painting style but his subject matter is very much modern, inspired by 20th-century comics, cartoons and his crazy imagination.
The Hayward is also showcasing Pippilotti Rist's 'Eyeball Massage' exhibition, which is immersive, mesmerising and downright mental. Both are a must-see.
I suggest banishing those early winter blues before the exhibition closes next month by visiting some charming, humorous oddities like this cookie monster-type character portrait. Stare at it long enough and you'll laugh. His mental state is cheerful.
Red Antipodular Portrait, 1996 Oil on canvas, 152.4 x 121.9cm
The Hayward is also showcasing Pippilotti Rist's 'Eyeball Massage' exhibition, which is immersive, mesmerising and downright mental. Both are a must-see.
George Condo: Mental States, the Hayward Gallery, Southbank Centre
18 October 2011 - 8 January 2012
