Review: Georgia Wisbey – Perception vs Perspective

Pop Up Solo Show – Hoxton, show now closed but viewings are available by appointment

I was really pleased when fellow Substacker @jackiefowerspirit contacted me to ask if I was interested in reviewing the show of artist Georgia Wisbey in arty Hoxton. Of course I was, when called to the need, the Gallery Tart responds.

In fact, it was a double bubble day as I’d already earmarked it for Alison Watt at Pitzhanger Manor, more of that another week, but I was ready for suffer for art and I ambled along to Hoxton for the evening viewing, with wine, from the far West of Ealing, thank god for the Elizabeth Line.

I was early so I had a chance to chat with the artist before it got busy, Georgia explained that she’d been inspired by Jessica Serran, an artist who is also working as a leader to help artists become established professionally. Georgia succeeded in getting onto one of her courses and became emboldened to put on a show.

This was so interesting to me, I’ve met a quite a few artists that are just emerging into the public domain and a common theme is nervousness about displaying their art, it’s hardly surprising, after all, to exhibit your work is to exhibit yourself.

So, onto the show itself, Wisbey has a background in land art, working with natural materials, particularly willow, and a connection to the earth. This was quite evident in the number of works that were connected with nature. As you come into the gallery you meet, Reading the Room, Wild Rose, 2025, loved this, two long pieces of rambling rose tendrils that the artist had spotted growing out of control in a friend’s garden. They grow out of the frame and entangle themselves in the room, nature meets the gallery.

When I wrote about Ithell Colquhoun last week, I learned about how her mysticism informed her art and I could feel that here, Wisbey had installed, Release Your Inner Servitude (to something that no longer serves), 2025, a hazel piece, it had some bells you could ring to release negative energies. For me, it felt like a portal to the next room where you did feel as though you were walking into a different kind of space. There was birdsong playing, scent, candlelight, Georgia had created a shrine in the centre of the floor in thanks to the spirts that guide her, it gave a real depth of meaning to the exhibition.

Entering a different space...

The artist gave a talk about her works, Honoured, (Not Hounded), 2025, is a particularly interesting piece, visually, I was getting a sense of being a woman, the Disney princess syndrome, high fashion and being enclosed in a glass case. Wisbey explained further, this piece was inspired by the effects of cancel culture, a real life incident where a single comment on twitter resulted in the commenter’s professional life being effectively cancelled as support for her work was withdrawn on the basis of that single throwaway line. The artist pointed out that the thorns represent being bound and the shoes are filled with eggshells to make the comment that we are all walking on eggshells in contemporary social media culture.

It's hugely resonant, we have indeed become adept at being aware of what we can and can’t say, which of course leads to what we can think and not think. The pieces raises the issues of the loss of nuance and acceptance of the contradictory nature of the human condition, as Wisbey pointed out, she’s an environmentalist and feels a spiritual connection to nature, this though, does not stop her driving a diesel van or dressing in fashionable dress and drinking cocktails in the far from natural habitudes of Hoxton.

I was chatting to other viewers and one person said that he felt Georgia was sensing the narrative, that things have gone too far and it’s time to reverse away from such a polarised culture. I agree, if one social media share by an influencer can rocket the revenues of a corporation or destroy the whole body of work for an academic we’ve surely lost our way. Will it happen though, can it?

But to move away from the nature pieces, it seems to me that on some level, the show was about coming out of the safety of the natural environment that Wisbey feels at home with and exhibiting a different side, the artist as painter.

She talked to us about many of the paintings, they’re all on a wooden ground, serendipitously, the artist was offered a number of wood cuts from a film scene job, these have been utilised to create many of the paintings. I asked about the use of wood as opposed to canvas and Wisbey explained that it’s a different experience as the wood was once living so there’s often a response to in within the artwork.

You can see this in Fig Spirit, 2023, the wood ground is hardly covered but the outline figure of a woman sitting quietly in foliage is apparent, for me, a sense of peace radiates from the painting. As the artist talked about her pieces, she commented on how she just lets things come through in her painting and that’s what strikes me most about her work, its sensuality, it pervades her work, there’s an Emin like soul baring.

One painting that stood out for me was the diptych Dafts, 2024, visually, I suppose it appeals to my fondness for botanical paintings and the chiaroscuro of the Baroque. The artist explained that it was produced at a period of bliss, you can get that sense, the flowers are very much in a dialogue even though they are on separate pieces they are still connected by tendrils. There’s also a sense of fruitfulness, growth and vivacity which makes it radiate positive energy. There was an added dimension that I liked, the artist provided chalks for people to add their own messages about love which I found really generous and open.

Finally, Black Dragon Surrounds the Sun (Joy and Rage), 2023, caught my attention, a fiery piece for sure, you get that sense of rage from the wild loops of black and gold encircling a dragon at the bottom of the piece, the dragon, a motif for the artist, emerges and hides in the shadows at the same time, broodily giving side eye. Once again, the wood plays its part as the background to the piece and a few strokes are enough to show us bounding energy and a depth of emotions, great piece!

I enjoyed the show and the artist’s talks really helped to get an understanding of what her work is about. It was only a short exhibition, borne out of support from fellow artists, some provided the space, the food and drink and others moral support, as she said, it takes a village. The painter has emerged out of the undergrowth and stepped into the gallery, what’s next?

Rita Fennell

Gallery Tart!