Cassone - a treat for September

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September! The nights are drawing in and we look to indoor pursuits. Time to catch up with the summer exhibitions before they close their doors, and look ahead to the new season. Even those who have long since left school or college can feel the lure of starting new projects, and learning new things.

We have plenty to give you ideas in this month’s Cassone. John A. Walker shows how he has developed as a painter through the stories behind ten of his paintings. Jenny Kingsley visits Chichester cathedral and the charming Chichester gallery, Pallant House and Juilee Decker discusses new books on Constable. John Constable was more highly thought of in France than in England during his life time, and a new show is touring Europe and America, where he is not short of fans.

Meanwhile, in England, Jake and Dinos Chapman continue to puzzle visitors to White Cube, and Pablo Bronstein puts on a bravura show at the ICA in London’s Mall, giving HM The Queen a choice between that and the BITE print show, should she fancy a short walk out from the Palace.

In New York, a stunning show of the massive sculpture of Mark di Suvero is on view at Governors Island, one of the lesser-known gems off the coast of Manhattan. I interviewed David R. Collens, director of Storm King , which represents Mark di Suvero, and who curated this wonderful show.

As ever, we have reviews of a wide range of books – read about those engaged in the ‘paragone’ rivalries of the fifteenth century onwards; the work of Henri Gaudier-Brzeska, a brilliant artist who died at the age of 23; did Kazimir Malevich inspire leading American artists, as some believe? Read about how an exhibition in Chicago probed the details of life in Renaissance French courts, and the substance behind the style of Frans Hals, now famous for painting The Laughing Cavalier. Jimi Hendrix asked ‘Are you experienced?’– a new book reveals the lasting legacy of the psychedelic era.

If you have read Vanity Fair, or seen one of the films made from it, you will recall the scene in which Becky Sharpe tries to entice Jos Sedley into a proposal. It all takes place in Vauxhall Gardens. Amazingly, the Vauxhall pleasure gardens maintained their popularity for two centuries and a new book looks at who went there and what they went for.

Fittingly for a time of year when we start to spend more time at home, we review a book that accompanied an exhibition on life in the Italian Renaissance home.

There are 25 new articles and reviews this month, plus everything we have published since May still online via our Archive. So take a break with Cassone – you are sure to find something to interest you here. We get asked various questions about subscribing to and reading Cassone - see our new FAQs