A sense of renewal

John Behan has certainly got a second wind, or perhaps even a third, as this exhibition proves with conviction

John Behan has certainly got a second wind, or perhaps even a third, as this exhibition proves with conviction. Some of his recent sculptures had suggested a man marking time, or even in some danger of getting caught in a timewarp, as so easily happens an artist who has been before the public for three decades; but on this occasion the sense of renewal is strong. Behan began as a bronze sculptor with a strong, though traditional sense of modelling and a fondness for rugged, pitted surfaces. This worked particularly well in his small animal sculptures and best of all in his bronze bulls, rugged pieces which suggested energy in potential rather than energy in movement.

In recent years, however, he had moved more into the "open" forms which are now dominant in metal sculpture. Working sometimes in steel and even copper, he used ribbed or skeletal shapes and also made his forms much more varied and less static - his big metal fish being a case in point.

Both extremes are represented at the Hallward, but there is also much that is quite new. The wall sculptures, for instance, some of which are grotesque masks, have a strong, slightly sinister presence, while the Guitar (Homage To Picasso) gives a halfhumorous nod towards Cubism. There are also bronze plaques modelled in shallow relief, and some figure pieces which are sound but relatively conventional.

Behan even dares to apply colour to some of his sculptures - a risky thing as a rule, which only David Smith and a handful of others have really brought off successfully. Yet it adds to the sense of adventurousness of the exhibition as a whole, and taking risks is surely more creative than standing still or squatting on past achievements. This is his most varied, inventive and uninhibited exhibition in quite some time; it gives a genuine impression of renewed youth.

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Until January 29th.