Echoes of Brilliance: Art’s Past Inspiring the Future

Jean Tinguely - Photo taken from exhibition 'Scream Machines' Museum Tinguely, Basel

You may have noticed that THE GAZE has been featuring past artistic greats. The 250th anniversary celebrations of the visionary painter from London, JMW Turner, have shone the spotlight on his brilliance and the fearless brushwork that shocked audiences of the time.  Also this year marks the centenary of Jean Tinguely, renowned Swiss sculptor who grew up in Basel and whose unconventional mechanised creations, challenged the static nature of traditional sculpture.

Both celebrations in honour of these two artistic mavericks highlighted an intriguing perspective on the young creatives—brimming with originality—whom I caught up with during my trips to Basel and London.  Here are two examples:

Timo Paris

Basel-based performance artist, Timo Paris—previously featured in THE GAZE—continues to take 'breaking'—the nucleus of his artistic output—to new depths. His recent dance ‘battles’ in Rio, Brazil and Colombia were unique experiences, allowing him to immerse himself in the ‘joy of the moment’.  I am certainly looking forward to the output of his recent residency in Lisbon, focused on upscaling his series of exquisite line drawings, serving as an extension of expression between his art and dance and forming the backdrop of a dance performance later this year.  More on this to follow.

Elisa Mantovani

London-based Elisa Mantovani—curator and founder of Invictus magazine—brings together diverse art forms including sculpture, photography and poetry while exploring global topics and happenings. In celebration of the magazine’s latest edition, Elisa staged an immersive event in London themed on fire and air, showcasing some of the bright art talents in her circle and exploring the intimate, volatile, and poetic relationship between these two elemental forces.

These rising innovators, and many others that I have encountered, are pushing back on the unseen currents of life while boldly leaping forward into new realms of discovery and enlightenment. There’s no doubt that we can expect lots of fresh perspectives conveyed through art for decades and even centuries to come.  And I imagine that future generations will be celebrating our current prodigies’ centenaries with as much pride and vigour as we do now.

© Copyright Hazel Clarke 2025