Glory for Gaudí, poems for Doig and a giant show for Beatriz González – the week in art
Catalonia’s most celebrated son kicks off his centenary in style, Derek Walcott energises his friend Doig and the Colombian great gets her first UK retrospective
Exhibition of the week
Beatriz González
A survey of this Colombian political painter and mixed media artist who died in January.
• Barbican, London, from 25 February to 10 May
Also showing
Peter Doig
Prints by the painter of modern dreams, inspired by the poetry of his friend Derek Walcott.
• Modern One, Edinburgh, ongoing
Pierre Alexandre Wille
A look at the drawings of an artist who lived through – and supported – the French Revolution.
• British Museum, London, until 31 May
Takesada Matsutani
Eerily beautiful art by a Paris-based giant of Japan’s avant garde.
• Hauser & Wirth, London, until 18 April
John Constable and David Lucas
The great landscape painter and the printmaker he worked with show side by side.
• V&A South Kensington, London, until 14 June
Image of the week
In his centenary year, an elegant modernist building in the mountains north of Barcelona, originally constructed to house engineers establishing a nearby mine, has been confirmed as a work of Antoni Gaudí, Catalonia’s most celebrated and distinctive architect. Read the full story here.
What we learned
Tracey Emin is as frank as ever
Sicilians say Antonello da Messina’s Ecce Homo belongs with them
Former Turner nominee Delaine Le Bas delivers witches, warm welcomes – and wallpaper
The National Gallery is to make major cuts in an effort to stem a ballooning deficit
A decade-long photo archive captured cross-cultural womanhood
For his latest artwork, Glasgow artist Trackie McLeod decided to create a fully-functioning pub
A trucker spent decades building a tiny replica of NYC
A new show celebrates the print process that gave vivid colour to William Eggleston’s photos
A Book of the Dead, used to guide ancient Egyptians to the afterlife, is on show in Brooklyn
Masterpiece of the week
Doge Leonardo Loredan by Giovanni Bellini, c.1501-2
This is the male Mona Lisa. Painted a couple of years before Leonardo da Vinci began his renowned portrait, it has a similar charisma and mystery. Contemporaries spoke of the Venetian artist Bellini in the same breath as Leonardo: Isabella d’Este, one of the great art collectors of the early 1500s, once borrowed a painting by Leonardo so she could compare their styles. But this is a political painting, that projects the power and stability of the Venetian Republic in one calm, kind face. Loredan, the lagoon city’s leader or Doge, embodies its qualities: Venice was known as the “most serene republic” and this man exudes serenity. His skin is kissed with golden light, as if he was at a window over the Grand Canal basking in the sunshine reflected in the water. His suit is rich in silks that speak of Venice’s trade with the east. The blue behind him is like the sea as well as the sky. He endures, gracious and unflappable: Venice personified.
• National Gallery, London
Sign up to the Art Weekly newsletter
If you don’t already receive our regular roundup of art and design news via email, please sign up here.
Get in touch
If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email newsletters@theguardian.com