Joseph Cornell: Wanderlust, Royal Academy of Art

Royal Academy | Joseph Cornell
Don’t miss the Royal Academy’s exhibition of American sculptor and avant-garde filmmaker, Joseph Cornell. Beautifully curated by Sarah Lee and Jasper Sharp, Wanderlust showcases the American artist's love of the ephemeral, cultural identity of the European Belle Époque. Described as a quiet maverick in the New York contemporary art scene, Cornell's work challenged the status quo of art in twentieth-century America. This is the first solo European exhibition of the artist’s work in 35 years, featuring eighty of Cornell’s works including his box constructions, assemblages, collages and films. 
A self-taught artist, you might know Cornell for his mesmerising ‘shadow boxes’ – constructions filled with treasures from antiquarian bookstores and junk shops, which reference all manner of things from the stars and birds to literature – which laid the ground for assemblage sculpture. With no formal training, Cornell's work was radical and prioritised playfulness over seriousness. Although often perceived as an outsider artist, the reclusive Cornell regularly exhibited with the Surrealists and the Abstract Expressionists in his lifetime, whilst refraining from aligning with any one group.
Joseph Cornell collector
Cornell was also a seasoned collector, amassing a vast archive of paper ephemera and found objects in the tens of thousands. His collectibles ranged from the performing arts to history, ornithology, poetry and astronomy, and often found their way into his assemblages.
Royal Academy exhibition 2015
Arranged thematically in four sections, the RA show reflects a number of the artist's favoured artistic processes and subject matters, such as experimenting, time, collecting and observation.  At the RA exhibition, expect to find a veritable treasure trove of works from Cornell’s major series - museums, aviaries, soap bubble sets, palaces, medici slot machines and more.