Rose Wylie, Serpentine Sackler Gallery

‘Painting is dead’ is a phrase that gets bandied around a lot today, both by art detractors and enthusiasts. Among the people who may be able to prove that painting is thoroughly alive, perhaps even a living thing, is Rose Wylie. Her current exhibition at the Serpentine Sackler Gallery – incidentally her first solo institutional exhibition in London – endeavours to prove her point.

Wylie – who become a Senior Royal Academician at the RA in 2015 and, in the same year, picked up the Wollaston award for ‘most distinguished work’ at RA Summer Exhibition – produces quite satirical works. She draws inspiration from a wide range of sources, from art history to glossy magazines, and often edits her mistakes by adding miscellaneous bits of canvas.

Spontaneous, buoyed by a sense of irreverence and playfulness, some have viewed her paintings as childlike, while others regard them as refreshing.

Either way, there is no denying the vitality and the colourful volatility of the octogenarian’s canvases. She's a remarkable talent receiving long-overdue recognition.