The exhibitions I have managed to see have been encouraging. First off was FOLD gallery’s Dominic Beattie exhibition (until 3 October). I’ve liked Beattie’s work for a while, but always thought it lacked some crucial quality that I couldn’t put my finger on. Well, now I know: that quality is scale. His new collages are enormous things that amp up the mesmerising patterns he has made his trademark without losing an ounce of the subtlety. The FOLD show is more or less a potted history of modernism, as viewed through Google Images. If you want to see vital British art that reflects its time like a cracked mirror, get yourself to New Cavendish Street, pronto. If you don’t, we have nothing in common.

by Digby Warde-Aldam