An exhibition about emotion and subjectivity curated by Peter Davies
The show features eleven emerging artists who live or studied in London:
Okiki Akinfe Nour Jaouda Anderson Borba Lara Shahnavaz Mohammed Z. Rahman Alex Margo Arden Gal Schindler Kentaro Okumura Areena Ang Ruoru Mou Lowena Hearn
A complimentary poster by Gal Schindler and small publication with texts by Cassandre Greenberg, dove / Chris Kirubi, and Tosia Leniarska accompany the show.
‘This is a special time for contemporary art in London. I have never known it to be so exciting. I am moved and inspired by the work of the artists in this show and want to celebrate it and their achievements. My fascination with emerging art grew out of teaching in an art school, then following the careers of graduating students.
The vision and ambition of the community involved in the emerging gallery scene is creating a powerful sense of possibility. The only comparable thing I know was the Young British Art (YBA) era in the early to mid 1990s. Now however the community of artists is more friendly, supportive, inclusive, diverse and international. I love the galleries that have opened.
As an artist I have been involved with The Approach since it started. For me, this exhibition is in dialogue with the gallery’s history and I want - with sensitivity - to welcome artists who haven’t shown here.
Amongst my fellow students when I was at Goldsmiths talking about emotion was frowned upon, self-expression seemed embarrassing and subjectivity had to be rhetorised. This is at odds with my experience of talking to students in the last 20 years. For younger artists that I know, subjectivity and especially lived experience seem so important to them and I have had many conversations with people in this exhibition about how an artwork has made them feel.’
- Peter Davies