Fresh off the buzz of Art Basel, the art world’s energy is high. Embracing this energy, London’s art galleries and institutions provide compelling reasons to explore under the July sun. With the city basking in summer’s glow, it’s the perfect time to engage with contemporary art’s pulse. The London art scene, with its distinct energy and variety, remains a whirlwind of activity, making it a must-visit this July.
Our five exhibitions to see In London in July 2024 provide five reasons to step out in the sun, offering a great variety of art experiences and expressions.
The first destination on our exhibitions to see In London In July is the Hayward Gallery, with Tavares Strachan: There Is Light Somewhere, the inaugural mid-career retrospective of the New York-based Bahamian artist. This diverse exhibition will demonstrate how Strachan’s art poignantly raises questions about cultural visibility. Committed to uncovering “lost stories,” Strachan honours overlooked explorers and underrepresented cultural pioneers, drawing visitors into the lives of figures whose stories have been obscured by prejudice. The exhibit features new sculptures, expansive collages, neon pieces, bronze and ceramic sculptures, and mixed-media installations.
The next stop on our five exhibitions to see In London in July 2024 is KKWEER Arts for a powerful, thought-provoking group exhibition, Ultraviolet, curated by Ell Pennick and Gemma Rolls-Bentley, delving into the intricate world of coded language within queer communities and featuring some of the biggest names in queer art.
Next on our list is a nostalgic journey back to a London orbital waterpark of the mid-1990s, with the exhibition Pipe Dreams featuring artists Jimi Famurewa and Madeleine Famurewa at Peckham’s Staffordshire Street. Prepare to be enveloped by the aquatic ambiance of a bygone era, complete with the echoing call of wave machines, the mingled scents of chlorine and deep-fried food, and the distinctive feel of water flume ridges.
We head over to Pilar Corrias for Villa Venus: The Garden, an exhibition of new paintings, sculpture, and animation by Sofia Mitsola, the latest chapter in the artist’s ongoing series depicting a utopian, Cycladic island ruled by her female characters. Using a saturated palette, Mitsola layers washes of vivid, unadulterated colour with large, immediate brushstrokes and thick impasto. Her protagonists, in various states of repose, inhabit palatial spaces with ease, challenging viewers to reconsider their gaze.
Rounding up our Five Exhibitions To See In London In July 2024 with “Nokukhanya Langa In Dialogue With Bruce Nauman” at Saatchi Yates. This two-person show pairs emerging talent Nokukhanya Langa with renowned conceptual artist Bruce Nauman. The exhibition highlights the connection between their use of unconventional methods, fostering a shared artistic language that incorporates absurdist text, puns, and finds significance in the mundane. The showcase includes a new series by Langa, focused on her “Black Paintings,” alongside a retrospective of Nauman’s influential black and white films.
Five Exhibitions To See In London In July 2024
Tavares Strachan: There Is Light Somewhere
This summer the Hayward Gallery will present Tavares Strachan: There Is Light Somewhere (18 June – 1 September 2024), the first mid-career survey of the New York-based, Bahamian artist. A recipient of the MacArthur ‘Genius Grant’, Strachan has created a range of boldly inventive and ambitious exhibitions over the past two decades, including presentations at the 2019 Venice Biennale and the 2018 Carnegie International, establishing him as one of the most compelling, imaginative and audacious artists of his generation.
Tavares Strachan: There Is Light Somewhere
18th June, 2024 — 1st September, 2024
Hayward Gallery
Southbank Centre
Belvedere Road
London
SE1 8XX
Ultraviolet: Curated by Ell Pennick and Gemma Rolls-Bentley
KKWEER Arts is excited to present ‘Ultraviolet’, a powerful and thought-provoking group exhibition which delves into the intricate world of coded language, symbols, and gestures nestled within queer communities.
The exhibition features some of the biggest names in queer art, including new work by the iconic Maggi Hambling and a selection of new and existing works by Ajamu X, Lulu Bennett, Kudzanai-Violet Hwami, Olivia Sterling, Shadi Al-Atallah, Elsa Rouy, Sarah Jane Moon, Zach Toppin, Sadie Lee, Dale Lewis, Ebun Sodipo, Sola Olulode, Eva Dixon, Whiskey Chow, Sarah-Joy Ford, SHARP and Kevin Kane. More to be announced.
Ultraviolet: Curated by Ell Pennick and Gemma Rolls-Bentley
4th July, 2024 -14th July 2024
KKWEER Arts
15 Bateman Street
London
W1D 3AQ
PIPE DREAMS
Prepare to be transported to the aqueous, forgotten fantasia of a London orbital waterpark in the mid-1990s. The siren of the wave machine; the fug of chlorine and deep fat-fryers; the connective ridges of the water flume on your back. Consisting of sculpture, immersive sound installation and large-scale drawings, this collaborative, multidisciplinary exhibition explores the social significance, evocative power and formal playfulness of these lost leisure spaces.
This plays out in the space as an exploration of nostalgia, escapism and the hazy memories of an unverifiable, pre-internet age. The range, variety and communal spirit of the work invites us to consider the value of these fantastical, urban oases, and youth-centred sites of play, at a time when economic pressures and shifting tastes have put them increasingly under threat.
PIPE DREAMS: JIMI FAMUREWA & MADELEINE FAMUREWA
25th July, 2024 – 11th August, 2024
Staffordshire Street
49 Staffordshire Street
London
SE15 5TJ
Oil on linen
120 x 140 cm
Courtesy of Pilar Corrias
Sofia Mitsola: Villa Venus: The Garden
Pilar Corrias presents Villa Venus: The Garden, an exhibition of new paintings, sculpture and animation by Sofia Mitsola – the latest chapter in the artist’s ongoing series depicting a utopian, Cycladic island ruled by her female characters. Using a saturated palette, Mitsola layers washes of vivid, unadulterated colour with large, immediate brushstrokes and thick impasto. In various states of repose, her protagonists inhabit palatial spaces with self-possession and ease, in turn demanding that the viewer reckon with the direction of their own gaze. Do these figures pose for our gratification or their own? Are their brazen stares invitations or predatory?
Sofia Mitsola: Villa Venus: The Garden
5th June, 2024 – 20th July, 2024
Pilar Corrias
2 Savile Row
London
W1S 3PA
Nokukhanya Langa In Dialogue With Bruce Nauman
Saatchi Yates presents a two person exhibition featuring works by radical contemporary artist Nokukhanya Langa alongside leading American conceptual master Bruce Nauman. Opening on Wednesday 19th June, the show draws on the connection between the artists’ use of alternative methodologies, resulting in a shared language that uses absurdist text, puns and finding meaning in the banal.
The exhibition will showcase a new body of work by Langa, centred around her “Black Paintings”. These will be presented alongside a survey of Nauman’s groundbreaking black and white films.
Nokukhanya Langa In Dialogue With Bruce Nauman
20th June, 2024 – 16th August 2024
Saatchi Yates
14 Bury Street
St. James’s
London
SW1Y 6AL
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