With no shortage of compelling themes—from explorations of memory to biotic crises—you’ll want to be sure to check out these museum and gallery shows in London this month.
Christo and Jeanne-Claude at Serpentine Galleries
Now—September 9
“Barrels and The Mastaba 1958-2018” includes a display of Christo and his late wife Jeanne-Claude’s work throughout several mediums as well as their practice of using wooden barrels in their practice. The major highlight is Christo’s temporary sculpture, The London Mastaba, on display in Hyde Park. The sculpture, which was created with the same practice used collaboratively by Christo and his wife, features a construction of 7,506 barrels on a floating platform in the park’s Serpentine Lake.
Christo and Jeanne-Claude
The London Mastaba
Serpentine Lake, Hyde Park
2016-18
Photo by Wolfgang Volz
© 2018 Christo
Summer Group Show at Royal Academy of Arts
Now—August 19
The Royal Academy of Arts has presented the 250th iteration of its summer exhibition with the theme, “art made now.” In commemoration of the special occasion, the Royal Academy brought in Grayson Perry to help coordinate the show, which spans across the new Royal Academy and out into the streets of the West End. In addition to being the world’s largest open submission art show, this summer’s exhibition features works by artists like Anish Kapoor, David Hockney, and Ed Ruscha.
“Memory Palace” at White Cube
White Cube Bermondsy, Now—September 2
White Cube Mason’s Yar, Now—September 15
Extending across both of White Cube’s London locations, “Memory Palace” is a major group exhibition seeking to inspire reflections on the forms and themes of memory. Featuring a display design by the architect practice vPPR, the exhibition is designed to lead its viewers through six different aspects of memory: traces, transcriptions, collective, sensory, historical, and autobiographical. The exhibition includes works by over 40 artists including Mona Hatoum, Miroslaw Balka, and Christian Marclay.
Gallery view of the 250th Summer Exhibition, Royal Academy of Arts, London
© Royal Academy of Arts
Photography by David Parry
Lu Song at Massimo de Carlo
Now—September 22
Lu Song’s “The Room Upstairs” features a new series of paintings inspired by George Orwell’s iconic dystopian novel, 1984. Known for his acrylic landscape paintings reminiscent of 19th century German romanticism, Song uses his unique style to depict paragraphs throughout the book that portray the implied danger looming in the room from the story.
Katja Novitskova at Whitechapel Gallery
Now—September 2
Katja Novitskova’s holds a reputation for creating curious immersive environments and her latest work, “Invasion Curves,” is no different. In the installation, Novitskova has modified baby rockers, given oversized worms the ability to defy gravity, and inscribed resin clouds with phrases discussing the impact of global data on the environment and our consciousness, thus creating an eerie world overtaken by a “biotic crisis.”
Lu Song
The Higher Pursuit
2018
Acrylic and latex on canvas
63 × 102 2/5 inches
Photo by Todd-White Art Photography
Courtesy Massimo De Carlo, Milan/London/Hong Kong
Angela de la Cruz at Lisson Gallery
Now—August 18
Her third solo exhibition with Lisson Gallery, Angela de la Cruz’s “Bare” is a new body of work inspired by the vulnerabilities we all face in contemporary society. The exhibition features a series of canvases, cut open around the frames and reattached so the structure underneath can be seen—a method used to imply the “hidden space” where everything seems impermanent. Also included in “Bare” is de la Cruz’s “Shutters” series and several of her pieces from the “Crates” series.
