Turner-Prize-winner Lubaina Himid returns to the Tate Modern with a high-impact exhibition, conceived to place the spectator at centre stage and backstage of art itself. Ever more popular at international fairs and a protagonist of recent years with important exhibitions in the United Kingdom, Europe and the United States, Himid is known for an innovative approach to painting and a commitment to social issues. At the heart of her studies, there is a desire to finally offer worthy recognition to the “contribution made by blacks to European cultural life over the last hundred years” with special regard for the feminine sphere. For the vigour with which she pursued these goals through art, in 2018, she was awarded the honorary title of CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) by Her Majesty Elizabeth II. Her works - paintings, drawings, prints, installations - take on, in an exuberant and fantastical way, themes such as colonialism and the persistence of racism, exploring the past in search of forgotten stories and bringing to light invisible aspects of contemporary daily life. To the visitors of the Tate Modern, Himid reveals new works and salient moments from a thirty-year career, begun as a scenographer and matured during the Eighties within the British Black Arts Movement. It is something to truly behold, scene by scene, just like at the theatre.
An exhibition celebrates Edwin Austin Abbey, a 19th-century American artist, showcasing his study for the monumental work The Hours created for the Pennsylvania State Capitol.
Platform is a new initiative to expand our exhibition programme with free annual exhibitions showcasing the work of a designer or studio that is impacting contemporary design discourse. The inaugural exhibition features the work of Bethan Laura Wood.