25 Years

About

Stephen Friedman Gallery is excited to present a special exhibition in September 2020 in celebration of its 25th anniversary. Taking place in both galleries on Old Burlington Street in Mayfair, its home since 1995, this unique event showcases the diversity of the gallery programme by celebrating its history whilst also looking ahead to the future.

New and historic works by each of the gallery’s 29 artists will be featured in the show. Many of the artists in the exhibition – notably Mamma Andersson, Yinka Shonibare CBE and David Shrigley – have been with the gallery from its infancy, marking a long and fruitful collaboration over the past three decades. Works will include a new and highly naturalistic painting by Kehinde Wiley that continues the artist’s investigation into the hierarchies and conventions of classical portraiture; a hand-coloured edition made specially for the exhibition by David Shrigley that references the longevity of the gallery’s history with typical, irreverent humour; a new large-scale painting by Denzil Forrester that captures the vibrant atmosphere of Jamaica’s nightlife; a new figurative painting by Deborah Roberts of an African-American adolescent exploring themes of race, identity and gender politics; and a new painting by Lisa Brice that continues the artist’s interrogation of the male gaze.

An illustrated catalogue looking back at the past 25 years will accompany the show, with contributions including texts by Mamma Andersson, Marcia Fortes, Jennifer Higgie, Howard Rachofsky and Yinka Shonibare CBE.

To mark the anniversary, the gallery has also recently announced the representation of three new artists: Marina Adams, Leilah Babirye and Holly Hendry. Each artist adds a new dimension to the programme with their practice: American artist Marina Adams creates paintings and works on paper that feature vibrantly-coloured shapes arranged in abstract configurations; Ugandan artist Leilah Babirye makes sculptures and paintings that address issues surrounding identity, sexuality and human rights; and British artist Holly Hendry creates large siteresponsive sculptures and installations concerned with what lives beneath the surface, from hidden underground spaces to the interior workings of the body. Adams and Babirye will have solo exhibitions at Stephen Friedman Gallery in early 2021.

List of artists: Marina Adams, Mamma Andersson, Juan Araujo, Tonico Lemos Auad, Leilah Babirye, Jonathan Baldock, Stephan Balkenhol, Claire Barclay, Lisa Brice, Melvin Edwards, Andreas Eriksson, Manuel Espinosa, Denzil Forrester, Tom Friedman, Kendell Geers, Wayne Gonzales, Channing Hansen, Holly Hendry, Thomas Hirschhorn, Jim Hodges, Ilona Keserü, Rivane Neuenschwander, Ged Quinn, Deborah Roberts, Yinka Shonibare CBE, David Shrigley, Jiro Takamatsu, Kehinde Wiley and Luiz Zerbini.