In an uncertain world, and an uncertain Britain, there is one nugget of knowledge that I know to be true: artists guide the way. Art is a bellwether for where society is in this very moment, but even more crucially where we are headed. Art illuminates the path ahead, offering respite from daily struggles while providing much-needed space to reflect and imagine new strategies for breaking free of societal norms; a reminder to dream and to activate our imaginations. I believe art can help improve people’s lives both as a quiet, personal connection but also as a wider, visceral experiential act – a vehicle to wake people up, making education and learning more relatable. A progressive liberation.
It cannot be understated how necessary art and artists are for our survival. For more than 60 years, the UK has been a global leader in terms of creativity. Singular voices and talents across fashion, music, design and, perhaps most significantly, contemporary art have reached international commercial and critical acclaim. As we enter this new post-Elizabethan age, my advice to all creative industries is simple. Listen to artists. Support the creation of new art. In the wise words of Tracey Emin, “Where artists go, industry follows”, and at a time when education and support for the arts is consistently under threat, Emin has gone the extra mile, personally investing her time and money into the future of other artists by opening a free art school (Tracey Emin Artist Residency) and artists’ studio complex (TKE Studios) in her hometown of Margate, Kent. Emin knows from personal experience the sacrifices one must make to dedicate your life to creating art, but also the immeasurable power that art possesses to connect and present vital new ideas on a global stage. Art like no other medium can communicate as a universal language that transcends borders.
As a gallerist and broadcaster, the most important role I have to play is that of facilitator and collaborator. Through my podcast Talk Art (which I co-host with actor Russell Tovey), we have recorded more than 230 hour-long conversations with creative thinkers. Six million listens later, the proof is there that audiences around the world are just as keen as we are to listen to these unique, inspiring perspectives. It’s become a treasured archive of artists’ voices. The greatest gift has been the introduction to emerging artists, who I believe are now representing Britain on an international stage. A prime example is Sonia Boyce, who recently won the Golden Lion at Venice Biennale where she represented Great Britain with her work Feeling Her Way. For me, Boyce, along with Lubaina Himid, are among the most significant artists to have paved the way for the current, new generation of artist thanks to the Black British art movement of the Eighties and Nineties.
Zoë Buckman’s film, Show Me Your Bruises, Then, starring the artist alongside Sienna Miller and Cush Jumbo, is one of the most powerful artworks I’ve seen in the past decade, and I think it’s still pretty under the radar. I was really moved by talking to this British artist now based in New York and seeing how well received her work has been in the US; I feel strongly that she needs more support from UK institutions, but this will come in time, I’m sure. It’s been exciting to see the global success of another of our guests, painter Jadé Fadojutimi, who is well known now in South Korea, Japan, the US and Europe. Another emerging painter – and sculptor – is Michaela Yearwood-Dan. I love how she brings topics of nature and joy into her work and was blown away by her recent solo at London’s Queercircle: a temporary mural and installation including artist-made furniture and living plants in wall pots.
However, one absolute standout was meeting the photographer and curator Ronan Mckenzie, whose gallery space HOME in North London was an incredible example of how art can bring people together. The space Mckenzie provided for Black British artists was a nurturing platform for new ideas. It authentically encouraged togetherness, community and joy. Her ability to co-create exhibitions and films with other artists including Joy Yamusangie and her passion for highlighting diverse media and multidisciplinary artists will, I hope, change the art world, and how it operates, for the better. Although HOME’s physical space has now closed, it has been reimagined by Mckenzie as an expanded roaming gallery with a global reach instead of just one location – as a part of this she has already hosted a V&A Late event and exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts.
At Carl Freedman Gallery in Margate, we were so inspired by Mckenzie’s work that we offered her a two-month exhibition at our gallery, in which she highlighted the works of 25 Black artists from the UK and US. Within this exhibition there was a new film by Julianknxx, and Sola Olulode and Mabintou Badjie are both painters of exquisite skill and sensitivity. All three are also definitely emerging artists to keep an eye on. Mckenzie’s commitment to supporting new voices but also engaging in intergenerational dialogues between younger and older artists is unparalleled. Moving our gallery and print publishing business Counter Editions outside of London to the seaside town of Margate has afforded us something very rare: both physical and psychological space. What it has taught me is that we all urgently need to look further afield than the cities that appear to be the centre of everything. In fact, our decision to step away from the big city has led to our greatest commercial and critical success. We are able to put on independent, largescale, wide-reaching exhibitions in our 10,000sq foot gallery complex. Our visitor figures have increased to thousands and thousands from hundreds in London.
But it’s not just here in Margate that art is building community and enriching life for everyone. Again by the sea, Hastings Contemporary is going from strength to strength, similar to Turner Contemporary in Margate. I also love the Project Art Works arts studio complex and artist collective with over 70 participants in Hastings, which supports disabled and neurodiverse artists. It has staged some incredible exhibitions nationwide and was even shortlisted for the Turner Prize in 2021. My favourite artists who make work there include Joe Goldman, Aida Ashall and Jack Denness. I discovered them via curator Jennifer Lauren Gilbert, who runs an exhibition programme under the title of Jennifer Lauren Gallery at numerous temporary locations across the UK. In Scotland, I love the support that Jupiter Artland provides local people and artists as well as Collective Gallery, Talbot Rice and the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop.
Decentralisation may have been a risk, but it’s resulted in the most rewarding experiences, personally and professionally. It underpins that taking risks, and having the freedom, support and space to do so, is the most significant way for creativity to thrive.
Lead image credit: Naming the Money, (2004), Lubaina Himid
