History Is Now

In the run up to the General Election in 2015, the Hayward Gallery exhibition History Is Now will offer a new way of thinking about how we got to where we are today. Seven UK based artists - John Akomfrah, Simon Fujiwara, Roger Hiorns, Hannah Starkey, Richard Wentworth, and Jane and Louise Wilson – have each been invited to curate sections of the exhibition, looking at particular periods of cultural history from 1945 to the present day.

History is Now:7 Artists Take on Britain offers an inventive way of exploring the country’s recent history; spanning ideas and topics as varied as the Cold War, post-Thatcherite society, protest movements, feminism, ‘mad cow disease’ and celebrity culture. Working with Dr Cliff Lauson, Hayward Gallery Curator, the artists have selected over 250 objects, which come from both public and private collections, as well as draw upon informal collections and objects such as photographs, newspapers, films, domestic items, and artefacts. Much of the material borrowed from libraries, archives and science, history and local museums has never been seen previously in the context of an art gallery.

Artworks to be shown will include those by: Keith Arnatt, Tony Cragg, Gilbert and George, Richard Hamilton, Barbara Hepworth, Damien Hirst, David Hockney, Ryan Gander, Henry Moore, Hayley Newman, Ben Nicholson, Martin Parr, Toby Patterson, Eduardo Paolozzi, Sam Taylor-Johnson, Penny Slinger and Christine Vogue among many others.