Keeping it Real: An Exhibition in Four Acts

Act 2: Subversive Abstraction

Past Exhibition


This exhibition was on 17 Sep- 5 Dec 2010

Abstract art in the twentieth century often had ideals of purity and transcendence, but the artists here make abstract work from everyday experiences and materials.

Dieter Roth presents cheese paintings which decompose in front of your eyes, alongside a rare early collage by Damien Hirst using materials such as books and pencils. Lynda Benglis’ knotted painting is one woman’s wry comment on the masculine heroism of American Abstract Expressionist painting, while David HammonsFlight Fantasy, 1995, with gold ornament, crystals and cropped dreadlocks brings black culture to western art. Mike Kelley’s floor sculpture of rugs and toys plays with romantic ideas of childhood innocence, while Daniel Subkoff’s shredded canvas questions whether a painting is always a flat object. Other artists on show include Robert Gober, Nikos Kessanlis, Julie Mehretu, Kori Newkirk and Rosemarie Trockel.

The second in a series of four displays from the D. Daskalopoulos Collection,
Greece, gives a chance to see this extraordinary artwork for the first time in London.

Keeping it Real is part of the Gallery’s ongoing programme providing a platform for important but rarely seen public and private collections.

Supported by:

List of Artists:

Act 1: The Corporeal (10 June–5 September 2010) Marina Abramovic, John Bock, Louise Bourgeois, Marcel Duchamp, Jimmie Durham, Robert Gober, David Hammons, Jim Hodges, Despina Isaia, Sherrie Levine, Sarah Lucas, Kiki Smith, Paul Thek, Sue Williams.

Act 2: Subversive Abstraction (17 September–5 December 2010) Lynda Benglis, Robert Gober, David Hammons, Damien Hirst, Mike Kelley, Nikos Kessanlis, Julie Mehretu, Kori Newkirk, Dieter Roth, Daniel Subkoff, Rosemarie Trockel.

Act 3: Current Disturbance (17 December 2010–6 March 2011) Mona Hatoum

Act 4: Material Intelligence (18 March–22 May 2011) Paul Chan, Sam Durant, Arturo Herrera, Martin Kippenberger, Gabriel Kuri, Rivane Neuenschwander, Cady Noland, Gabriel Orozco, Ester Partegas, Seth Price, Kelley Walker.