This open-call exhibition will run at the gallery from the 4th June until the 7th September.
The Whitechapel Gallery has announced the fifteen artists selected for the 2025 edition of The London Open which this year will focus on live art practices.
It has been confirmed that the 15 artists involved with this exhibition will be: Devika Bilimoria, Season Butler, Shaun Caton, Helen Davison, Tim Etchells, Plastique Fantastique, Helena Goldwater, i.as.in.we, William Mackrell, Nando Messias, Will Pegna, Roshana Rubin Mayhew, Mahsa Salali, Aaron Williamson and Joshua Woolford.
The London Open was established in 1932 to showcase local East End artists and the creative energy of the area. Since then it has been expanded to include the whole city and has provided an important launch pad for many of the UK’s leading artists including Larry Achiampong, Frank Bowling, Alice Channer, Anish Kapoor, Heather Phillipson, Paula Rego, Veronica Ryan, and Bob and Roberta Smith.
This year, it was decided that this edition will focus on performance and live art. The live art scene was badly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, not least due to the cancellation of live events and programmes during the various lockdowns. This inevitably resulted in decreased visibility as well as lack of investment and support for artists. The London Open Live aims to create new opportunities for artists working across live art practices, while showcasing the importance of participatory and collective practices through a dynamic programme of new and recent work.
Over all, 394 applications were received for this year’s edition from which the final 15 artists were selected. The judging panel comprised of Anne Bean, artist; Lois Keidan, co-founder of the Live Art Development Agency; Martin O’Brien, artist, Senior Lecturer in Live Art and Head of Department of Drama at Queen Mary University London; Harold Offeh, artist and Head of Programme for MA Contemporary Art Practice at the Royal College of Art, London; Leila Hasham, Head of Exhibitions, Whitechapel Gallery; and Hannah Woods, Assistant Curator, Whitechapel Gallery.
Performances will take place Thursday to Sunday throughout June-September 2025 and will be accompanied by a film programme looking at contemporary performance practice in London.
For more information visit: https://www.whitechapelgallery.org/exhibitions/london-open-live/