THE ART world seems to be returning from its recent hiatus due to the Pandemic – increasingly art landmarks are opening and adapting to the new normal. Negotiating changing social distancing practices means the gallery experience will be different but this has not dissuaded the Tate Modern gallery.
Installation view of Steve McQueen, Once Upon a Time 2002 and Static 2009 at Tate Modern, 2020. © Steve McQueen. Courtesy the artist, Thomas Dane Gallery and Marian Goodman Gallery © Photograph: Luke Walker
Following the reopening of all four Tate galleries last week, the Tate Modern has announced that its Steve McQueen exhibition will also be opening on Friday 7 August and will be extended to 6 September. The long-anticipated exhibition first opened in February this year and spans 20 years of McQueen’s work. In light of social distancing rules, the space has been modified with new visitor signage and will be reopened with a reduced visitor capacity.
Steve McQueen, Caribs’ Leap, 2002, Video still, © Steve McQueen.
Courtesy the artist, Thomas Dane Gallery and Marian Goodman Gallery
Featuring 14 major works spanning film, photography and sculpture – McQueen’s seminal pieces speak of urgent issues in society, including representation, identity and history. The exhibition at the Tate Modern presents an in-depth perspective of McQueen’s visual art career – for the first time in the UK since he received the Turner Prize in 1999. This seminal exhibition shows McQueen’s latest artwork Year 3, a major portrait project created through a partnership between Tate, Artangel and A New Direction.
Steve McQueen, Ashes, 2002-2015, Video still, © Steve McQueen.
Courtesy the artist, Thomas Dane Gallery and Marian Goodman Gallery
Frances Morris, Director of the Tate Modern said, “Building on what we have seen and learned over the past week, we have taken the time to ensure Steve McQueen’s landmark exhibition can now be reopened safely and in line with all the necessary guidelines. I’m so pleased that this poignant and timely show will once again be accessible to the public.”
The reopening of exhibitions such as this are essential in continuing to raise awareness of art as a political commentary, especially work such as McQueen’s which relays an important and necessary societal commentary in times like these.
by Rosie Fitter
Pre-book this and other exhibitions at the Tate Galleries online here