The Classical Now exhibition runs from 2 March to 28 April 2018 at King's College London

The Department of Classics and the Faculty of Arts & Humanities at King’s are delighted to announce the opening of The Classical Now at Bush House Arcade and Somerset House East Wing! The exhibition forms part of a research project conducted in the Department of Classics on ‘Modern Classicisms’. 

Alongside ancient Greek and Roman objects (in ceramic, bronze, mosaic and marble), The Classical Now explores responses to the classical tradition from roughly the 1930s to the present day. It is the largest exhibition ever to be held at King’s, featuring more than 50 works.

Modern and contemporary artists featured in the show include Edward Allington, Pablo Bronstein, Léo Caillard, Jean Cocteau, Michael Craig-Martin, André Derain, Hans-Peter Feldmann, Ian Hamilton Finlay, Damien Hirst, Alex Israel, Derek Jarman, Yves Klein, Louise Lawler, Christopher Le Brun, Roy Lichtenstein, George Henry Longly, Ursula Mayer, Henry Moore, Bruce Nauman, Christodoulos Panayiotou, Giulio Paolini, Grayson Perry, Frances Picabia, Pablo Picasso, Marc Quinn, Mary Reid Kelley & Patrick Kelley, Sacha Sosno, Mark Wallinger and Rachel Whiteread. 

The Classical Now also incorporates the video-installation, ‘Liquid Antiquity: Conversations’, featuring interviews with six contemporary artists (Matthew Barney, Paul Chan, Urs Fischer, Jeff Koons, Asad Raza and Kaari Upson) – commissioned by the DESTE Foundation for Contemporary Art, and designed by Diller, Scofidio + Renfro.

The Classical Now forms part of a larger project on ‘ Modern Classicisms’, led by Michael Squire in the Department of Classics at King’s. The exhibition has been curated by Michael Squire (Reader in Classical Art at King’s), and James Cahill and Ruth Allen (post-doctoral fellows in ‘Modern Classicisms’). The Classical Now is presented by the Department of Classics (part of the Faculty of Arts & Humanities) and Cultural Programming at King’s College London, in partnership with MACM (Musée d’Art Classique de Mougins). The exhibition is accompanied by a book with the same title (RRP £30), produced by Elephant Publishing: the book features interviews with many of the artists in the exhibition, alongside essays by some of the leading voices in the fields of classics and art history.

We have also organised a programme of cultural events to accompany the exhibition. The full programme can be seen here.

Entrance to The Classical Now is free, and all are very warmly invited to join us.

Dates: 2 March – 28 April 2018
Opening times: Tuesday–Saturday, 11:00–17:00Venues: The Arcade at Bush House, King’s College London, Strand, WC2B 4PJ & Inigo Rooms, Somerset House East Wing, King’s College London, Strand, WC2R 2LS

Free entry

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE CLASSICAL NOW, PLEASE CLICK HERE.