12 art exhibitions to see in London this week: 6 - 12 May 2024

Discover our top pick of art exhibitions to see in London this week:

Kati Heck: TIP-TOE-ECHO

Kati Heck's latest exhibition at Sadie Coles HQ features new paintings and sculptures challenging art history tropes. Influenced by still life and self-portraiture, Heck infuses each piece with surrealism, exploring themes like the unconscious and desire. The exhibition's layout guides viewers through a journey, reflecting on humanity's universal concerns. Reimagined historical paintings prompt contemplation on internal struggles and temptation. Animals transition from paintings to sculptures, blurring reality and imagination. Heck's presence within her works fosters interaction, echoing through time and space with profound significance.

Date: 11 April – 11 May 2024. Location: Sadie Coles HQ, 62 Kingly Street W1. Price: Free.

TIP-TOE-ECHO by Kati Heck is on show at Sade Coles HQ. Photo by MTotoe.

Shaqúelle Whyte: Yute, you’re gonna be fine

Pippy Houldsworth Gallery presents Shaqúelle Whyte's debut solo exhibition, Yute, you're gonna be fine. Whyte's paintings explore the human condition and materiality through ambiguous imagined spaces. His energetic brushwork and expansive compositions capture psychological turbulence, notably in ‘Kevin, you're next’. Animals and chiaroscuro add depth to his narratives, echoing Renaissance influences. Whyte's exhibition invites viewers to interpret his surreal yet familiar world, where stories weave in and out of time, embodying the artist's introspective journey.

Date: 25 April – 25 May 2024. Location: Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, 6 Heddon St, London W1B 4BT. Price: Free.

Rushdi Anwar: Endless Tears in the Garden of Eden

Endless Tears in the Garden of Eden is Rushdi Anwar's exploration of his experiences as a Kurd from Kurdistan. It delves into the impact of colonialism, the resilience of Kurdish culture, and the ongoing struggle against oppression. Through sculptures, installations, and other mediums, Anwar examines these themes using materials like rugs and historical texts. The exhibition reflects on the region's complex history, including its association with the biblical Garden of Eden, while highlighting the challenges faced by Kurdish communities amidst conflict and displacement.

Date: 11 April - 18 May 2024. Location: Ab-Anbar Gallery, 34 Mortimer St, London W1W 7JS. Price: Free.

Amel Bashier’s solo exhibition ورد الجوري ‘Ward el Juri is on show at Addis Fine Art.

Amel Bashier: رد الجوري ‘Ward el Juri

 Addis Fine Art are showcasing Amel Bashier’s solo exhibition ورد الجوري ‘Ward el Juri, which translates to ‘damask rose,’ named after her daughter. The exhibition showcases new paintings and recent works on paper. Bashier’s art reflects on the concept of freedom, particularly for women, intertwining it with nature's growth and persistence. Her paintings depict women as symbols of bravery and power, while natural elements symbolise inner vitality and potential. Bashier's work is socially engaged, addressing themes of peace and freedom amidst ongoing war in Sudan. Through meticulous techniques like pointillism and intricate ink drawings, she creates visual narratives that offer both personal catharsis and seeds of hope for a positive future amidst conflict.

Date: 24 April – 15 June 2024. Location: Addis Fine Art London, 21 Eastcastle St, London W1W 8DD. Price: Free.

Alina Frieske: Nightly Newsfeed

Alina Frieske's solo exhibition Nightly Newsfeed blurs the lines between photography and painting, delving into our relationship with digital media and touch. Using clippings from online images, she creates tactile compositions that reflect the virtual realities of our digital age. Each layer of her work serves as a brushstroke, blending fragments into new compositions that highlight the tension between exposure and concealment online. Frieske's work prompts reflection on identity and the influence of social networks on our daily lives.

Date: 2 May - 2 June, 2024. Location: Pipeline, 35 Eastcastle St, London W1W 8DW. Price: Free.

Marc Quinn: Light into Life

Light into Life is a new exhibition by artist Marc Quinn at Kew Gardens. Featuring 17 stainless steel and bronze sculptures placed throughout the Gardens and Temperate House, alongside Quinn's paintings and sculptures in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery. Quinn's mirrored sculptures blur boundaries between viewer, sculpture, and landscape, reflecting the interconnectedness of nature and humanity. Collaborating with Kew scientists, Quinn's artworks highlight the importance of plants in human life.

Date: 4 May – 29 September 2024. Location: Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art, Kew Gardens, Kew, Richmond, London, TW9 3AE. Price: Entry to the festival is free with a ticket to Kew Gardens. From adult £20, child: £5.50.

Held by Desire Cloud Garden 2023. © Marc Quinn Studio. Photo Hayden Phipps.

Adam Rouhana: Before Freedom

Adam Rouhana's body of work, Before Freedom, began in 2022 and focuses on the present moment in Palestine, just before the envisioned freedom. Rouhana, who has been photographing Palestine since childhood, presents a curated selection of images in his first solo exhibition. Curated by Amah-Rose Abrams, the exhibition aims to offer a truth about Palestinian life that transcends biased documentary photography. The images aim to immerse viewers in the reality of Palestinian existence, moving beyond conventional narratives. While his work has garnered attention from publications like The New York Times, Aperture, and Dazed, this exhibition marks its first public showing.

Date: 3 May 2024 – 18 May 2024. Location: Frieze No.9 Cork Street, 9 Cork Street, London, W1S 3LL. Price: Free.

Saroj Patel: Ocean Mother

Ocean Mother by Saroj Patel, showcased at Orleans House Gallery as part of their Emerging Artists programme, explores the narratives of South Asian mothers in the UK.Through intimate conversations with 26 women, the exhibition uncovers how migration, culture, and motherhood intersect in shaping identities. Saroj's personal connection with her mother, Sushila, exemplifies resilience amidst struggle. Ocean Mother celebrates the power of maternal stories to shape inclusive futures across generations.

Date: 12 April 2024 – 2 June 2024. Location: Orleans House Gallery,Orleans Rd, Twickenham TW1 3BL. Price: Free.

Fabian Ramírez: Firing of the Idols

Castor presents Fabian Ramírez's inaugural exhibition, Firing of the Idols, at the Grade Two Listed Holy Trinity Church in Islington. Ramírez's paintings, created using the encaustic process, depict scenes of transformation and ritualistic symbolism. Drawing from Indigenous culture and Christian history, Ramírez explores themes of colonialism, syncretism, and cultural negotiation. His artworks challenge traditional narratives, offering a nuanced perspective on the blending of Indigenous and Spanish cultures in Mexico. Through his intricate compositions, Ramírez invites viewers to reflect on the continuous evolution of cultural identities and the enduring power of ritualistic practices.

Date: 10 April 2024 – 18 May 2024. Location: Castor, Holy Trinity, Cloudesley Square, London N1 0HN. Price: Free.

Jeremy Hutchison - Dead White Man: Effigies at Pi Artworks. Photo by MTotoe.

Jeremy Hutchison - Dead White Man: Effigies

Pi Artworks presents Dead White Man: Effigies, a solo exhibition by UK artist Jeremy Hutchison. Through video, sculpture, collage, photography, and performance, Hutchison explores the global trade in secondhand clothes. Each year, billions of garments are donated to charity, with the majority ending up in Africa, where they are sold or discarded. Hutchison, embodying his own subject position as a white Western male, becomes the embodiment of this industry, wearing sculptures made from secondhand clothes sourced in West Africa. The exhibition features an installation of effigies, miniature icons of the Dead White Man, fashioned from clothes primarily sourced in West African street markets. A projected video reverses the secondhand supply chain, with the Dead White Man haunting the shopping malls and corporate HQs of fast fashion brands, contesting claims of charity and sustainability. Dead White Man has been in development since 2017, with Hutchison collaborating extensively with Ghanaian activist group,The Or Foundation.

Date: 25 April - 8 June 2024. Location: Pi Artworks, 55 Eastcastle St, London W1W 8EG. Price: Free.

Enorê, Leila Dear, Ufuoma Essi: Studio 01

Somerset House Studios presents Studio 01, an exhibition showcasing the work of three emerging visual artists: enorê, Leila Dear, and Ufuoma Essi. Developed during an 18-month residency supported by Jerwood, the exhibition explores themes of memory, interconnectedness, and alternative modes of existence. : 8 March - 07 July 2024. Location: G31, New Wing, Somerset House Studios, Strand, London WC2R 1LA. Price: Free.

code new state by Emanuel de Carvalho is on show at Gathering Gallery. Photo by MTotote.

Emanuel de Carvalho: code new state

De Carvalho's sculptures challenge perceptions, drawing from his background in medicine to explore how social norms shape how we see the world. His exhibition, 'code new state,' hints at alternative states of being, he distorts spaces, evoking discomfort and disorientation. Influenced by neurology and the concept of plasticity, De Carvalho's art encourages viewers to reconsider their relationship with perception and the environment.

Date: 26 April - 1 June 2024. Location: Gathering, 5 Warwick St, London W1B 5LU.Price: Free.