Hayward Gallery and Art Night are hooking up to produce London’s largest free contemporary arts festival on Saturday 7 July 2018 for the most ambitious night to date. Running along the Thames from Southbank Centre through Vauxhall and Nine Elms to Battersea, Art Night will feature commissions and artists’ projects in iconic and off-the-beaten-track venues for just one night. The festival will be curated by Hayward Gallery, to coincide with the Gallery’s 50th Anniversary in July 2018.
New commissions, performances and artworks premiering in the UK by selected leading contemporary artists will animate exceptional historic sites, iconic landmarks, secret venues and public spaces around Southbank Centre, Vauxhall, Nine Elms and Battersea. Art Night is generously supported by international auction house Phillips for the third year running.
“We are excited to be partnering with Art Night and we are looking forward to building on Hayward Gallery’s rich history of presenting ambitious off-site projects by leading contemporary artists. We are all delighted to be working with the Art Night team on the 2018 programme and we are enjoying the challenges and marvelous opportunities associated with presenting art and performance in surprising venues and along the streets of this interesting part of London.”
Ralph Rugoff, Director of Southbank Centre’s Hayward Gallery, November 2017
Art Night will continue to feature an extensive Associate Programme put together by local organisations, galleries, artists and curators, with screenings, workshops, exhibitions, gigs and more.
Art Night is conceived and organised by Unlimited Productions. Taking inspiration from Paris’ popular ‘Nuit Blanche’, Art Night partners with a leading cultural institution and an independent curator each year. For one night-only, an area of London is transformed and activated by artists offering an engaging programme of events and artworks to the public. Art Night is open to all and free.
The first edition of the festival in July 2016 was led by the Institute of Contemporary Arts and curator Kathy Noble. It attracted over 35,000 people in Westminster. Art Night 2017, curated by Fatos Ustek and the Whitechapel Gallery, saw over 75,000 visit across 70 sites in the East End of London in July 2017. Featured artists included Charles Avery, Alexandra Bachzetsis, Jake & Dinos Chapman, Benedict Drew, Anne Hardy, Celia Hempton, Joan Jonas, Lawrence Lek, Linder, Melanie Manchot, Laure Prouvost, Lindsay Seers, Do Ho Suh and many more.
Art Night 2017: Robert Montgomery ‘Money Is A Superstition’ from Tom Matchett on Vimeo.
Full details of London’s Art Night 2018 programme including final list of artists, venues and partnerships, will be announced in Spring 2018.
