Artists to take over London’s East End with all-nighter

The gentrification of London’s East End is well under way, however, look closer and there are sites that remain untouched, uninhabited and almost unknown. This year’s edition of Art Night will take place across the historic area, in venues from Shoreditch High Street to the Whitechapel Gallery but in lesser used spaces such as a Grade-II listed Masonic Temple at Andaz London and underneath Tower Bridge, in the Bascule Chamber.

The free event, taking place in July and curated by Fatoș Üstek, invites Jake and Dinos Chapman, Charles Avery, Lawrence Lek, Benedict Drew, Anne Hardy, Melanie Manchot, Lindsay Seers, Carsten Nicolai, Do Ho Suh, Güneș Terkol, and Ian Whittlesea to show existing or new works created in dialogue with the various buildings and spaces.

“For Art Night 2017, I wanted to explore the theme of ‘Fusions of Horizons’, inviting visitors to engage in multifarious dialogues whilst bringing their own aspirations and dreams,” explained Üstek. “I have formulated the festival experience as a series of situations that are evocative of horizons that lie ahead, through which we see and understand the world around us. Fostered by the commissions, the festival celebrates the multiplicity that the East End holds, with its diverse architectural, societal, psychological and linguistic profile.”

Visitors can expect to see Avery’s fictitious land “the Island” brought to life including the transformation of the White Mulberries café into the bar depicted in his work “The Egg Eating Egret”. The Chapmans will unveil a new video installation titled “The Misshapenness of Things to Come” inside a warehouse at London Dock, accompanied by a live performance by Jake Chapman’s band. A second space – the Dennis Severs’ House – will also host defaced prints by the brothers amongst its existing decor. Lawrence Lek will use the White Chapel Building, which has recently been developed into a modern office space, to create a new computer-generated video game that explores the utopian potential of London’s future workspaces. And the night will culminate with Boiler Room hosting artist Carsten Nicolai (aka Alva Noto) amongst other DJs at Shoreditch’s Village Underground in celebration of the area’s notorious and nefarious nightlife.

Art Night 2017 takes place on 1 July 2017, with all events free except for Boiler Room at Village Underground. For more information, click here