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Posted on March 20th 2025
Art Trip to 'New Contemporaries' at ICA
Last Friday, our Year 10 Art class, as well as some younger Art Prefects, went to see the New Contemporaries 2025 exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) in central London.
New Contemporaries was founded in 1949 and supports early-career artists with artist-development programmes and a prestigious annual exhibition.
This year, our HBAED artist-in-residence, Molly Burrows, had a work featured in the exhibition, and she took our students on a walk-through of the space. It was wonderful to see the boys so engaged, and excited by a contemporary art space which prompted them to think creatively and laterally, and to engage with big ideas. Visiting spaces like the ICA is a wonderful opportunity for our students, and helps to broaden their understanding of what art can be.
Agit, Year 9, shares some thoughts about one of the works in the exhibition
The piece was called Grandma’s (gl) Ceiling by Motunrayo Akinola. It consisted of slabs of concrete, cardboard and Victorian wallpaper, appearing damaged and worn in appearance, hanging from the gallery ceiling.
The piece might be about the poor living conditions of some families, having to repair their house roofs with any material they can get hold of. Furthermore, its height compared to the actual ceiling above created a claustrophobic effect, linking into how some families might live in small, cramped homes.
The piece can link to the cost-of-living crisis in the UK, and could speak out about how the working-classes have been struggling with their housing quality over the past years. The piece could also link to the idea of 'family bragging', a concept where a member of your family makes a part of their story sound much better than it actually is. This is used through the incorporation of Victorian wallpaper, appearing grander than the ripped-up cardboard it lays upon.
Overall, the piece really portrays the idea of poverty with its collage-like effect and its usage of three contrasting materials to portray its message.
Grandma’s (gl) Ceiling by Motunrayo Akinola.
Molly Burrows, HBAED artist-in-residence, touring our students through the exhibition.
Molly Burrows, our artist-in-residence produced this Publication for Young Visitors.
