Denzil Forrester No Such Thing as Society

Against a backdrop of economic and social transformation, artists in the 1980s explored their experience of the land and the body to reflect on their own identities and sense of belonging.

Many of the artists in this presentation make work reflecting on life in Britain. Artists reframe their familiar ideas to express a combination of hope and frustration. Britain is viewed from the North of England, suburban gardens, the streets of Brixton in South London, and the Maze Prison in Northern Ireland. Other artists focus on the body to explore the boundaries between private and public social space. Some reflect on the experience of illness and death. Others make work about gender identity, sexuality or racial violence, using their personal experiences of being othered or excluded.