16 June – 16 July 2021
Organised by ten emerging curators from across the UK, Europe and the US, Both Sides of Here is a digital exhibition accompanied by a physical element in the form of a public sculpture map around London.
The exhibition explored real and conceptual thresholds by looking at artworks that capture the richness of human experiences, exploring themes of gender, sexuality, architecture, the body and states of consciousness, while also addressing the threshold in terms of access, privilege and social mobility.
Works by 30 artists from The Courtauld’s collection and the Arts Council Collection, including Édouard Manet’s A Bar at the Folies-Bergère (1882), Lucas Cranach the Elder’s Adam and Eve (1526) and Francis Bacon’s Head VI (1949) were presented in the exhibition with new and refreshing perspectives.
These masterpieces are brought into dialogue with more contemporary pieces such as Rachel Whiteread’s Untitled (6 spaces) (1994) and Damien Hirst’s Relationships (1991), in a series of rich and revelatory configurations.
Both Sides of Here was accompanied by video and audio elements including artist interviews and studio visits, and by a fully illustrated exhibition catalogue with newly commissioned essays.
The public could also enjoy a series of outdoor sculptural encounters that critically reinterpret a series of existing public sculptures in London, including John Maine’s Arena (1983), located in front of the National Theatre.
