2020 at a glance: bold ideas and altered perspectives

This year sees a bold programme of exhibitions and events, exploring iconic movements in art history, contemporary ideas and enduring motifs.

Our Director, Jennifer Scott said: “Our 2020 programme is imaginative and daring - from deadly typewriters in British Surrealism, to the influence of cauliflowers on science in Unearthed: Photography’s Roots, to a fresh interpretation of voyeurism for the post #MeToo generation in Woman in the Window. It marks a fantastic start to a new decade of creative experiences at Dulwich Picture Gallery." 

Here's everything you can look forward to at the Gallery this year...

Spring

Our new display, Journeys, explores stories of migration from the 17th Century to today. The display has been co-curated by Community Curators, each with personal stories or experiences of migration, hailing from all over the world. An ambitious, multi-disciplinary project exploring migration and belonging through art, Journeys also includes a new animation commission, special events and professional development opportunities. See the display until 24 June, and look out for a special event programme, soon to be announced.

British Surrealism opens later this month, showcasing over 70 extraordinary works from the British artists who helped shape an iconic movement, including Leonora Carrington, Henry Moore and Paul Nash, as well as lesser-known figures such as Marion Adnams, Conroy Maddox and Grace Pailthorpe. Embark on a journey into the unexpected, with innovative design and rooms that reject order and chronology to evoke the movement's playful and provocative side. Surrealism was born out of the uncertainty of a post-war world: now is an apt moment to rediscover the relevance of these unnerving and inspiring works. 

The exhibition has inspired our new season of The Unexpected with a range of events from art courses exploring the subconscious to stand-up comedy, theatre, family fun and more. 

See what's on

Summer

This summer, our first major photography exhibition Unearthed: Photography’s Roots will explore the history of the art form through the lens of plants, nature and botany, featuring some of the earliest known photographs alongside contemporary interventions. Questioning the true age of photography, the exhibition begins with some of the first known Victorian images by William Henry Fox Talbot, positioning his experimentation with paper negatives as the very beginning of the art form. Rooms will range from typology and form, to experiments with colour and modernism and bohemia. Our unique buildings and grounds will be central to the experience - the Mausoleum will host work by renowned video artist, Ori Gersht (b.1967), On Reflection, displayed publicly for the first time in the UK, and our gardens will encourage your own still life photography experiments.

Autumn

Our final exhibition of 2020 will be the first to explore the enigmatic motif of the Woman in the Window. From ancient civilisations, to Italian Renaissance paintings, to installation art in the 21^st century, the show will explore how artists historically portray different ideals, morals and fears through this recurring subject. It wil bring together work by artists including Louise Bourgeois (1911-2010), Marina Abramović (b. 1946), Edgar Degas (1834-1917) and Howard Hodgkin (1932-2017) to explore themes of voyeurism, visibility, gender and the gaze. Highlights include Hodgkin’s Girl by a Window (1964), Abramovi’s Role Exchange (1975) and Bourgeois’ My Blue Sky (1989-2003), as well as a work from our Collection, Rembrandt’s Girl at a Window (1645), the springboard for the exhibition.

Throughout 2020

This year we are also hoping to transform the way visitors see our collection. Our Leading Lights appeal aims to bring out the untold stories of our paintings, by installing a state of the art LED lighting system which is already in place in our exhibition spaces. Find out more about how you can donate to make this a reality. 

Official Paint Partner

Image credits: Willem van de Velde the younger, A Brisk Breeze, c.1665. Conroy Maddox, The Lesson, 1938/1970, © Christie’s Images Limited, Given with the kind permission of the artist’s daughter. John Bigge, Composition, 1936, Photo: Ferens Art Gallery: Hull Museums, © The Estate of John Bigge. Kazumasa Ogawa, Morning Glory, from ‘Some Japanese Flowers’, ca. 1894. Photo copyright Dulwich Picture Gallery. Charles Jones, Broccoli Leamington, c.1895-1910, © Sean Sexton, Photo copyright Dulwich Picture Gallery. Viscountess Clementina Hawarden, Clementina Maude, 5 Princes Gardens, c. 1863-64. Photo: Victoria and Albert Museum, London; Louise Bourgeois, My Blue Sky, 1989-03 © The Easton Foundation/VAGA at ARS, NY and DACS, London 2020.

4 Feb 2020