Wicked Changes IV: Exploring Changing Narratives in East London

Felstead Art is pleased to present Wicked Changes IV, the next edition in the exhibition series exploring how East London artists respond to current social and urban challenges. 

The much-visited narratives of change in East London, in particular Hackney Wick where Felstead Art is based, are those of redevelopment; who is involved in creating the new image of the area, and who is left behind. Each year since 2021 Felstead Art has presented a select group of artists whose works define their observations and responses to the physical and social changes in their neighbourhood. 

This year 10 artists will be showcased; Cian O’Neill, Danny Purtill, Dwayne Brown, Herve Constant, Jeanette Barnes, Lydia Thornley, Matthew Payne, Nicola Hepworth, Susan Supercharged, and Willie Nash. 

East London has long been celebrated for its history of creative development and artistic exploration. The areas varied demographics have continually come together to find commonalities in how we approach the challenges of today. Concerns such as the cost of living, poverty, the environment, urban redevelopment, gentrification, and loss of creative spaces are all conflated into shared understandings and responsibilities. The steady erosion of local creative capital has shown how tangible support in creative communities is required now more than ever. 

Wicked Changes IV highlights the need to care for the artists’ voice and the need to preserve the creativity of the area. The exhibition offers insight into how artists respond to present challenges, to the new architectural languages of the area, and to how the new stakeholders in decision making have shifted the currents of creativity.