Institute of Contemporary Arts

Dispersion

Anne Collier, Folded Madonna Poster (Steven Meisel), 2007. Courtesy the artist and Corvi-Mora, London.

Henrik Olesen, Hito Steyerl, Seth Price, Anne Collier, Hilary Lloyd, Maria Eichhorn and Mark Leckey.

Five Best Exhibitions in the Evening Standard
Pick of the Week, Guardian Guide
"One of the best group shows at the ICA for a long while." James Westcott, Artreview.com
"...It’s a brilliant and socially challenging start to the ICA’s latest show that, through seven artists, sets out to explore the appropriation and malleability of images. ***" Zena Alkayat, Metro
"...the very lifeblood of the institution. ‘Dispersion’ presents the latest in a long line of hard-to-fathom artistic positions, which shouldn’t be ignored just because they’re hard to categorise. ****" Ossian Ward, Time Out

Dispersion presents seven international artists who work with photography, film, video and performance. All of these artists explore the appropriation and circulation of images in contemporary society, examining the role of money, desire and power in our accelerated image economy – from the art market to the internet and art historical icons to pornography.

The works in Dispersion often take the form of archives, histories or collections, sometimes adopting an anthropological approach. In many cases, they are characterised by an interest in feminism and gender politics in the realm of sexuality and sub-culture. All the works however are informed by personal or idiosyncratic narratives, exploring the role of subjectivity in the contemporary flow of imagery and capital.

The title Dispersion is drawn from an essay written by participating artist Seth Price, which reflects on the role of 'distributed media' in avant-garde practice, from Duchamp to Conceptual Art. The exhibition has been curated for the ICA by Polly Staple, the recently appointed director of the Chisenhale, London and includes six gallery-based presentations as well as a special performance in the ICA Theatre.

Download the Dispersion Gallery Guide (pdf, 1MB)

Please note that the platform lift which allows step-free access to the lower gallery is currently out of order. Please contact Centre Manager James van Werven on james@ica.org.uk or +44 (0)20 7766 1442 for further information.

Dispersion in pictures