Hot Sheet Exhibition in London
Our former producer joined Jasper Jones' in curating the 2023 photo exhibition Hot Sheet in London
You can now watch our next film streaming on culturala.org/film – Bruno Atkinson’s newly released Profit Motive and the Endless Sea on the desalination plant and its repercussions for Lanzarote, Canary Islands.
culturala
Hi Jasper, hi Lauren, nice to showcase your work with Hot Sheet – and very excited for this weekend when it's up! Especially as we're featuring several of the artists you've got in the show in our forthcoming digitalisation issue. I wanted to start by asking Jasper how you started the project. How did it all begin?
Jasper
I started the project out of a need to see an exhibition that celebrated the work I saw being made around me. I had so many talented artists I knew and worked with, so I wanted to create a space that highlighted these emerging artists.
Alongside this I wanted to show that each year brought a new challenge to photography; to create an exhibition that was not only a space for these emerging artists but also for the viewer to see photography in a new way.
culturala
This year's show is a little bit special, could you tell me a little bit more about the idea behind it?
Jasper
Oh yes, This is the first time we have two curators in the show, with Lauren coming on board. Not only that – we also have a theme this year: ‘change’. In our early discussions about the show, we kept finding a connection to this theme and felt it was an interesting way of exploring the ideas our artists are unpacking in their work.
culturala
Which artists are you showcasing and what's exciting about their work for you both? How did you do the selection process?
Jasper
We have eight artists exhibiting this year, Eleonora Agostini, Isabel Bonafe, Niamh Jones, Akane Kawahara, Selina Naouma, Victor Nyberg, Gokhan Tanriover and Xiangyin Tom Gu.
Each of the artists in the show works in the context of Hot Sheet’s ethos that draws from the photographic and challenges our understanding of it. They all bring a unique approach to photography, pushing the boundaries of the medium and its potential.
The selection process is a bit like an easter egg hunt. It's a lot of insta scrolling, exhibition visits and word of mouth of course. When you’ve set out to feature artists in the early stages of their careers, the curators’ main challenge is to find them.
Lauren
The artist we first discussed for the show was Isabel Bonafe. Her work really pushes the boundaries of photography and she set about the intention of creating something that has not been seen before whether that be in installation or sculptural form. From there it then became a goal of ours to also seek out other artists who approach photography in this similarly experimental way and push us as viewers to rethink the medium. Take Akane Kawahara for example, in her project Vision of seeing things invisible she used the camera to unveil a hidden beauty in everyday objects that can’t be seen by the naked eye. Instead of using photography in a classic way, Akane uses film, sculpture and print to take the viewer into the process of ‘seeing’, bringing us into a world seen through polarising filters.
culturala
Do you have any advice for artists who would like to be featured in shows like yours, what would you recommend that they do?
Jasper
You know, a DM and email, never go amiss. Reaching out to curators of the shows you want to be in and connecting with emerging curators is key in any artist's career.
Lauren
Most of the artists that were part of this year’s show were either seen by one of us at a grad show or another exhibition and in general, conversations started over a coffee or a zoom call to discuss their current projects, what we were looking for and what they wanted to showcase. Being open to having these conversations is so important, and to be engaged as an artist in reaching out, just like Jasper says. It’s pretty similar to when I was working on culturala with you, it’s all about speaking to people whether that’s on social media or via email. Most people don't bite ;)
culturala
Lauren, you started working with Jasper for this show as a co-curator. Very exciting to see you move into curatorial work! How have you found the process and what's interesting for you in this?
Lauren
It was definitely a new challenge and I hadn’t thought about doing an exhibition before Jasper asked me to join him in curating Hot Sheet. Jasper and I have known each other for years, and it was great to work with him when we featured him in culturala’s inaugural issue on Disappearance. Despite the challenges that come with putting on a show I knew was in great hands: he’d already put on Hot Sheet twice before and published a book when it wasn’t possible to host the exhibition during lockdown. We kept the process fun throughout and we just work really well together.
I also think that having worked on culturala there were definitely similarities in coordinating certain aspects of the show and also balancing a lot of different pieces of the pie.
In general, I really loved working on this project and especially the conversations with the artists about their work. It’s so important to build strong bonds and support artists’ work in different ways. It has been such a dreamy project. I'm so proud to be part of it and honoured that Jasper asked me to get on board. Can't wait for everyone to see it on Friday!
culturala
Last but not least, give us the deets! Where do we find the show, what time should we go and so on? And best of luck with the installation!
Jasper
The show is open 14th-15th April 11-5pm, but as we all know it's all about the opening night, so do come join us on the 14th 6-9pm!
Address: Downstairs at The Department Store, 248 Ferndale Road, London SW9 8FR
See you there!
With love,
culturala and Hot Sheet