While museums around the world are shuttered due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Apollo’s usual weekly pick of exhibition openings will be replaced by a selection of digital initiatives providing virtual access to art and culture.
The festival supposed to take place on 24 April–10 May has been postponed to next year – and, for now, a digital programme has taken its place. Seven of the artists set to exhibit in the physical event have contributed audio and audiovisual works and there are recorded talks and panel discussions, all freely accessible online until 10 May. A mix of pre-existing and commissioned material has been included, ranging from an early sound piece by Georgina Starr (Yesterday, 1991) to a recently completed video by the Scottish-Barbadian artist Alberta Whittle titled business as usual: hostile environment (2020). The latter, which focuses on the Windrush scandal in the UK, was reworked at the last minute to highlight the role of immigrant healthcare workers during the current crisis; across the board, the all-too-topical themes of sickness, solitude and uncertainty recur.
Preview below | View Apollo’s Art Diary here
business as usual: hostile environment (still; 2020), Alberta Whittle. Courtesy the artist
In Vitro (all the love mix) (still; 2020), Jenkin Van Zyl. Courtesy the artist
Give us a Meow (still; 2019), Urara Tsuchiya with Ben Toms. Courtesy the artist