Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme
Artist David Tremlett's '3 Drawing Rooms' installation at Birmingham's Ikon gallery will be on view from 4 December 2013 to 21 April 2014. The exhibition starts the 2014-2015 programme, honouring the gallery's 50th anniversary
(Image credit: TBC)

It may look traditional from the outside, located as it is in a Victorian school building, but Birmingham's Ikon gallery is anything but. As one of the country's pioneering regional galleries, it has played a key role in the career development of many contemporary artists from Cornelia Parker to Dennis Oppenheim. Next year marks its 50th anniversary, and to celebrate, it has a bumper line-up for the year ahead, kicking off with an exhibition by British artist David Tremlett (spanning into the New Year) and calling on some of the artists it holds dear to create new works that will go on show in the gallery's Tower Room throughout 2014.

This week, Tremlett's '3 Drawing Rooms' covers the gallery with his signature site-specific wall drawings and geometric patterns, in situ until April. The installation, made using pastel pigment applied by hand, raises the viewer's awareness of the space surrounding them. His show will be swiftly followed by Kurdish artist Jamal Penjweny's first solo show, who will exhibit film and photography, including his series 'Saddam is Here', which garnered critical acclaim at the 2013 Venice Biennale.

As the gallery's milestone year unfolds, Michel François, Lee Bul, Imran Qureshi, AK Dolven and Nástio Mosquito will all take part in a blockbuster exhibition programme, while 'Ikon 1980s' - a survey of the gallery's activities from 1978-1989 - promises to be a summer highlight. But key to next year's programme is 'Ikon Icons', which will see five previously exhibiting artists from across as many decades return to the gallery to exhibit work, culminating 50 years of the gallery's success.

Birmingham-born photorealist painter John Salt was the first artist to exhibit at Ikon, in 1964, when it occupied a kiosk in the Bull Ring shopping centre. He will kick off the celebrations by representing the 1960s. Salt is followed by Ian Emes, who is best known for his film animations for Pink Floyd during the 1970s. Cornelia Parker, who studied in Wolverhampton, was supported throughout the 1980s by the gallery (which showed her seminal work 'Thirty Pieces of Silver' 1988), making her an apt representative for that decade. Meanwhile, British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare, whose 'Victorian Philanthropist's Parlour' was shown at Ikon in 1996, stands for the 1990s, and Julian Opie represents the millennium.

'Ikon is renowned for its internationalism,' says the gallery director Jonathan Watkins, 'and the 50th anniversary programme will include artists who are just starting to emerge and those from other parts of the world as well as the UK.' At the end of 2014, Ikon will unveil a bronze sculpture by Gillian Wearing sited outside the Library of Birmingham. Entitled 'A Real Birmingham Family', it features two glamorous sisters of Asian ethnicity with their sons. Ikon's 1980s icon, Cornelia Parker says: 'What Jonathan is doing is brilliant. He's doing it before everyone else; bringing it back to Birmingham.'

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Best known for his large-scale, site-specific geometric drawings, Tremlett has applied pastel pigment directly by hand onto the gallery's walls

(Image credit: TBC)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Tremlett's work raises the viewer's awareness of the space surrounding them

(Image credit: TBC)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

The installation incorporates the architectural features of the gallery

(Image credit: TBC)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Tremlett creates his work on-site at Ikon, working from a down-sized sketch

(Image credit: TBC)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Tremlett aims to create new vistas and form new views of the built environment

(Image credit: TBC)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

He uses pastel pigment as his medium because of its fragility and contrasting boldness

(Image credit: TBC)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme


(Image credit: Ikon Gallery)

It may look traditional from the outside, located as it is in a Victorian school building, but Birmingham's Ikon gallery is anything but. As one of the country's pioneering regional galleries, it has played a key role in the career development of many contemporary artists from Cornelia Parker to Dennis Oppenheim.

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme


(Image credit: Ikon Gallery)

Ikon was established in 1964 by a group of artists in need of a creative hub. The original locale was in a glass-sided kiosk in the Bull Ring shopping centre in Birmingham. Local photorealist painter John Salt was the first fine artist to exhibit in 1965.

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

From 1978-1998, Ikon was located on John Bright Street. As part of the celebration, the 'Ikon 1980s' exhibition will showcase a review of its programme during its time here.

(Image credit: Ikon Gallery)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme


(Image credit: Ikon)

Here, we take a look at the artists being spotlighted in Ikon's future shows...
Jamal Penjweny: A show by the Kurdish artist opens the Ikon 50 exhibition series from 19 February to 21 April 2014. In his first solo show, the emerging artist will exhibit film and photography, including his series 'Saddam is Here', which garnered critical acclaim at the 2013 Venice Biennale. Pictured: 'Saddam is Here', 2010.

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Michel François: From 30 April to 22 June 2014, François will show a comprehensive exhibition featuring sculpture, film, paintings, prints and photography. The Belgian artist maintains that 'Art, after all, is life sculpted'. Pictured: 'A Jump in Cuba', 1996.

(Image credit: Ikon)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Lee Bul: The Korean artist will present her first UK solo exhibition from 10 September to 9 November. Moving through her portfolio, the exhibit explores her interest in the failings of utopian optimism. Pictured: 'Sternbau No. 2', 2007.

(Image credit: Lee Bul)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme


(Image credit: Ikon)

Imran Qureshi
: Named Deutsche Bank's 2013 'Artist of the Year', the Pakistan-born artist will exhibit at Ikon from 19 November 2014 to 25 January 2015. Regarded as one of the most important contemporary artists of the Subcontinent, he reclaims the deeply rooted discipline of miniature painting and places it in today's context, incorporating his own interpretations and observations on current affairs. Pictured: 'Self-Portrait', 2009.

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme


(Image credit: AK Dolven)

AK Dolven: The Norwegian artist, whose installation runs from 3 February to 19 April 2015, places her work beside that of nineteenth century painter Peder Balke (1804-1887).  She engages with Balke's works, using them as found objects interspersed throughout her own exhibit.

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme


(Image credit: TBC)

Nástio Mosquito: The Angolan artist's work stands in stark contrast to Dolven's. Running simultaneously at Ikon, Mosquito's energetic installation uses music, photography, film and performance to comment on our globalised world in an intelligent yet playful manner. Pictured: a still from 'Nástio Answers Gabi', 2003

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme


(Image credit: John Salt)

John Salt: Five artists who have shown throughout Ikon's five decades come together for 'Ikon Icons', an installation culminating 50 years of the gallery's success. Each of the five icons continues a symbiotic relationship with the gallery and has reached success due in part to its support. The first to exhibit is photorealist painter John Salt from 19 February to 21 April 2014. Pictured: 'White Chevy Red Trailer', 1975.

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Ian Emes: The artist, who first showed with Ikon in 1973 with a film animation visualising the music of Pink Floyd, will show from 30 April to 22 June 2014. Pictured: a still from 'French Window', 1975.

(Image credit: Ikon, Ian Emes)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Cornelia Parker: Working with Ikon throughout the eighties, Parker rejoins the fold with an installation that will run from 2 July to 31 August 2014. Pictured here: 'Thirty Pieces of Silver', 1988.

(Image credit: Ikon, Cornelia Parker)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Yinka Shonibare: Part of a younger generation of artists, Shonibare first showed with Ikon in 1999. His installation will run from 10 September to 9 November 2014. Pictured: 'Five Undergarments and Much More', 1995.

(Image credit: Yinka Shonibare)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Julian Opie: The artist's first exhibition at Ikon in 2001 filled the gallery with instantly recognisable works. Opie will transform the space again from 19 November 2014 to 25 January 2015.

(Image credit: Julian Opie)

Ikon marks its 50th anniversary with a blockbuster exhibition programme

Gillian Wearing: As part of the Ikon 50 series, Gillian Wearing will reveal her 'A Real Birmingham Family' Sculpture outside the Library of Birmingham. The Jones family, pictured here, will be eternally cast as representatives of the UK city.

(Image credit: Ikon)

ADDRESS

Ikon
1 Oozells Square
Brindleyplace
Birmingham B1 2HS

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Emma O'Kelly is a freelance journalist and author based in London. Her books include Sauna: The Power of Deep Heat and she is currently working on a UK guide to wild saunas, due to be published in 2025.