Young blood: Joseph Nahmad launches new London gallery space
If you could change one thing what would it be? Greek performance artist Tomàs Diafas asks the question to visitors to the new Cork Street home of Nahmad Projects. We write our answers on a piece of paper, and he gathers them up and bellows them out with his back to the audience. ‘Grandmother.’ ‘Job.’ ‘Girlfriend.’ Everyone laughs. He remains impassive.
The event marks the opening of the new gallery space, founded by Joseph Nahmad, 27-year-old member of the Nahmad art dealing dynasty. The revamped space will focus on contemporary emerging artists, main operations (post war and modern art) having decamped to St James’s Square last year.
‘We want to change the gallery model,’ says Nahmad Projects co-director Tommaso Calabro, ‘in here, there’s not really anything to buy.’ Calabro and Nahmad who have a combined age of 53, will bring in performances and site specific installations chosen by a mix of international curators and there’s little to take away but experiences.
The opening show, entitled 'I am NOT Tino Sehgal', is curated by Francesco Bonami and features 30 young artists across 30 days. Expect a band performing live without instruments, choreographed sleep sessions and unusual language lessons, all with full audience participation.
‘It’s no longer valid to just think of a gallery in fixed terms,’ urges Calabro. ‘It should be a boundary free space for everyone,’ adds Nahmad, who has been immersed in art since birth and was attending auctions aged 10.
Diafas' voice suddenly interrupts. ‘Nothing’ he cries. Who’s the one with the perfect life, we wonder. Nahmad admits it was him.
INFORMATION
’I am NOT Tino Sehgal’ continues until July 2016. For more information, visit the Nahmad Projects website
Photography: Benedict Johnson. Courtesy the artist and Nahmad Projects London
ADDRESS
2 Cork St, London, W1S 3LB
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
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.
-
Explore Cornwall's cosiest coffee shops
Cornwall is known for its natural beauty and stunning landscape, here is our pick of coffee shops to enjoy the views and refuel
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Maude’s Brâncuși-inspired sex toys go on display in a new Paris exhibition
Maude’s design-led vibrators are now on display at Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, as part of ‘Private Lives: From the Bedroom to Social Media’. Brand founder Éva Goicochea talks to Wallpaper* about partnering with the museum and opening up cultural conversations around sex
By India Birgitta Jarvis Published
-
‘I was captivated by the idea of merging two iconic brands’: Nigo on his 1990s-inspired collaboration with Moncler and Mercedes-Benz
Unveiled at Moncler’s ‘The City of Genius’ event in Shanghai this past weekend, Japanese fashion designer Nigo unpacks his three-way collaboration with Moncler and Mercedes-Benz, which includes a play on the G-Class alongside a fashion collection in his eclectic style
By Jack Moss Published