
Hank Willis Thomas, History is Past, Past is Present, 2019. Lenticular. Ben Brown Fine Arts
‘The Pandemic is a Portal’ from Armory Access: Curated imagines the world anew
On 15 April, The Armory Show will launch Armory Access: Curated. Ahead of the fair’s next physical edition at the Javits Center in September, two renowned international curators have been invited to conceive a digital show around a theme of their choosing. The first iteration, ‘The Pandemic is a Portal’, was developed by Daniel S. Palmer, curator of New York’s Public Art Fund. The theme and framework of the exhibition was inspired by author Arundhati Roy’s potent 2020 essay published in The Financial Times which highlighted the threat of coronavirus in India. Spanning installation, painting, drawing, print, photography, and film, works will be interspersed with commentary from Palmer and quotes from Roy’s essay. Featured artists include Hank Willis Thomas (Ben Brown Fine Arts), Ann Veronica Janssens (Alfonso Artiaco), Rana Begum and Marina Tabassum (both Jhaveri Contemporary). ‘The Pandemic is a Portal’ will be live from April 15 - 25, 2021. thearmoryshow.com
Writer: Harriet Lloyd-Smith

Minhwi Lee and Yun Choi, Viral-Lingua, 2018. Courtesy of the artist
Korean artists explore psychological well-being and social solidarity through film
Following the first anniversary of the official pandemic declaration, concerns around psychological well-being, social solidarity, and care systems feel more pertinent than ever. These are the themes explored in ‘A Viewing Room’, a new film programme from The Korean Cultural Centre UK featuring new and recent video works by eight contemporary Korean artists and artist groups. Participating creatives include Jeongyoon Ahn, Minhwi Lee & Yun Choi, and the Rice Brewing Sisters Club, with each artist nominated by a member of the exhibition’s curatorial committee. The experience documents the monumental societal changes of recent times and simultaneously offers a sense of belonging and solidarity, despite geographical constraints. kccuk.org.uk
Writer: Harriet Lloyd-Smith

Camille Henrot, Grosse Fatigue (2013). © ADAGP Camille Henrot. Courtesy of the artist, Silex Films and kamel mennour, Paris/London
Munch Museum takes a deep dive into screen culture
There was a time, not so long ago, when screen time was a rare event. In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, it has become our lifeblood; in our work, social lives and a great deal in between. For its first online exhibition series, the Munch Museum presents Contemporary Art Digital Shorts (CADS). The first of this three-part virtual art series focuses on ‘Screen culture’ and features work by the likes of Camille Henrot, Sofia Caesar, Stine Janvin, Milad Forouzandeh and Lex Brown. Dissecting the relationship between our physical and virtual realities, digital artworks highlight our increasingly complex relationship with screens and how, during the pandemic, the Internet has become an extension of the home. ‘CADS #1: Screen culture’ is on display until 9 April, 2021. munchmuseet.no
Writer: Harriet Lloyd-Smith

Yiannis Pappas, Telephus
Marina Abramović champions the next wave of performance artists
The doyenne of performance art, Marina Abramović has teamed up with WePresent, the editorial arm of WeTransfer, for its inaugural Guest Curator series. Renowned for her grueling mode of endurance-based art, Abramović throws the digital spotlight on five rising international performance artists: Ana Prvacki, Maurício Ianês, Yiannis Pappas, Terence Koh and Regina Jose Galindo, who are each pushing the limits of mind, body and the medium of performance art itself. In early summer, following Abramović’s guest curatorship, the year-long collaboration continues with a virtual iteration of ‘The Abramović Method’ on WeTransfer. Available 24/7 and ‘reaching 70 million people globally’, it seems the artist is present even in the seemingly routine event of transferring files. wepresent.wetransfer.com
Writer: Harriet Lloyd-Smith

Okocha Obasi for Decentralise
Somerset House explores the cultural history of Black British art
For its inaugural project, Somerset House’s Young Producers collective has teamed up with innovative design studio COMUZI for Decentralise, a new interactive digital resource celebrating the cultural history of Black British art, spanning themes including Afro-Nowism and Afrofuturism. Encouraging virtual engagement with objects inspired by Somerset House’s past exhibitions, users can form their own creations in response which will then be added to the Decentralise archive. The initiative forms part of Somerset House’s recent Anti-Racism Pledge, which ‘commits to conducting, and making available, new research into what is currently understood of Somerset House’s social history’. somersethouse.org.uk
Writer: Harriet Lloyd-Smith

Image courtesy Thomas Brown / Guillaume Ferrand
New online platform Correspondance reflects on personal and universal isolation
Inspired by the shifts in our communication during lockdown, regular Wallpaper* photographer Thomas Brown collaborated with illustrator Guillaume Ferrand for a new online platform, Correspondance. They exchange thoughts on notions of time, place and the spirit of collaboration, each reflecting on their personal yet universal experiences of isolation. With an immersive digital platform produced by Justified Studios, atmospheric sounds from Anaïs Khout enhance viewers’ journeys through eleven digital spaces. Partnering with The Photographers Gallery, an open call invites individuals to share their own correspondences, from which selections will be curated into a twelfth online room.
Writer: Sophie Gladstone