As part of the 40th anniversary celebrations for Tom of Finland Foundation and the annual Arts & Culture Festival, Nick Knight and SHOWstudio Gallery announce SHADOW-BAN: an exhibition on illicit content in modern art, including existing and new paintings, sculpture, film, photography and performances by artists including Peter Saville, George Rouy, Ray Caesar, Oh de Laval, Emma Stern, Sonny Hall, Dinos Chapman, Michaela Stark, Miles Greenberg, Pierre Molinier, Nobuyoshi Araki, Simon Foxton, Harley Weir and Von Wolfe, together with a collaboration with the Tom of Finland Foundation.
SHADOW-BAN defies global censorship and the restrictions placed on visual culture today. Social media posts deemed explicit in nature - whether they are politically or sexually charged - are resulting in artists and creatives being shadow-banned by the morals of an algorithm. By definition, shadow-ban means to block (a user) from a social media site or online forum without their knowledge by making their posts and comments no longer visible to other users.
Bringing together a collection of artists united in challenging the suppression of illicit and taboo subjects by mainstream platforms, this exhibition invites the public to reassess how their own morality is shaped by societal pressures. SHADOW-BAN reconsiders
the nature of what makes an artwork 'obscene' and the moral judgments which led us here.
Running alongside the annual Art & Culture Festival, SHADOW- BAN will feature a selection of works from Tom of Finland and 15 of Tom of Finland Foundation’s network of Queer erotic artists. The Foundation’s Artist-in-Residence program ensures support for the next generation of Queer erotic artists while promoting healthier, more tolerant attitudes about sexuality.
Established in 1984, the non-profit Tom of Finland Foundation protects, preserves and promotes the legacy of Tom of Finland and supports LGBTQ+ artists’ creative freedom of expression. Artists include Daffy of London, Daniel Austin Lopez, Enrique Agudo, Franko B., Gray Wielbinski, Mr Gruts, James Davison, JJ Guest, Łukasz Leja, Marc-Aurèle Debut, Olivia Sterling, Orpheus, Pol Anglada, Sal Salandra and Stuart Sandford.
SHADOW-BAN opens at the SHOWstudio Gallery, 22D Ebury St, Belgravia, London SW1W 0LU, from September 19 - November 15, 2024.
Weekend Schedule
Saturday, 21st September
12:00 – 1:30pm
Franko B in conversation with Hetty Mahlic
4:00 – 4:40pm
“Power, pride and shame: Dynamics of disability and care in play” with Dan Daw & Richard Villani
5:30 – 6:15pm
In Conversation with Durk Dehner & Guy Burch
Sunday, 22nd September
12:00 – 1:00pm
Live Performance with Electric Adam
2:00 – 2:30pm
In Conversation with Daniel Lismore
5:00 – 6:30pm
IN CAMERA with Durk Dehner & Hetty Mahlich