States of Assemblage
Unit 2, St Leonards, UK. 12.12.25 – 14.12.25
The exhibition featured 31 artists working across a range of media and practices, including assemblage, sculpture, collage, print and found materials, expanded painting, artist books, installation, video, and textiles. In each of their languages, the works I selected via open call connected in a visually engaging manner with the exhibition focus of assemblage art and assemblagist artist practices in and around Sussex.
The exhibition was motivated by the idea of taking a fresh look at the term ‘assemblage’, through the varied vocabularies of contemporary artists who relate to the term. In its timing and promotional material, the show also referenced the pioneering 1961 exhibition ‘The Art of Assemblage’ at The MoMA in New York. As we neared the end of 2025, this exhibition marked 65 years in 2026 since the MoMA show, albeit in a distinct and specific locale, and asked us to consider our current ‘States of Assemblage’.
Laurence Tidy 