Celebrated for his compelling lyrical films and video art installations, Sir Isaac Julien is one of the leading artists in film and video today.
This ambitious solo exhibition reveals the scope of Julien’s pioneering work in film and installation from the early 1980s to the present day. The exhibition highlights Julien’s critical thinking and how his work breaks down barriers between different artistic disciplines, drawing from film, dance, photography, music, theatre, painting and sculpture by utilising the themes of desire, history and culture.
The exhibition will present works from early films to large-scale, multi-screen installations investigating peoples’ movement across continents, times and spaces. Isaac Julien’s work across forty years will be presented for the first time in the UK.
Sir Isaac Julien, CBE, is an award-winning filmmaker and installation artist. He rose to prominence with his 1989 film Looking for Langston, a poetic documentary and homage to Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes. His work has since explored various issues, including black identity, diaspora, migration and capital.
Julien was born in 1960 in London, where he lives and works. In the film above, we visit the artist’s studio to explore three critical works across his career. His multi-screen film installations and photographs incorporate different artistic disciplines to create a poetic and unique visual language. His 1991 debut feature, Young Soul Rebels, won the Semaine de la Critique prize at the Cannes Film Festival.
“I’m interested in poetry. And in my work, it’s very much a sort of poetic quest for a language to express experiences which are part of the everyday experience of people like myself.”
The first major UK exhibition by one of today’s most compelling artists and filmmakers
Isaac Julien: What Freedom is to Me – 26 APRIL – 20 AUGUST 2023