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Yushi Li, ‘My Tinder Boys – Tom, 20, 5km away, 2017’
Surprisingly, there’s very little photography on display this year, but Yushi Li’s image of a naked young man doesn’t stand out just because of its medium: it’s also a uniquely vulnerable, personal and intimate work in an otherwise quite grandly political exhibition. (NB: the original image has been replaced, but is still on view in the exhibition).
Kamile Ofoeme, ‘Afro-Glitch’
Identity, and particularly black identity, pops up a lot throughout the exhibition, and Kamile Ofoeme’s photograph is among the most striking images dealing with it as a topic. Simultaneously aggressive, confrontational and colourful, it’s a real afro-futurist whack in the eyes.
George Stamenov, ‘Hristo Smirnenski blok.70 Entrance A fl.9 ap.23, Sofia, 1000’
Of all the video art on display, and there’s a lot of it, Stamenov’s is the most immediate and grabby. He’s not trying to put together a documentary or tell much of a story, just taking you for a whacked-out psychedelic picnic on a car bonnet. It’s heady, trippy stuff with a strong whiff of Soviet nostalgia.
Antonia Showering, ‘Introspective Views’
The spectre of Peter Doig and his signature hazy, nostalgic approach to painting, hangs heavily over a lot of the works on canvas in this show. Antonia Showering’s piece definitely owes him a debt, but it has a washed-out yet precise aura all of its own, and is so beautifully executed that it’s a stand-out work in the exhibition.
Heidi Maribut , ‘Import In(choir)y’
This twisting installation is covered in the detritus of British identity and immigrant life. Maribut is one of many artists dealing with questions about borders, immigration and cultural identity in this year’s ‘New Contemporaries’. Her approach is full of humour, visual gags and compositional flair.
‘Bloomberg New Contemporaries’ is at South London Gallery until Feb 24 2019. And it’s free!