'Grey Unpleasant Land' exhibition poster
A limited edition poster produced on the occasion of the exhibition Sophia Al-Maria and Lydia Ourahmane: Grey Unpleasant Land, which continues at Spike Island until Sunday 19 January 2025. The exhibition examines the myth of England as a nation. Combining a range of media—including historical artefacts, speculative narratives, petitions to patrons and a deed of gift—Al-Maria and Ourahmane provide a unique lens through which to investigate the complex and often troubling nature of England’s cultural and historical landscape.
SOPHIA AL-MARIA
Sophia Al-Maria is a London-based artist. Al-Maria has had recent solo exhibitions at Henry Art Gallery, Seattle; Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha; La Biennale di Venezia, Venice; LUMA Arles; Tate Britain, London, and numerous others. She is the author of three books: Sad Sack (Book Works, London, 2019 & 2023), Virgin with a Memory (Cornerhouse Publications, Manchester, 2014), and The Girl Who Fell to Earth (Harper Perennial, New York, 2012).
LYDIA OURAHMANE
Lydia Ourahmane is an artist based in Barcelona, London and Algiers. Ourahmane has had recent solo exhibitions at MACBA, Barcelona, SculptureCentre, New York; rhizome, Algiers; Kunsthalle Basel, Switzerland; S.M.A.K Ghent; Portikus, Frankfurt; De Appel, Amsterdam; Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, San Francisco and Chisenhale Gallery, London, among others. Her work was included in the 60th La Biennale di Venezia, 15th Gwangju Biennale, 34th Bienal de Sao Pãulo, New Museum Triennale and Manifesta 12.