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Out of step from Spitalfields Market’s busy vendors and tourist footfall, you’ll find an ex-public toilet tucked away on Commercial Street. Once a haven for nocturnal party chasers at hours when no other place in London could welcome them, Public Life was a fixture in mid-2000s London nightlife lore. The cubicle-turned-club was home to hedonistic raves and wild afters – the kind of legendary nights recounted between pints and drags in smoking areas for years to come.
Now host to a new exhibition, the venue’s gritty charm lives on between its peeling paint and tile-clad walls. Honouring its wild past is the group show and namesake, Public Life, by Toxic Arts Gallery. In line with their mission to “spotlight and incubate the next generation’s artists”, the group exhibition showcases an international lineup of 13 emerging artists. The work featured includes rave photography on bubble wrap, AI-inspired landscapes on reflective material, and provocative and humorous artwork that “you wouldn’t want to show your mum”, according to Toxic Arts’ gallerist, Harry Barratt.
Showcasing a diverse group of creatives, including photographers, sculptors, and painters, the exhibition explores a range of innovative techniques and styles – from UV printing to airbrushed canvas pieces. Barratt explains, “The beauty of naming the show Public Life lies in the open-ended interpretation it offers to the artists. While they were aware that the space was once a nightclub, they had the freedom to draw inspiration from this or explore the concept in their own unique ways.”
Samuel Almansa is one of the featured artists in the exhibition. Hailing from El Arenal in Mallorca, Spain, his work draws on visual references recalled from childhood, from the traditional porcelain figures his mother collected to Pokémon games and movies like Tokyo Drift. Almansa’s contribution to Public Life leans into a deviant cute aesthetic, featuring menacing cherubic figures in his work. Speaking on his creation for the exhibition, he tells Dazed, “The characters in these works represent simple concepts like good and evil through figures with naïve aesthetics and affable expressions. Though they work independently, both are part of a diptych where the devil is in heaven and the angel in hell, comfortable in their reversed roles. This suggests that everything good needs a bit of malice, just as evil has some light.”
Kevin Judge from Dublin is showcasing his work outside Ireland for the first time. His pieces, part of a series titled The Searchers, capture figures engrossed in their quests – whether searching for slugs in a Swedish forest, hidden treasure on a beach or luminous frogs in a Japanese garden. Judge shares, “We’re all searching for something in life, and with this body of work, I tried to capture the feelings of lust, hope, and desire that come with these pursuits.” He adds that, while his landscapes contain fantasy or dreamlike elements, they are also deeply personal, based on places he has spent time in or visited recently. “I try to find influence from everywhere I can – films, galleries, museums, or even just getting the bus to town and trying to absorb as much as possible,” he explains. “I love pausing my music so I can listen to random people’s phone calls and hear about their grievances, gossip, or even gross medical history.”
For LA-based artist Rosie, her work in Public Life is directly influenced by her experiences in the rave scene – a world she discovered later in life than most. “These spaces have been a real source of healing and acceptance,” she explains, noting that her pieces are part of a larger body of her work, “Pure Semblance”, featuring images from a rave in the Catskills, New York. Rosie’s work allows her to express a side of herself that isn’t constrained by self-consciousness. She tells Dazed, “My work feels free from the ‘rules’ of photography. I think it’s silly and playful, and maybe a bit of a middle finger.”
Reflecting on the gallery’s approach, gallerist Barratt tells Dazed, “Over the years, we’ve noticed that many people struggle to connect with the art world; the barriers and red tape still exist, and galleries often feel unwelcoming. We grew tired of the sterile atmosphere that so many spaces had, so we wanted to create something more authentic and charismatic. By using spaces with energy – places that are a little rough around the edges – we want to break down those boundaries and make the everyday viewer feel more welcome.”
There’s much more to explore at Public Life. From R-Rated Teletubbies TV content to airbrushed anachronisms, the exhibition invites viewers to engage with art in new and thoughtful ways. Toxic Arts hopes it will provide “a fresh perspective or new way of thinking”, encouraging attendees to support the emerging art scene and feel confident about becoming involved themselves.
Catch Public Life at 82A Commercial Street, E1 6LY from August 23-25th. Free Entry
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