An exhibition that brings together William Blake (1757-1827) and contemporary artist Francis Alÿs who share a fascination of children and what they tell us about the world around us.
We focus on William Blakes’ illustrated poems ‘Songs of Innocence and Experience’ in which he attempts to reveal the “two contrary states of the human soul”, through exploring ideas about childhood, social justice and poverty – and the underpinning power structures of church and state.
Over the past two decades Francis Alÿs has created a series of short films entitled ‘Children’s Games’. As with William Blake’s works, these films create a space for us to reflect on the context in which children find themselves growing up within. We focus on children playing in London, Blake’s home city, and are excited to place these artists work in close proximity and see what conversations emerge.
We would like to thank the Bean Trust for their kind support which made this exhibition possible.
We would also like to thank the University of Essex’s Special Collections for allowing us to display their facsimiles of William Blake’s books and prints, and Francis Alÿs and his Studio for generously allowing us to screen works from the Children’s Games series.
Image: Conkers, 2024. Courtesy of Francis Alÿs and David Zwirner gallery