Mega-gallery Hauser & Wirth is giving recent art-school graduates whose IRL MFA shows were cancelled a spotlight with two exhibitions in Somerset and Los Angeles.

The gallery will host the graduate exhibitions over the next four months, the first at its artist residency studios, the Maltings in Bruton, in Somerset; and the second at its Book and Printed Matter Lab, in Los Angeles this fall.

Hauser & Wirth is offering technical, curatorial, and marketing support to the students for both shows.

Ten recent graduates from four universities in the South West of England will present work in Somerset in an exhibition titled “In Real Life,” which will run from July 29 through August 2.

The artists included are Melody Addo, Betsy Bond, Samantha Davies, Kamila Dowgiert, Juliet Duckworth, Louise Hall, Lauren Horrell, Lilith Piper, Madeline Rolt, and Connor Vickery-Gearty. 

“This has been a remarkable time for our final year students,” Natasha Kidd, head of the Bath School of Art & Design’s fine art program, said in a statement.

“The degree shows were postponed—the assessments took place online, whole shows compressed into pdfs. Tutorials took place through ‘hangouts’—into an array of domestic spaces. Washing lines, hallways and even greenhouses became the site of making work—pet dogs, parents/partners or the odd passer-by on their daily exercise became the audience.”

Louise Hall, 13 Dead, Nothing Said (2020). Image ©Louise Hall. Courtesy of the artist and Hauser & Wirth.

“Providing support and a platform for artists emerging at this current moment is crucial,” says the Kent-born artist Anj Smith, who is among the artists who are contributing to the gallery’s education program. “Art has long been at the forefront of cultural progress and we need inspired, thoughtful voices now more than ever.”

The gallery is also partnering with Cal State LA to include works by MFA graduates from the 2020 class in the Los Angeles exhibition in the fall.

The project is part of the gallery’s philanthropic initiative, #artforbetter, which includes effort to support educational institutions.

“A deep-rooted commitment to education and professional development has always been at the heart of the gallery and embedded in each exhibition,” gallery cofounder Manuela Wirth said in a statement.

“It’s important to us that we remain connected to the wider creative community and artistic energy surrounding each gallery location, enabling new generations of talent to thrive by creating meaningful partnerships and support networks.”

See images of student artworks below.

Kamila Dowgiert, 24/5 (2020). Image ©Kamila Dowgiert. Courtesy of the artist and Hauser & Wirth.

Melody Addo, Chocolate Pudding (still frame) (2020). Image ©Melody Addo. Courtesy of the artist and Hauser & Wirth.

Juliet Duckworth, Apple Path – November 2019 (2019 – 2020). Image ©Juliet Duckworth. Courtesy of the artist and Hauser & Wirth.

Betsy Bond, Landscape Exhibition Space (2020). Image ©Betsy Bond. Courtesy of the artist and Hauser & Wirth.