Be one of the first to visit the Foundling Museum’s new exhibition, Finding Family, opening this month. Explore new perspectives on what family is and can be, through this original, insightful exhibition that showcases the ongoing power of art to challenge and question the world around us.
Image credit: Matthew Finn, 'Self portrait in the mirror and framed image as a school boy with my uncle in his favourite chair (Uncle Series)', 1991 © The Artist
Finding Family questions the idea of family through art from the 17th Century to the present day. Looking at the ways in which artists have represented and responded to ideas of family, past and present, the exhibition presents a selection of historic and contemporary works of art that explore blood relations, social bonds, personal connections and love. The works are accompanied by creative writing by participants from Tracing Our Tales (the Museum’s award-winning programme for young care leavers) who have responded to the exhibition’s themes from the context of their own lived experience.
Image credit: William Hogarth, 'The Graham Children', 1742 © The National Gallery, London
In partnership with the National Gallery, the exhibition includes three iconic masterpieces from the Gallery’s collection, by Hogarth, Gainsborough and the Le Nain Brothers. These are shown alongside objects from the Foundling Museum’s collections, and paintings, drawings, photographs and sculpture by contemporary artists that reflect the many varied and complex versions of what and who family can be.
Image credit: Chantal Joffe 'Esme's 7th Birthday' 2011 © Chantal Joffe. Courtesy the Artist and Victoria Miro
Finding Family encourages an exploration far beyond the idea of family in a nuclear sense, suggesting a broader, more inclusive definition that also invites us to consider where our own sense of connection and identity lie. If you think you know what family means, think again.
Image credit: GG Archard
For further details and to book tickets: https://foundlingmuseum.org.uk/event/finding-family/
Finding Family
17 Mar – 27 Aug 2023