The Covid-19 pandemic paused our daily routines and affected our lives and our mental health. It exiled us from the outside, the city, and confined and isolated us inside our homes. In this difficult and unusual time, art in all its forms has become a coping mechanism that explores different reactions to the crisis and creates beauty as an antidote. And more than before technology and social media have had a pivotal role in overcoming distance and separateness.

Curated by Adam Isfendiyar, Maria Domenica Arcuri, Acrylicize and Zulfqar Ali, Outside In brings together the projects that different UK resident artists developed as a response to the constraints of the current global crisis. Through video installations, postcards, sculptures and pictures, the exhibition is a journey through creativity in lockdown. It moves from the ghastliness of the almost empty city to the confined space of flats, highlighting a feeling of isolation and connection at the same time. As a way to document this unprecedented time, the exhibition also aims at creating a space where visitors would be able to share their feelings and experience of lockdown, thus connecting strangers and creating a collective memory.

Taking over two sites, the Old Bank Vault (283 Hackney Rd, London E2 8NA) and the Bell Foundry (32 Whitechapel Rd, London E1 1EW), Outside In features work by Adam Isfendiyar, Pietro Silvestri, Katja Koggelmann, Eva Clifford, Sam Walton, Doma Dovgialo, Pola Voitzik, Adam Ravzi, Vittoria Avigliano, Alens Vimba, Anna Wojnarowska & sabato.studio, Charles Ogilvie, Jo De Banzie, Josh Redman, Paula Chambers, Sim D.

The opening reception is on Thursday 17th September from 6pm to 9pm.