UAL Decolonising Arts Institute
The UAL Decolonising Arts Institute seeks to challenge colonial and imperial legacies, disrupting ways of seeing, listening, thinking and making in order to drive cultural, social and institutional change.
We imagine the Institute as a decentred, disruptive, evolving and porous space. As the Institute grows, we aim to amplify local and global movements to decolonise and address the complex genealogies and geographies of postcolonial, decolonial and intersectional thinking and practice.
Highlights
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Larry Achiampong Relic 2 4K colour video with stereo sound 2019 © The Artist. Courtesy of Larry Achiampong & Copperfield London. Image courtesy of British Council Collection
Transforming Collections: Reimagining Art, Nation and Heritage
Find out how we're dissolving barriers between collections, surfacing patterns of bias and uncovering hidden connections.
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Sonia Boyce, In the Castle Of My. Photograph by Rachel Deakin. Courtesy of MIMA
20/20
See how we're catalysing artists’ careers and change in UK collections through 20 residencies, 20 commissions and 20 new acquisitions.
Our work
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Sonia Boyce, Devotional Wallpaper and Placards, 2008-2020. Acquired by the Contemporary Art Society for the Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (MIMA) through the Rapid Response Fund, 2020.
Projects
Read about Decolonising Arts Institute activities.
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Ana Escobar, Girl with headphones at a private view, London College of Communication, UAL
Podcasts and publications
Browse our latest podcasts and publications.
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Image: Andrew Brooks, AHRC Black Artists & Modernism project, Speech Acts exhibition opening, Manchester Art Gallery. Image: Andrew Brooks
Event recordings
Explore our recorded events.
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Studying at the Library Group Zone, Central Saint Martins. Photo: John Sturrock
Related UAL activities
Learn about decolonising activities across UAL.
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Image: Daniel Day, AHRC Black Artists and Modernism project, David Medalla Study Day. Image: Daniel Day
About us
Find out more about our vision and ambitions for decolonising arts.
Stories
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Yu-Chen Wang, 2020-2022, 'If there is a place I haven't been to', installation view at Le lieu unique, Nantes (2022) and MoCA Taipei (2020).
Transforming Collections: Reimagining Art, Nation and Heritage – Announcing the Practice Research Residencies
Four artist researchers have been selected to undertake a 15-month virtual practice-based research residency as part of the Transforming Collections: Reimagining Art, Nation and Heritage project.
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Image: Outside the British Pavilion at Venice, 2022. © Cristiano Corte, British Council
University of the Arts London announces 5 postgraduates awarded British Council Venice Fellowships
University of the Arts London is delighted to announce that five UAL postgraduate students have been selected to take part in the 2024 British Council Venice Fellowships Programme - through partnerships with Decolonising Arts Institute and London College of Communication.
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Jessica Ashman, 2022, still from Utopia Portals
Announcing the second cohort of artists to the 20/20 project
Twelve emerging and mid-career artists with an extensive range of practices are joining the second cohort of 20/20: a national commissioning and network project led by Decolonising Arts Institute to directly invest in the careers of a new generation of ethnically diverse artists.
Our people
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Susan Lok
Susan Lok
Professor of Contemporary Art and Director UAL Decolonising Arts Institute
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Gargi Bhattacharyya
Gargi Bhattacharyya
Professor in Anti/Post/Decolonial Theories and Praxes UAL Decolonising Arts Institute
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Danah Abdulla
Danah Abdulla
Reader in Anti/Post/Decolonial Histories Theories Practices and Praxes Decolonising Arts Institute
Contact us
- To find out more, email: decolonisingartsinstitute@arts.ac.uk
- Keep up with our news and sign up to our mailing list
- Interested in proposing a project or partnership? Complete our form to tell us about your idea.