RECAP: Thursday’s Child Presents first-ever Group Exhibition You is for Unity

On March 14th, Thursday’s Child Global opened its first-ever group exhibition at the Photobook Cafe in London.

Co-curated by our Head of Curation Ashleigh Kane and Atmos culture director and freelance journalist Daphne Chouliaraki Milner, they produced an exhibition exploring the theme of solidarity and togetherness. “You Is For Unity allows for a really broad interpretation of what unity means to participating artists, and hopes to show all the many moments we feel a sense of togetherness in our day-to-day life,” said Daphne.

With 36 artists featured from 16 countries globally, the exhibition was a great success! We welcomed over 250 people on the opening night, including some of our artists such as Carolina Xia, Ivory Campbell, Kalina Puli, Johnny Fonseca and Tirtha Lawati.

“Even though each artist is making work from their own distinct perspective, I think that the show as a whole is a reminder that what we have in common is greater than what keeps us apart,” said Daphne. “There is a relatable element to each of the works that I hope speaks to viewers from all walks of life. For example, the tenderness in the portraits of Olga de la Iglesia and Christopher Garcia is palpable; both images show how sacred moments of care between people can be. And David Nana Opoku Ansah’s image poignantly embodies the beauty of building trust with one another.”

Ashleigh adds: “The beauty in the selection of works is that, as a whole, it shows not just the big moments of unity but small ones too. Like bathing together, as AnaHell shows us in her series about family; sharing a space together, like in Raphaël Gaultier’s photograph from a series about sharing domestic space, or Tirtha Lawati’s quiet observation of the kitchen of a member of the Nepali diaspora; or resting, as we see in Christopher Garcia’s image of two people in bed.”

As the first of its kind for Thursday’s Child, there are hopes to hold more exhibitions, especially globally, to reach other members of our community and global audience. “We were overwhelmed by the response from the artists and everyone else who came down over the four days to see it. It felt like the theme resonated with people and it reminded us of the power of coming together. We can’t wait to do more!” said Ashleigh.