Spike Island
A shining light in Bristol's contemporary art scene since the 70s!
Based in a former tea packing factory, Spike Island's now home to an internationally celebrated contemporary art gallery. Hosting exhibitions, studio space, workshops and Emmeline's excellent cafe, Spike is a vibrant hub for creativity in Bristol.
What's On At Spike Island
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Our recent recommendations for Spike Island
Free entry! Spike Island’s latest presents two moving image exhibitions exploring heritage and representation. Danielle Dean’s ‘Hemel’ is a horror-inspired reimagining of Hemel Hempstead’s past through archive footage and speculative narrative, while Dan Guthrie’s ‘Empty Alcove / Rotting Figure’ examines British Blackness through interrogations of material culture and tradition.
Join us for a free evening preview of new Spike Island exhibitions by Danielle Dean and Dan Guthrie.
Free entry (donations welcome though)! Outstanding doc from Julia Bacha (Boycott, Buduru) focusing on the self-organised women’s movements that sent a message of pure hope and defiance during the First Intifada. Essential education and context for the ongoing atrocities in Gaza and beyond.
Join for a screening of Naila and the Uprising (2017) directed by Julia Bacha. This event is part of AFLAMUNA'S 2024 Palestine Cinema Days
A timely antidote for romantic notions of old Albion. Spike’s new exhibition from international multidisciplinary artists Sophia Al-Maria and Lydia Ourahmane shines a light on the hidden parts of England’s troubling heritage, reimagining its material culture and exploring belonging, ownership and the ‘right to remain’.
Join us for an evening preview of the new Spike Island exhibition, Sophia Al-Maria and Lydia Ourahmane: Grey Unpleasant Land.
One of the most exciting career retrospectives ever to come to Spike. Though Rodney died at 27, no-one lives on more in their works: mixed media sculptures and installations utilising his bodily matter, medical X rays and an AI neural network simulation of his personality to touch on post-humanism, colonial Britain and systematic racism. Essential!
Join us for the opening night of a major new solo exhibition from Donald Rodney.
Essential annual glimpse inside the secret spaces of Bristol’s brightest contemporary art hub. Usually hidden behind closed doors, Spike Island’s studios open their doors for you to experience works in progress from Bristol’s established and upcoming artists, one off performances, workshops and pop up food and drink (to help get those conversations going).
Book your free place for the evening preview of Open Studios 2024.