75 Years of New Contemporaries — celebrating ‘a vital platform for risk-taking and experimentation’

If the Royal Academy’s Summer Exhibition sits at the traditional heart of British art, then New Contemporaries is its rebellious younger sibling. The annual survey selects and showcases fledgling artists from across the UK, revealing the youthful promise of the next generation. Democratic, absorbing and often provocative, it has a robustness that lies in its athletic ability to anticipate trends and new directions. It is vital viewing for anyone at the coalface of contemporary art.

New Contemporaries turns 75 this year, and to celebrate, Christie’s in London is presenting 75 Years of New Contemporaries, a private selling exhibition to raise funds to support emerging talent. Artworks have been donated by New Contemporaries alumni and supporters such as Michael Craig-Martin, Daniel Sinsel and Sahara Longe. Jake Grewal has created an artwork especially for the occasion; Turner Prize-winner Veronica Ryan has submitted a beautiful bronze mango encased in yellow crochet; while Basil Beattie, who helped re-establish the exhibition in the 1970s, has donated a typically vibrant oil on paper.

The funds New Contemporaries receives from the sale will go towards causes such as commissioning new art, and developing public programmes and artist residencies. ‘It’s about making sure we can continue to do this work,’ says New Contemporaries director Kiera Blakey. ‘If we don’t protect the diversity of the art world at this crucial stage, we risk a monoculture.’

Founded as Young Contemporaries in 1949, the exhibition was designed to spotlight the work of recent art-school graduates. Immediately, it set a precedent for difficult, controversial work. The first exhibition was held in Suffolk Street, off Pall Mall in central London, and featured a restless group of abstract visionaries, among them Albert Irvin and John Bolam. By 1955, Paula Rego, Frank Auerbach and Raymond Briggs were rocking the boat. Among others who followed, whether as exhibitors or selectors, were David Hockney, Maggi Hambling, Derek Jarman, Tacita Dean and Sarah Lucas.

Along the way, New Contemporaries has faced a few difficulties: financial support was not always secure, and a diversity of opinion between the young protagonists and their august benefactors led to some fallow years. However, in 1974, the artists Gillian Ayres, Basil Beattie, Paul Huxley and William Tucker revived the event and renamed it New Contemporaries. In 1980, it found a semi-permanent home at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) in London.

Today, New Contemporaries has transitioned from a student exhibition to a fully curated open-call, committed to inclusion and experimentation. It attracts around 1,500 entries, from which the selection committee chooses 55 artists. ‘One of the really incredible things about the process,’ says artist and 2021 selector Tai Shani, ‘is that you see such a broad spectrum of making.’ Sculptor Hew Locke considers it to be an opportunity to invest in young artists: ‘You see that seed being sown and want to see more.’

Blakey believes that the exhibition’s success is down to its ‘commitment to placing artists at the heart of everything it does. It is a vital platform for risk-taking and experimentation.’

One of the distinctive features of the exhibition is its geographical reach. New Contemporaries has always challenged the London-centric art world by touring the show to venues outside the capital, something the Turner Prize has imitated in recent years.

‘We’re committed to decentralising opportunity, and the regional touring exhibition is one way we make that real,’ says Blakey. ‘You don’t need to be based in London — or to have gone to a certain kind of art school — to be selected. We actively ensure there is a strong representation of artists from across the UK.’

This year, to mark the 75th anniversary, New Contemporaries returned to the ICA. ‘It felt like a homecoming,’ says Blakey. ‘The ICA has long been associated with the most radical and urgent practices in British art, and returning there during this milestone year was deeply symbolic.’ Critics were impressed, and there was general agreement that the exhibition had all the verve, ambition and humour of a superlative degree show.

The private selling exhibition comes at a time of reflection for the organisation. ‘It’s a great opportunity to think on where we have come from, and signal where we are heading,’ Blakey says.

‘What is truly moving is that every work in the sale has been donated in a spirit of generosity and solidarity — it’s a powerful testament to how much New Contemporaries continues to mean to artists at every stage of their journey.’

75 Years of New Contemporaries, a private selling exhibition, is on view at Christie’s in London until 24 June 2025

New Contemporaries (1988) Limited (registered in England with charity number 1013848) will receive a minimum amount of 80 per cent of the sale price from each artwork included and sold in this exhibition. The funds New Contemporaries receives from the sale will go towards causes such as commissioning new art, and developing public programmes and artist residencies

Post-War to Present takes place on 26 June, alongside Post-War to Present: Online (17 June to 1 July), also on view as above