Hilton Als and Ann Philbin Curate First Group Show from George Economou Collection

Writer and critic Hilton Als has co-curated "The Way We Live Now," the first group exhibition of contemporary art from the George Economou Collection, with former Hammer Museum director Ann Philbin. The show is on view in Marousi, Athens, through March 2027. Taking its title from Anthony Trollope's 1875 novel about the Industrial Age, the exhibition explores contemporary life, intimacy, and societal change through works by artists including David Hockney, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Lucas Arruda, Xinyi Cheng, Henry Taylor, Mohammed Sami, David Hammons, Katharina Fritsch, Lorna Simpson, and Charles Ray. Als spent a year sifting through the collection of Greek shipping magnate George Economou, who previously mounted solo shows for Jenny Saville, Rashid Johnson, and Steven Shearer. The exhibition aims to capture the collision of feelings—outrage, empathy, grief, desire, loneliness, resistance, and acceptance—in contemporary life. Als drew inspiration from Athens's light and renewal, as well as Susan Sontag's use of the same title for a story about AIDS. Highlights include Hockney's 1971 painting "Sur la Terrasse," Simpson's "Detroit (Ode to G.)" (2016), and Charles Ray's sculpture "Shoe Tie" (2012).