Nicholas Stavri on Making Art in an Increasingly Difficult London

Curator Nicholas Stavri has organized 'Make Do / Make Space' at Hypha Gallery South Bank, an exhibition featuring over 30 artists working across sculpture, painting, ceramics, installation, screen printing, and music created with obsolete gaming technology. The title, a play on the wartime phrase 'make do and mend,' reflects the post-lockdown reality of rising costs, disappearing studios, and shrinking public funding in London. Stavri, in partnership with Hypha Studios, provided artists free access to the Southwark Bridge Road site, along with time, space, and technical support to produce large-scale works. The exhibition includes works by Catriona Robertson, whose sculpture 'Gigantic Pile' is installed in Regent's Park for the Frieze Sculpture Garden, and features artists such as Mike Ballard, Nathaniel Rackowe, and Emma Louise Moore. Stavri emphasizes that resourcefulness is a condition of the current economic climate rather than an aesthetic trend, and highlights the importance of artist-led organizations like Hypha in filling gaps left by traditional institutions. The exhibition runs until 11 September 2026, with a curator tour on 4 September 2026.