Anthea Hamilton Discusses Artistic Process, Upcoming New York Show, and Design Influences

Anthea Hamilton, known for blending design with contemporary art, is preparing for a fall exhibition at O’Flaherty’s in New York after a pandemic hiatus. Her practice often reconsiders classic forms like tables, rugs, and kimonos, stretching design beyond function. In 2016, she exhibited a doorway shaped like a man’s buttocks, inspired by designer Gaetano Pesce, for her Turner Prize exhibition. Hamilton describes her work as collage-like, playing with nostalgia through imagery such as John Travolta and R. Crumb drawings. She emphasizes performativity within exhibitions, considering audience behavior and physical space. For instance, her 2018 performance The Squash at Tate Britain’s Duveen Galleries drew from choreography by Erick Hawkins. Hamilton collaborates frequently, viewing decision-making as a practice influenced by other fields. She notes that parenthood initially brought a deregulated, psychedelic sense of time, enhancing her productivity. While her work engages design vocabulary, she sees herself playing at being a designer rather than solving practical problems. Hamilton prefers non-sequential thinking, wanting everything to happen at once, and finds originality less important than participation in contemporary conversations. She recently worked on a public garden for Studio Voltaire in London, facing similar decision-fatigue as with art projects.