London is Lonely Exhibition
23 June 2019
Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
12.00 – 6.00PM
FREE to attend
An immersive street art installation to address the stigma of loneliness is to take place at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London on Sunday 23 June 2019, as part of the Great Get Together nationwide campaign set up by the Jo Cox Foundation. Titled London is Lonely and sponsored by International Quarter London (IQL), the exhibition is composed of 10 photographs and audio stories of loneliness in London, all of which represent people who live, work or spend time in the capital. The pop-up event marks the start of a call-out which aims to collect and produce 90 more stories from the public over the Summer before the exhibition starts touring in 12 London boroughs this Autumn.
Curated by artists Tessa Blencowe and Irene Palacio, London is Lonely highlights the magnitude of loneliness while demonstrating that this is a shared issue, and therefore we can all be part of the solutions. The exhibition invites visitors to think about their role and how we can all help build a more connected world. Headsets with the audio stories looped together will be offered to visitors on their arrival, and they will be encouraged to listen to the stories while viewing the portrait photographs but without knowing which story belongs to which subject.
Tessa Blencowe, London is Lonely artist said: ‘Loneliness affects us all, regardless of our age, how many friends we have, or where we come from. Loneliness is a very human reaction to a very real feeling of disconnect, whether that’s with others, with ourselves or with the world around us. We all feel lonely sometimes - there should be no shame in that.’
Andrew Tobin, Project Director of IQL, said: ‘Loneliness is a feeling that can affect all of us at some time, but which is becoming a growing issue. At IQL we focus on designing our buildings and the space around them to bring people together, to share experiences and to build strong communities based on meaningful relationships. That is why we are proud to sponsor this important element of the Great Get Together.’
Adrian Lee, development director at LCR, said: ‘Even in our increasingly interconnected world, loneliness is an ongoing issue for many – not least for those living in large cities such as London. The message of the exhibition is an important one, highlighting the role that building strong communities can play in tackling isolation. Hosting the installation reflects our commitment to creating an inclusive and diverse neighbourhood, driven forward by community spirit.’
London is Lonely is initiated by the Loneliness Lab, an incubator for collective action to design out loneliness from our cities. The Lab was founded by Lendlease and Collectively and has since grown to over 40 organisations and 100 individuals working together to make our cities less lonely places. The exhibition on 23 June, featuring 10 subjects from East London, is sponsored by IQL, a new neighbourhood for London developed in partnership between Lendlease and LCR and situated at the gateway to Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
For more information on London is Lonely, please visit londonislonely.com. For full details on the Great Get Together programme at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on 23 June, please click here.