14 rising photographers to have on your radar

“An opening for an exhibition is like reliving your 16th birthday party over and over again; you’ve invited your friends but it still doesn’t feel real until the doorbell rings," says Galen Bullivant, curator and founder of the nomadic gallery, Satellite. 

The theme behind his latest show is all in the name. The exhibition – titled Arrival – is taken from the eponymous 2016 science fiction film, in which “aliens land on earth and communicate in ways which over time we humans begin to understand”, explains Bullivant. “This might sound cliché but I think that’s a good mantra for viewing art, give it a little time and you might understand.”

Featuring 14 acclaimed artists, Arrival opens for only evening and one afternoon (February 2 to February 3, 2024). It is set to celebrate and highlight the artists who continue to collaborate with Satellite Gallery, including photographers Ezekiel and Nicole Ngai, while expanding the community to welcome a group of new artists. “I hope to continue to show what Satellite has always been about, platforming and providing space for artists to showcase their work.”

Sarah Stedeford was the first artist Bullivant reached out to after she captured his attention through reinterpretations of the everyday, offering a new perspective of the anonymous people you unassumingly encounter on the train in her series of portraits, Beautiful Croydon.

“I feel like I’ve been silently stalking these photographers, admiring them from afar, waiting for the right time to ask them to be part of the show. They all intrigue me in different ways,” Bullivant tells Dazed. This sentiment is also true for Evan Purdy, the London-based photographer also featured in the show. “He has such maturity in his work – his photos remind me why I started to enjoy photography. There’s an honesty and rawness to his work, that of a weathered photographer, but he’s 22.”

Through this, the exhibition is an important temporal snapshot for these photographers, celebrating  “who they are and where they are now”. Bullivant tells Dazed, “It’s happening as we speak, on the ground, in the darkrooms. I want to project this energy in Arrival, a moment which could pass us by at any time and deserves rightful documentation.”

“Beyond the artwork, I see a Satellite exhibition as an amazing social gathering. It often feels like a reunion of sorts, with old and new friends coming together for the same reason. The gallery’s like this incubator for discussion to start,” he tells us. Ultimately, Bullivant, wants the exhibition to cultivate conversation. “I want vititors to engage with the work and for it to connect them closer to the world they’re passionate about.”

Arrival is taking place at the Satellite pop-up located at 103 Murray Grove, Hoxton, London N1 7QP (opening Friday February 2 from 6-9pm and Saturday February 3 from 11-6pm).

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