Ikon presents the first major solo exhibition and an ambitious off-site commission by British artist Dion Kitson in partnership with English Heritage. 

Incisive, enterprising, and laced with sharp wit, Kitson’s artistic practice dissects class and identity from the depths of the British psyche, reshaping its visual hallmarks and traditions across a range of media: sculpture, painting, film and found objects. Kitson’s work is both playful and pertinent, providing a candid account of the everyday. Among the new works presented at Ikon Gallery is Council House of Kitson, a new installation by the artist complete with a pebble-dashed façade, containing footage collated over 15 years that documents the eccentricities of his father. 

In 2008, English Heritage acquired the J.W. Evans Silver Factory, located in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, which began as a cottage industry in 1881. The workshops are preserved in situ, containing thousands of dies for the manufacture of silverware; the entire factory’s working equipment; and the ephemera, magazines and posters of the workers. Kitson honours a lost industrial past, utilising new technologies to create sculptural interventions in the factory, celebrating the history and popular culture of Birmingham and the Black Country.

This exhibition is supported by English Heritage, The Foundation Foundation and Ikon Investment Fund. 

This exhibition is presented as part of Ikon’s 60th anniversary year.