Richard Wilson, 20:50. Courtesy of the artist and Saatchi Gallery. Installation view at Saatchi Gallery, 2010
Richard Wilson, 20:50. Courtesy of the artist and Saatchi Gallery. Installation view at Saatchi Gallery, 1991
Celebrating four decades of ground-breaking contemporary art, The Long Now is an expansive group show presenting new works by iconic artists closely associated with the Gallery’s dynamic history, alongside fresh voices from a new generation.
Spanning two floors and nine major exhibition spaces, the exhibition features special commissions, installations, painting and sculpture, and culminates with Richard Wilson’s iconic 20:50. A landmark in Saatchi Gallery’s history, 20:50 has been shown at each of the Gallery’s past locations and now, for the first time, is presented on the top floor.
Alejandro Ospina, Magical Thinking: My Dream About Charlie, 2022. Courtesy of the artist
Allan Kaprow, YARD, 1961. Courtesy of Fondazione Morra, Naples
André Butzer, Frau am Tisch mit Früchten – Matisse, 2022. Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Max Hetzler
Edward Burtynsky, Ravensworth Coal Tailing 1, Ravensworth Mine, Hunter Valley New South Wales, Australia, 2022. Courtesy of the artist and Flowers Gallery, London
Ansel Krut, The Slaps, 2024. Courtesy of the artist. Photographed by Will Morgan
Left: Carolina Mazzolari, Don’t Look Back Orfeo I – II (Eurydice/Orfeo), 2025. Courtesy of the artist / Right: Alexi Williams Wynn, Inner Self II, 2025. Courtesy of the artist
Filling the space with recycled engine oil, it creates a mirrored environment that both disorients and captivates. In the context of today’s climate crisis, the work takes on renewed resonance, inviting reflection on the fragility of our surroundings, community, and environmental uncertainty.
The Long Now takes its name from a concept of fostering long-term thinking and challenging throwaway culture. Newly created works appear alongside historic pieces that remain impactful and relevant, continuing Saatchi Gallery’s tradition of showing art of the present while giving artists the space to realise ambitious ideas.
Conrad Shawcross, Golden Lotus (Inverted). Installation view at Saatchi Gallery, 2019. Photographed by Justin Piperger
Mat Collishaw, Still from Aftermaths, 2025. Courtesy of the artist
Gavin Turk, Bardo, 2025. Courtesy of the artist
Henry Hudson, 51.485755N – 0.144968W, 2022. Courtesy of the artist
Christopher Le Brun, Tristan, 1988. Courtesy of the artist and Lisson Gallery
The exhibition opens with works exploring process and mark-making – a fundamental human gesture reimagined by Alice Anderson, Rannva Kunoy and Carolina Mazzolari. This spirit of experimentation runs through works by Tim Noble, André Butzer, Dan Colen, Jake Chapman and Polly Morgan, who push subject, style and scale.
At the centre stands Jenny Saville’s monumental Passage (2004). Combining strength and beauty, it exemplifies her ambition to “be a painter of modern life, and modern bodies.” The work anchors the exhibition’s energy, inviting a powerful and intimate encounter with the human form.
Painting, a constant in Saatchi Gallery’s programme, is further represented by Alex Katz, Michael Raedecker, Ansel Krut, Martine Poppe and Jo Dennis, alongside new and emerging voices who continue to expand the medium’s possibilities.
Immersive installations shift the focus from viewing to participation. Allan Kaprow’s YARD, with its chaotic arrangement of tyres, encourages movement and play, while Conrad Shawcross’s suspended Golden Lotus (Inverted) transforms a vintage car into a kinetic sculpture, prompting reflection on transformation, agency and the role of the viewer.
Jeff McMillan, Installation view of Untitled (Texas Series), 2021-24. Courtesy of the artist
Olivia Bax, Hot Splay, 2024. Courtesy of the artist and Holtermann Fine Art. Photographed by Tim Bowditch
Tom Hunter, The Way Home, 2000. Courtesy of the artist
Rafael Gómezbarros, Casa Tomada. Installation view at Saatchi Gallery, 2014
Ximena Garrido-Lecca, Realineaciones VI + VII/ Realignments VI + VII (from the series Aleaciones con memoria de forma), 2025. Courtesy of Meridiano, Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca. Photographed by Alex Krotkov
Left: Jo Dennis, Mother, 2023. Courtesy of the artist / Right: Misha Milovanovich, IPY, 2023. Courtesy of the artist
The exhibition raises questions of technology and the future, with Chino Moya, Mat Collishaw and Tom Hunter reflecting on surveillance, automation and AI – considering how the digital world permeates contemporary life.
Themes of fragility and climate change weave throughout. Gavin Turk’s fractured Bardo suggests cultural decay and the precarious balance between permanence and collapse, while works by Olafur Eliasson, Chris Levine and Frankie Boyle use light to create moments of contemplation. Environmental concerns are explored by Edward Burtynsky, Steven Parrino, Peter Buggenhout, Ibrahim Mahama, Ximena Garrido Lecca and Christopher Le Brun, who address extraction, waste and renewal.
Curated by Philippa Adams (Senior Director, Saatchi Gallery 1999–2020).
The Long Now: Saatchi Gallery at 40
November 5, 2025 – March 1, 2026 / Saatchi Gallery
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