Jonathan Wateridge

Press release

GRIMM is pleased to present a solo exhibition of new work by Jonathan Wateridge (b.1982, Lusaka, ZM) on view at the London gallery from 27 February to 5 April 2025. This is the artist's first solo exhibition with GRIMM and marks his first solo presentation in London in five years.

Often depicting domestic scenes both interior and exterior, Wateridge’s canvases evoke a duality of familiarity and strangeness. In recent years, Wateridge has reinvented his visual language, presenting a distinctive vision that combines high-modern formalism with echoes of the cinematic. In contrast to the modelled realism of his earlier works, his current ghost-like figures are charged with feelings of isolation and uncertainty. These atomized and translucent beings are seamlessly interrupted by or absorbed into their environments, inviting contemplation on the social relationship between these figures and the insecurity of their world.

Wateridge has participated in numerous exhibitions, including Self-Portraits at GRIMM, Amsterdam (NL) in 2024; Thus Spoke the Rabbit, Nino Mier Gallery, Los Angeles, CA (US); Beach, curated by Danny Moynihan, Nino Mier Gallery, New York, NY (US) in 2023; Portrait of a Lady, The Boghossian Foundation, Brussels (BE); 51@51, The Rennie Museum, Vancouver (CA) in 2022 and Mixing It Up: Painting Today, Hayward Gallery, London (UK) in 2021.

Selected collections include Aïshti Foundation, Jal el Dib (LB); Didier Casimiro, Kiev (UA); Loed Evans, London (UK); Mollie Dent Brocklehurst, London (UK); Pinault Collection, Paris (FR) and Venice (IT); Rennie Collection, Vancouver (CA); Saatchi Collection, London (UK); Simmons & Simmons, London (UK); Zabludowicz Collection, London (UK).