This Is Tomorrow

This Is Tomorrow
Title	This Is Tomorrow
Venue	Whitechapel Art Gallery
Location	London
Dates	August–September 1956
Curator	John McHale (conceptual contributor), J. D. Bernal (influence)
Participants	Richard Hamilton, Derek Boshier, Eduardo Paolozzi, Ian Hamilton Finlay, Anthony Hill, Ronald Jenkins, Peter Blake, John McHale, Graham Stevens, Robyn Denny, Victor Pasmore, Lawrence Alloway, Alison and Peter Smithson
Organized by	Colin St John Wilson, Kenneth Coutts-Smith
Significance	Early nexus for Pop art, Constructivism, Op art, Concrete art

This Is Tomorrow was a landmark 1956 exhibition at the Whitechapel Art Gallery in London that gathered architects, artists, designers, and critics to propose collaborative, interdisciplinary installations. It foregrounded emerging directions associated with Pop art, British Pop, Internationalism, and debates around media, consumer culture, and modernist architecture. The show catalyzed later developments across United Kingdom artistic circles, influencing figures linked to Royal College of Art, Institute of Contemporary Arts, and European avant‑garde networks.

Background and Context

Held in the postwar milieu of United Kingdom reconstruction and amid Cold War cultural exchanges, the exhibition emerged from conversations among members of the Independent Group who met at the Institute of Contemporary Arts and Royal College of Art. Influences included earlier twentieth‑century movements such as Futurism, Dada, Surrealism, Constructivism, and theoretical texts by Marshall McLuhan and J. D. Bernal. Key critics and curators like Lawrence Alloway and architects including Alison and Peter Smithson advocated a synthesis of visual art, mass media, and architectural practice. Debates at the time also resonated with exhibitions at institutions such as the Tate Gallery, Museum of Modern Art, and Stedelijk Museum.

Exhibition Concept and Organization

Organizers structured the show as collaborative "groups" that combined practitioners from different disciplines to design immersive environments. The curatorial model contrasted with conventional salon displays at venues like the British Museum and sought affinities with experimental platforms such as the Whitechapel Art Gallery's prior contemporary programs and the ICA's interdisciplinary events. The format reflected pedagogical exchanges between the Royal College of Art, Goldsmiths, University of London, and practitioners connected to continental studios in Paris, Rome, and Berlin. Technical production involved theatrical setmakers, industrial fabricators, and stage lighting influenced by practitioners from Bristol Old Vic and commercial designers linked to London Transport posters.

Participating Artists and Groups

The exhibition featured ten collaborative groups bringing together artists, architects, and designers. Notable participants included Richard Hamilton, Peter Blake, Eduardo Paolozzi, Ian Hamilton Finlay, Derek Boshier, Robyn Denny, Victor Pasmore, and members associated with the Independent Group such as Lawrence Alloway and John McHale. Architectural contributors included Alison and Peter Smithson and younger architects influenced by the CIAM legacy and figures like Le Corbusier and Alvar Aalto. Critics and writers present at the event included voices from Art News, November, and commentators who later wrote for outlets like The Times and The Guardian.

Artwork Highlights and Installations

Installations ranged from collage assemblages and printed panels to sculptural constructions and audio‑visual experiments. Hamilton’s collage pieces engaged imagery from Vogue, Ford Motor Company, Kodak, and film stills associated with Alfred Hitchcock, articulating nascent Pop art strategies. Paolozzi contributed sculptures and screenprints drawing on mechanical imagery reminiscent of Futurist machine‑aesthetics and influences from Dada assemblage. The Smithsons’ architectural set pieces referenced postwar housing debates and echoes of Brutalism articulated in projects by Le Corbusier and Ernő Goldfinger. Other groups produced kinetic panels related to Op art experiments seen in works by Bridget Riley and Victor Vasarely, while typographic and graphic interventions recalled commercial design trends promoted by Herbert Bayer and Paul Rand.

Reception and Influence

Contemporary press coverage came from national outlets including The Times, The Observer, and art journals such as ArtReview and Artforum correspondents present in London. Critical responses varied from enthusiastic endorsement by younger critics aligned with the Independent Group to skepticism from traditionalists affiliated with the Royal Academy of Arts. The show accelerated recognition of artists who later exhibited at venues like the Venice Biennale, Tate Modern, and Museum of Modern Art. International dialogues followed, linking participants to curators and critics at the Stedelijk Museum, Centre Pompidou, and American institutions such as MoMA and Whitney Museum of American Art.

Legacy and Reproductions

The exhibition’s collaborative model and visual strategies have been the subject of later retrospectives, catalogues raisonnés, and academic studies in institutions like University College London and Courtauld Institute of Art. Reproductions and reconstructions have appeared in exhibitions at the Tate Britain, Whitechapel Gallery (modern refabrications), and curated projects at the Serpentine Galleries. Archival materials reside in collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum, British Library, and private holdings associated with participants like Richard Hamilton and Eduardo Paolozzi. The event endures as a referent in histories of Pop art, British art, and interdisciplinary curatorial practice.

Category:1956 exhibitions Category:Art exhibitions in London Category:Pop art