British Art Show 10: A Chorus of Strangers starts its national tour in Coventry on Friday 2 October.

Produced by Hayward Gallery Touring, the British Art Show has, since 1979, provided the most ambitious overview of contemporary art in Britain, introducing generations of artists to audiences nationwide while reflecting the social, cultural and political concerns of its time. Over four decades, the exhibition has reached millions of visitors and featured many of the most influential artists working in Britain.

Curated by Ekow Eshun, British Art Show 10: A Chorus of Strangers brings together 37 artists whose work addresses the urgencies and possibilities of contemporary life. Through painting, sculpture, installation, film, photography, performance and sound, the exhibition explores how identities are formed, how histories are remembered and contested and how human lives are intertwined with wider social and ecological systems.

Ekow Eshun is one of the UK's most influential cultural figures. His curatorial projects include In the Black Fantastic at the Hayward Gallery and The Time Is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure at the National Portrait Gallery. Eshun has established an international reputation for exhibitions that combine rigorous scholarship with compelling storytelling and a deep engagement with contemporary culture.

The title, A Chorus of Strangers, reflects the exhibition's exploration of relationships between self and other, individual and collective, human and non-human. At a moment characterised by profound social transformation, environmental uncertainty and competing narratives of identity and belonging, the exhibition asks how art can create new ways of understanding difference, connection and coexistence.

The exhibition unfolds through three interconnected themes. Moments of Being explores how artists draw on memory, imagination and spirituality to make sense of personal and collective experience. Ways of Living focuses on identity, history and belonging; works examine how culture, memory and migration shape our understanding of ourselves and others. States of Nature looks beyond human-centred perspectives to explore the interconnected relationships between people, nature and the environment in an era of ecological change.

British Art Show 10 will launch in Coventry, where the exhibition will be presented across key cultural venues including the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum, the Delia Derbyshire Building at Coventry University and Warwick Arts Centre’s Mead Gallery at the University of Warwick. The Coventry presentation will introduce audiences to 37 contemporary artists whose work reflects the richness and diversity of artistic practice in Britain today, showcasing the city's continuing role as a centre for artistic innovation and cultural exchange.

Coventry has also gained additional funding from Arts Council England to develop Coventry Art Show, a programme led by Art Riot Collective that reinforces the city's infrastructure for artists and audiences with a focus on access for everyone. Partners in the programme include Coventry Biennial, Coventry-Dresden Exchange and SOMA. Exhibitions, events, workshops and activities will take place across the city parallel to BAS10.

Alongside significant recent works, British Art Show 10 will feature newly commissioned projects developed in collaboration with partner cities across the tour, creating opportunities for artists to respond directly to local histories, communities and contexts. Supported by Art Fund, these commissions will form an important part of the exhibition's dialogue between the national and the local, connecting artistic practices across the UK while recognising the distinct character of each host city.

For more information on the British Art Show 10: A Chorus of Strangers, which runs from 2 October 2026 to 10 January 2027 in various venues in Coventry, see: southbankcentre.co.uk