“A ghost is someone who has disappeared, but a spirit is a memory that remains, an energy that has lingering influence,” the late Mike Kelley writes in an early draft of Under a Sheet/Existance Problems (sic). While this performance was never realized, this concept cleanly maps onto his legacy as a provocative and influential figure in contemporary art.
In early October, Tate Modern will celebrate the life and career of Mike Kelley in a retrospective exhibition. Presented in collaboration with the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Bourse de Commerce, and Moderna Museet, Ghost and Spirit marks the first major UK exhibition of the experimental artist.
Spanning across sculptures, textile works, and multi-media installations, the artist confronted social order with questions of memory, desire, and craft. He often drew inspiration from familiar objects and pop culture to capture the everyday uncanny. Standout works include luminous models of Superman’s lost home in Kandor, or his series of misfit plush toys.
“Kelley viewed these activities as a means for people to play out fantasies and escape normal life,” the museum says in a statement. Today, Kelley’s eponymous foundation continues to carry on his ethos of provocation and risk taking in the arts. In the decade since his passing, the artist’s opulent and odd imagination endures.
Ghost and Spirit will be on view at Tate Modern from October 3, 2024 through March 9, 2025.
Tate Modern
Bankside,
London SE1 9TG, UK
