Hew Locke

Episode No. 731 features artist Hew Locke.

The Yale Center for British Art is presenting "Hew Locke: Passages," the first US survey of Locke's career. Across sculpture, painting, photography and installations, Locke's work considers colonialism, its power, and the ways in which we respond to colonialism and its impacts. Locke, who is Guyanese-British, particularly focuses on British imperialism and how it was constructed, including through monarchy, trade, and (sometimes forced) migration. The exhibition, which is on view through January 11, 2026, was curated by Martina Droth. The catalogue, which was edited by Droth and Allie Biswas, was published by the YCBA. Bookshop and Amazon offer it for $60-70. In-gallery materials are available here in both English and Spanish.

Locke's work has been featured in solo exhibitions at The British Museum, London, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Tate Britain, London, the Institute of Contemporary Art / Boston, Pérez Art Museum Miami, and more.

In addition to the images below, here are links to works and exhibitions discussed on the program:

• Hew Locke, Ark, 1994.
• Hew Locke, Menace to Society (series), 1999-2001.
• Hew Locke, The Nameless, 2010.
• "Hew Locke: what have we here" at the British Museum;
• "A Conspiracy of Icons: The Art of Donald Locke," at the High Museum of Art, Atlanta; and
• "The Other Story: Afro-Asian Artists in Post-War Britain" at the Hayward Gallery, London.

Instagram: Hew Locke, Tyler Green.

Air date: November 6, 2025.