Established in 2003, the Frieze art fair has become a staple of the London cultural calendar, transforming Regent’s Park into a massive, temporary art marketplace each October. While some critics view the event as an embodiment of commercialism, it remains a focal point for the art world. As the latest edition approaches, several featured artists have opened up about their creative processes, their career-defining moments, and the personal significance of the works they are presenting this year. Others relish it as the opportunity to see a mind-boggling amount of contemporary art in one enormous tent, some detest it for its blatant commercialism. Here, eight British-based artists of the moment talk through what they’re showing. I love them and I think they’re amazing.
Sculptor and painter Rahman, who describes his work as having a self-taught, “outsider art” quality, draws deep inspiration from his upbringing. Following his mother’s immigration from rural Bangladesh to the UK in the 1980s, his formative years were spent in a succession of dilapidated houses where his mother worked as a textile maker. This background informs his creative output, which spans sculpture and installation. Recently, Rahman participated in the Venice Biennale, a significant milestone that carried emotional weight following the passing of curator Koyo Kouoh. At Frieze, he is debuting a new sculpture inspired by the parade of shipping crates he observed at the 2023 fair, which he found visually striking. Tell me about the sculpture we’ve photographed you with.
Other artists at the fair are similarly reflective about their paths. One sculptor, who works intuitively with metal and fabric to create layered, figurative landscapes, cites her exhibition at the Hepworth Wakefield as her greatest highlight. She creates wall-based “gesture works” cast in bronze and aluminium that evoke the feeling of a crowd. When asked about her creative icons, she identifies the late Marisa Merz and Paul Thek for their sense of freedom, and living artists Lillian Lynn and Donna Huddleston as key influences. Fabrics, quite a collection of materials to make landscapes of figures that grow intuitively, i work a lot with metal.
The charcoal drawings of another exhibitor capture figures in liminal, landscape-based settings. His most ambitious project to date was a large-scale painting featured at Studio Voltaire in London. He draws inspiration from the transcendent watercolours of J.M.W. Turner. His current Frieze entry features two adolescent-looking figures in a forest, and while he admits it is unlikely, he would love to see the piece purchased by musician Anohni.
Portraiture remains a dominant theme, with one artist exploring the genre through a head portrait that references historical giants ranging from Leonardo da Vinci to Picasso. His career perspective is unconventional, dividing his life into distinct chapters—the first being “Garvey: Birth.” He expresses a profound admiration for Tupac, whom he describes as the most significant artist of his lifetime. He views his painting as something meant to be lived with, whether in a private home or a museum setting.
Another painter describes his process as an effort to “capture the vibrating luminous residue of a glance.” His career trajectory has been anchored by a major exhibition that launched at the Hepworth Wakefield in 2024, subsequently touring to Graz and Munich. At Frieze, he is presenting a work that fuses two previously disparate series, projecting a face onto a glitter-covered curtain. He relies on his gallery to place his work with knowledgeable collectors. My exhibition at Hepworth Wakefield – getting major support in such an incredible institution.
The fair also highlights works with deep local roots. One painter recently held a solo show at the Wolverhampton Art Gallery, aiming to reconnect with the local community. Her current pieces, “Gulivers Forrest” and “Miss Mommy,” were developed in the aftermath of that exhibition. She considers Mark Rothko her “north star” for painting, though she also admires contemporaries like Ruprecht von Kaufmann. When asked about recent studio visits from figures like Stormzy, she notes that he is simply a person with a genuine interest in the creative process.
Finally, a multimedia artist working with painting, printmaking, and photography on an intimate scale offers a unique perspective. Influenced by a Paul Nash retrospective at Tate Britain a decade ago, she is exhibiting a piece titled “Statues Also Die (Man Ray).” The work is derived from a photograph she took of a Man Ray monograph adorned with pine cones and forest debris while on a residency in rural Denmark. The title pays homage to a 1950s film by Alain Resnais and Chris Marker that examines how the power of an image shifts based on its context. For her, the art-making process is about letting the work embark on its own journey once it leaves her studio.
