Science Gallery London
19 September 2019 – 19 January 2020
Ann Lislegaard, Benedict Drew, Cian McConn, Harold Offeh, Resolve Collective, Leah Clements, Alice May Williams, Cally Spooner, Sarah Howe, Suzanne Treister
We all experience anxiety to a greater or lesser extent at some point in our lives.
ON EDGE investigates ways of living with anxiety, and how anxious states of being can fuel positive action.
Anxiety is a normal and useful response to stress or danger, providing us with adrenaline and enhancing our ability to perform. It can also manifest as self-doubt or constant worry, physical discomfort, shortness of breath or dizziness. Anxiety can be ongoing, or a feeling that passes. It can be disabling, controlling many aspects of life, or a motivational force.
This exhibition opens a critical conversation around the causes of and responses to anxiety in contemporary society, making visible the connections between individual experiences of anxiety and the wider societal conditions that frame those experiences.
Through artworks, and scientific and collaborative projects, the exhibition and events explore anxiety from many different perspectives. It considers the emotional experience of anxiety, the role of genetics, and how life with anxiety is affected by social factors, economics, class, gender and ethnicity.
ON EDGE invites you to respond to anxiety in different ways. It includes quiet areas, a space for collective gathering and opportunities to take action.
Developed in collaboration with the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London