“It’s the remembrance of a specific time and people. A love note to all those who we have loved and lost throughout the years,” says Aida Wilde, artist and curatorial lead, whose exhibition Meanwhile… 10 Years Back in Hackney Wick reflects on a defining chapter in Hackney Wick’s history.
The exhibition forms part of Wicked Changes VI, Felstead Art’s sixth annual open-call exhibition, this year celebrating the 10th anniversary of the legendary Napier Project and the Save Yourselves exhibition.
Jointly curated by Wilde and Felstead Art founder Michael Wormack, the exhibition spills across two Felstead Art locations, with Part One at the Studio and Part Two at the Trampery.
Wilde explains that both spaces span Hackney and Tower Hamlets, mirroring the geography of the original 2016 projects, which took place across two boroughs. “There seemed to be a nice organic synergy and connection happening with the past,” she says.
“We also knew that we had a lot of artworks to exhibit, so the split worked well between the two spaces, with the curation for Felstead’s Studio focusing on artworks connected to the Hackney Wick side and landmarks there, while the Trampery focuses more on the archival materials and artworks from the Save Yourselves show and Save Hackney Wick campaign.”
For Wilde, revisiting the material has been emotional. She reflects on screen-printing posters for the Save Hackney Wick campaign, a 2016 artist-led movement protesting plans to demolish the Vittoria Wharf creative hub, which was home to more than 100 artists and small businesses.
She also recalls working with Kirsty Dixon, former director of Hackney WickED CIC, to mend large-scale banners from the 2016 Burning of Homogenisation funeral procession. “Mending those together really felt like a cathartic and painful process and we felt like we were somehow stitching into and with the past,” she says.
The process of unwrapping and rehanging the preserved works was equally difficult, with Wilde recalling “many emotional and tearful outbursts” during the hang.
“The paste-ups for the ‘Broken Homes’ installation also hit me hard. So many street art friends contributed to the original build and artworks… many who are no longer in Hackney Wick, or in the UK for that matter.”
While there is a deep affection for the area and its people felt throughout, Wilde is keen to distinguish the exhibition from nostalgia.
“This show is about LEGACY – a rich heritage of what once was. So much has been erased and art-washed. This exhibition is about the many great artists that created, trod and played on these streets, pavements and demolished warehouse spaces and studios.”
Hackney Wick loyalists will remember the “Lunatics” descending on the derelict Lord Napier pub in July 2016 for a 48-hour street art takeover.
The brainchild of Wilde, the project brought together more than 29 multidisciplinary artists who had lived, worked or contributed to Hackney Wick’s creative scene.
Looking back, Wilde recalls “literal blood, sweat and tears… It was intense and exhausting. I don’t even know how we did it within 48 hours with such little resources – completely DIY.”
Despite this, there was a strong sense of purpose. “I remember everyone was working at super speed, really hard, above and beyond. I felt so supported and I believe that all the artists who gave up their time and talents believed in the vision and what we were doing as much as I did. I hoped that we were all working towards the same goal as to raise awareness to what was going on in Hackney Wick and its artists and studios whilst we were still here.”
What has stayed with Wilde the most is the “coming together of so many great artists and friends – a strong connected community.”
She adds: “I have not felt that kind of camaraderie, kinship and giving of one’s self for a really long time since.”
This sense of community is echoed by the artists taking part. Photographer Matthew Payne says “it feels great to showcase and represent my work enveloped in a sense of camaraderie.”
Reflecting on his images of Hackney Wick’s murals and street art around 2019, Payne “hoped to record pieces that would no doubt be demolished alongside the ever-changing landscape of Hackney Wick. Using a drone helped me to encompass wider, more interesting landscapes showing how the art was an intrinsic feature of the neighbourhood and, without it, the area would simply be ‘less'.”
Meanwhile, Jeanette Barnes, who has had a studio in Hackney Wick for more than 25 years, describes her large drawings and monotype prints as a record of “an evolving place” she has watched transform.
“I think it’s important to document the life of an area, recording its history, people and distinctive character as it continues to change,” she says, citing the London 2012 Olympic Park and V&A East.
For Graham Elder, revisiting the events of 10 years ago has meant “reconnecting to the Hackney Wick of that time, whilst making new bonds to the Hackney Wick of the present.”
His work King of Queens, painted as a response to the Hackney WickED festival in 2010, captures the chaotic atmosphere of performing live. For Lorella Bianco, taking part felt “like a warm hug, a collective tribute to a place we’ve been calling home for years.”
Bianco’s work responds to the rapid replacement of the area’s warehouses and street art with new development, leaving, she says, an “unrecognisable and forever changed landscape.”
Across the exhibition, visitors can see the many ways that artists have documented and responded to the evolving landscape of Hackney Wick.
Wilde speaks frankly about the impact of redevelopment on the area’s creative identity: “We are all trying to survive with the fear that our studios are under threat at any given time, or we will get the dreaded notice that we have to leave. How can anyone be creative under that threat? We are barely surviving,” she says. “I call it the art of ‘Wick Washing’.”
For Wilde, the preservation of Hackney Wick’s history through this exhibition is all the more important. “It’s a very small portal and glimpse into our rich creative and diverse past. I cannot let that be forgotten or not honoured, at least.”
Wicked Changes VI Meanwhile… 10 Years Back in Hackney Wick
Part One: until 28 August 2026
Felstead Art | Studio, 12 Felstead Street
London E9 5LT
Part Two: until 5 September 2026
Felstead Art | Trampery, 13 Rookwood Way
London E3 2XT
