Baltic confirms 2025 exhibition programme including Ali Cherri, Harold Offeh..

How I Am Monument will be the first major UK institutional presentation of Cherri’s work. Ali Cherri works across film, sculpture, installation, drawing and performance. His practice is inspired both by archaeological artefacts and the natural world, exploring the temporal shifts between ancient civilisations and contemporary societies. Using artefacts as a starting point, he considers the links between archaeology, historical narrative and heritage, reflecting on the processes of excavation and the relocation and preservation of cultural objects in museums. His work addresses colonial histories, cultural loss, nationhood and different geographies of violence in his native Lebanon but also in the broader region, interrogating the ways in which political violence is witnessed, and disseminates into people’s bodies, and how it scars the physical and cultural landscape.

The exhibition has been developed in partnership with Vienna Secession where it will open 6 December 2024 – 23 February 2025. A second, extended chapter will be presented in Baltic’s expansive Level 4 gallery from 12 April 2025.

In June 2025, Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead will present a new public artwork conceived by artist Henna Asikainen in collaboration with Roua Horanieh, as part of the Moomin 80th Anniversary celebrations. Commissioned by Counterpoints Arts, Baltic, and supported by Moomin Characters, the project celebrates Tove Jansson’s beloved book The Moomins and the Great Flood, first published in 1945, with its timeless themes of inclusiveness and belonging.

The commission aligns with national Refugee Week to highlight the resilience and creativity of refugees and asylum seekers. With its Gallery of Sanctuary status, Baltic continues to promote welcome, inclusivity, and awareness through creative platforms, making this collaboration an exciting opportunity to explore community and connection in the public realm.

Artist Harold Offeh will develop new work for family audiences in collaboration with Baltic’s communities through Baltic’s Neighbourly programmes. For two decades Harold Offeh has produced work in a range of media including performance, video, photography, learning and social arts practice. Offeh is interested in the space created by the inhabiting or embodying of histories and explores subjects ranging from pop culture to identity and conformity. His playful and provocative works often employ humour as a means to confront the viewer with historical narratives and contemporary culture.

Saodat Ismailova is a filmmaker and artist who came of age in the post-Soviet era Uzbekistan. Spanning film, sound, installation and sculpture, Ismailova often uses archival footage alongside striking iconography and hypnotic narratives that trace the loss marked by successive regime changes to the spiritual memory of the region and the impact of human activity on the environment. 

This exhibition will be Ismailova’s first in a UK public institution and presents works from her two decade-long career. Exploring thresholds and transitions, the exhibition considers the idea of transmission and personal and collective consciousness.