Date Thursday 30 April 2026
Location Nunnery Gallery, 181 Bow Road, London, E3 2SJ
Overview
Join us on a tour of Bow Arts, featuring artist studios surrounding our International Student exhibition, 'The Mosaic of Becoming'. Meet three practising artists currently working in the surrounding studios in their creative spaces. A relaxed setting for you to ask questions about their practice, when they felt ready for a studio, creative advice and more! See our resource on ''Is Renting a Studio Right For Me?' and 'Making Connections and Building Networks' for ideas.
About Bow Arts
Since 1994, Bow Arts has nurtured London’s diverse creativity and talent. We’ve provided artists and creative practitioners with affordable workspace, connecting them with local communities and supporting their professional development. We give communities throughout London greater access to and interaction with the arts, through our schools programme, workshops, exhibitions and events.
We’re an arts and education charity and a social enterprise; our services support the growth of sustainable local creative economies. Over 900 artists, designers and makers are affiliated with Bow Arts through our workspaces, Nunnery Gallery, affordable housing for creatives, and award-winning schools and young people’s learning programme.
We are currently celebrating Bow Arts’ 30th anniversary, celebrating three decades of providing long-lasting artist support.
Tour Agenda and timings:
1:00 pm - 1.10 pm - Meet at the Nunnery Gallery, 181 Bow Road, London, E3 2SJ
(Please visit their website for the nearest train stations and bus routes)
1.10 pm - 1.40 pm - Hunkyu Kim - Fine Art: Paintings
Artist Bio
Born in 1986 in Seoul, South Korea. Lives and works in London, United Kingdom.
Artist Hun Kyu Kim is known for his allegorical, sentient works that layer complex histories, social issues, and pop culture to create his own fantastical, highly-intricate worlds. Laced with humor and satire, Kim’s detailed depictions of corruption, folly, and the perils of indulgence reveal a critical view of contemporary society. The surreal elements in his paintings—despite their innocent, illustrative quality—often serve to amplify these critiques, creating a striking contrast between the familiar and the grotesque.
Kim, drawing on his extensive background in art restoration and silk painting, and shaped by his South Korean heritage, has forged a distinctive visual language. His art is characterized by the meticulous inking of fine, delicate lines onto silk, a practice rooted in Korean Buddhist traditions and the Goryeo dynasty (918-1392 AD). By reimagining these ancient methods within a contemporary framework, Kim’s work transcends conventional boundaries, transforming his densely-populated creations into enigmatic portals that challenge rational interpretation and encourage contemplation.
Website: https://www.perrotin.com/en/artists/hun-kyu-kim
Instagram: @Hunkyu.Kim
1.40 pm - 2.10 pm - Edy Ferguson - Fine Art: Paintings and Music Installations
Born in Chicago and based in London, Edy Ferguson works making both abstract painting and conceptually-driven work which considers the slippages between memory, language, images, symbols and belief. Her projects consider how our sense of truth and reality is affected by fractured narratives in evolving forms of propaganda, the theatrics of conflict, and the staged presentation of credibility.
Ferguson uses interdisciplinary strategies, such as appropriation, collage/de-collage, painting, video, and performance as interventions into documentary modes of display, public address, broadcast, and reception. She transforms archival and forensic systems into supports for poetic gestures. Her work often foregrounds the labor of looking in the searching and sorting of images, finding pattern and meaning in the noise of hyper-information.
She completed her MFA at Hunter College, City of New York, and her BFA at Washington University in St. Louis where she was awarded The Fred Conway Art Award. Since 2019 Ferguson has been lecturing and teaching Contemporary Painting, Sound and Public Art at Xi’an Academy of Art, in Xi'an China.
Website: https://www.edyferguson.com
Instagram: @edyfergusonstudio
2.10 pm - 2.40 pm - Laisul Hoque - Films and Installations
Artist Bio
Born in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Laisul Hoque lives and works in London. Hoque's work explores autotheory through an interdisciplinary approach through installation and films.
Made in collaboration with the communities connected to the narratives explored in his work and informed by intimate conversations, Hoque's work forms an experiential autobiography that opens into a wider collective story.
Drawing from memory and lived experience, he reflects on microhistories and their connections to larger global narratives. After studying literature in Dhaka, he completed an MA in Contemporary Photography; Practices and Philosophy at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London.
Website: https://laisulhoque.com
Instagram: @laisulhoque
2.20 pm - 3:00 pm - Optional, further discussion at Nunnery Cafe: one free hot or cold drink reimbursed by Arts SU or have a look around our exhibition 'The Mosaic of Becoming'.
Access
Unfortunately, the artists' studios do not have step-free access; they are located in two historic buildings over 3 floors.
The Nunnery Gallery and Cafe have step-free access throughout from street level, including to the accessible toilet, and are service animal-friendly.
If you would like to attend this event but have you have any accessibility questions or requests, please get in touch with us at: artsprogramme@su.arts.ac.uk
Skills you can gain from this opportunity
By taking part, we hope you will develop your skills in:
- Communication and Collaboration
- Creative and Conceptual Skills
Arts Programme Skills Recognition Framework
Looking for more? Check out our other available resources.
