Cork Street Galleries, an initiative of The Pollen Estate, is pleased to announce that Lubaina Himid’s Cork Street Galleries Banners Commission 2026 has officially opened to the public to coincide with London Gallery Weekend 2026. Cork Street Galleries are also a Supporting Partner of the British Council and Lubaina Himid who is also representing Great Britain at the 61st International Art Exhibition of Biennale di Venezia with her major solo exhibition. Visitors will have the opportunity to experience Lubaina Himid’s work in both Venice and London this year.
Lubaina Himid’s pioneering practice has addressed themes of race, history, feminism, cultural memory and identity for more than four decades. She frequently employs storytelling and historical research to challenge dominant Eurocentric narratives and highlight the overlooked contributions of Black figures in Western history.
Lubaina Himid, Reading the Label, Cork Street Galleries Banners Commission 2026
Courtesy Cork Street Galleries and The Pollen Estate. Photo credit: Luke Hayes
For her Cork Street Galleries Banners Commission, Lubaina Himid presents Reading the Label. The installation on Cork Street presents a selection of men Lubaina Himid has painted during the past 12 years in which there are unspoken conversations transmitted through clothing. Around Cork Street there are many bespoke tailors and establishments selling ready-to-wear clothes and shoes which the artist has been fascinated by for a number of years. Reading the Label will turn Cork Street into a place about the secret language of dress.
Lubaina Himid, Reading the Label, Cork Street Galleries Banners Commission 2026
Courtesy Cork Street Galleries and The Pollen Estate. Photo credit: Luke Hayes
Lubaina Himid RA, CBE: “I am absolutely delighted to be invited to be this year’s artist for the Cork Street Galleries Banner Commission. It has given me an opportunity to open up conversations through chance encounters about memory and meaning in connection with the decisions we all make about what we wear.”
Jenny Casebourne, Property Director, The Pollen Estate: “We are truly honoured to welcome Lubaina Himid as the artist for the 2026 Cork Street Galleries Banners Commission. Continuing Cork Street Galleries’ broader advocacy role in the arts, we are thrilled to collaborate with the British Council as a Supporting Partner of The British Pavilion at the 61st edition of La Biennale di Venezia. Cork Street Galleries celebrated its centenary as a pioneering centre for the art world in London in 2025. It is a place that has championed the careers of major artists, premiering works by names including Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud and Dame Barbara Hepworth. As we enter a new century for Cork Street, we are delighted to extend this ethos beyond the street itself.”
The 2026 Cork Street Galleries Banners Commission is launching to coincide with London Gallery Weekend, which is taking place from 5 to 7 June 2026.