LONDON.- Almine Rech is presenting Memories of the Future, an exhibition curated by Marco Capaldo, creative director of British luxury fashion house 16Arlington, for this year’s Frieze London. An expression of Capaldo’s long-standing enthusiasm for contemporary art, the exhibition is also the natural culmination of a years-long relationship between Capaldo and Almine Rech.

Drawing on a seed of inspiration first planted by an ode to memories written by Rafael Pavarotti for Vogue Italia in December 2021, Memories of the Future showcases 14 visionary artists, each of whom was asked to respond to Capaldo’s premise—that memories are not immutable experiences existing only in our past, but rather everevolving experiences that continuously shape and inform our future. The collected works encompass a range of artistic mediums: paintings from the likes of Rhea Dillon, Remi Ajani, and George Rouy; sculptures by Jesse Pollock and Sandra Poulson; photography courtesy of Francesca Woodman; and an installation in the form of John Giorno’s seminal Dial-A-Poem “free poetry service”, first shown at MoMA in 1970.

Capaldo brings to his curatorial process the same cerebral approach and singular creative vision that make 16Arlington so thrillingly original. “I’ve always loved beautiful things,” he notes of his connection to art. “I love diving into the world artists create, and the experience of both understanding—and sometimes not understanding—how their minds work.” Recent 16Arlington collections have drawn inspiration from the art world; for the brand’s recent SS25 catwalk show, staged at the historic Royal Academy of Arts during London Fashion Week, Capaldo commissioned a series of sculptures by Jesse Pollock, one of which also appears in Memories of the Future.

Fittingly for someone regarded as one of British fashion’s brightest young stars, Capaldo has curated this group show with a focus on emerging British artists, turning to the many young artists already within the 16Arlington community. Memories of the Future also showcases globally renowned artists, such as Andy Warhol—the inclusion of a set of Warhol’s polaroids holds particular significance for Capaldo, whose earliest memory of an artwork was by Warhol. He explains the inclusion of this format as in keeping with the exhibition’s central theme: “Polaroids capture a moment in time, but in their blurriness they also embody the nature of memories themselves.” The four polaroids on show include a portrait of former Vogue editor Diana Vreeland, while Warhol’s study of an orchid evokes for Capaldo a deeply personal memory of his late partner and 16Arlington co-founder Kikka Cavenati.

Featuring Remi Ajani, Henry Curchod, Rhea Dillon, John Giorno, Marie Laurencin, Dr. Esther Mahlangu, Alexandra Metcalf, Cecilia de Nisco, Sandra Poulson, Jesse Pollock, George Rouy, Mike Silva, Andy Warhol, and Francesca Woodman.

— Otegha Uwagba, journalist and bestselling author