Last Seen Entering the Biltmore, South London Gallery

Last Seen Entering Baltimore adds to a string of strong South London Gallery Exhibitions. Here, the artifice of displaying art is examined from ‘behind the curtain’

Background

Elisabeth Short, who later became known as the Black Dahlia, was last seen entering the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles in 1947 before she was found savagely murdered some days later. Her case (which remains unsolved) and its aftermath captivated America and has been interpreted in several films and novels as well as in the short story by Gary Indiana from which South London Gallery's latest offering takes its name.

Following on from the much-acclaimed Welcome to Iraq and solo shows from Oscar Murillo and Richard Fleischner, Last Seen Entering the Biltmore is the latest in a string of impressive exhibitions at the gallery.

The exhibition

Last Seen Entering the Biltmore brings together new and existing work including painting, sculpture, film and installation, all of which adopt the visual language of scenography and the stage-set. However, rather than aiming to immerse the viewer in illusory environments, the works in the show are united by the artists' desire to give the viewer a perspective from behind the stage curtain. All of the artists in Last Seen Entering the Biltmore are concerned with revealing and examining the artifice that goes into the display of art.

The exhibition features works by the American artist William Leavitt whose stage-set like installations are inspired in equal measure by the banality of cheaply produced soap operas and by the intricacies of the plays of the French writer - and pioneer of the Nouveau Roman - Alain Robbe-Grillet. Also included in the exhibition is a bold new work by the painter Allison Katz as well as work by the late video art pioneer Nan Hoover.

Last Seen Entering the Biltmore is a diverse and sometimes challenging prospect. However, we have come to expect nothing less from South London Gallery. Besides, it's refreshing to see a publicly funded institution that is so unafraid of being demanding of its audience.