Phoebe Collings-James to Exhibit at Pitzhanger Manor
'A rose, a bridge, a house' features her ceramic and sculptural works
Left: Phoebe Collings-James, Infidel: devils-chariot, 2025. Courtesy the Artist, Arcadia Missa,
March 26, 2026
This spring, Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery will host the UK debut of ceramic and sculptural works by Jamaican British artist Phoebe Collings-James. The exhibition, titled a rose, a bridge, a house, opens on Tuesday 31 March with a preview event from 4.30 to 6pm, and runs from 1 April to 14 June.
The show will feature more than 17 pieces, including clay paintings, armour and human-scale sculptures, displayed throughout the main galleries and the historic Breakfast Room of Sir John Soane’s former home. It marks the first time this body of work has been shown in the UK.
Collings-James’s practice draws on a wide range of influences, from ancient cuneiform tablets and Ashanti folklore to sound design and personal memory. Her recent series Infidels uses Caribbean coiling techniques to create elongated forms with open mouths, suggesting acts of screaming, joy or resistance. The artist describes these works as exploring the figure of the outsider.
Other pieces include Mouthpiece for Terry I and II, which incorporate brass wind instrument mouthpieces into blocks of unfired clay, paying tribute to American artist and musician Terry Adkins. The Clay Paintings series presents small, square works that appear fragmented and dream-like, while a chestplate from the Armour series blends references to West African body masks and Roman military gear.
Collings-James said, “I have been devoted to this body of work which has been travelling in exhibitions since last year. It’s exciting for this series of Infidels and clay paintings to come home to London, together within the galleries at Pitzhanger.”
Richard Parry, Head of Programmes at Pitzhanger, said the gallery was “thrilled to be exhibiting Phoebe Collings-James’s richly textured sculpture and clay paintings,” describing the works as inviting close attention to surface, form and detail.
Rebecca Lyons, Director of Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery, added, “We are excited to be showing Phoebe Collings-James's innovative contemporary sculptures and clay paintings through the gallery and into the manor house, including in the spaces where Soane would have displayed his own collection of ceramics.”
Tickets and further information are available at pitzhanger.org.uk/phoebe-collings-james.
Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery is at Ealing Green, (W5 5EQ).
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