British artists Maggi Hambling and Sarah Lucas, who met at the Colony Room Club in London on their shared birthday 25 years ago, are the subjects of a dual exhibition titled "OOO LA LA" opening Nov. 19 across two London galleries: Sadie Coles HQ and Frankie Rossi Art Projects. The show celebrates their personal and professional bond, coinciding with a Rizzoli monograph on Hambling and a major museum survey of Lucas at the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma in Helsinki. In an interview, the duo discusses their friendship, mutual portraits, and creative processes, emphasizing spontaneity, experimentation, and the interplay of darkness and vitality in their work.
The exhibition matters because it brings together two influential British artists from different generations—Hambling, known for her expressive oil paintings, and Lucas, a leading figure in the Young British Artists movement—highlighting their enduring creative kinship and mutual influence. The show also underscores the continued relevance of their practices, with Hambling's monograph and Lucas's museum survey signaling institutional recognition. Their conversation offers rare insight into how personal relationships can fuel artistic innovation, making this a significant moment for contemporary British art.