Nan Goldin’s first major UK exhibition in over two decades opens at the Hayward Gallery this November. New film work debuts alongside a shift away from her famous portraits of friends and lovers, towards animals, land and the natural world.
The Hayward Gallery has announced full details of the solo show by the acclaimed American artist and activist, rounding off the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary year. Titled You Never Did Anything Wrong, it’s Goldin’s first UK institutional show since 2002.
Over five decades, Goldin has documented personal relationships, addiction and queer communities, work that closed the distance between observer and observed. This new presentation, built in specially designed spaces created with architect Hala Wardé, brings together intimate photographs, slideshows and a genuine step away from the human subjects that made her name.
Two new films turn away from people, towards other species
You Never Did Anything Wrong, Part II (2026) makes its public debut here, screening alongside Part I (2024). Together they mark Goldin’s most striking new direction, away from humans and towards other species entirely.
Shot on 16mm, Part I centres on a solar eclipse, inspired by an ancient myth of animals stealing the sun. It explores the full range of animal consciousness, with music by Valerij Fedorenko and an original score by Mica Levi, and is dedicated to Sulala Animal Rescue, the oldest animal rescue in the Gaza Strip, whom Goldin has worked with closely.
Part II, made with filmmaker David Sherman, is built from found footage and damaged soundtracks, mostly nature documentaries from the 1960s and 70s that Goldin grew up watching. The gallery calls it a lyrical ode to the land, the animals and the minutiae of the natural world, shot through with a sense of impending extinction.
UK premieres for Stendhal Syndrome and Memory Lost
The show also marks the UK premiere of Stendhal Syndrome (2024), which contrasts photographs of Goldin’s friends and lovers with classical art from museums worldwide, revealing uncanny resemblances in composition, colour and emotion. Accompanied by a score by Soundwalk Collective, the work, in Goldin’s words, “shows that my people have always been here”.
Alongside it, Memory Lost (2019–2021) explores Goldin’s personal history with drugs and the darkness of addiction. Slides capturing scenes from her own life and friendships show the ecstasy, mourning and pain of drug use, connecting personal testimony with structural critique.
Goldin is a member of P.A.I.N. (Prescription Addiction Intervention Now), the activist group she started to combat the overdose crisis, and the work is dedicated to it. Upstairs, the gallery presents a selection of her photographs, including a new body of prints connected to the You Never Did Anything Wrong films.
Rachel Thomas, Roden Chief Curator, says: “We are incredibly proud to debut new work by Nan Goldin at the Hayward Gallery. This exhibition traces the evolution of her gaze through extraordinary new and recent moving image works, demonstrating how her lens operates on a wavelength of pure compassion. Shifting her focus from human relationships to animal consciousness and the natural world, Goldin brilliantly re-evaluates how we perceive other living beings.”
Mark Ball, Southbank Centre’s Artistic Director, adds: “Nan Goldin has reshaped the language of photography, transforming the medium into a profound living record of human intimacy and resilience. At the Hayward Gallery, we are thrilled to host her first major UK exhibition for over two decades with work that captures the soul of her practice.”
Tickets and the catalogue
Tickets go on sale to Southbank Centre Members on Wednesday 15 July 2026, and to the public on Friday 17 July 2026. There’s a £7.50 ticket offer for the opening two weeks, part of the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary celebrations, and Under-30s subscribers get half-price tickets.
A fully illustrated catalogue accompanies the exhibition, with a newly commissioned essay and an in-depth interview between Goldin and writer Thora Siemsen.
The London x London take: the Hayward’s Brutalist galleries have hosted plenty of major names, but Goldin’s first UK institutional show since 2002 feels like an event rather than another big-ticket booking, helped along by two brand new films rather than a straight retrospective. Book early for the opening fortnight if you want the £7.50 tickets.
Need to know
- Where: Hayward Gallery, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX
- When: 24 November 2026 to 7 March 2027
- Tickets: Full price £19, concessions available, Southbank Centre Members go free
