24-Hour Retrospective Exhibition of Tony Cokes at Amos Rex in Helsinki

On September 12 and 13, 2025, Amos Rex in Helsinki will host a groundbreaking 24-hour retrospective exhibition of works by acclaimed American video artist Tony Cokes. This event marks the culmination of the museum's summer season, offering a unique opportunity to engage with nearly four decades of Cokes’s transformative artistic practice.

The exhibition, aptly titled "24 Hours with Tony Cokes," will commence at 6 a.m. and will feature a series of video works displayed throughout the museum's interior and exterior spaces, including the cinema, passageways, facade, and outdoor square. The program will also incorporate live performances by notable artists such as Vladislav Delay (Sasu Ripatti) and Sonic Wilderness, a Finnish music collective that includes Antye Greie-Ripatti (AGF), Islaja, and Cucina Povera.

Kieran Long, the Director of Amos Rex, expressed his enthusiasm for the event, stating, "We are so excited to be working together with PUBLICS and Tony Cokes on what promises to be an extraordinary curatorial event. The idea to take over the whole area around the museum is something that came naturally in this process. Tony’s extraordinary works will be like a glitch in the system, a new way of seeing this public space and the digital screens that we all live with and pass by every day. We look forward to amusing, entertaining and provoking passers-by and visitors alike in an intense 24-hour period in September."

Cokes's body of work is known for its critical engagement with media, power structures, and cultural narratives. Among the seminal pieces to be showcased are "Black Celebration" (1988), "Fade to Black" (1990), and "Evil.16 (Torture.Musik)" (2009-2011), along with more recent works including "HS LST WRDZ" (2021) and "Some Munich Moments 1937–1972" (2022).

In a statement, Tony Cokes remarked, "This singular selection of works is a rare opportunity to experience my practice in spatially, temporally, and sonically diverse contexts. The ensemble extends the implications of the work in highly intensive, specific, and productive ways. I can’t wait to feel, see, and hear the results!"

Cokes’s methodology often involves the interweaving of textual, musical, and visual elements, creating incisive critiques of consumerism, anti-Blackness, and contemporary political discourse. The exhibition will also feature interactive components, such as screen-printing workshops and a discussion featuring Cokes, Bhavisha Panchia, and PUBLICS Artistic Director Paul O’Neill.

This retrospective not only highlights Cokes’s innovative contributions to video art but also invites audiences to reconsider the significance of public spaces and digital media in contemporary society. As the art world increasingly embraces immersive experiences, Cokes’s exhibition at Amos Rex stands out as a pivotal moment for both the artist and the Helsinki art scene.

As the September event approaches, anticipation is building around how Cokes’s work will engage with the museum's architecture and the urban environment of Helsinki, offering both locals and visitors an invigorating lens through which to view the complexities of modern media and art.