Halloween, heavy metal and teenage angst, some are the themes explored in Mike Kelley: Ghost and Spirit, presented at Tate Modern. This is the first major UK survey exhibition dedicated to the American artist who committed suicide in 2012.

Running until 9th March 2025, the exhibition spans Kelley’s entire career, showcasing his diverse and experimental practice, which includes drawings, collages, videos, performances, and multimedia installations.

Kelley’s work, often described as “dark pop art,” draws from media, popular and underground culture, philosophy, literature, and historical material, challenging the systems of belief and institutional structures that define societal roles.

Highly conceptual, the exhibition provides a rare opportunity for new audiences to engage with Kelley’s elaborate, provocative, and imaginative worlds, which continue to resonate more than a decade after his passing.

The brilliant curation and works on view span a diverse range of media and forms, demonstrating the artist’s versatility and emphasising Kelley’s recurring themes, such as repressed memory, sexuality, adolescence, class, and Americana—key aspects of his artistic practice. Throughout his career, Kelley also took part in curatorial projects, collaborated with various artists and musicians (that Sonic Youth cover!), and created a substantial body of critical and creative writing.