Freeze was the title of an art exhibition organised by Damien Hirst and other students from Goldsmiths College. The show took place in July 1988 in an empty London Port Authority building at Surrey Docks in London's Docklands and was sponsored by the London Docklands Development Corporation and Olympia and York. Although often described as being in a warehouse, the exhibition was actually housed in an administration block. This page is a candidate to be moved to Wiktionary. ... Damien Hirst Damien Hirst (born 1965 in Bristol) is a British artist and probably the most famous of the group that has been dubbed Young British Artists (or YBAs). ... Goldsmiths College (founded 1891 by the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths as Goldsmiths Technical and Recreative Institute) has been a part of the federal University of London since 1904, when it took its current name. ... 1988 is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Docklands is the semi-official name for an area in the east of London, England, comprising parts of several boroughs (Southwark, Tower Hamlets and Newham) in Greater London. ... The London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) was a quango set up in 1981 to regenerate the Docklands area of east London. ... Olympia and York was a major property firm. ... Inside Green Logistics Co. ...

The show is now seen as the defining event for the group of artists later to be identified as the Young British Artists (yBas). However, several members of the yBas went to different art colleges and didn't exhibit at Freeze, many of the original exhibitors are no longer celebrated, and two young artists actually turned down the chance to be in the exhibition. The exhibition was originally conceived as a group effort but during the preparation Hirst, who was still only in his second year at College and had more time on his hands, emerged as main organiser. Hirst and his collaborators consciously imitated the look of Charles Saatchi's first gallery in St John's Wood that had opened a few years earlier. Indeed Saatchi was an early visitor to the show where he was first introduced to Damien Hirst. Saatchi, who was already looking to acquire contemporary art from promising, unknown artists, purchased a piece by Matt Collishaw direct from the exhibition. Goldsmiths' lecturer Michael Craig-Martin used his influence in the London art world to get Norman Rosenthal and Nicholas Serota to visit the exhibition and bought several of the works from the show. Young British Artists or YBAs is the name given to a group of conceptual artists, painters, sculptors and installation artists based in the United Kingdom, most (though not all) of whom attended Goldsmiths College in London. ... CUNT ... Michael Craig-Martin is an American-born artist who has lived and worked in Britain since the late 1960s. ... Sir Nicholas Serota (born 1946) is a curator, and currently Director of the Tate, the United Kingdoms leading visual arts organisation. ...

The 16 students who did exhibit at Freeze were

• Steven Adamson
• Angela Bulloch
• Mat Collishaw - Bullet Hole
• Ian Davenport
• Dominic Denis
• Angus Fairhurst
• Anya Gallaccio
• Damien Hirst
• Gary Hume - door paintings
• Michael Landy
• Abigail Lane
• Sarah Lucas
• Lala Meredith Vula
• Richard Patterson
• Simon Patterson
• Stephen Park
• Fiona Rae

The catalogue for Freeze had surprisingly high production values for a student exhibition being designed by Tony Arefin and included an essay by art critic Ian Jeffrey. The title of the show came from the catalogue's description of Mat Collishaw's macro photograph Bullet Hole which showed a bullet striking a human head - 'dedicated to a moment of impact, a preserved now, a freeze-frame'. The catalogue is now a collectors item. Angela Bulloch (born 1966) is a British sculptor and recognised as one of the Young British Artists. ... Mat Collishaw (born 1966) is a member of the Young British Artists and exhibited in Freeze. ... Ian Davenport (born 1966) is an English painter. ... Angus Fairhurst (born 1966) is a British artist working in installation, photography and video. ... Anya Gallaccio (born 1963) is a British artist. ... Damien Hirst Damien Hirst (born 1965 in Bristol) is a British artist and probably the most famous of the group that has been dubbed Young British Artists (or YBAs). ... Gary Hume (born 1962) is a British artist. ... Michael Landy (born 1963) is a British artist, one of the so-called Young British Artists (YBAs). ... Sarah Lucas (born 1962) is an artist who came to prominence as one of the Young British Artists or yBAs. ... Richard Patterson, Blue Minotaur 1996, Copyright the artist, Courtesy Timothy Taylor Gallery, London // Biography 1963 Born in Leatherhead, Surrey, England 1982-83 Watford College of Art and Design Foundation Course 1983-86 Goldsmiths College B.A. Hons (Fine Art) Solo Exhibitions Forthcoming Timothy Taylor Gallery, London, (2005) 2002 James Cohan... Simon Patterson (b. ...

A group photo of the exhibitors outside the show is often reprinted but is not a complete record as Bulloch and Landy are not in the picture.

Following the show many of the artists secured dealers. The success inspired a second exhibition several months later, Freeze 2, featuring some artists from the first exhibition and some new faces from other London Art Schools. However, this second show was not as influential.

There was one contemporary review of the exhibition by Sacha Craddock. The BBC filmed the exhibition and interviewed some contributors. Although the footage was not aired at the time, it has been used in programmes since. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was formed in 1927 by means of a royal charter. ...

References

• Exposure Magazine article on the YBAs
• Guardian Newspaper article