Miss Jeffrey, External Relations Officer, and Mrs Minnis, Assistant Principal, were delighted to attend the opening night of artist and filmmaker Gregor Petrikovič’s latest exhibition at the South London Gallery on Thursday 29 January, as part of New Contemporaries 2026.

The evening marked a significant milestone in Gregor’s artistic career and offered an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of a New Hall alumnus whose creative journey began in New Hall’s Art, Design & Technology department. During the event, Gregor reminisced about his early days at New Hall as a Sixth Form HMC Scholar, where completing his Fine Art A Level first sparked his enduring interest in both film and photography, an interest that has since developed into an internationally recognised practice.

New Contemporaries at South London Gallery, 2026. Photo: Oli Cowling

Gregor Petrikovič is a Slovak-British artist and filmmaker based in London, working at the intersection of film, photography, artificial intelligence and movement. Drawing on a background in philosophy, photography and dance, Gregor’s work explores themes of human connection and alienation in an increasingly digital and technologically mediated world. His recent work brings together generative AI with a personal audio archive of friends and acquaintances, creating a stream of synthetic images from remembered conversations. His practice is known for its emotional depth, visual experimentation, and thoughtful engagement with contemporary life.

After leaving New Hall, Gregor went on to complete an MA in Photography at the Royal College of Art, where he was awarded the prestigious Burberry Design Scholar title. His work has since been exhibited widely at major international venues and festivals, including IDFA DocLab (Amsterdam), Late at Tate Britain, SOLO Contemporary, Sónar+D Barcelona, and the Athens Digital Arts Festival. He is also an alumnus of the International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP) in New York.

Gregor was also selected as one of six artists for the FLAMIN Fellowship (2024-25) at Film London, where he developed his film project, Sincerely, Victor Pike, which received the Colección SOLO AI Award 2024, recognising its innovative use of emerging technologies within contemporary filmmaking.

Gregor’s artistic success stands as a powerful testament to the lasting impact of arts education and the value of encouraging children to pursue their passions with curiosity, discipline, and confidence. The evening was both a celebration of artistic excellence and a reminder of the inspiring journeys that can begin in the classroom and go on to resonate on the national and international stage.

Gregor’s work will be on display at the South London Gallery in the New Contemporaries 2026 exhibition from 30 January-12 April 2026, after which the exhibition travels to MIMA Middlesbrough from 8 May-16 August 2026.