Since 1983, The Showroom has been at the forefront of its field, taking risks in producing exhibitions with artists in the early stages of their careers. Artists who have had key first solo shows at the gallery include Mona Hatoum, Jim Lambie, Eva Rothschild, Simon Starling, Rebecca Warren, Claire Barclay and, more recently, The Otolith Group, Can Altay and Emily Wardill.

In 2009, The Showroom moved to a new building on Penfold Street, London NW8. Under Director Emily Pethick, an expanded programme has included participation projects, research, publications and local and international collaboration networks. The Showroom’s acclaimed Communal Knowledge programme experiments with new modes of participation within the Church Street neighbourhood and has become influential amongst arts peers.

To celebrate the gallery’s history and secure funds for its future, Indian artist Subodh Gupta will be preparing a special 30th Anniversary Dinner at the gallery in March. Guests will be invited to participate by joining him in the kitchen before the event. Gupta had his first UK show at The Showroom in 2004, and his is the third in a series of Artist Dinners, which have previously been hosted by Eva Rothschild (2012) and Lucky PDF (2011).

The Showroom’s exhibition programme for 2013 reflects its core interests: participation, production and research. Mark Fisher and Justin Barton‘s new audio-essay On Vanishing Land (2013) (co-commissioned with The Otolith Collective) evoking the ‘Eerie’ Suffolk landscape, will play at the gallery 6 February to 30 March. A sculptural installation from Falke Pisano’s Body In Crisis series will be on display from 1 May to 22 June. In July, Brazilian artist Ricardo Basbaum will use the building as a production hub for nine site-specific works in the neighbourhood. In the Autumn, print-maker Ciara Phillips will realise an open screen printing workshop and presentation space, exploring the radical histories of print.