The exhibition at Studio Voltaire, Very High Frequency, is a major new commission by British artist Hilary Lloyd, taking inspiration from the trailblazing playwright and television dramatist Dennis Potter. The installation presents a layered environment that weaves together film, sound, and archival material in a shifting, choreographed space.

To shape the spatial experience, Kvadrat has contributed over 200 metres of textiles. Divina 3, Divina Melange 3, and Zulu 2 transform the gallery into a theatrical space with shifting zones, using fabric as both partition and stage device. In doing so, they extend the dialogue between Lloyd’s sculptural video installations and Potter’s vision of television as a powerful medium for artistic expression.

Central to the exhibition is the interplay of theatre and television, reflecting Potter’s radical use of performance techniques to blur fantasy and reality. Lloyd combines audiovisual elements with archival materials and performative interludes, staging a non-linear encounter with Potter’s work for and on television. Engaging with the themes, confrontations and atmospheres that defined Potter’s work, the exhibition navigates his explorations of illness, death, sex, and power and class.

Very High Frequency continues Lloyd’s practice of presenting still and moving images within precise sculptural arrangements. Here, she highlights collaborators and commentators from Potter’s life, including broadcaster Melvyn Bragg and producer Kenith Trodd, whose contributions underscore the enduring relevance of Potter’s work to contemporary culture.

Through this commission, Studio Voltaire and Hilary Lloyd invite audiences to reflect on the legacy of one of Britain’s most pioneering dramatists. Supported by Kvadrat textiles, the exhibition demonstrates the transformative role that material, staging and sound can play in shaping encounters with art.


Studio Voltaire
1A Nelsons Row,
London, SW4 7JR

10 September 2025 – 11 January 2026
Wednesday–Sunday, 11 am–6 pm

About Hilary Lloyd

Hilary Lloyd (b. 1964, Halifax) lives and works in London. She has exhibited internationally, with solo exhibitions including: Ok darling, show’s over!, Roland Ross, Kent, England (2024); You want it to be art and I want it to be a magazine, International Centre for Contemporary Culture, San Sebastian (2024); Dog bEar Scarf, Josey, Norwich (2022), Car Park, Sadie Coles HQ, London (2019); Chance Encounters V, Loewe Foundation, Miami (2019); Bar, BAR, Turin (2019); Theatre, Focal Point Gallery, Southend-on-Sea (2017); Awful Girls, Dorich House Museum, Dorich House Fellowship & Dora Volume 1, Kingston (2017); Blaffer Art Museum, Houston (2016); Robot and Balfour, Sadie Coles HQ, London (2015); Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Basel (2012), Artists Space, New York (2011); Raven Row, London (2010); Tramway, Glasgow (2009); Le Consortium, Dijon (2009); Kunstverein München (2006); Waiters, Henry Moore Foundation Contemporary Projects, Venice Biennale (2003); Kino der Dekonstruktion, Frankfurter Kunstverein (2000); and Chisenhale Gallery, London (1999). Lloyd was nominated for the 2011 Turner Prize for her exhibition of 2010 at Raven Row, London.

About Dennis Potter

Dennis Potter (b. 1935–d. 1994) was a journalist, novelist, cultural commentator, broadcaster, producer, director and playwright. Born in a mining village in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire and graduating from Oxford University, he briefly worked as a journalist and entered politics, unsuccessfully standing as a Labour candidate in the 1964 general election. However his most significant cultural and artistic contributions were made within the realm of British television drama, where he authored more than forty single plays, serials, and adaptations. His notable contributions include many of the BBC’s Wednesday Plays and acclaimed series such as Pennies from Heaven (1978). The latter, conceived as a ‘television novel’, marked a pivotal moment in Potter’s career, as one of the earliest instances in which his characters engaged in stylised performances of popular songs—lip-synching and dancing to original 1930s recordings. Although Potter consistently denied that his work was autobiographical, many of his dramas were informed by personal experiences. Perhaps most notably, his lifelong struggle with psoriatic arthritis was reflected in The Singing Detective, in which the protagonist’s illness closely parallels Potter’s own condition. Prior to his death in 1994, he completed two final scripts, Karaoke and Cold Lazarus. Remarkably, he successfully proposed that the productions be a joint venture between rival broadcasters, the BBC and Channel 4 - marking a landmark collaboration in British television history.

About Studio Voltaire

Studio Voltaire is one of the UK’s leading not–for–profit arts and education organisations. Championing emerging and underrepresented artists, we commission and produce exhibitions, artist development programmes, civic and learning projects, live events and offsite commissions. Studio Voltaire is a registered charity and part of Arts Council England’s National Portfolio.

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