Nan Goldin’s Ballad of Sexual Dependency shown in full at Gagosian, London

For the first time in the UK, Nan Goldin’s The Ballad of Sexual Dependency is being shown in its entirety at Gagosian, London. The exhibition features 126 photographs made between 1973 and 1986 and runs until 21 March.

Widely regarded as Goldin’s magnum opus, the Ballad is described as an incisive reflection on gender, intimacy and power and introduces viewers to New York’s downtown scene and a generation lost to Aids. The work was first conceived as a slideshow with a diverse soundtrack and debuted in New York nightclubs and public art exhibitions before Aperture published the book in 1986.

Goldin described the project at the time as 'the diary I let people read' and says the photographs define the era of downtown New York and have influenced decades of visual culture. She said she still believes the photos 'tell the truth of that time' and that she recontextualises the afterword every 10 years while the foreword 'is for ever'.

Goldin said she made the pictures so 'nostalgia could never colour my past' and that the Ballad has become a record of the generation that was lost to Aids. She said the work has helped people survive, adding 'if I can help one person survive, that’s the ultimate purpose of my work', and that she wants to continue updating the record of her life.

Key Topics

Culture, Nan Goldin, Ballad Photobook, Gagosian, London, Downtown New York