'On Kawara was reluctant to have his earlier work, made in Japan during the 1950s, shown alongside that made after he settled in New York in 1964. These exhibitions, one in Paris of paintings by Kawara from 1955 and 1956, the other in London featuring his Date Paintings, from 1966 until two years before his death in 2014, thus conform to a compartmentalising tendency. At the same time—not least because they are occurring at the same time—they invite us to look beyond the stark differences between two styles of painting to see a continuity in the philosophical thinking that informs them.' — from "Not Understanding, Not Knowing: The Existentialism of On Kawara," a new essay by the curator and writer Jonathan Watkins.

FREE. On Kawara: Date Paintings is at David Zwirner, London until 25 January 2025. 24 Grafton Street, London W1S 4EZ. (Showing concurrently, On Kawara: Early works is at David Zwirner, Paris, 108, rue Vieille du Temple)

'Locke reimagines historical objects from the Museum’s collection to throw fresh light on British imperialism. Building on the carnivalesque of his 2022 Tate Britain commission The Procession, a new series titled The Watchers (2024) challenges viewers to reconsider their place within the historical narratives surrounding them, to have a good hard look at history’s complex impact on our present.' — Sammi Gale.

PAID. Hew Locke: what have we here? is at the British Museum until 9 February 2025. Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG

The exhibition, which expands on Lomax' recent exhibition at HMP Grendon, includes a new series of concrete casts, photographs and found sculptural objects. At dusk everyday throughout the exhibition, four street lights turn on. Their golden glow saturates colour out of their environment and out of the surrounding artworks.

FREE. James Lomax: A Tale of Two Cities is at Sid Motion Gallery Gallery until 18 January 2024. 24a Penarth Centre, Hatcham Road SE15 1TR

Kenia Almaraz Murillo 'intertwines indigenous South American materials, such as embroideries made by her uncles and yarn sourced from her mother’s village of Aquechata, with found urban objects, such as car parts and headlights, creating a tapestry of experience.' — Donna Salek, World of Interiors

FREE. Kenia Almaraz Murillo, Andean Cosmovision is at Waddington Custot until 30 January 2025. Waddington Custot, 11 Cork Street, London W1S 3LTF

While Robas’ found and digitally manipulated photos of unknown people are reproduced in an evident painterly manner, where every layer of colour applied to the canvas is visible beneath the others, Lampe’s representations of real sitters are erased of the artist’s touch altogether, veiled to push the images further back into something that is no longer tangible. Read a profile with Katinka Lampe

FREE. Katinka Lampe & Paul Robas: Standstill is at Alice Amati Gallery until 21 December, 2024. 27 Warren Street, W1T 5NB London

Cover image: Installation view of James Lomax, 'A Tale of Two Cities' at Sid Motion Gallery