Maria Balshaw, Director of Tate, will be in conversation with writer, fashion critic and curator, Charlie Porter, who initiated the display, American activist Cleve Jones, who founded the AIDS Memorial Quilt, and Siobhán Lanigan of the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt Partnership.
The talk will explore the origins of the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt, its role in highlighting the devastating impact of HIV and AIDS from the 1980s onwards, and the many people it continues to memorialise and represent.
Following the talk, there will be a special evening of drinks and music in the Corner bar.
The UK AIDS Memorial Quilt was started in the 1980s at the height of the HIV and AIDS pandemic. A combination of 42 quilts and 23 individual panels will be displayed in the Turbine Hall from 12 to 16 June 2025, echoing how the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt (c.1989-ongoing) was shown outdoors to raise awareness of the ongoing AIDS pandemic and humanise the people who had died from it.
The Quilt will be available to view after the talk until 21:30.
The UK AIDS Memorial Quilt display is presented by Tate in partnership with the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt Partnership and initiated by Charlie Porter. Curated by Elliot Gibbons, Collaborative Doctoral Researcher.