The HENI Gallery is currently hosting a collaborative art exhibition between Eminem and Damien Hirst titled American Dream. But is it worth seeing?
As shows go, London is filled with a stellar number of art exhibitions, with so much to choose from. So imagine the surprise of hearing Eminem is in town to promote his own? Well, sort of. The potty-mouthed rapper is collaborating with British artist Damien Hirst on a series of artworks based on the Detroit hip-hop artist’s music titled American Dream, hosted by the HENI Gallery. As it nears closing following its limited opening, we attended to ask the question — should you see it?
Why Now?
Hirst’s new work is a team-up with the lyricist’s record label, Interscope, building on artworks originally created to celebrate 30 years of the record company in 2022, an anniversary project spearheaded by music executive Jimmy Iovine.
Review: What to Expect
As soon as you walk in, you’ll be greeted by trippy interpretations of Eminem’s albums, remixed in Hirst’s style. The execution is vibrant and eye-catching — but perhaps not to everyone’s taste.
The space, presented by HENI Gallery, is overly clean and white-looking, with cabinets filled with medicine packaging, pills and representations of drugs mentioned in Em’s lyrics. From paracetamol to ecstasy, mushrooms and cannabis, the installations are stocked high with drug-related imagery, aptly named Re-Up, Riot and Addict, and are priced at $35,000, $50,000 and $75,000, respectively
While we can appreciate the move to highlight Marshall Mathers’ work, they feel more like special-edition vinyls. And that’s where the problem lies. They’re on sale for a whopping $450, or $5,000 for a signed edition. But the downside is, in this day and age, why?
Both the method, execution and visual identity are arrested by repetition, and as you turn a corner, you can feel like you’re briefly going mad as you’re met by a sense of déjà vu. We can appreciate a hip-hop x art installation, as the two go hand in hand, but this is far from impressive and feels more like a cash grab than a celebration. This exhibition is limited in two ways: art and ideas.
Plan Your Journey
Barring your travel costs, American Dream at the HENI Gallery is free to attend and will run until 19 October 2026.
The nearest Tube stations are Piccadilly Circus (4-minute walk), Oxford Circus (10 minutes), and Leicester Square (8 minutes). Alternatively, if you’re travelling via the Elizabeth line, you can hop off at Tottenham Court Road for an 11-minute walk.
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