Together with his own artworks, contemporary artist Hew Locke uses the British Museum's collection as a springboard to explore themes of colonialism and cultural interactions.

Together with his own artworks, contemporary artist Hew Locke uses the British Museum's collection as a springboard to explore themes of colonialism and cultural interactions.

Hew Locke is interested in dissecting the messy and complex ways in which museums are implicated in histories of empire. 'This project has enabled me to engage with the museum's collections in a much deeper way than ever before, and in a way few artists have had the privilege of doing. I have always been interested in the way objects are interpreted through display in museums.

What story has been distilled and is being told or implied about the past? How does it relate to the present? How can this telling be questioned, disrupted, or complicated?'