We look forward to welcoming Ben Eastham for a conversation with Isobel Harbison on his debut novel, The Floating World . Eastham no doubt brings his experience as art critic to his dystopian satire of the art world, yet the book is simultaneously a moving tale steeped in ancient mythology and contemporary politics. Join us for what promises to be a fascinating discussion on all of the above with fellow art writer Isobel Harbison. All are welcome to attend.
Attendance is free but booking is essential.
PRAISE FOR THE FLOATING WORLD
“An immersing, crystalline debut novel that reaches out to a world in crisis; elegant, emotional, deeply serious and gloriously witty.” - Deborah Levy, author of August Blue
“An astute satire about the absurdities of the art world, a compelling mystery and an elegy, The Floating World is unputdownable: frequently funny, often moving and always intriguing.” - Jennifer Higgie, author of The Other Side
ABOUT
BEN EASTHAM is editor-in-chief of e-flux Criticism and a widely published writer on contemporary art. The editor of books on Luis Camnitzer, Arshile Gorky, Fabio Mauri and Stephen Spender, he has worked as curator and editor on international exhibitions including the Shanghai Biennale, Documenta and Seoul Mediacity Biennale, and is on the advisory panel of EVA International. Now based in London, he lived for several years in Athens and Rome, was previously an editor at ArtReview and a founding editor of The White Review , and began his career at the BBC reporting on mass media and propaganda. His previous book, The Imaginary Museum (TLS Books, 2020), is about how works of art reconstruct our experience of the world.
ISOBEL HARBISON writes on art and culture for a range of magazines, including the Financial Times , the London Review of Books , the London Magazine , The Baffler and Tolka . Her work has been shortlisted for the Hay Festival Writer’s Award and nominated for The Pushcart Prize. Her next book, a biography of a female neon sign maker in 1950s Nevada, Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas, will be published in February 2027. [Photo: Emilija Jefremova]