A Game of Chess 1975

Editor: Colin Lanceley’s “A Game of Chess”, held at the Tate, presents a riot of imagery! It’s playful but also unsettling. What symbols stand out to you? Curator: The chess game itself becomes a symbol of larger power dynamics. The figures floating around the board, the eye above, the disembodied mouth… Do they suggest the unseen forces that manipulate our actions? Lanceley uses familiar forms, like chess pieces, to hint at deeper psychological struggles, drawing on a cultural memory of conflict and strategy. Editor: So it’s not just about chess, but about control and hidden influences? Curator: Precisely. The image is a stage for the unconscious, where cultural anxieties play out through symbolic forms. It asks us: who are the players, and what are the true stakes? Editor: That reframes the whole piece for me. It is far more than just a game of chess. Thank you.