Ellie Cotton

At the onset of 2025, General Assembly is pleased to present Vital. Engaging with art historical dialogues about pictorial and visual language in our contemporary moment, Vital seeks to address questions about how value is communicated in today’s increasingly digital culture. General Assembly seeks to investigate how artists both new to General Assembly and those the gallery has an established relationship with communicate value in their work. What is the language which we communicate through today? Is that language necessarily communicated through painting? Does today’s art translate as “vital”?

General Assembly is pleased to present A Study of Saint Francis, Ellie Cotton’s debut solo exhibition. In this presentation Cotton explores Saint Francis, the 13th century ascetic preacher and founder of the Franciscan order, through a series of paintings set in contemporary and surreal contexts. A son of a rich merchant, Saint Francis renounced his wealth and his family ties, devoting his life to preaching to all creatures, including animals.