Angus Fairhurst, Damien Hirst and Sarah Lucas first met on the Fine Art course at Goldsmiths College in the 1980s and have remained close friends ever since. All three took part in the group show, Freeze in 1988 and subsequently went on to become some of the most important artists of their generation, featuring in numerous international exhibitions. By their own admission, they have influenced each other though a process of social interaction and intermittent collaboration over the past fifteen years.
Nearly twenty years after they first met, the artists come together for an exhibition whose title - a mutated pop reference to the classical theme of the Garden of Eden - is taken from the 1968 recording by psychedelic rock band Iron Butterfly. The exhibition will mark both a point at which to take stock of their careers and a launching pad for new ideas and developments. New works will be made collaboratively for the exhibition and existing works juxtaposed, creating new and fresh perspectives of the work of each artist.
The artists have each contributed texts and the book is illustrated with photographs of the artists by long-time fellow traveller Johnnie Shand Kydd. Gregor Muir discusses their friendship and past work, and Clarrie Wallis reflects on the theme of the Garden of Eden and writes about the new work made for the exhibition. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida will be a unique, documentary record of a one-off exhibition and the creative process behind it.