Olympic Artists Announced For 2012

David Hockney, Lucian Freud, Rachel Whiteread and Martin Creed are some of the visual artists the DCMS has announced to officially represent London during the 2012 Olympics. More than 1,000 nationwide events ranging from dance, music, theatre, the visual arts, film and digital innovation are planned with the aim of pulling in over three million people. The Festival will leave a lasting legacy for the arts in the UK. The visual arts include special commissions in development by contemporary artists as well as major exhibitions.
 Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries Ed Vaizey said: 'Today an invitation has gone out to the UK and to people across the world to join an extraordinary, inspirational party. Plans for the London 2012 Festival capture the spirit of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. They are exciting, ambitious and diverse and this is only the beginning. With millions of tickets, hundreds of thousands of them free, the London 2012 Festival really will be a chance for everyone to celebrate.’

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson said: 'We've less than 600 days to the start of the greatest sporting show on Earth and want to match it with a cultural programme that is also memorable and exciting. The calibre of the people announced today – from London, the UK and abroad – underlines the ambition of the London 2012 Festival. It will be a series of fantastic events to mark an unforgettable year in London's history.'