Join us for the opening night of poíēsis, an exhibition by artist Tom de Freston at the Museum of Classical Archaeology. Grab a glass of wine and be one of the first to view this new body of works, the latest in a series of creative collaborations between de Freston and his wife, the novelist Kiran Millwood Hargrave.
The term poíēsis derives from the ancient Greek word ποιεῖν — ‘to make’, ‘to create’ — referring to the act of bringing something into being that did not previously exist. For Tom de Freston, this concept operates simultaneously as artistic method and lived experience: an intuitive, imaginative force that binds grief, love and transformation.
The works emerge from a period of profound personal upheaval: the couple experienced seven pregnancy losses before welcoming their daughter in 2023. Staged within shifting architectures and grounded within bodies which owe as much to Titian as they do the antique, the show reverberates with uncanny historical echoes - inviting us to find space for the pregnant body (and its vulnerabilities) in the classical canon. These works do not aestheticise grief; they metabolise it, fusing biography with myth in a language that is raw, tender and fiercely contemporary.
poíēsis runs from Wednesday 11 February until Saturday 16 May 2026.
Further information
- Find out more about the exhibition
- Find out more about Tom de Freston
- Find out more about Kiran Millwood Hargrave
Accessibility
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The Cast Gallery is on the first floor.
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We provide step-free access via our lift. To use the lift please call 01223 330402 on your arrival and we will send down a member of staff to assist you.
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An accessible toilet is available on the ground floor.
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This event may involve some standing, but there will be chairs available throughout the gallery. Please let us know either when you book tickets if you have an access requirements.
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Find out more about Museum Access.
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Please contact us on 01223 330402 or email museum@classics.cam.ac.uk if you have any questions or concerns about accessibility.
Car Parking
The Museum does not have a car park for members of the public to use; car parking onsite is unfortunately reserved for members of the University only. However, metred parking is available on Sidgwick Avenue.
The nearest car parks are Lammas Land or Grand Arcade.
- Find out more about Getting Here.
Who: everyone
£££: Free
Booking: essential