Every college town nurtures its own hothouse music subculture, and the venerable university halls of Oxford, England, are no exception. During the 1990s Brit-pop era, the “Oxford scene” saw bands such as the chirpy retro-pop trio Supergrass and the dreamy “shoegaze” outfit Ride making waves nationally. But no band emerged with the same impact as Radiohead. Art-rockers whose members got together while pupils at an expensive private school in Abingdon, they debuted in 1986 at Oxford’s legendarily scuzzy music venue, the Jericho Tavern. “This Is What You Get: Stanley Donwood, Radiohead, Thom Yorke” is a homecoming. Featuring the band’s original artwork—paintings for album covers, drawings, etchings, CD booklets, posters, and drafts of lyrics—the exhibition takes its title from a line in Radiohead’s haunting song “Karma Police.” The work on view is the product of a partnership. Yorke and Stanley Donwood met while students at the University of Exeter; after graduating, Yorke rejoined the band in Oxford, and Donwood worked odd jobs to support his art practice. In 1994, Donwood and Yorke began designing all of the band’s promotional materials, and they continue to do so to this day. Their work together reflects the restless, experimental spirit they share. —Andrew Pulver
Arts Intel Report
This Is What You Get: Stanley Donwood, Radiohead, Thom Yorke

The members of Radiohead: Ed O’Brien, Colin Greenwood, Philip Selway, Thom Yorke, and Jonny Greenwood in Oxford, 1993.
When
Until Jan 11, 2026
Where
Etc
Photo: Ken Sharpe