An Exhibition at Stockport War Memorial Art Gallery of paintings and drawings about military conflict spanning the last fifteen years.
To have been selected to fill the main gallery at Stockport War Memorial Art Gallery is hugely exciting. Since 9/11 back in 2001 I have made artworks about the conflicts which have subsequently arisen. Some of these works are satirical others are more documentary in nature but because of their theme they have rarely been commercially attractive to galleries seeking to cover their overheads and turn a profit. This has meant that as a body of work it has developed and largely stayed intact almost as if it were waiting for something like this to happen.
Within the building itself there is the town’s war memorial which makes the gallery unique in this respect. To exhibit a war themed show in relation to a permanent reminder of war’s consequence provides the ideal setting where art and reality create meaning together.
The Gallery itself has no budget to support exhibitors – and so individual artists are taking on a significant financial challenge in addition to an artistic one. In addition to the regular costs of framing and publicity; transportation and accommodation costs will also have to be met. Having a firm belief in gallery based education I have also committed myself to leading a set of gallery talks and drawing workshops over the duration of the exhibition to hopefully encourage and develop artistic involvement within the local community. Your involvement within this project will not only allow me to put on the best possible exhibition but also to give opportunity to those in the area to genuinely engage with art and artists.
REWARDS
£10 A letter of thanks and two A5 installation photos of the exhibition.
£20 A letter of thanks and an A4 limited edition reproduction of Tour of Duty Collage
£40 A letter of thanks and one limited edition Carry On Up The Khyber drypoint (original print edition of twelve per image)
£80 A letter of thanks and a limited edition Chinook drypoint (original print edition of ten)
£150 A letter of thanks and an original pencil drawing (eight maximum)
£200 A letter of thanks, a signed pencil drawing and a visit to my East London studio (four maximum)
£400 A letter of thanks plus a charcoal drawing and a visit to my studio (three maximum)
£800 A letter of thanks, a studio visit and a small oil portrait (one only)
All contributors regardless of amount donated will be put into a draw giving the chance to win my drawing ‘Snatch’ which was the winning entry in the 2003 Jerwood Drawing Prize.
The artworks for this exhibition have been completed, a contract has been signed with the gallery so there are no real risks to the project. The challenge is to sufficiently fund it so that the best possible outcome can be delivered.