The Poor Door - Exhibiting Artists

 

A Collective Exhibition Tackling the Housing Crisis

The Poor Door exhibition is an arena for debate and discussion surrounding the housing crisis, an opportunity to challenge the status quo and to campaign for change through visual language including painting, photography, sculpture and performance.

The artists in The Poor Door were selected from an open call, there was an overwhelming response to the call out, it is exciting to see that so many artists are making work in response to the housing crisis.

The ten exhibiting artists are as follows:

Alison Berry, Rebecca Byrne, Tinsel Edwards, Mars Gomes, Kin, Lee Maelzer, Reena Makwana, S.P.A.R (with Brian Guest courtesy of Calum F Kerr), Tom Rizutto, Julia Russell.

 'Yellow Curtain' Lee Maelzer

I am also delighted to announce that The Poor Door exhibition has been selected for the Art Licks weekend 2015.  Art Licks Weekend is: "a festival that showcases the work of pioneering young artists, curators, galleries and project spaces in London."

The Poor Door

Opening night: Thursday October 1st 6-9pm

Show dates: 01.10.15 - 11.10.15

A-side B-side Gallery

Amhurst Terrace

E8 2BT

Thank you - The Poor Door Exhibition

Thank you so much to everyone who submitted work to be considered for The Poor Door Exhibition at A-side B-side Gallery in October.  Also thanks to everyone who helped to share the info and spread the word.

I was overwhelmed by the response, it's amazing to discover so many artists creating work about the housing crisis and I'm really looking forward to curating the exhibition.

I will be contacting everyone who submitted their work by Friday 19th June to let them know the outcome.  The exhibition will open on Thursday 1st October.

'Two Bed Flat With Terrace - AMAZING! £450 per week'
Oil on Canvas
2014

The Poor Door Exhibition - Seeking Artists!

OPEN CALL FOR ARTISTS
The Poor Door

A Collective Exhibition Tackling the Housing Crisis

I am curating an exhibition which will be held at A-side B-side Gallery in October.  I’m currently looking for artists who make work about housing and the home.  Please see below for further information about the show, and details for submitting work if you would like to apply.

'Contemporary, Spacious First Floor Double Room' Tinsel Edwards 2015

“This Ghetto crowding is not through inclination, but compulsion.”

Jack London The People of the Abyss

It’s 2015 and we are in the midst of a major housing crisis in the capital.  In 1903, Jack London wrote ‘The People of the Abyss’, a book describing the cramped living conditions and experiences of the poor in the East End of London.  Reading the book in 2015, some of it seemed strangely familiar. 

The extreme poverty experienced by many people in Victorian London is another world and another time, but the soaring rents and escalating house prices that London’s residents are experiencing today are similarly disempowering.

“It is notorious that here in the Ghetto the houses of the poor are greater profit earners than the mansions of the rich.  Not only does the poor worker live like a beast, but he pays proportionately more for it than does the rich man for his spacious comfort.”

Jack London The People of the Abyss

The Poor Door exhibition is an arena for debate and discussion surrounding the housing crisis, an opportunity to challenge the status quo and to campaign for change through visual language including painting, photography, sculpture and performance. The title is inspired by the furore over the development at One Commercial Street in Aldgate, which was built with two separate entrances.  Luxury marble floors, chandeliers and concierge for the wealthy city workers, and a side-alley door for the ‘affordable’ housing tenants.  The Poor Door is a growing trend in new housing developments in London, but this divisive phenomena seems reminiscent of the Victorian era.

“In a civilization frankly materialistic and based upon property, not soul, it is inevitable that property shall be exalted over soul”

Jack London The People of the Abyss

Exhibition Details and info on submitting work:

The show will be curated from an open submission, a percentage of sales will raise money for the housing charity Shelter.  If you are making art work about housing and you would like to take part in the exhibition please email jpegs, cv and info to: tinseledwards@hotmail.co.uk

·      Maximum of 6 jpegs labeled with your name and the title of the work

·      CV

·      Some brief info about the work you are submitting and why it relates to the theme of the show.

Deadline to submit artwork: 1^st June

Venue: A-side B-side Gallery, Hackney Downs Studios, E8 2BT

Dates: First two weeks in October – Thursday 1^st – Wednesday 14^th.

Public View: First Thursday

Throughout the week there will also be film screenings, talks and events from several communities, groups and individuals.

A Flat in Kings Cross

Another video installment.  

In this entry I am talking about a painting I am developing which is inspired by an advert for a flat in Kings Cross.  Last Autumn this tiny box room was advertised online by several letting agents, 20 people registered their interest within hours and it was rented in half a day.  The flat was promoted as: "A modern studio apartment which comes complete and fully self-contained with its own en-suite bathroom and kitchenette."

This unbelievable scenario went viral on social media as people expressed their shock.  You can read more about it in this article in The Independent.

Making this video blog has been a big learning process, talking to my phone is not my favourite thing to do in the world!  But I'm learning a lot, I'm hoping that it will be a good visual way to share the thought processes that go into making the work.  It's an organic and experimental process which will progress simultaneously to accompany the paintings.

The series of videos are now online on a Vimeo Channel, where you can also view previous entries.

With thanks to Mark Latimer, the painter and documentary maker who is helping me to create and edit these blogs.
@latimermark

Secret 7" Exhibition at Somerset House

Secret 7" is an annual charity event, this year it is being held at Somerset House to raise money for Nordoff Robbins, a music therapy charity dedicated to transforming the lives of children and vulnerable adults.

Harry Pye invited me to collaborate with him to create a design for Secret 7 this year, it was an honour to be asked and I liked collaborating with him.  We designed a sleeve for the track 'Dead Flowers' by The Rolling Stones.  I can't share it here just yet, the sale is anonymous and the artists who made the designs will only be revealed after the records have been sold.

Some text taken from the Secret 7" website: 'The concept is simple: each year Secret 7 takes an iconic track from seven legendary musicians and press each one to vinyl 100 times.  Each record receives a one-of-a-kind sleeve, as designed by 700 creatives.  On 4th May all the sleeves will go on sale for the uniform price of £50 to the general public.  The only catch is that the buyer won't know who the record is buy, or who has designed the sleeve until they have parted with their cash'

The songs this year were:

The Rolling Stones - 'Dead Flowers'
Diana Ross & The Supremes - 'Reflections'
Underworld - 'Born Slippy' (Nuxx)
The Chemical Brothers - 'Let Forever be'
St Vincent - 'Digital Witness'
Peter Gabriel - 'Sledgehammer'
The Macabees - 'Go'

Secret 7" launched at Somerset House on Thursday 9th April, records will be available to buy on May 4th.

I was really pleased with the design that Harry and I created, I will be sharing it here in a few weeks!

Video Blog Update from the Homes for Britain Rally

My second Video Blog is set in the context of The Homes for Britain Rally.  

The artist Mark Latimer who is very kindly shooting/creating the films for me went along to the rally and chatted to a few people to find out what they think about what's happening.

A few years ago when I started making paintings about the Housing Crisis, the term 'Housing Crisis' wasn't even being used.  People were talking about high rents and the impact it was having on their lives in London, but there didn't seem to be organised groups making a stand for change.  

But there are now so many people campaigning at a grassroots level for better housing, and it's brilliant.  Doing things collectively is GOOD.  For example the families of the New Era Estate, and the Focus E15 mums

Diffierent to these grassroots protests, The Homes for Britain campaign is big and organised, it: "Brings together all those who believe everyone has a right to a decent affordable home to call their own."

So my second video blog is set within this context and looks at how Homes for Britain are campaigning for affordable homes. 

As this blog develops I would like to talk to lots of different people from all sorts of groups, anyone who is affected by and concerned about the Housing Crisis.  I used to feel quite isolated making paintings about it in my studio, and I wasn't sure if that was really doing anything!  But now, the more I find out, the more I discover that there are so many people campaigning for change in their own ways, and it's great to finally feel part of something, a movement who's voice is getting stronger and stronger.

 

I need your Stories!

Do you have a story regarding an issue to do with the private rental market in London?

If you have read my blog before, you will know that I am currently working on a series of paintings that explore the issues surrounding the current housing crisis in London.  The series is a visual and artistic campaign for affordable homes in London, and for change.  

London house prices and the current housing situation is a subject regularly discussed, and as my painting project has developed I've started to incorporate people’s stories into the artwork. The genuine experiences and anecdotes that I’ve heard in casual conversation are fascinating and sometimes shocking.  It feels important to start representing these stories in the art work to show that the Housing Crisis is something we are experiencing collectively, and to give these very real situations a voice.

If you have a story to share I would love to hear it! if I use your story in one of my artworks it can be represented anonymously.  

Has your landlord raised your rent?

Do you feel that your home is worth the rent you pay?

Do you struggle to afford your rent?

I'm looking for anecdotes and quotes which describe how people are affected by what is happening with housing in London at the moment. 

You can email your story to: tinseledwards@hotmail.co.uk

Thank you so much in advance!

Tinsel Edwards x