Matt’s Gallery News January 2008

Arts Council funding for Matt’s Gallery
At the beginning of the new year Matt’s Gallery were thrilled to be informed that Arts Council England will continue to fund the Gallery until 2011 with an inflationary increase. Our success in this funding is not only a reflection of the continued artist excellence of the programme but is also a direct result of generous donations throughout 2007 from gallery vistors and members of the public, which enabled us to continue to plan ahead and secure the funding. The funding will enable the gallery to offer the best possible working conditions for contemporary artists.

We will be delivery an exciting programme during the course of 2008 including Willie Doherty in January, Paul Rooney in April, special screenings of Susan Hiller's work The Last Silent Movie in July and Roy Voss in September. Please visit our Forthcoming Exhibitions page for further details.

Artists exhibitions and events
2007 was an exciting year for Matt’s Gallery and our artists. Here are some of the highlights of the latter part of 2007 and the first few weeks of 2008:

Willie Doherty’s exhibition Replays: Selected video works 1994-2007 opened to the public on 23 January 2008. A special screening of Ghost Story, followed by Willie Doherty and Tim Marlow in conversation, will be presented at the Prince Charles Cinema on Thursday 31 January, in collaboration with Artprojx.

Willie Doherty Ghost Story, 2007 (video still)

Ghost Story will be shown in the group exhibition On the margins at the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University, St. Louis and at other venues in Europe and North America during 2008.

Jo Bruton is currently participating in a group exhibition celebrating the history of painting at Chelsea College of Art and Design from 1990 to 2007 on display at the college until 22 February 2008.

Jo Bruton , Sheri Champagne and Gypsy Rose Lee, 2007 (acrylic on canvas)

A solo exhibition by David Osbaldeston is currently installed at the International Project Space in Birmingham entitled Another Shadow Fight, supported by Birmingham City University and Arts Council England. A pamphlet accompanies the exhibition with text by IPS curator Andrew Hunt.

David Osbaldeston Another Shadow Fight, currently showing at the International Project Space, Birmingham (installation view)

A solo exhibition of the work of Fiona Crisp will take place at the Newlyn Art Gallery in September. A new publication to accompany the exhibition will be co-published by Newlyn Art Gallery and Matt’s Gallery.

John Frankland has been working with Peer to realize a sculptural landmark project as part of the regeneration of two green spaces in Hackney. The Shoreditch Park commission, which involves the siting of Untitled Boulder within the park, is funded by The Deutsche Bank Award in partnership with The Shoreditch Trust.

John Frankland Untitled Boulder, Compton Verney (photography by John Kippin)

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Artists exhibitions and events continued
In 2007 Jordan Baseman was commissioned to produce new work for an exhibition at the Hatton Gallery and is currently Artist in Residence at Widnes Waterfront. Jordan Baseman is participating in a number of exhibitions and screenings in 2008, including the culmination of an Alchemy Fellowship at the Manchester Museum. His films Joy on Toast, Inside Man, An Event in the Village and the Documentary Imperative will be shown in the Museum throughout February and March.

Jordan Baseman Perfume Disco Coma, 2008 (production still)

Following on from her participation in Documenta 12, Imogen Stidworthy has been shortlisted for the inaugural Liverpool Art Prize. The corresponding exhibition will open in February 2008 and the result announced at an awards ceremony in March. Imogen Stidworthy has been invited to guest curate an exhibition at MuHKA in Antwerp, which opens in May 2008, where she will present her own work alongside that of 10 other artists.

At the end of 2007, Matt’s Gallery artists were recognised in a variety of major prizes, exhibitions and residencies:

Alison Turnbull was shortlisted for the 2007 Jerwood Drawing Prize and is currently working on a major new commission at 1 Vine Street with art consultants Modus Operandi. Matt’s Gallery is publishing a book to accompany the project designed by Phil Baines with text by Paul Bonaventura.

Alison Turnbull, Vine Street Commission, 2008 (work in progress)

Nathaniel Mellors participated in the 2007 Lyon Biennial, showing The Time Surgeon, which was co-commissioned by ArtSway, where the work was first shown. B.OK was published to accompany the exhibitions by text + work at the Art Institute at Bournemouth in association with ArtSway and distributed by Matt’s Gallery.

Nathaniel Mellors The Time Surgeon, 2007 Artsway, Hampshire (installation view)

Melanie Jackson won the Jerwood Drawing Prize in September 2007 for her digitally generated animation A Global Positioning System (2006). Melanie Jackson was also shortlisted for the MaxMara Art Prize and will be participating in the group exhibition Variable Capital at The Bluecoat in May.

Mike Nelsonwas nominated for the Turner Prize for his exhibition AMNESIAC SHRINE or Double coop displacement commissioned by Matt’s Gallery in 2006, and for Mirror Infill, an installation commissioned by Frieze Projects at the Frieze Art Fair, 2006. His commission for Creative Time in New York, A Psychic Vacuum, also received critical acclaim. In 2008 Mike Nelson will be participating in the group exhibitions Martian Museum of Terrestrial Art at the Barbican and Psycho Building at the Hayward Gallery.

Mike Nelson’s work can be seen at Print the Legend The Myth of the West at the Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh from 1 March to 4 May 2008.

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Matt’s Gallery Print Portfolio E3 4RR Print box, showing Nathaniel Mellors' Time Surgeon Performers’ Mask and title page designed by Phil Baines  

E3 4RR, our first print portfolio was launched in November 2007 in the Prints and Drawings Room at Tate Britain. The portfolio brings together the work of fifteen internationally acclaimed artists who have produced a unique etching, screen print or photograph exclusively for Matt’s Gallery. Information about the prints and the artists involved can be found on our print portfolio pages. For further information about the edition or any other works available by Matt’s Gallery artists, please contact Clare Fitzpatrick.

Matt’s Gallery is pleased to announce it is part of the Arts Council’s Own Art programme, designed to make it easy and affordable for everyone to buy contemporary works of art. To find out more about Own Art, see www.artscouncil.org.uk/ownart
To contact Matt’s Gallery about buying works email info@mattsgallery.org

Matt's Gallery Campaign
Our fundraising campaign is ongoing. Your continued support enables us to take risks and present groundbreaking exhibitions, work with and promote emerging and established artists, commission new work, develop our extensive archive, enhance our role in education and nurture the next generation of cultural leaders and artists. If you haven’t already made a contribution to the Matt’s Gallery appeal, either make a cheque payable to Matt’s Gallery and send it to the gallery address or donate online here using paypal. Your support is greatly appreciated.

Stanley Picker Trust Internship
Matt’s Gallery has been awarded funding by the Stanley Picker Trust to enable a series of internships. Our current Stanley Picker Intern is Holly Slingsby, artist and graduate of the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art. Holly will be working with the gallery for 6 months across a range of activities.

Matt’s Gallery is pleased to announce it is part of Time Out London's programme of late night gallery openings in East London on the first Thursday of each month. Matt’s Gallery is also included in the programme's guided bus tours. The next First Thursday at Matt’s Gallery will be on 6 March 2008 for Willie Doherty's exhibition. For further information and tour booking visit: www.firstthursdays.co.uk

Matt’s Gallery is open 23 January–16 March 2007, Wednesday–Sunday, 12–6pm for our current exhibition Willie Doherty's Replays: Selected video work 1994-2007

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