New artist commission will use the Falklands Conflict to explore the idea of home
16 November 2023
The Box, Plymouth’s award-winning museum, art gallery and archive, has launched a call out for an artist commission that will connect with the city’s military heritage and explore the idea of home.
The commission has been made possible thanks to the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund, a national partnership programme of over 20 artist commissions inspired by the heritage of conflict. Led by Imperial War Museums, the initiative was created following the success of 14-18 NOW, the official UK arts programme for the First World War centenary.
The Box will use the Falklands Conflict of 1982 as a starting point for the commission and has been working with a group of local veterans and family members to develop an artist’s brief and explore a range of themes. As well as the overarching concept of home, additional areas such as communication, sacrifice and family pressures have also emerged.
Artists or collectives who are interested in responding to these themes are invited to submit an initial proposal idea with examples of previous work, relevant web links and a recent CV to [email protected] marked FAO Jodie Bishop, by Wednesday 6 December.
Four shortlisted artists will then be paid a small research budget of £250 to develop their proposals further in preparation for interviews in January 2024.
The successful artist will be able to work in any medium they choose, and the final outcome of their commission will need to be presented to the public by autumn 2024.
The total value of the commission is £13,000 which includes an artist fee of £3,000 and a production budget of £10,000. Additional funds, which will be managed by The Box, are also available to support community engagement activities.
The successful artist will be given access to The Box’s collections. They will also be expected to work with current community members, with the possibility of involving wider interested communities throughout the development process.
Project lead Jodie Bishop said:
This is an amazing opportunity for an artist to work on a truly collaborative project, that involves a national partner and the local community. Plymouth is a city built on a strong military history. It’s been and continues to be home to thousands of service personnel and their families all of whom have experienced the impact of conflict in different ways. It will be really interesting to see how our chosen artist responds to the themes our group of veterans has identified. We’re really looking forward to receiving artists initial proposals this side of Christmas and supporting the successful artist over the next few months as they realise this commission.
Anyone who would like more details, or an informal discussion about the commission, can email [email protected] or [email protected].