Art On The Underground Launches Schools Poster Competition

Art on the Underground is calling on 5 to 18 year olds to create a poster to celebrate the Tube’s 150th anniversary.  The competition draws upon Labyrinth, a major project by artist Mark Wallinger, who has created a unique artwork for each of the 270 Tube stations for the anniversary.
 
The design can be inspired by the words ‘Future Journeys’ or ‘Your Journey Starts Here’, however it must include a reference to the entrant’s local station and a labyrinth design. This project is the latest in Transport for London’s ongoing work with schools. The artwork can be about a real or imaginary journey. For the ‘Future Journeys’ category entrants should think about what their station might look like in 2063 when the London Underground is 200 years old.
 
The competition is open to children aged between 5 to 18 year olds who attend school in the Greater Londonarea, Chiltern, Epping Forest, Three Rivers and Watford. To enter the competition, schools must register at art.tfl.gov.uk/labyrinth/poster-competition Teachers may then submit the artwork entries on behalf of the students. The posters can be any style from abstract to cartoon, use any colours and any medium from collage to painting. The Labyrinth Teacher Pack, available from art.tfl.gov.uk/labyrinth/learning, provides a wealth of creative ideas for classroom activities and inspiring ideas for the competition entries.
 
The three winning designs will be displayed at various Tube stations to be seen by the hundreds of thousands of passengers that use the London Underground every day. A professional designer will work with the children and young people to produce the final posters. Louise Coysh, Curator for Art on the Underground, said: “We are asking all children and young people aged between 5 and 18 years to getcreative and design a poster to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Tube.
 
“The poster could be based on your vision of what a Tube station might look like in 2063 – when the London Underground will be 200 years old! It should also include a labyrinth as part of the design and referenceyour local station.
 
“The winning posters will brighten the journeys of hundreds and thousands of passengers when they are displayed at selected stations.”
 
 Mark Wallinger, born in Chigwell in 1959, is one of the UK’s leading contemporary artists. Among his works are Ecce Homo, the first commission for the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square, (1999), State Britain (2007) at Tate Britain, the proposed Ebbsfleet Landmark Commission White Horse (2009), Via Dolorosa in the crypt of the Duomo in Milan and Sinema Amnesia (2012) for Turner Contemporary in Margate (2012). Among his solo shows are the Serpentine Gallery, London, Tate Liverpool, Vienna Secession, Museum for Gegenwartskunst, Basel, Palais Des Beaux Arts, Brussels, Museum de Pont, Tilburg and his latest solo exhibition, SITE, took place in 2012 at Baltic, Gateshead. He was one of three artists commissioned for Metamorphosis: Titian 2012 at the National Gallery, London as part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. His work is in the collections of leading international museums including Tate, MoMA New York, and Centre Pompidou Paris. Wallinger represented Great Britain at the 2001 Venice Biennale. He was awarded the Turner Prize in 2007.

Alongside the Labyrinth commission, Art on the Underground continues its programme of collaborations between artists and young people, working with schools and 33 boroughs to enable teachers, students and their communities to inspire their own creative responses which will be shared on the Labyrinth online microsite. A special project with young people in partnership with Youth Support Development Service in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea will lead to new artworks and exhibitions at selected Tube stations.

The deadline for entries is 28 June. The judges including the Art on the Underground team will be looking for original and striking posters. The winners will be invited to an awards ceremony later in the year.
 

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