Arts Council Collection Acquire More Women Artists In 2017-18

Arts Council Collection 2018

The UK’s largest national loan collection of modern and contemporary art, the Arts Council Collection, has unveiled the full list of 47 works by 25 artists that it has acquired for the nation in 2017-18. It was a noteworthy year for female artists coming into the Collection, and for the first time, the number of female artists outweighs the number of works by men, 15 to 10.

Among the highlights are works which will soon be on view in galleries across the country; Emma Hart’ s, Fork Face, 2017 is currently included in Arts Council Collection’s latest touring exhibition at Longside Gallery, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, In My Shoes: Art & the Self since the 1990s, before setting off on a nationwide tour. Two works from Manchester-based artist Miskha Henner’s series Dutch Landscapes, 2011 will be shown at Towner Art Gallery’s exhibition At Altitude in Eastbourne in June this year.

Emma Hart
Emma Hart

We are delighted to have received support from Art Fund this year to acquire two major works. Caragh Thuring’s Ardyne Point, 2016 will be part of another ACC touring show, curated by artist, Yinka Shonibare, opening later this year. The acquisition of Melanie Manchot Dance (All Night, London) 2017, a collective dance performance specially commissioned by Art Night (London) was made possible by Art Fund and Art Night.

Additionally, the artist John Sheehy gifted two works, which accompany three other paintings which were purchased by the Collection. Sheehy began painting at the age of 51, and over the past 18 years has produced a vast body of work that also includes printmaking and sculpture, in addition to playwriting, poetry and music. These works were presented in the artist’s first institutional exhibition, at Studio Voltaire in June 2017.

Turner Prize winner Lubaina Himid’s cotton.com, 2002 is a major work which celebrates an important but little-known act of solidarity by Manchester mill workers at the time of the American Civil War. As President Lincoln moved to abolish slavery, cotton supplies from the USA dried up, resulting in mass unemployment. Despite the high personal cost, the workers’ unions passed a motion in support of Lincoln’s efforts to end slavery.

The Arts Council Collection supports and promotes British art and artists by buying their work at an early or critical stage in their career. The Acquisitions Committee also purchased four paintings by Bradford-born artist Matthew Krishanu.

Artist Matthew Krishanu said about his works being added to the Collection: “It’s wonderful to know my paintings will be looked after and shown in future exhibitions. For me, the free public galleries and collections of the country are the lifeblood of the visual arts: as a teenager, visits to my local gallery introduced me to contemporary art and the possibilities of becoming an artist. Many of my favourite painters are in the Arts Council Collection; I’m delighted to be a part of it.”

Mishka Henner
Mishka Henner

Works from the Collection – spanning video, photography, installation, painting, computer animation and sculpture – are lent to galleries and public institutions throughout the country. In 2017, one or more works from the Collection were shown in 60 different galleries and museums in the UK, and 45 works were lent to 16 venues internationally, reaching an audience of over 2.2 million people. The newly acquired works on the list (detailed below) are all available to be lent to the nation with immediate effect.

Jill Constantine, Director of the Arts Council Collection, said: “This year was an exceptional year for the Arts Council Collection with artists from across the country being acquired.and we will be making sure that these works are seen as widely as possible. I am particularly proud that for the first time the number of female artists exceeds the number of men bought in any year. In this important year for women.”

Peter Heslip, Director, Visual Arts, Arts Council England, said: “The Arts Council Collection is one of a kind, and the Committee works hard throughout the year, actively collecting work and supporting artists right across the country. Now we hand over to the Collection team who will ensure these important pieces are seen by the most people for years to come.”

Alejandra Carles-Tolra

Alejandra Carles-Tolra

Recommendations to purchase innovative works of art that reflect artistic practice in Britain today are made by a changing group of external advisors to the Arts Council Collection Acquisitions Committee. For 2017-18 the selection committee comprised of: Helen Legg, Director, Spike Island, Bristol; Morgan Quaintance, writer and curator; and Anthea Hamilton, artist. The four permanent members of the acquisitions committee are Jill Constantine, Director, Arts Council Collection; Peter Heslip, Director, Visual Arts, Arts Council England; and Ralph Rugoff, Director, Hayward Gallery, London. The Chair of the Committee for 2017-18 was Maria Balshaw, Director, Tate Galleries.

FULL LIST OF WORKS ACQUIRED BY ARTS COUNCIL COLLECTION 2017-18

See the artists and works here: artscouncilcollection.org.uk/new-work/new-acquisitions

All works have been purchased through the Arts Council Collection annual acquisition budget other than those marked as gifts.

Ima-Abasi Okon, Put Something in the Air: The E-s-s-e-n-t-i-a-l Mahalia Jackson Blowing Up DJ Pollie Pop’s Chopped and Screwed Rendition of Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries — Military Entertainment Complex Dub [Jericho Speak Life!]*(Free of Legacy)*, 2017
Brass, acoustic sound underlay, artists’ jewellery, polyurethane varnish on board, 80 x 80 cm, brass vent 200 x 30 cm, brass vent 150 x 30 cm

Appau Jnr Boakye-Yiadom, Plantain Drop, 2014
C-type print, HD video, brass, 96.1 x 75.5 cm, 1 min 37 sec, Edition 1 of 3 + 2 AP

Maeve Brennan, The Drift, 2016
HD video with sound, 50 min 29 sec, Edition 2 of 5 + 2 AP

Helen Cammock, There’s a Hole in the Sky Part I, 2016
HD video, 19 min 6 sec, Edition 1 of 5 + 2 AP

Helen Cammock, There’s a Hole in the Sky Part II: Listening to James Baldwin, 2016
HD video, 11 min 10 sec, Edition 1 of 5 + 2 AP

Nicolas Deshayes, Becoming Soil, 2015
Vitreous enamel on steel, Two parts, 160 x diameter 28.5 cm and 180 x diameter 20 cm

Nicolas Deshayes, Becoming Soil, 2015
Vitreous enamel on steel, Two parts, 180 x diameter 14 cm each

Nicolas Deshayes, Becoming Soil, 2015
Vitreous enamel on steel, Three parts, 200 x diameter 29.5 cm and two pipes 180 x diameter 14 cm each

Ibrahim El-Salahi, By His Will, We Teach Birds How to Fly No. 13, 1969
Pen, ink and wash on paper, 38 x 56 cm

Beatrice Gibson, F for Fibonacci, 2014
16 mm and 35 mm transferred to HD video, surround sound, 16 min 20 sec, Edition 1 of 5 + 1 AP

Beatrice Gibson The Future Is Getting Old Like the Rest of Us, 2010
16 mm transferred to HD Video, stereo sound, 48 min, Edition 1 of 5 + 1 AP

Emma Hart, Fork Face, 2017
Glazed ceramic and steel, 67 x 71 x 100 cm

Mishka Henner, Unknown Site, Noordwijk aan Zee, South Holland, 2011
Archival pigment print, 80 x 90 cm, Edition 2 of 5​

Mishka Henner, Willem Lodewijk van Nassau Kazerne, Vierhuizen, Groningen, 2011
Archival pigment print, 80 x 90 cm, Edition 2 of 5​

Lubaina Himid, Cotton.com, 2002
Eighty-five oil on canvas panels, brass strip, Dimensions variable

John Kippin, Prayer Meeting (Windermere), 1992
Pigment print, 76 x 71 cm, Edition 3 of 25

Matthew Krishanu, Girl with Book, 2012
Acrylic on canvas, 75 x 60 cm

Matthew Krishanu, Ordination, 2017
Oil on canvas, 240 x 180 cm

Matthew Krishanu, Skeleton, 2014
Oil on canvas, 150 x 200 cm

Matthew Krishanu, Boy and Mask, 2017
Oil on canvas, 70 x 55 cm

Paul Maheke, Tropicalité, l’Île et l’Exote, 2014
HD video with subtitles (silent), 12 min 50 sec, Edition 1 of 3 + 1 AP

Melanie Manchot, Dance All Night (London), 2017
3 channel video installation comprising 4K and HD video, double stereo sound, 30 min, Edition 1 of 5 (Commissioned by Art Night and made possible by Art Fund)

William McKeown, Cloud Cuckoo Land, 2004-2018
Digitally printed wallpaper, Dimensions variable

William McKeown Turning Buttercups #2, 2008
Oil on linen, 46 x 46 cm

Hardeep Pandhal, Baba Deep Thing by Mum, 2014
Synthetic wool, 150 x 60 x 15 cm

Hardeep Pandhal, Untitled, 2017
Printed plastic, powder coated steel, 180 x 150 x 50 cm approx

Hardeep Pandhal, A Nightmare on BAME Street, 2018
4K animation, 10 min 32 sec, Edition 1 of 3 + 2 AP

Laura Phillips, Geoluread & Genie, 2017
Single screen 16:9 HD animation, stereo sound, 4 min, Edition 1 of 2 + 2 AP

Magali Reus, Leaves (Harp, January), 2015
Model board, phosphated aluminium, silicone rubber, pigments, powder coated, zinc plated, etched and anodized aluminium, steel, 42 x 61 x 15 cm

Aura Satz, Dial Tone Drone, 2014
Wav file, telephone mouthpiece for MP3 player, 14 min, Edition 1 of 5 + 1 AP

Aura Satz, Between the Bullet and the Hole, 2016
HD video 12 mins, Edition 1 of 5 + 1 AP

John Sheehy, Last Orders, date unknown
Acrylic on board, 122 x 63 cm

John Sheehy, Thank You For Your Custom, date unknown
Oil on unstretched canvas, 218.5 x 202 cm

John Sheehy, Quickest Quickly, date unknown
Acrylic on board, 54.2 x 70.5 cm

John Sheehy, The Chimney is Swept, date unknown
Acrylic on board, 80 x 60 cm (Gift of the artist and Studio Voltaire, 2018)

John Sheehy, Music in the Frying-Pan Pub Brick Lane in the Sixties, date unknown
Acrylic on suitcase, 50.5 x 72 x 23 cm (Gift of the artist and Studio Voltaire, 2018)

Marianna Simnett, The Needle and the Larynx, 2016
Digital HD video with surround sound, 15 min 17 sec, Edition 2 of 5 + 2 AP

Caragh Thuring, Ardyne Point, 2016
Bitumen, graphite, oil, gold leaf on cotton and linen, 243.7 x 182.7 cm (Purchased with the assistance of the Art Fund)

Jessica Warboys, Tremolo, 2017
Wood, PVC pipe, acrylic paint, Two channel sound DMX controlled incandescent stage blinders, computer software, loudspeakers, 81 x 81 x 27 cm, 20 min

Michelle Williams Gamaker, House of Women, 2016
16mm film transferred to HDV, 14 min 5 sec, Edition 1 of 3

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