Collaborate!

02 Oct – 15 Dec 2019

Jerwood Arts, 171 Union Street , London

A major new group exhibition presenting commissions by early-career artists working in collaborative and collective practices based across the UK.

Coinciding with Frieze London 2019, Collaborate! responds to research about the challenges faced by early-career artists working in collaboration and provides a dedicated high profile opportunity that supports and promotes this method of artistic practice. It will present four new commissions alongside an accompanying events programme, contributing to critical dialogues about collaborative and collective practices in the visual arts sector.

The selected artist collectives are: Array, Languid Hands, Keiken + George Jasper Stone and Shy Bairns

Array is a collective based in Belfast which creates collaborative actions in response to socio-political issues affecting Northern Ireland. The group comprises of artists: Sighle Bhreatnach-Cashell, Sinéad Bhreatnach-Cashell, Alessia Cargnelli, Emma Campbell, Mitch Conlon, Clodagh Lavelle, Laura O’Connor, Grace McMurray, Stephen Millar and Thomas Wells.

Languid Hands is a London-based artistic and curatorial collaboration between DJ, filmmaker and programmer Rabz Lansiquot, and writer, facilitator and live art practitioner Imani Robinson.

Keiken + George Jasper Stone is a collaboration between Keiken, founded in 2016 by artists Tanya Cruz, Hana Omori and Isabel Ramos, and CGI artist and content designer George Jasper Stone. Based in London, Oxford and Penzance.

Shy Bairns is the collective practice of artists, designers and curators Izzy Kroese, George Gibson, Eleanor Haswell and Erin Blamire based in Manchester.

Jerwood Arts invited 12 curators from across the UK to nominate artist collectives and collaborations who they think are making outstanding work and would benefit from support at a pivotal point in their career.  The twelve curators are John Eng Kiet Bloomfield, Curator at Wysing Arts Centre; Seán Elder, Researcher at Grand Union; Cicely Farrer, Programme Manager at Hospitalfield and Freelance Curator; Cédric Fauq, Curator at Nottingham Contemporary; Vickie Fear, Curator at Aspex Gallery and Independent Curator; Louise Hobson, Independent Curator and Producer; Elinor Morgan, Senior Curator at Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (MIMA); Jane Morrow, Independent Curator and PhD Researcher; Mother Tongue (Tiffany Boyle & Jessica Carden), Independent Curators; Hannah Rose, Curator at The Gallery, Plymouth College of Art; Amanprit Sandhu, former Programme Curator: Residencies and Public Programme at Camden Arts Centre; and Zoe Watson, Curator of the Holden Gallery.

There were 21 artist collectives and collaborations nominated through this process and they were all invited to submit a proposal for the project.  The selection panel chose four artist groups to be part of the project and comprised of Kelly Best, artist; Antonio Roberts, artist and curator; Harriet Cooper, Head of Visual Arts, Jerwood Arts and Lilli Geissendorfer, Director, Jerwood Arts (Chair).

Keiken and George Jasper Stone, Feel My Metaverse, 2019. Commissioned for Jerwood Collaborate! Photo: Anna Arca.