Wheelin' n Dealin' Exhibition

About

An exhibition of work by The Mildmay Collective, a group of 30 care home residents, families and staff co-led by artists Amy Pennington and Clea House who have been in residence since June 2014. Many members of the collective are adults suffering from degenerative illnesses. The work reflects the struggles of living with these conditions, their perception of societies view on them and the political and social nuances of living in a care home. 

Working from a training room turned art studio The Collective have been involved with art projects as groups, but also individually. This mixed media show includes: a series of political text based prints, a knit bombed wheelchair, and the remnants of a protest soap opera. A central piece of the exhibition is a vending machine that stocks purchasable artworks that reference the collective’s work from the past year.

The artistic process enabled members of The Collective to express themselves as individuals and develop their own arts practice. The residency has sought to challenge the role of what art can be in care settings, placing art at the centre of activity in the home. The Collective invites you to enter their world and to view things from their perspective.  The show is a promenade through this reality so many do not encounter.

The core collective members are: Daniel Berhane, Jean Curtis, Gary Dunn, Sue Finn, Clea House, Tracey Musgrave, Tony Neville, Amy Pennington, Tony Neville, Helen Theodore, Alex Wright, Mia Wright, Michael Waller

Amy Pennington is a northern artist based in London. Working primarily with drawing and people she often ventures off the paper into mediums such as film, installation and conversation. Amy often works in collaboration with people in spaces that do not typically inhabit artists such as estates, caravans and shops. Most recently she has undertook residencies with Battersea Art Centre (London), In-situ (Manchester) and has shown work at Project Row House, Houston, USA

Clea House has been working as an artist and designer in care homes for five years. Her practise focuses on prop making, photography and sound. She set up the award winning Cocktails in Care Homes project with Magic Me and has worked with a collective designing interiors for parties.

In mid May we will be hosting ‘Speed Dating with The Collective’ this is a chance to find out more about the collective, the challenges, expectations and any another questions that you would like to discuss.

Watch this space for full details and to reserve your free space.

www.mildmaycollecive.com